New Delhi: A wary Bhim army after the violent Dalit protests on April 2, against the alleged dilution of rights given to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, that claimed at least 10 lives, has urged its members to practise caution.
Vinay Ratan Singh, Bhim Army President and a close confidant of its jailed founder Chandrashekhar Azad ‘Ravan’, told News 18 that they had been urging their workers not to post anything on social media that may further raise tensions
“Our cause is a just one. We are protesting for our basic rights as citizens of India. We don’t want people to say that the movement has become violent and delegitimise the entire movement. If there is anyone who has an interest in maintaining peace, it is us. That is why we have urged our workers and supporters not to post anything on social media that could lead to violence. They are free to share their opinions on any public platform, but we have asked them to refrain from provoking any other community. Violence is not the way of the Bhim Army,” Singh said.
The Bhim Army has a significant followership on social media platforms, with over 1.5 lakh followers on its Facebook page alone. In its posts, Bhim Army urged people to stay “within the confines of the constitution” and blamed the RSS for infiltrating the Dalit protests and instigating violence.
A Facebook post, credited to Chandrashekhar Azad, reads, “Friends, on April 2, us Ambedkarites protested for our rights by staying within the confines of the constitution. However, police and Manuwadi forces fired shots upon innocent and peaceful protesters.”
On Monday, Bhim Army supporters took to the streets in several key western UP towns such as Saharanpur, Meerut, Hapur, Agra and Baghpat.
In Saharanpur, where the Bhim Army is headquartered, their supporters even occupied the city’s main crossing at Ghantaghar Chowk.
Bhim Army and its founder Chandrashekhar shot to national prominence last year after a caste conflict broke out in Western UP’s Saharanpur district. The Bhim Army, in protest against alleged atrocities on Dalits, had called for a Mahapanchayat in Saharanpur on May 9, 2017. While the police denied permission for the public meeting, invitations had already gone out on social media. Hundreds had started making their way to the venue of the meeting when things turned sour. Supporters of the Bhim Army clashed with the police, following which Chandrashekhar was booked by the police.
A month later, he was arrested by a team of UP Police in Himachal Pradesh’s Dalhousie.
Chandrashekhar was booked by the UP Government under the stringent National Security Act (NSA) and has been lodged in jail ever since.
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