baran11 hours agoAuthor: Manish Vyas
23 October 2022, just a day before Diwali, news came that in Baran district of Rajasthan, 250 Dalits had left Hinduism and converted to Buddhism.
It was claimed that the bullies beat up the Dalit families. He was also prevented from worshiping in the collective temple. So a case was registered in the police station, but no action was taken. There was no hearing even on the plea for justice from the district administration to the President.
Hurt by all these things, 250 people together immersed the idols and pictures of Hindu gods and goddesses in the flow of the Bethli river passing through the village. A video of this incident also surfaced. After which the news of leaving Hinduism created an uproar across the country. Apart from the Collector-SP, judicial officers also reached the spot. In the investigation conducted at the administrative level, it was said that it is not true that so many people have changed their religion at the same time.
Various rumors and claims about this incident kept floating on social media as well. What is the truth of such an incident in a state like Rajasthan? To know this, the Bhaskar team reached Bhulon village in Chhabra area of Baran district. When we reached the homes of Dalit families who left Hinduism, two sides of the truth related to the incident came to the fore.
First: What the victim Dalit family told us.
Second: What the upper castes and other people of the village told.
Bhulon, a small village situated in the valley on the Guna-Kota highway on the MP border, about 400 km from Jaipur, has a population of 500 people. There are about 60 houses and 350 voters in this village. At the village entrance, we stopped at a small vegetable and grocery store. Asked the people present there that where will the Dalit families who left Hinduism and adopted Buddhism be found in the village? Tell us the address of the victim’s family.
The husband said to the couple sitting in the shop – who are you and where have you come from? On being introduced, he said in a muffled voice – I am the only victim. My name is Rajendra Verma (Airwal). We have left the Hindu God. When he did not have the right to worship them, he changed his religion.
Rajendra looked around and said, everyone in the village is now scared. No one is ready to testify in our favor. I had also donated for Navratri festival. After doing the aarti, Lalchand Lodha and Sarpanch representative Rahul Sharma of the village beat me up on October 5 at 9 pm on my way to the shop by blocking the way.
The younger brother Ramhet, who came to the rescue, was also beaten up fiercely. We were reported to the police, but there was no hearing. Eventually, after getting upset, he left Hinduism and adopted Buddhism along with his relatives.
We asked that how many people have changed religion in total? Apart from him, which other Dalit family has changed religion in the village? On this, Rajendra showed helplessness and said – that day there were 250 people on the bank of the river. Everyone had taken an oath to adopt Buddhism, but no family has changed religion except them from village Bhulon. All the converts were relatives from the village around him.
When we asked for the names of those who changed religion, the matter was postponed. In a short while Rajendra’s father Ghanshyam Verma also came there. He said that you come to our house, I will tell you the whole thing there. Here in the village everyone is afraid and suppressed by the sarpanch. No one will speak against him.
To reach Rajendra’s house, we reached on foot to the Dalit settlement of the village from where this whole dispute started. Govardhan Puja was performed outside the homes of some Dalit families in the basti. We asked a girl sitting outside the house whether any of her family members had left Hinduism. So his answer was – why would we leave religion, these people are making things up with their mind? Three days ago, the family together performed Govardhan Puja. The girl showed us the pictures of God kept in her house.
Traces of worship performed on Diwali were also found in the house of Chhotulal, the neighbor of victim Rajendra Verma. Chhotulal told us that that day he too had gone to the rally of the Dalit community. The pictures of God were also thrown in the river in front of him, but he did not leave religion. There are still pictures of gods and goddesses in the house. He is worshiped daily. All this happened due to the ongoing fight between Rajendra Verma and Lalchand Lodha.
Showed clothes stained with blood, said – no one is with us now
After talking to two Dalit families, we went straight to Rajendra Verma’s house. Here Rajendra Verma, his brother Ramhet and Rameshwar besides his father Ghanshyam Verma were waiting for us. Ghanshyam Verma told that his sons were beaten up badly for performing aarti in the temple.
He was beaten with sticks so much that the head exploded. No action was taken and the accused are roaming freely. Sarpanch representative Rahul Sharma’s name was not even mentioned in the FIR. What do you do now? In the end, the religion in which there is no respect, he left it.
In the meantime, Rajendra Verma’s wife Lalita reached there with a shirt stained with blood. Showing the shirt, Ghanshyam said – Now there is no other testimony left. No one in the village is showing courage to speak against him. Ramhet showed the stitches on his head.
The youngest brother Rameshwar said – After this incident, the situation of starvation has come. Every morning we go to the station for wages, but no one takes us. Have to return home empty handed in the evening.
After talking to Ghanshyam’s family, we came out of the basti. After walking a little further, Sunil Chakradhari, who runs a tea stall in the village, told us that a few days ago, on the occasion of Navratri, there was a fight between Lalchand Lodha and Rajendra. Both had also resigned.
However, after a few days it is not known what happened that Rajendra lodged a case for legal action. The police also took action. After this Rajendra’s family attended a rally in the village. We do not recognize the people who came there. He was not from the village.
Now we tell you the other side of this incident
After knowing the allegations of the Dalit side, we reached the house of Sarpanch representative Rahul Sharma. Leaving a street from Rajendra’s house, the village is the house of the sarpanch of Bhulon. Rahul Sharma told that here Dalits and upper castes live together in the same settlement.
Brahmins have only 4 houses, 36 communities live here. We cannot even think of discrimination. Rajendra Verma is also a right person, but has come under the guise of wrong people. I am being dragged into this matter due to political malice.
The story that the Sarpanch representative told us….
Rahul Sharma told that every year a program was organized in the village during Navratri. A big pandal of the mother was decorated, in which bhajans and kirtans were held. Among the organizers were me and Lalchand Lodha as president. Due to the problem of fund collection, the program was not being organized for the last 3 years.
This time also there was no desire, but this time the small children of the village got this program done at their level. He was also handling the arrangements.
According to Rahul Sharma, it was the children who had decided that instead of the elders, they would sit in the havan altar at the time of completion. Rajendra Verma had expressed his desire to sit in the altar this time, but the children probably refused him. He misunderstood that at the behest of Lalchand Lodha, he was not allowed to sit in the altar. Whereas the reality was that this time no senior person was sitting in the altar.
On the night of 5 October, Lalchand and Rajendra collided on the way. Here Rajendra exhorted him not to sit in the altar. Soon a scuffle broke out between the two. Along with some people of the settlement, I also reached there and stopped the quarrel between the two. After pacifying the matter, both of them were sent to each other’s house.
After a while Rajendra arrived with his brother with a log.
Everyone had gone to their respective homes. Then Rajendra and his brother Ramhet reached Lalchand Lodha’s house with a log. There he kicked and opened its gate. After a fight between the three, Ramhet got a head injury. As soon as we got to know, we reached there again and then got the quarrel pacified.
After this, Rajendra lodged a case against Lalchand in Bapcha police station under the sections of SC-ST Act and assault. Lalchand was arrested by the police. A few days later he got bail from the court.
It was the people of the village who told us that the former sarpanch is a Dalit. We reached his house to discuss this matter. Former sarpanch Mukesh Mehra told that there is no problem like discrimination in the village. Whatever happened, the root of it is a mutual fight.
Lalchand said – Rajendra had beaten up
In this whole case, the main character Lalchand Lodha told us, ‘On the night of the incident, he was sitting outside the house when Rajendra Verma came there. He told me that you did not let me sit on Vaidehi. To this I told him not to misunderstand, I was the president of this program three years ago.
Now the kids are handling it. He only goes Meanwhile, an altercation started between both of us and the situation reached a scuffle. Then after hearing the commotion, some people including Nathulal, Champalal and Rahul arrived and rescued us.
Everyone locked me in the house. Rajendra also left from there. After a while Rajendra reached again with his brothers with a log. They tried to open my house and hit me with sticks. Suddenly the door of the house opened. After this, everyone got injured in the scuffle. Here again the same people somehow rescued us. This is just the actual incident, now they are making whatever they want and making allegations.
Claim to give list of converts
At the same time, we tried to meet Balmukund Bairwa, the Chhabra President of Bairwa Yuva Mahasabha, who organized the rally, but could not meet him. In a phone conversation, Bairwa told that on that day about 250 to 300 Dalits had left Hinduism and adopted Buddhism, but Rajendra’s family was empty from Bhulon village.
Everyone else was from nearby villages. We asked them to give a complete list of such people along with their names, addresses so that it could be investigated. On this Bairwa said – wait 15 days, we will give the complete list. Now more Dalits are about to leave Hinduism.
After talking to both the sides in the village, we reached the officers who investigated the incident…First the Bhaskar team reached Surendra Kuntal, SHO of Bapcha police station.
SHO refused to speak on camera, said- higher officials will speak
SHO Bapcha Surendra Kuntal refused any on-camera conversation in the case of Bhulon village. He told that senior officials are investigating, so they will inform you. However, he told off camera that Rajendra Verma had given an FIR against Lalchand Lodha.
Acting on which Lalchand was arrested on October 17. The next day he was produced in the court from where he was sent to judicial custody. Lalchand was granted bail after a day’s judicial custody. Chhabra CO Pooja Nagar is investigating the matter since day one.
Claim of 250 people wrong: Baran SP
When Dainik Bhaskar team spoke to Baran SP Kalyanmal Meena regarding this whole matter, he told that he also came to know about the developments on 23 October from the media. After seeing the news, he along with the District Collector went to Bhulon village on the spot.
It was revealed in the investigation that there are only 15-16 scheduled caste houses in Bhulon. At the same time, except the complainant Rajendra Verma, everyone else has refused to leave Hinduism. All of them were doing their religious practice. There were also pictures of gods and goddesses in their homes. In such a situation, the figure of 250 people converting religion did not appear correct.
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