Dharmapuri group barred entry into village near Marakkanam

Victims of anti-Dalit violence in Dharmapuri district were barred entry on Tuesday into a village hit by last week’s mob attacks near Marakkanam. They came here to show their solidarity with the affected residents.

A group of 35 persons from the Nayankottai area of Natham Colony in Dharmapuri, which was targeted by a mob last November, arrived at Kattayantheru in Marakkanam in two vans. However, they were forced to leave as prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC were in force in the colony.

According to Sakthi, the group’s leader, they had come in peace and carried no weapons. They merely wanted to demonstrate their solidarity with their brothers in Marakkanam who were also victims of caste-based riots.

“We have been through a similar situation where our houses were gutted and our people insulted and beaten. All we wanted to do was visit them and explain how things would get better. Unfortunately, we have been asked to leave almost as soon as we arrived,” he said.

According to him, there was no public announcement about the clamping of Section 144. Even the people of the Marakkanam Colony were unaware of it. They had initially planned to participate in a proposed protest here, but the protest was cancelled. However, they decided to come anyway for providing moral support to the victims.