Casteism in Gujarat: Barber refuses to cut Dalit man's hair
A man turned to the police in Gujarat's Kutch after a barber in his area refused to provide a haircut to him as he was a Dalit.
When another villager heard the conversation, he made an attempt to intervene but failed (Representative Image). | Photo Credit: iStock Images
Key Highlights
- A Dalit man was allegedly denied a haircut in Gujarat by a barber
- The barber allegedly hurled casteist slurs at the man and refused services to him
- The barber has been booked under relevant sections
Rajkot: While on one side, activists across the country are working relentlessly for equality, several people are still struggling to come out of the abyss of casteism and discrimination. According to a recent incident, a man in Gujarat's Kutch was allegedly refused a haircut as he was a member of the Dalit community.
A barber working in the Padampar village of Rapar taluka allegedly refused to provide a haircut to a Dalit man identified as Ramesh Parmar.
After being subjected to casteism, Parmar turned to the police and lodged a complaint. In his complaint, Parmar claimed that the accused barber also hurled casteist slurs at him.
Accused refused to change decision
The accused barber was identified as Dharamshi Valand. On March 2, Parmar went to Valand's shop for a haircut. Valand allegedly asked Parmar to leave and said that he would meet him in the evening.
In the evening, Valand met Parmar and allegedly asked him to refrain from coming to his house as "it would invite difficulty for both of them". When another villager heard the conversation, he made an attempt to intervene but failed. The accused allegedly refused to provide a haircut to Parmar, on the pretext that he was a Dalit., The Times of India reported
Parmar alleged, "Valand said he won't give haircuts to the people of my caste even if he is forced to shut his shop. "
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On being asked the reason for a delay in approaching the police, Parmar said that the elders in the village wanted to settle the case. However, he had no choice but to approach the cops as Valand was resolute on his decision. Kishorsinh Zala, DySP said, "We have registered ann offence under Atrocity Act and probing the allegations. "
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