The endless battle with caste-based vitriol and violence Premium

Dalit youth Shyam Kumar was allegedly kidnapped, abused, and urinated on by upper caste college-mates in retaliation to a two-year-old fight. Despite laws to protect SCs, discrimination and violence are common, with victims often left helpless when police protect wrong-doers. The Tsunduru and Karamchedu massacres are examples of horrific caste atrocities, with families still awaiting justice. Effective monitoring of SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act is critical to reduce such violence.

“I know we live in an unequal society. But I was not prepared for such a close encounter with caste prejudice which hit me like a ton of bricks,” Kandru Shyam Kumar says, running his fingers gently over his bandaged chin, his eyes staring into the distance.

The 21-year-old Dalit youth, who holds a B.Sc degree in computer science, is nursing a fractured jaw after he was allegedly kidnapped on November 1, in retaliation to a two-year-old fight involving a woman, on his college campus in Nandigama constituency of Andhra Pradesh’s NTR district. He was allegedly abused in the name of caste, thrashed, and urinated on by a college-mate, S. Harish Reddy, and five others from upper castes in a moving car.

Shyam Kumar spends the better part of his day lying on a mattress spread on the ground of his single-room house with an attached kitchen in Sanjivanagar Colony of Kanchikacherla village in NTR district.

Recalling the college incident, Shyam Kumar says he was witness to a dispute between his brother’s friend, Avinash, and his classmate Harish Reddy. The disagreement, sparked by alleged misbehaviour towards Avinash’s female friend, escalated into a physical altercation. Shyam Kumar had jumped in to support Avinash. The police intervened, resolving the matter through counselling. “We agreed to bury the hatchet, or so I thought,” he says wryly, trying to overcome the pain in his jaw.

“But Harish Reddy refused to let go of the grudge and decided to settle scores,” chips in Shyam Kumar’s mother Seshamma as she slouches and gently strokes his hair. “Post surgery, he is unable to have solid food. He has been living only on juices for the past 10 days and has lost almost 2 kg,” she adds.

On that fateful night, Shyam Kumar and his family — elder brother Sriram, mother Seshamma, and grandmother Mariamma — were having dinner around 8.30 p.m. when he received a call from Reddy, who requested to meet up. Reddy said he was about to leave town to pursue higher studies abroad and asked Shyam Kumar to reach Shiva Sai Kshetram.

“I went in good faith, but when I reached the place, I saw Harish and five of his friends waiting for me in a car. They assaulted me and pushed me inside the car. I was held captive and beaten with sticks for more than four hours in the moving vehicle,” he alleges. “At one point, I thought I would die. I was bleeding profusely. I was thirsty and when I asked them for water, they urinated on me,” he says, his eyes welling up.