Violent crimes against SCs in Karnataka went up 67%

Atrocities against scheduled castes went up in 2018, with one person belonging to SC/ST community being killed every three days in Karnataka even as Bengaluru Urban district tops the state when it comes to atrocities against the community.

A report released by the Committee for Monitoring and Strengthening Members of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Community in Karnataka (CMASK) shows that the number of murder and attempt to murder cases against members of the community rose by 67% in 2018 compared to the previous year.

Though the overall number of atrocity cases registered in the state dropped from 2,010 to 1,751, state convener of the committee Yashodha P said the increase of violence against the members of the community in the state was a disturbing factor.

To a question, she said scheduled castes were subjected to violence for some of the most trivial reasons. “Caste Hindus in Bagalkot district exhibited violence against scheduled castes who whizzed past them on a bike. In villages, the scheduled castes have no voice and no agency to stand up against such atrocities,” she said.

The report based on the data obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act puts Bengaluru, with 163 cases, on the top spot.

The city is followed by Bengaluru Rural (94), Mysuru (88), Kalaburagi (84) and Bealagavi (77).

Yashodha noted that the number of cases were high in urban areas due to the increased awareness among the members of the community. “In rural areas, the oppressed communities are often dependent on the people who inflict violence.

“So, everything is suppressed for the next day’s bread or job,” she said, adding that those who did speak up were ostracised and boycotted in many cases.

During the event held to release the report, a religious head created controversy during his speech by stating that he had resorted to “retribution of the same kind” when three women were raped in a village.

However, the committee convener said she condemned the statement of the leader.