Dalits forced to bury their dead by the road, HC told
The 60-year plight of alarge number of dalits of Ammapalayam in Tirupur district, who have been burying their dead on roadside for want of a proper burial ground, has been brought to the notice of the Madras high court.
The first bench comprising Chief Justice M Y Eqbal and Justice T S Sivagnanam, admitting the public interest writ petition of advocate P Pugalenthi on Thursday, has adjourned the matter by four weeks after advocate-general A Navaneethakrishnan and government pleader Venkatesan sought time to submit their replies. M Radhakrishnan, counsel for Pugalenthi, cited a report in Tamil daily Dinamani, which stated that the villagers had been suffering without a burial ground for the past 60 years. “These people have not yet got their freedom, though even a decent burial/cremation is a fundamental right to life with dignity,” Radhakrishnan said. According to the report, the villagers had been burying the bodies along the roadside.
Though representations were sent to the Tirupur district administration as well as other higher ups, no action has been taken as yet, the PIL said, adding that the indifference of the bureaucracy was responsible for the deplorable state of affairs in the village. “The right to dignity and fair treatment under Article 21 of the Constitution is not only available to a living man but also to his body after his death,” the PIL said, citing a Supreme Court judgment in 1995. It wanted the court to direct the authorities to allocate a ground to the SC/ST residents.
The first bench comprising Chief Justice M Y Eqbal and Justice T S Sivagnanam, admitting the public interest writ petition of advocate P Pugalenthi on Thursday, has adjourned the matter by four weeks after advocate-general A Navaneethakrishnan and government pleader Venkatesan sought time to submit their replies. M Radhakrishnan, counsel for Pugalenthi, cited a report in Tamil daily Dinamani, which stated that the villagers had been suffering without a burial ground for the past 60 years. “These people have not yet got their freedom, though even a decent burial/cremation is a fundamental right to life with dignity,” Radhakrishnan said. According to the report, the villagers had been burying the bodies along the roadside.
Though representations were sent to the Tirupur district administration as well as other higher ups, no action has been taken as yet, the PIL said, adding that the indifference of the bureaucracy was responsible for the deplorable state of affairs in the village. “The right to dignity and fair treatment under Article 21 of the Constitution is not only available to a living man but also to his body after his death,” the PIL said, citing a Supreme Court judgment in 1995. It wanted the court to direct the authorities to allocate a ground to the SC/ST residents.
Source : The Times of India dt 17.02.2012
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