By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Hyderabad: Osmania University has witnessed a rare Dalit assertion and retaliation against right wing Hindutva elements, when a fellow student was brutally beaten up by Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) BJP’s and RSS’s student wing. The reaction of Dalit students which followed after the attack on their fellow member has shaken the base of ABVP in OU which for past decade has become their den.
Dalits across India have been a soft target of right wing Hindutva forces in order to dissolve Dalit independent identity.
Trouble began in the university campus when a Dalit student Perka Shyam, a Ph.D. Chemistry research scholar was attacked by the ABVP activists in the late Friday night. Since morning tension was building up between TRSV (student union of TRS) and ABVP when former members were interrogated by later after a mobile phone was stolen. As P. Shyam was a Dalit member of TRSV, he became a soft target by ABVP when he was alone at a tea stall in the campus, where 20 ABVP activists beaten him with lathis, thus inflicted harsh injuries on whole body.
Portraits of Hedgewar, Savarkar and Tilak vandalized
On Saturday students lodged a complaint at OU police station against the act of ABVP, as the news spread agitated Dalit students gathered at Krishnaveni B- hostel and took out a rally with lathis amidst of anti-Hindutva and ABVP slogans. Dalit students before leaving the B-hostel took out the portraits of RSS founder Hedgewar, Hindu Mahasabha leader Veer Savarkar and Bal Gangadhar tilak which was installed in the corridor since the hostel was first inaugurated in 1970’s. Students also tear down saffron flag which was raised on the balcony of the hostel building. Student paraded the photos upside down in the campus beating it by foots and slippers.
Saffron flag removed from the hostel building
Series of attacks on Dalit’s in the campus
This is not first time a Dalit student was attacked by ABVP in the campus, in past there have been constant attacks on Dalits, but the pace of these brutal attacks increased after the Beef festival which was conducted in the campus by Dalit students last year in the same month.
Potraits of Hedgewar, Savarkar and Tilak getting burned
Even during beef festival two Dalit students were wounded by sharp weapons by ABVP activists, the recent attack incident occurred during Ganesh visarjan when a Dalit student was beaten up when he refused to attend Ganesh pooja.
Potrait of hedgewar getting removed by Dalit students
Dalit activists in the campus where tolerant on the attacks as they didn’t wanted to divert ongoing separate Telangana state agitation in the campus, but the recent brutal beating of P. Shyam rubbed salt on their wounds.
Dalit students cutting across party affiliations gathered at Arts college building, shouted slogans against Hindutva elements in the campus while portrait of Hedgewar decorated by sleepers was getting kicked from all quarters.
Potrait of Hedgewar decorated by sleeper
Saraswati idol demolished
By the time police force was also arrived at the spot and tried to pacify agitating Dalit students. In the meantime some angry Dalit students broke the Sarasawati idol allegedly constructed illegally in the backside of the Arts College. Students brought that idol and smash it to the ground by throwing it from staircase of Arts College.
As the news of idol desecration spread some ABVP activists started gathering near the arts college road, but they were literally chased down by Dalit students with Lathis, ABVP activists got dispersed and ran way.
Police rushed at the protest spot
Dalit students than took the portraits of Hegdewar, Savarkar and Bal Gangadhar Tilak in the middle of the arts college road and burned it down rising slogans warning and challenging Hindutva forces.
Hedgewar portrait getting kicked
The act of Dalit students created shockwaves among Hindutva and pan-Hinduism elements in Hyderabad. Some right wing Hindu extremists started given call on social networking sites to organize a rally to Osmania University to demolish Arts College building in retaliation to smashing of Saraswati idol, while ABVP has announced save Mandir’s in Osmania university camping.
Dalit studnet attacked by lathis by ABVP activists
Six Dalit students and five ABVP students arrested
Police deployed huge contingent around the campus especially around Ambedkar hostel from where six Dalit students Sudarshan, Stalin, Mandala Bhaskar, Gellu Srinivas and Shyam were arrested and taken into police custody, police also arrested five ABVP members on the earlier complaint of attacking Dalit student.
Dalit students taking out procession in the campus
Meanwhile student groups in neighboring English and Foreign Language University took out a rally in the campus supporting the agitation of Dalit students, different student groups of Hyderabad Central University also issued a press statement condemning the act of ABVP students and demanded immediate release of arrested Dalit students.