SC women from Mavilipatti village allege caste discrimination by caste Hindu community

Scheduled Caste women from Mavilipatti village in Madurai district submitted a petition during the grievance meeting at the Madurai District Collectorate, seeking action against a person who used casteist slurs and practised untouchability when they went to collect their Pongal gift hampers at a ration shop.

The women alleged that they were insulted by a man who questioned how the Scheduled Caste people could stand as equals to other castes at the ration shop.

Deeply distressed by this humiliation, they refused to collect their Pongal hampers. They further alleged that even on local drama stages, the SC community people was still told they must not wear footwear.

On Monday, Pongal gift hampers were distributed at a ration shop near Kinnimangalam in the Tirumangalam taluk of Madurai district. Several SC families from the village went to the shop to receive their supplies.

A man named Raja, belonging to another community, reportedly told the SC residents that they should not enter the upper floor of the shop and must wait until his community finished shopping.

“He also allegedly ordered them not to wear footwear. Although other villagers and the ration shop staff reprimanded Raja, he continued his casteist verbal abuse,” stated Vijayaprabha, one of the petitioenrs.

After filing a formal complaint with the Madurai District Collector K.J. Praveen Kumar demanding that Raja be booked under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the women petitioners, said, “Raja looked at us and asked, ‘How can you people stand equal to us at a ration shop?”

“He insisted that we should only take our goods after they were done. He used vulgar language and physically pushed us down from the upper level of the shop. He even threatened the other villagers, who spoke in our support, saying he would sever ties with the entire village if they allowed us in.” they added.

The women further highlighted that a few individuals like Raja continue to practice untouchability in their village.

“For a long time, we tolerated this to avoid conflict. However, they still bar us from public spaces like the village common ground and public pathways,” they alleged.