Tension has gripped Ghosunda village in Rajasthan’s Chittorgarh district after a 15-year-old Dalit boy was allegedly assaulted and abused on caste grounds inside a temple complex. Dalit organisations have strongly condemned the incident and demanded the immediate arrest of the accused.
The victim, Chetan Prakash Regar, belongs to the Regar community. In his complaint filed at Chandaria police station, he said the incident took place on February 7 at around 8 am at the Lakshmi Narayan Temple in the village.
“How Did You Come To Our Temple?”: FIR Details Caste Abuse
According to the FIR, Chetan had gone to the temple for darshan. While returning, he was allegedly stopped by a man identified as Shubham Sukhwal, who abused him using caste-based slurs.
Chetan stated in his complaint that Sukhwal said, “You cobbler, how did you become capable enough to come to our temple?” When Chetan replied that anyone can visit the temple, the accused allegedly became angry and used more casteist abuses. He also allegedly threatened him, saying that if he came to the temple again, he would be killed.
The complaint further states that Sukhwal slapped Chetan, pushed him to the ground and kicked and punched him. Another man, identified as Pawan, also allegedly joined in the assault. Chetan said he somehow managed to escape while the accused continued shouting threats and warning members of his community not to enter the temple again.
The temple priest, Vinod, has also been named in the FIR for allegedly abusing and threatening the boy on caste lines.
Case Registered Under SC/ST Act
Police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The investigation is being led by Deputy Superintendent of Police Brijesh Singh.
However, no arrests have been made so far. This has created fear and anger among the victim’s family and the local Dalit community.
Dalit Groups Submit Memorandum, Demand Arrests
Members of the Dr. Ambedkar Welfare Society, SC ST Mahasabha and Dr. Ambedkar Civil Association met the District Collector and submitted a memorandum addressed to the State Human Rights Commission. They condemned the attack and demanded strict action against the accused.
Rameshwar Bairwa, convenor of the SC ST Mahasabha, said, “Chetan Prakash Regar was physically beaten and tortured in the temple premises. The entire Dalit community condemns this incident. There is anger among Scheduled Caste and Tribe communities due to the non-arrest of those who assaulted the child.”
Nirmal Kumar Desai, Vice President of the Dr. Ambedkar Welfare Society, said the family is living in fear. “The family is scared because the accused have not been arrested yet. They are under immense mental stress. There is a possibility of some untoward incident if protection is not provided,” he said.
Several social workers and community leaders were present during the submission of the memorandum.
Dalit organisations have demanded the immediate arrest of Shubham Sukhwal, his associate Pawan and the temple priest Vinod. They have also asked the administration to provide security to the victim’s family and ensure a fair and impartial investigation so that such caste-based incidents do not happen again.
National Data Shows Rise in Crimes Against Dalits
The assault on 15-year-old Chetan Prakash Regar in Chittorgarh has once again brought focus to the wider crisis of caste-based violence in India. Official data shows that crimes against the Scheduled Castes continue to remain high across the country.
According to the report of the National Crime Records Bureau, more than 57,000 cases of crimes against Scheduled Castes were registered in 2022 alone. This marked an increase compared to previous years. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh were among the states reporting the highest number of cases. Rajasthan has consistently figured among the top states in terms of registered cases under the SC ST Prevention of Atrocities Act.
