SUHAS MUNSHI Jignesh Mevani resigns from AAP. Wants BJP to suffer for Dalit atrocities
The recently-concluded Dalit Asmita Yatra is fast turning into a major
anti-BJP political movement beyond Gujarat. Jignesh Mevani, the
35-year-old lawyer and activist, who is the face of this movement, resigned
from the Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday, and clarified that he had no intention to
fight any polls. At a press conference
in New Delhi, Mevani said the movement he had become the face of was just about
fighting for the rights of Dalits, and not about fighting electoral battles.
But the fact is, the
10-day Dalit Asmita Yatra has deeply embarrassed the BJP government in Gujarat,
and has created a potential dent in the BJP's vote bank, a good share of which
has traditionally come from the socially-backward community.
In fact, Mevani
himself goes as far as to say: "I know the BJP will suffer because of
these yatras, and it should suffer. It was under BJP that Dalits suffered most.
It is under their rule that atrocities against socially-backward communities
have increased sharply. Cow vigilante groups are a gift of Modi."
He adds that through
his marches, Dalits will expose the injustices committed by elements under BJP
regime. "We are not bothered about caste or party calculations, but BJP
should pay for the havoc it has wreaked on us."
RESIGNATION FROM AAP
Mevani had not
concealed that he was a member of AAP while carrying out the Dalit Asmita
Yatra. But on Saturday, while addressing the media in Delhi, he said he had
begun facing accusations of being an AAP man, and he did not want the movement
to get undermined due to his political affiliation.
"I want to preserve the sanctity of the movement we've just started. We don't want the movement to suffer because of my association with any party. It is true that AAP had expressed solidarity with this movement, but I now feel that for this movement to go forward, I will have to part ways with AAP," said Mevani.
MESSAGE TO MODI
Mevani also said that
he also wanted to seek time from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the
concerns of the Dalit community. "When Modi was
the Chief Minister of Gujarat, he used to call himself CM - Common Man. Now, I
have come to you as the common man, sir, please give me some time. Thousands of
Dalits have pledged not to work as manual scavengers - are you going to launch
a Startup India for them? Are you going to give them land? Or are you going to
condemn them to the same pits from which they want to rise and escape?"
Mevani said Dalits had
not just pledged not to return to manual scavenging, they were also waiting for
the land that was their due. "If every Dalit
family in Gujarat doesn't get five acres of land, we'll start a rail roko
program from 15 September. And it's not as if we want to disrupt normal traffic
and supplies, but when we have exhausted all other means of protests and
rallies, there aren't many options left for us."
WHERE NEXT?
After the 10-day yatra
in Gujarat, Mevani is looking at creating the same effect in Uttar Pradesh.
Both these states are going to the polls at different times next year. Another state with a
huge - 33% - Dalit population is Punjab, which also goes to the polls in 2017.
