A body comprising 36 sub-castes within the Scheduled Caste (SC) category in Gujarat will soon come under one roof, said senior leaders of the community. The decision was taken after a convention of all the sub-castes was held recently in Bilimora, south Gujarat. The move, they said, would enable them to display their strength effectively in countering the dilution of the Atrocities Act as well as fight against efforts to do away with caste-based reservation and dealing with differences among various sub-castes.
This is the first time leaders of all sub-castes came under one roof, said Paresh Vatvecha, one of the leaders of Dakshin Gujarat Anusuchit Jati Kelavani Mandal. Close to 400 SC persons from seven districts of south Gujarat participated in the convention.
"The idea is to organise the community to promote education and upgrade our status in the Indian society. Atrocities against Dalits are on the rise, yet there are talks on diluting the Atrocities Act. We want the original version of the Act back," said Vatvecha.
Similar conventions will be held in central Gujarat, north Gujarat, and the Saurashtra-Kutch region over the next one year, after which a state-level convention will be held to form an umbrella body.
Till the umbrella organisation is constituted, all the activities will be carried out under the aegis of Dakshin Gujarat Anusuchit Jati Kelavani Mandal. Their current focus is on education and jobs in private sector as community leaders have realised that government sector jobs are just two per cent of the total job opportunities.
"We get reservation as SC and not on the basis of our sub-castes. Normally the community unites when episodes like Thangadh or Una take place. We need to unite permanently. There should be no compromise on issues like Atrocities Act or abolition of caste-based reservation," said Shailesh Parmar, MLA.
