Dalit activists fume over tenders from ONLY SC-STs to guard footwear at temples

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Dalit rights activists are enraged that the Hindu religious and charitable endowment (muzrai) department had a tender reserved for SC and STs to manage footwear stands at temples, while other ‘general’ populations were given other services.

The tender has been withdrawn by the government after the backlash. However, Dalit organisations and activists across the state have condemned the act. “All these officials have Ambedkar’s photo in their offices, but they don’t know anything about caste equality.

These officials who have humiliated people from the marginalised communities should be punished by the state government. These officials don’t follow the rights given to the lower caste people by the constitution, and hence things like these are happening,” said Siddharaju of Dalit Sangharsh Samiti.

Another advocate and activist, Lokesh, said that all Dalit MLAs should write to the government to condemn the act. “We should unite and let the government know that this kind of casteist attitude will not be tolerated.

The world has changed, and now we are aware of our rights. The Bommai government should make sure that officials who published the tender should be punished,” he said. Chairman of the Karnataka Congress communication cell Priyank Kharge also tweeted, “The move by the BJP government is a celebration of untouchability and perpetuation of Manusmriti.”

The Muzrai department, however, has said that they were following a 2016 order that made it mandatory to reserve some services for ST and SC in temple work. “The tender was only given to follow the 2016 order to reserve services for ST and SC for temple work,” said an official of the department.

Rohini Sindhuri, the department commissioner for the Muzrai department, also said that officials should have thought about the consequences of their action. The tender was withdrawn on Wednesday, with immediate effect.