1981 Firozabad Killings: 44 years after, 3 convicted of murder of 24 Dalits in UP

Twenty-four Dalits were killed after some villagers allegedly testified against a criminal gang, whose members were mostly from the upper caste.

“The court convicted three persons in the mass murder case on Tuesday. Accused Ram Sevak, who is in jail, appeared from there, while Kaptan, who was out on bail, was taken into custody after being found guilty. The third accused, Rampal, failed to appear in court. His request for exemption was rejected, and a non-bailable warrant has been issued against him,” said Government Counsel (Mainpuri) Rohit Shukla.

The court held them guilty under various IPC sections, including 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 216 (harbouring offender who has escaped from custody or whose apprehension has been ordered), 449 (house-trespass in order to commit offence punishable  with death) and 450 (house-trespass in order to commit offence punishable with imprisonment for life).

Shukla said the court will decide on the quantum of punishment on March 18.

According to the prosecution, the incident took place on November 18, 1981, when a group of assailants attacked Dehuli village. They barged into houses and shot dead family members present before looting the homes. By the time a police team from Jasrana police station arrived, the attackers had fled.

Shukla said that during the preliminary investigation, it was revealed that about a year and a half before the mass murder, a police encounter took place with the Radhey-Santosh gang, resulting in the arrest of two people.

Four witnesses to the encounter were residents of Dehuli village. The killings were intended to intimidate the villagers. Most members of the Radhey-Santosh gang belonged to the upper caste, said the prosecution.

Dehuli village was part of Mainpuri district in 1981. After the Firozabad district was created in 1989, the village came under its jurisdiction.

Shukla said the accused had moved the High Court to shift the trial to Mainpuri.

The incident was followed by another attack on Dalits at nearby Sadhupur village on December 30, 1981. Ten persons, including six women, belonging to the Schedule Castes were massacred by men belonging to the gang led by dacoit Anar Singh Yadav.