Dalits lay siege to Social Welfare office

The protesters want tainted officers transferred; Police remain mute spectators

Members of various Dalit association attempted to lock the office of the Social Welfare as part of their protest in the City on Monday.

The protesters alleged that the government and the district administration has neglected the development work in the district.

Tension prevailed on the premises for a while. When the protest was intensified, the police had to take control of the situation.

Police action

The police tried to prevent the protesters from locking the office, following which the members of the association blocked the roads for more than two hours which resulted in an extreme chaos.

The commuters fell prey to the situation as the chaos resulted in traffic congestion, as the protesters refused to compromise on the means of the protest.

Due to this, there was heavy police patrolling in an around the office.

Background

The City police tightened the security on the premises of Social Welfare Office on Sunday acting on the information that the District Vigilance Committee Dalit Sangharsha Samithi, Dalit Women’s Union, Dalit Student’s Union and other associations are going to take out a protest. Barricades were also erected.

On Monday,additional number of police personnel were deployed to tackle the protesters who arrived at the spot beating drums as part of their protest. After half an hour, they tried to barge into the office, after which the police personnels took charge of the situation.

Activists of the Dalit Sangharsh Samithi, K C Rajakantha and Venkatesh put forward their demands and complaints. There was a tiff between the police and the protesters. 

The protesters were heard shouting slogans: “Unless the doors of the office are locked, we will not withdraw the protest. The tainted officers should be transferred at the earliest.”

Traffic diversion

The police officials diverted the traffic to avoid congestion and urged the protesters to withdraw the protest. When the protesters failed to concede to the police orders, the matter was taken to the senior officers of the district administration.

 The protest was withdrawn after the Zilla Panchayat CEO B S Shekharappa arrived at the spot and accepted the memorandum.

DySP M S Kakhandaki, Circle Inspector S Mahesh Kumar and other police officials were present at the spot.