TN Dalit outfits seek CBI probe into human feces in water tank case

Chennai, April 10 (IANS) Dalit outfits in Tamil Nadu have demanded a CBI inquiry in the case of human feces found in the drinking water tank in Vengavayal in Pudukottai district.

The incident happened in December 2022 when human excreta was found mixed in an overhead drinking water tank. The tank was supplying water to a Dalit colony, who then alleged that "it was a clear case of upper caste people insulting them".

R. Selvanathan, President, Ambedkar Study Forum, a think tank on Dalit studies, based out of Tiruchi while speaking to IANS said, "The mixing of human excreta in drinking water is a clear message to the Dalit community. The message, as per I could decode, is that the Dalits are still much much lower in strata to the upper castes and the middle caste communities and they need not aspire to try and come up in life."

He said that the Ambedkar Study Forum and other like-minded organisations would conduct protest marches in Pudukottai demanding CBI probe.

M.S. Sulekhamani, a Dalit woman activist associated with the Centre for Dalit Studies and Thoughts, based out of Chennai while speaking to IANS said, "The Dalits are treated meanly in several internal parts of Tamil Nadu and the Vengavayal incident is a classic example. If the CB-CID of the Tamil Nadu Police is not able to crack the case that took place as early as December 2022, then what is the point in continuing with them, let the CBI conduct a comprehensive investigation. Why is the government shying away? Any powerful vote bank at stake?"

She said that Dalit movements are forming a network and would conduct protest marches in Pudukottai if the government does not immediately order a CBI investigation into the matter.

Even the VCK wants an immediate solution to the matter and to bring the culprits to book. The VCK had also called upon the demolition of the contaminated overhead water tank which was standing as a symbol of oppression.