Dalit residents in Pudukottai’s Vengavayal village boycotted the Lok Sabha elections on Friday, April 19, expressing anger over the government’s inaction against the culprits who contaminated their drinking water with faeces.
The residents alleged that the government is shielding the caste Hindu groups behind the caste atrocity.
The agitating residents registered their protest by tying a black cloth over their mouths and carrying posters expressing their disappointment.
One of the posters read: “We get water mixed with faeces and you want our votes?
Kanakaraj said, “There are 20 families and around 106 people from our village who decided to boycott the elections.
Dalit residents in Pudukottai’s Vengavayal village boycotted the Lok Sabha elections on Friday, April 19, expressing anger over the government’s inaction against the culprits who contaminated their drinking water with faeces. The residents alleged that the government is shielding the caste Hindu groups behind the caste atrocity. They refused to vote until the real culprits were found and arrested.
The agitating residents registered their protest by tying a black cloth over their mouths and carrying posters expressing their disappointment. One of the posters read: “We get water mixed with faeces and you want our votes? Do you want our vote after we drank water mixed with faeces?”
Speaking to TNM, Kanakaraj, a resident of Vengavayal said that they are boycotting every election, including local panchayat elections, until the culprits are arrested. His daughter was one among the children who fell ill after drinking the contaminated water. Kanakaraj said, “There are 20 families and around 106 people from our village who decided to boycott the elections. Instead of taking action against the culprits, the police came after our people and confiscated some of their phones. How can they expect our vote? We are ready to even surrender our ration cards that the government provided because we are extremely disappointed in how they handled this situation.”
