Sudhanshu Kaushik
People’s Union for Civil Liberties/Haryana Human Rights Commission
New Delhi & Haryana, India
I like to be in control of what’s going on in life. Variables like where I’ll be, when I’ll go, how I’ll get there, and what I’ll do there are all things that I want to know and control. But at times it can be difficult to predict and plan what will happen. After receiving the Gallatin Global Human Rights Fellowship, I was certain that I wanted to focus on Dalit rights in India because I felt it was of utmost concern, and I was absolutely sure that the Naxal issue was the main one associated with Dalits. But I soon realized that I was being way too narrow-minded.
Due to the series of Naxal attacks that have occurred over the last few months and in recent weeks in Chhattisgarh, my plans to work there were interrupted. I decided instead to focus on Dalit rights that are closer to home but more than often ignored: the rehabilitation of Dalits who have faced atrocities throughout their lives. This summer, I started working with the Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) and the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) to do this. My goal is to learn as much as I can, show others around India and the world what Dalits go through, and hopefully work on legislation promoting a more progressive and inclusive state.
In the past few weeks during my work, I have encountered several disheartening stories, and what terrifies me is that this is just a start; I have yet to explore North India (states that I will cover during my internship are Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, and UP). Here is one that stuck with me the first few days of working for the HHRC:
I was on the border of Haryana and Rajasthan documenting Dalit farmers’ plight. The land behind me was completely barren. It used to be fertile but the groundwater has been depleted. It’s sad to hear that farmer suicides are happening because of the high debt farmers face when they don’t have salable crops. But what is even more sickening to hear is that these suicides are being covered up. This means that widows won’t get their pensions, and the issue is not raised in the government because of inaccurate numbers.
What could we do as witnesses? Well, we spread the message to the Dalits about their rights. We explained to the farmers that if they do not want to let this continue, we can forward their complaints to the appropriate authorities such as the Ministry of Rural Development and Agriculture so action can be taken. We are also collecting these stories in hopes that attention will be brought to this area.