Andhra Pradesh: Kaarem Venkateswara Rao, State Vice-President of Vyavasaaya Karmika Sangham, has called for the immediate arrest and punishment of those responsible for the heinous attack on a Dalit man. The victim, who was suffering from dizziness and resting on a rock-bed outside a house, was doused with hot oil in a brutal assault.
In a press note, released from Amalapuram, Rao highlighted the ongoing plight of Dalits in India, despite the country’s independence 75 years ago and the constitutional protections in place.
He lamented that, regardless of the number of governments that have come to power, Dalits continue to face severe discrimination and violence, particularly in rural Andhra Pradesh.
The incident occurred on the evening of July 12, in Penna Peruru village, Kadapa District. Kadiri Prabhakar, a member of the SC Mala caste, was returning from a funeral when he began feeling unwell. He sought to rest in front of a house where Chinnappa Gajjala Venkatasubba Reddy, the homeowner, was present.
Instead of offering assistance, Venkatasubba Reddy berated Prabhakar with casteist slurs, saying, “How dare you, a low caste, sit on the rock-bed where the upper castes sit?” Following this, the attackers poured hot oil on Prabhakar and beat him ruthlessly.
Rao demanded that this atrocity be registered as an SC/ST atrocity and that the perpetrators be severely punished. He also urged the government to ensure that Prabhakar, who is in critical condition at RIMS Hospital, receives the best possible medical treatment and that all expenses be covered by the state.
This brutal attack underscores the rampant caste-based inhumanity in rural Andhra Pradesh. Despite being equally eligible for all rights and opportunities under the Indian Constitution, Dalits continue to face severe and violent discrimination.
Law enforcement authorities and the government must take stringent action to prevent such atrocities in the future.
