Eating at dalit homes won’t eradicate untouchability: Ram Vilas Paswan

Mumbai: Even as politicians make headlines by breaking bread with dalits, Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Saturday said the political class should desist from patronising the backward community, and that untouchability won’t simply go away by leaders having food at dalit homes.

He said while Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intentions were right, reports of untoward incidents have put a “question mark” on his work.

“You can have food at anyone’s house, but you cannot patronise them, like Lord Ram having food at Sabri’s house; it is wrong. We have been in politics for a long time and had food at houses of many people, but we never asked anybody’s caste. Pitying them is wrong, and thinking that eating with dalits will eradicate untouchability is not right,” he told reporters here.

The consumer affairs, food and public distribution minister was answering a question on whether BJP leaders having food at dalit homes was mere “tokenism”.