Bhim Army rally in Delhi to demand chief’s release

New Delhi: The national capital on Sunday witnessed a large number of dalit youth mobilised by the Bhim Army — for the second time in less than a month — protesting against caste violence in Uttar Pradesh and demanding the release of the outfit’s chief, Chandrashekhar Azad.

The gathering, with an estimated 2,500 people, also saw the presence of Chandrashekhar’s mother Kamlesh Devi and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) founder Kanshi Ram’s sister, Swarn Kaur, among others. His brothers, Bhagat Singh and Kamal Kishor, were also present at the rally.

The stretch between the Parliament Street police station and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) convention centre turned into a sea of blue, the colour of dalit resistance, and pulsated with the cries of “Jai Bhim” as protesters from UP, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Punjab trooped in around 10 am.

“I will protest, sit on dharna and also stage indefinite fast till my son is released. We will fight. I have no expectations from the Narendra Modi government or the UP government, especially since the violence has been triggered by the very rise of Yogi Adityanath,” Ms Devi said. During the demonstration, the organisers also raised funds for the victims of the clash and people were given slots to speak based on the amount donated by them.

Similar to the previous gathering on May 21, which had seen a bigger turnout, over a dozen speakers laid emphasis on keeping the “social movement” away from politics and mainstream political parties, like the BSP, professing the Dalit cause.

“Mayawati (BSP supremo) built her entire career on my brother’s work. This is a new movement spearheaded by the youth. Whenever there’s injustice, the youth will rise,” Ms Kaur said.