`My father was denied water from pitcher for Hindus..`: Meira Kumar amid Dalit boy`s death

Former Speaker Meira Kumar recalls the discrimination her father faced during his school days. Says the caste system remains our greatest enemy even after 75 years of independence.

New Delhi: After a Dalit boy was beaten to death in a Rajasthan school for drinking water from a pitcher belonging to an upper caste teacher, former Speaker Meira Kumar said a century ago her father was subjected to the same treatment but his life was saved. Kumar’s father Jagjivan Ram was the Deputy Prime Minister of India.

"100 years ago my father Babu Jagjivan Ram was prohibited from drinking water in school from the pitcher meant for Savarna Hindus. It was a miracle his life was saved," she tweeted.

"Today, a nine-year-old #Dalit boy has been killed for the same reason. 75 long years after Independence, the caste system remains our greatest enemy," she said.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognizance of the death of the third standard student of Sarasvati Vidyalaya in Rajasthan’s Jalore district, who was thrashed by the headmaster of the school. 

He later died during the course of treatment at a hospital in Ahmedabad. The Commission has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, seeking a detailed report on the matter.