The Republican Yuva Morcha (RYM), an Ambedkarite outfit based in Pune, said the attack on Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar’s house in Mumbai was a deliberate attempt by right-wing forces to aggravate social and casteist tensions in the State.
RYM president Rahul Dambale said the act follows a pattern of atrocities and insults against the Dalit community in recent times, starting with clashes at Bhima-Koregaon on January 1, 2018. “We strongly condemn the attack on Dr. Ambedkar’s house, Rajgruha, in Dadar. We urge the Maha Vikas Aghadi government to swiftly nab the masterminds. It is especially essential at this volatile moment for the police to get to the bottom of this affair,” he said.
Mr. Dambale said the vandalism was an attempt to inflame the Ambedkarite community’s sentiments and get them to protest on the streets in large numbers. “I appeal to all members of our community to show restraint and not to be provoked by this act. An FIR has been registered and the police have begun investigations,” he said.
Mr. Dambale said the lack of concrete progress in the Bhima-Koregaon violence case, and a string of caste atrocities against Ambedkarite youths, had fostered mistrust against authorities. The Dalit community keenly feels a sense of injustice towards them, he said.
“The bicentenary celebrations of the Koregaon-Bhima battle witnessed orchestrated violence on the Ambedkarite community on an unprecedented scale. But since then, Hindutva leader Milind Ekbote, a prime accused, is out on bail. Now, this act of vandalism on Babasaheb’s residence is yet another provocation by anti-social elements to break the peace,” he said.
Mr. Dambale urged the State government to declare Rajgruha as a national monument and make provisions for its security.
