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A 47-year-old Dalit farmer allegedly died by suicide at his home in a Kasganj village on Monday, a day after he was “escorted out” of a Ram Lila programme, police said on Tuesday. No suicide note has been found yet, police added.
According to the police, the farmer, identified as Ramesh, was made to leave the Ram Lila event after spectators complained that he was “near the stage.” Some of the spectators also alleged that Ramesh may have been “drunk,” police said.
After his death, residents protested demanding action against the “police personnel responsible” for removing him from the Ram Lila event. They alleged that Ramesh took the extreme step as he was “distressed” over his “forced removal”.
The protest was called off after senior police officers and village elders intervened. Police said that two constables have been shifted to Police Lines.
Kasganj Circle Officer Achal Chauhan said that the postmortem report confirmed death by hanging, with no injuries noted. She added that the motive behind the extreme step was “yet to be ascertained and a probe was on.”
The local Station House Officer, Bhoj Raj Awasthi, said no FIR has been registered yet.
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav targeted the government, accusing the ruling BJP of “humiliating” Dalits. In a post on X in Hindi, Akhilesh said, “The news of a Dalit dying by suicide in Kasganj after he was humiliated and beaten by the police… is extremely sad and socially worrisome. The hegemonic thinking that is being promoted during the BJP government which is celebrating the so-called Amrit Kaal of Independence is the result of the audacity to treat the PDA community in such a disgraceful manner.”
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