Crematorium issue hots up

Sandesh Prabhudesai
23 September 2001  

The controversy over caste discrimination at public crematorium is heating up in Goa with several political parties as well as NGOs demanding action against village panchayat, who is constructing a separate platform and shed, exclusively for dalits.

Reacting to the protest raised by Goan People's Front, a recently formed forum of former student activists, the Directorate of Panchayats has directed Verla-Kanka panchayat to immediately stop the construction work.

At the instance of panchayat minister Babu Azgaonkar, the directorate has also issued a circular to all the panchayats, instructing them not to discriminate on the grounds of caste or creed at public crematoriums, adding further that it defeats the basic spirit of equality enshrined in the Constitution.

The non-dalit Hindus in the village, situated in the suburbs of Mapusa city in North Goa, had not only opposed cremation of one dalit in 'their' crematorium but had even 'purified' the shed constructed by the panchayat by engaging seven priests.

The GPF protested publicly when the police officials, in an attempt to 'resolve' the issue, directed the dalits to cremate the body of another dalit, in the area kept for burial (where normally dalits are buried besides any child). The panchayat also agreed to expedite construction of a separate cremation place for dalits.

Following this, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party president Laxmikant Parsekar has now demanded action against the sarpanch as well as the zilla panchayat member for misusing public funds and strengthening feelings of caste discrimination.

Congress president Nirmala Sawant, on the other hand, has also demanded action against the police officials while local unit of Shiv Sena has demanded that the Hindu priests, who performed the 'purification ceremony', be immediately arrested.

Chandrakant Jadhav, president of dalit organisation Yugnayak, points out that such discrimination prevails in several villages of Goa. "All kind of untouchability is still being practised, but the ruling politicians turn blind eye towards it for political gains", he adds.

Adv Satish Sonak, heading the GPF, however plans to take up awareness campaign throughout the state by even involving state authorities as well as by inviting scholars from outside the state.

"We are also planning to conduct a state-wide survey of the actual situation and make concrete recommendations, to be implemented at three levels - the government, the NGOs as well as each individual citizen of the state", he states.

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