1997 Ramabai Ambedkar Incident
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The 1997 Ramabai killings were a mass killing of
Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
residents of the
Ramabai Ambedkar Ramabai Bhimrao Ambedkar (7 February 1894 – 27 May 1935) was the wife of B. R. Ambedkar, who said her support was instrumental in helping him pursue his higher education and his true potential. She has been the subject of many biographical m ...
Nagar colony in
Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
on 11 July 1997. A team of State Reserve Police Force members fired upon a crowd protesting the recent desecration of a statue of Constitution maker
B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Bhīmrāo Rāmjī Āmbēḍkar; 14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who chaired the committee that drafted the Constitution of India based on t ...
. 10 Dalits were killed and 26 injured in the incident. The statue of Ambedkar was defaced with a garland of shoes which angered the Dalits. The Dalits took to the street and the police opened fire killing 10 Dalits. Police officer Manohar Kadam, who allegedly ordered the firing, was released on bail in 2009.


Attacks

Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar is a predominantly Dalit urban colony in the city of
Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
. On 11 July 1997, a statue of Ambedkar in front of the colony was found to have had a garland of sandals placed around its neck, in an act widely seen as a desecration. The outraged residents of the colony complained to the nearest
police station A police station is a facility operated by police or a similar law enforcement agency that serves to accommodate police officers and other law enforcement personnel. The role served by a police station varies by agency, type, and jurisdiction, ...
, Local Beat No. 5 Pantnagar Police, which happened to be located a few metres from the statue. The complainants were instead directed to the Pantnagar police station. A crowd of protesters began to form, and by 7 AM had blocked the highway that ran in front of the colony. A team of State Reserve Police Force (SRPF) members arrived a few minutes later, and opened fire on the crowd with live ammunition. The firing continued for 10–15 minutes, and killed 10 people, including a bystander who had not been involved in the protests. The protests then grew more violent. At approximately 11:30 AM, a luxury bus was set ablaze. In response, about 25 police officers entered Ramabai Colony, deployed tear gas and began a
lathi charge A baton charge is a coordinated tactic for dispersing crowds of people, usually used by police, paramilitary or military in response to public disorder. In the Indian subcontinent, a long bamboo stick, called a '' lathi'' in Bengali, Hindi, ...
. By the end of the day 26 people had been seriously injured, and Local Beat No. 5 had been destroyed by the protesters. Commentators on the event suggested that the excessive use of force was motivated by caste-based prejudice against the Dalit protesters. This was because the sub-Inspector who led the police force stood accused in multiple cases involving caste-based discrimination. Vilas Ghogre, a Dalit activist, poet, and artist, committed suicide in protest at the event.


Trial

Following the killing, the
Maharashtra Government The Government of Maharashtra is the executive branch of the Indian state of Maharashtra. The government is led by the chief minister (currently Devendra Fadnavis since 5 December 2024) who selects the council of ministers and is appointed by ...
appointed the Gundewar commission to enquire into the issue in November 1997. In 1999, the commission published its report. Two years later a case was filed in a sessions court against Manohar Kadam. A few years later, it was transferred to the
Crime Investigation Department In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Cane ...
, which filed a charge-sheet in 2006. In 2009, the sessions court found Kadam guilty of "homicide amounting to murder," and sentenced him to life-imprisonment. However, the sentence was later revoked by the high-court, and released him on bail. In April 2011, the protesters who had been arrested for setting the bus on fire were acquitted, with the court finding that they had not been present during the incident.


In media

Indian documentary film-maker
Anand Patwardhan Anand Patwardhan (; born 18 February 1950) is an Indian documentary filmmaker known for his socio-political, human rights-oriented films. Some of his films explore the rise of religious fundamentalism, sectarianism and casteism in India, while o ...
, a friend of Vilas Ghogre, created a documentary based on the incident, entitled ''
Jai Bhim Comrade ''Jai Bhim Comrade'' is a 2011 Indian documentary film directed by Anand Patwardhan. The film begins with a description of police violence in the 1997 Ramabai killings. It goes on to explore various aspects of the lives and politics of Dalit peo ...
''. Patwardhan stated that the filming took 14 years because he was waiting for the accused policemen to be jailed, and the residents of the colony to be acquitted.


See also

* Vandalism of Ambedkar statues * 2006 Dalit protests in Maharashtra; a set of protests also in response to the desecration of a statue of Ambedkar. *
Caste-related violence in India Caste-related violence in India has occurred and continues to occur in various forms. According to a report by Human Rights Watch: inhuman, and degrading treatment of over 165 million people in India has been justified on the basis of caste. ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramabai Ambedkar massacre Mass murder in 1997 Caste-related violence in India Police brutality in India Dalit history Mass murder in Mumbai 1990s in Mumbai July 1997 in India 1997 murders in India 20th-century mass murder in India Killings by law enforcement officers in India