A Madras HC-appointed inquiry commission has held that police committed excesses against Dalits, including women, by subjecting them to illegal detention and physical assault following a caste clash in a village near Madurai in October last.
“There was infringement of fundamental rights, mental agony was caused and we could observe a sense of insecurity in the minds of the victims of Uthapuram village,” the two-member commission, comprising retired district judge S Tirupathy and sub-judge K Venkatasamy, said in its report.
It recommended a compensation of Rs 15.20 lakh to 193 victims.
Though the commission had submitted its report on April 15, the division bench of the Madras High Court in Madurai comprising Justice V Ramasubramanian and Justice D Hariparanthaman perused it only yesterday after the summer vacation.
The court had on January 22 ordered the setting up of the commission following a public interest litigation, filed by All India Democratic Women’s Association.
The association had alleged that Dalits were beaten up on October 2, a day after a clash between them and upper caste Hindus over painting of the walls of a local temple.