Rahul Gandhi meets Dalit family, Karat slams state admn

Central Minister and Faridabad MP Krishan Pal Gurjar promises govt job to Jitender, free treatment for wife

Rahul Gandhi, Dalit killings, Rahul visits Sunpedh village, Rahul Gandhi Sunpedh village, AAP, Congress,

Rahul Gandhi visiting the Dalit’s house which was was set on fire allegedly by men belonging to the upper-caste community, in Ballabhgarh in Faridabad on Wednesday. (Source: PTI)

Politicians made a beeline for Sunpedh, gripped by tension following the killing of two Dalit children in an arson attack, Wednesday. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was there as were Union minister of state and Faridabad MP Krishan Pal Gurjar, CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat and AAP leader Ashutosh.

Gandhi arrived with Haryana Congress chief Ashok Tanwar and Congress leader Shakeel Ahmed. Speaking to the Dalit family, Gandhi said, “If you are weak you can be crushed. This is the attitude shared by the Prime Minister, Haryana Chief Minister, BJP and the RSS.”

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He added, “They have been killed for no fault of theirs except that they are poor.”

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Gandhi reacted strongly when someone asked him if his visit was a photo opportunity. “This is insulting… It is not insulting to me. It is insulting to these people. What is a photo op? What do you mean? People are dying. I will keep coming to such places,” said Gandhi.

After the Haryana government recommended a CBI probe later in the day, Tanwar said, “After the pressure created by Rahul Gandhi’s visit, the Chief Minister ordered a CBI probe into the incident.”

The CPI(M) demanded immediate arrest of the culprits. “They (the parents) only have one question, what was their children’s fault? This is such a barbaric murder. The administration has failed miserably… What was the police doing?,” said CPI(M) politburo member Karat.

Karat asked why Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar or his senior ministers had not come to meet the family. Gurjar, MoS, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, promised a government job for Jitender and said his wife, Rekha, would receive free treatment at Safdarjung Hospital.

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal condemned the killing of the children. “Burning of 2 kids alive in Haryana is shameful for the whole country,” he wrote on Twitter. “What is happening to India? Violence and hatred everywhere,” he said.

Meanwhile, National Commission for Scheduled Castes summoned the police commissioner over the torching of the Dalit home.

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