The Dhading Incident

Here’s a sad and shameful story. In Dhading district, there is a village called Mulkharka (Ward # 5) in Padi Village Development Committee. In Mulkaharka there is small dalit (untouchables) neighbourhood* of 10 houses. Mr. Ram Bahadur Sunwar, his wife, two sons and a daughter live in the neighbourhood. On the July 1^st (Ashad 17), Mr. Sunwar’s son Nawaraj Sunwar eloped with Samjhana Subedi of the same village Mulkharka. In the Hindus caste hierarchy Sunwar is the lowliest and Subedi the highest.

Mr. Ram Bahadur Sunwar

The village of Mulkharka primarily comprises of Subedi and Sapkota families, both of high caste. After the village found out the young couple had eloped, Mr. Suwar was asked by the bride’s family to find the young couple and bring them back to their respective homes. Obviously the bride’s family were distraught that their daughter eloped with a dalit. Mr. Sunwar and his family were verbally abused and threatened by the bride’s cousins Thakur Subedi and Ram Babu Subedi if the young couple were not found immediately, Mr. Sunwar and his family will be forced to leave the village.

At 8 pm on July 3rd, under the leadership of Krishna Bahadur Subedi and Ram Babu Subedi, both schoolteachers of the local High School*² and also relatives of the bride attacked the entire Dalit neighbourhood with approximately a group of 100 people. They beat people in the neighbourhood including school children and women with wooden rods and flashlight among other things. They vandalized property and abused them verbally. Mr. Sunwar’s wife was severely beaten with a wooden rod. Mr. Sunwar luckily escaped in nick of time from the attic window. Otherwise he would have been the main target of the mob.

Miss Rekha BK, Mr. Sunwar's relative addressing the press meet

The following day Mr. Sunwar went to the nearest police station, two hours walk away and filed a complaint. The Inspector in charge asked for the assailants’ cell phone numbers, which Mr. Sunwar did not have. The police have brushed aside the case and the assailants are still free and going about their daily routine. Mr. Sunwar has not returned home due to fear of attacks.

I briefly met Mr. Sunwar and few of his friends and relatives at press meet held yesterday at World Trade Centre in Kathmandu, which was organized by Dalit NGO Federation and several other dalit organizations. There were representatives for human rights groups and other organizations. According to the Dalit NGO Federation representatives, there have been many incidents like this all across Nepal.

* Just like many N. American neighbourhoods, Nepali villages are also segregated. Generally dalit neighbourhoods are situated in the less prosperous areas in terms land yield. You could consider these neighbourhoods the ‘ghetto’ of Nepali village landscape.

*² Dol Bhanjyang Ucchha Ma Bi