Home / News / Urgent Appeals / INDIA: Corrupt practices promoting caste-based discrimination in Uttar Pradesh

INDIA: Corrupt practices promoting caste-based discrimination in Uttar Pradesh

October 12, 2007

URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

Urgent Appeal

12 October 2007
---------------------------------------------------------------------
UA-294-2007: INDIA: Corrupt practices promoting caste-based discrimination in Uttar Pradesh

INDIA: Corruption; caste-based discrimination; abuse of power; intimidation
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights [PVCHR], a human rights organisation based in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh regarding the continuing caste-based discrimination against the Musahar community in the state. It is reported that the Musahars in Hamirpur village were threatened and abused by the Block Development Officer (BDO) and the head of Badagaon block. It is further reported that the reason why the Musahars were abused and threatened was because they refused to pay bribes to the officers and also lodged a complaint against them. 

CASE DETAILS:

The Musahars are one of the most marginalised untouchable communities living in India. Untouchability, though prohibited in law is still practised in India. To provide support to the Musahar community the government has launched a programme to provide trolleys to the members of the Musahar community in the state. The trolleys were to be distributed free of cost to the Musahars. In September 2007 some trolleys were to be distributed to the Musahars in Hamirpur village of Badagaon block in Varanasi district. The BDO and the head of the block demanded Rupees 2,000 (USD 52) as bribe from the Musahars for every trolley that were to be handed over to the Musahars. The Musahars refused to pay the bribe and demanded that the trolley must be distributed to them complying with the government scheme.

The states in India are divided into districts, blocks, tehsils (units of government), panchayats and villages for administrative purposes. Mr. Dhanai Musahar son of Juthu Musahar living in the village, submitted a written complaint regarding the demand for bribe on the Tehsil day held in Pindra block, Varanasi on September 18, 2007. People come with their grievances on the Tehsil day. Tehsil days are held on every Tuesday in all Tehsil offices in Uttar Pradesh. Once Dhanai filed the complaint, the Musahar community in Hamirpur village got their trolleys.

At about 10am on September 27, 2007, when Dhanai was in Nathaipur village, he was threatened by Mr. Lolarak Singh, son of Lallan Singh, the village head of Nathaipur and Mr. Rajan Singh, son of Ram Ujagar, a teacher at the Hamirapur primary school. Lolarak Singh and Ram Ujagar abused Dhanai referring to his mother and sister using abusive language, indicating their caste and referring them as 'untouchables'. Lolarak and Ram belong to the upper caste.

Later, Lolarak and Ram forcefully took Dhanai to Badagaon block and forced him to sign on a blank paper. Lolarak and Ram again threatened Dhanai saying that if Dhanai made a complaint regarding the incident to anyone, no trolley would be allotted to him and that he would be killed. Kanchan, Mangri, Halchal and Vindyavasani of the Musahar community have witnessed the incident. However, they are so scared that they are afraid to make a statement about the incident.

Dhanai is feeling insecure now and is afraid whether the paper that he signed will be used against him. Dhanai is also afraid to approach the police station to make a complaint against his assailants.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

After this incident, the members of the Musahar community in Hamirpur village filed a complaint to the government on October 1, 2007 informing the state government authorities that they are denied all facilities through the government schemes unless they paid bribes to the concerned officers. Among several issues the Musahars requested the state government to ensure that the (1) welfare schemes for the widows and the aged from the Musahar and the Nut community are distributed properly, (2) to ensure the distribution of ration cards to the members of the lower caste communities, (3) to make sure that the land allotment from the village to landless lower caste families are made without further delays, (4) to ensure the daily functioning of the child care centre where the lower caste communities lives and (5) to take immediate steps to prevent the atrocities committed against the lower caste communities in the village by the upper caste. The complaint was filed to the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Pindra who came to hear the people. The SDM promised to take immediate steps to address the complaints and the issues raised by the Musahars but thus far done nothing.

The Block Development Office is a government agency that works for rural development. The office, also commonly known as the Block Office, provides the rural community with the facilities for welfare under various government schemes. The corruption of government officials in the Block Office and the village head who play a role in delivering the government service at different levels, leads to the failure of this government service. This has a direct bearing upon the livelihood issues of the ordinary people, particularly upon those who are marginalised. For further information please see HA-003-2007 and HA-010-2007.

The AHRC therefore urges you to write to the relevant authorities to investigate this case and ensure that the alleged perpetrators should be punished. As long as this deep-rooted corruption continues, the supports from the government will never reach the marginalised people. 

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh to express your concern for ongoing corruption and caste-based discrimination against Musahars in the state. Please call for investigations and disciplinary actions to be taken against the concerned government officials. The AHRC is also writing a separate to the UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance to bring this case to his attention.

To support this appeal, please click:

Sample letter:

Ms. Mayawati
Chief Minister
Chief Minister's Secretariat
Lucknow,
Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Fax: + 91-522-2230002/2239234
Email: csup@up.nic.in 

Dear Chief Minister,

INIDA: Corrupt practices promoting caste-based discrimination in Uttar Pradesh

Name of victim: Mr. Dhanai Musahar, son of Jothu Musahar living in Hamirpur village, Varanasi district, Uttar Pradesh
Name of alleged perpetrators:
1. The Block Development Officer of Badagaon Block, Varanasi
2. Mr. Satendra Singh, head of block, Badagaon, Varanasi
3. Mr. Lolarak Singh, son of Lallan Singh, head of village, Nathaipur, Varanasi
4. Mr. Rajan Singh, son of Ram Ujagar, a teacher of Hamirpur primary school, Hamirpur village, Varanasi
Place of incident: Nathaipur village, Varanasi
Date of incident: 27 September 2007

I am writing to express my concern about the ongoing corruption and caste-based discrimination in Uttar Pradesh state.

I have learned that any abuse and other atrocities against the scheduled caste in India is prohibited by law and is a crime. I am surprised however about the lack of appropriate response of the government officers to the complaints of the lower caste communities. I am equally worried about the widespread corruption prevalent in India, and the manner in which such corruption work for the detriment of the marginalised communities.

I am informed that the victim named above, Mr. Dhanai Musahar, son of Jothu Musahar living in Hamirpur village, lodged a complaint against the corrupt officers on the Tehsil day. I am informed that since then Dhanai is facing threats and intimidation from various upper caste persons in the village and he was even forced to sin blank papers. I am also informed that even a school teacher is involved in threatening Dhanai, which to me shows the attitude of the upper caste persons against the lower caste, particularly when the lower caste community challenge corrupt practices and unwarranted authority.

In this context I wish to bring to your attention the corrupt practices of the Block Development Officer and the head of the Block in Badagaon Block in Varanasi district of Uttar Pradesh, who demanded Rupees 2000 each from the Musahar community of Hamirpur village for each trolley that the government wanted to distribute to the Musahar community in the village. I am also aware that the Musahar community has submitted a written complaint to the Sub Divisional Magistrate of Pindra on October 1, 2007, expressing their concerns. The officer has received the complaint and has done nothing yet to address the issues. The issues which the Musahars wanted to be immediately addressed are:

(1) welfare schemes for the widows and the aged from the Musahar and the Nut community are distributed properly, (2) to ensure the distribution of ration cards to the members of the lower caste communities, (3) to make sure that the land allotment from the village to landless lower caste families are made without further delays, (4) to ensure the daily functioning of the child care centre where the lower caste communities lives and (5) to take immediate steps to prevent the atrocities committed against the lower caste communities in the village by the upper caste.

I hope you will consider this letter as most urgent and take appropriate actions to enquire into the allegation of demand for bribe by the Block officers in Badagaon Block and also urge the Sub Divisional Magistrate Pindra to act upon the complaint that he has received from the Musahar community on October 1, 2007.

I look forward to your real action into this matter.

Yours truly,


----------------------

PLEASE ALSO SEND A COPY  TO:

1. Ms. Veena Kumari
District Magistrate
Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
INDIA
Fax: 91 5422501450

2. Chairperson
National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
Government
5th Floor, Loknayak Bhawan
Khan Market
New Delhi 110003
INDIA
Fax: + 91 11 2462 5378
Email: chairman-ncsc@nic.in

3. Ms. Selja
Minister of State for Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation
Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (M/o HUPA)
Nirman Bhavan, Maulana Azad Road
New Delhi - 110011
Fax: + 91 11 23061780
Email: kumari.selja@nic.in 

4. Mr. Abdul Rehman Antulay
Minister for Minority Affairs
11th Floor, Paravaran Bhawan
CGO Complex, Lodhi Road
New Delhi - 110 003
E-Mail: sdatta@nic.in

5. Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar
Minister (Panchayati Raj)
R.No. 401-C, Shastri Bhawan
Room 69-C Parliament House
New Delhi
INDIA
Fax: + 91 11 23381898
Email: msaiyar@hotmail.com or b.vanlalvawna@mea.gov.in 

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-294-2007
Countries :
Issues :
Document Actions
Share |
Subscribe to our Mailing List
Follow AHRC
Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.