No record of any anandiben promise to una dalit victims: gujarat government

Gandhinagar, March 20 (IANS) The Gujarat government on Tuesday denied then Chief Minister Anandiben Patel had promised to give a government job or piece of land to Dalit victims who were

thrashed in Una two years back. In response to Dalit activist Jignesh Mevani's question if Patel had promised to giving either five acres of land or government jobs to the Dalits in

Samadhiyala village who were flogged and paraded naked on July 2016 for allegedly cow slaughte, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Ishwarbhai Parmar said that no such matter is found on

government record. The treatment of Vashram, Ramesh, Ashok and Bechar Sarvaiya had been captured on camera and which went viral on social media, shaking the nation and the world and forced

the state government into action. Anandiben Patel had rushed of to the victims and assured them of prompt action against the perpetrators. At the time, she had also promised land or jobs to

the victims. Nearly two years since the incident, not seeing any implementation of this assurance, Mevani had questioned the government. These four victims and their families have also

decided to renounce Hinduism and embrace Buddhism in a mass conversion programme to be held on Buddh Purnima on May 29. They have also said that they will reach out to other atrocity victims

and get them to convert. In a reply to another question, the Social Justice and Empowerment Department admitted that the Vigilance and Monitoring Committee, headed by the department's

Principal Secretary, set up to look into the atrocities against the Scheduled Castes and Tribes had met only twice during the last two years. The committee is supposed to meet after every

three months and in its reply, the government has assured that from now on it will be ensured that committee meets regularly. (This story was auto-published from a syndicated feed. No part

of the story has been edited by THE QUINT.)