This story is from March 23, 2019

This Rajasthan village celebrates Holi by hurling stones at each other

Holi celebration has been a ‘bloody’ affair at Bhiluda village in Dungarpur district for many years. At least 54 people were injured there on Thursday,
This Rajasthan village celebrates Holi by hurling stones at each other
Villagers play Holi at Bhiluda village in Dungarpur district
JAIPUR: Holi celebration has been a ‘bloody’ affair at Bhiluda village in Dungarpur district for many years. At least 54 people were injured there on Thursday, when according to the custom in the village, people hurled stones at each other to play Holi. Participants gathered at the open ground close to the hills near Raghunath temple and started hurling stones at each other since morning.

The tradition is being followed in the village for more than 400 years, wherein hundreds of revellers gather in the village. The participants divide themselves into two groups and are armed with large stones and long strings (gofan), which is used as a catapult to hurl the stones at longer distances. Explaining the tradition, the locals said that once a man was killed in the village, and when his wife attained ‘satitva’ (the custom of a woman embracing her husband’s funeral pyre), she cursed at the village saying that until people will sacrifice their blood, the village shall survive, else something bad will befall on the village. “Since then, people of every caste indulge in Holi celebrations of this kind,” said a local on condition of anonymity. Though medical teams have been deployed in the village and there has been counselling by district administration and the police, the villagers continue with the tradition. “At least 54 persons were injured, out of whom six have received grave injuries and were rushed to Udaipur,” said an officer with Dungarpur police.
As a precaution, medical teams are deployed at the playground to treat injured persons while those with serious injuries are many times taken to the hospital. Despite this suffering and pain, nothing has so far dampened the spirit of the participants, who also come from the neighbouring states, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
When contacted, Shankar Dutt Sharma, superintendent of police, Dungarpur, talking to TOI, said, “Though this is associated with their beliefs and tradition, we have been organising meetings with the locals to neutralise this kind of celebration. Compared to the previous years, the participation and injuries were less.”
District and police administration have also appealed that in order to discourage the practice, the local representatives and public representatives should refrain from participation. “We can take it as a crime if some injured person lodges a complaint. Many a times, our teams were sent to the hospital to record statements, but the villagers were unwilling (to lodge complaint),” said a senior officer on condition of anonymity.
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