Jignesh Mevani detained in Ahmedabad second time in a week as he led Dalit rasta roko protest for land rights

By A Representative
Top Dalit rights activist Jignesh Mevani, convener of the Una Dalit Atyachar Ladat Samiti, along with his activist-colleagues and residents of Saroda village of Dholka taluka of Ahmedabad district, was detained in Ahmedabad immediately after he led a pre-announced “rasta rook” (road block) agitation, near the busy Road Transport Office (RTO) Circle in the city.
This was the second detention of Mevani in less than a week’s time. Earlier on September 16, he was picked up (click HERE) from the Ahmedabad airport evening as he returned from Delhi after attending a Dalit rally, addressed, among others, by senior Communist leader Sitaram Yechury and Dr BR Ambedkar’s grandson Prakash Ambedkar.
Addressing the rally at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, Mevani declared all-India protest against “failure” of governments, Central and state, to provide land to Dalits, starting at Maninagar in Ahmedabad. Maninagar is the former assembly constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Gujarat government apprehended he would create trouble at meetings organized in honour of Modi on the latter’s birthday, September 17. Mevani was detained for the whole night, and was put under police vigil till Modi left Gujarat.
Mevani and his colleagues, who were protesting against the “failure” of the Gujarat government to provide five acres land to each Dalit family as demanded by him at Una on August 15, were taken to the Police Stadium. The protest was organized in front of the Ahmedabad district collector’s office, situated next to RTO.
Giving reasons for staging the protest, a statement issued by organizers of Samiti, formed in the wake of the gruesome Una flogging incident of July 11, said, “For more than ten years now, Dalit families in Saroda have been struggling and fighting for possession of land allotted to them. A ten year old struggle, they no longer have any patience left.”
The “rasta roko” agitation began at 11 am, against the announced time of 9.00 am, under the banner of Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch, in front of the RTO. “It left the left the government and police panting”, said a participant. Among those who were detained included women, who had come from Saroda village. “The police roughed them up with no mercy”, the participant claimed.

As they were being detained, one of the women angrily said, “We will not sit quietly and tolerate what you've been doing to us for decades, we have nothing to lose, never have you given us any dignity, now we will not stop till we get our land."
One woman fainted during the protest. Mevani said, ambulance be called. Instead, she was "dragged out", he added.
Meanwhile, Alpesh Thakor, convenor of OBC-SC-ST Ekta Manch, has decided to extend “symbolic” support to Mevani’s announcement for a “rail roko” (stop train) agitation by pulling chains across India on October 1.
Leader from the Other Backward Class (OBC) Thakore community, Alpesh has organised multiple OBC unity rallies in Ahmedabad. He declared this following a recent meeting with Mevani in Ahmedabad.
“We are 78 per cent in Gujarat. And in spite of that, they are the ones sitting in the government and doing injustice to us. And that’s why I have come to request you, I have come with a social organisation, we have come for the social change”, Alpesh said.

Comments

Gram sabha as reformer: Mandla’s quiet challenge to the liquor economy

By Raj Kumar Sinha* This year, the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj is organising a two-day PESA Mahotsav in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, on 23–24 December 2025. The event marks the passage of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA), enacted by Parliament on 24 December 1996 to establish self-governance in Fifth Schedule areas. Scheduled Areas are those notified by the President of India under Article 244(1) read with the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, which provides for a distinct framework of governance recognising the autonomy of tribal regions. At present, Fifth Schedule areas exist in ten states: Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan and Telangana. The PESA Act, 1996 empowers Gram Sabhas—the village assemblies—as the foundation of self-rule in these areas. Among the many powers devolved to them is the authority to take decisions on local matters, including the regulation...

MG-NREGA: A global model still waiting to be fully implemented

By Bharat Dogra When the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MG-NREGA) was introduced in India nearly two decades ago, it drew worldwide attention. The reason was evident. At a time when states across much of the world were retreating from responsibility for livelihoods and welfare, the world’s second most populous country—with nearly two-thirds of its people living in rural or semi-rural areas—committed itself to guaranteeing 100 days of employment a year to its rural population.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Concerns raised over move to rename MGNREGA, critics call it politically motivated

By A Representative Concerns have been raised over the Union government’s reported move to rename the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), with critics describing it as a politically motivated step rather than an administrative reform. They argue that the proposed change undermines the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and seeks to appropriate credit for a programme whose relevance has been repeatedly demonstrated, particularly during times of crisis.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Rollback of right to work? VB–GRAM G Bill 'dilutes' statutory employment guarantee

By A Representative The Right to Food Campaign has strongly condemned the passage of the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB–GRAM G) Bill, 2025, describing it as a major rollback of workers’ rights and a fundamental dilution of the statutory Right to Work guaranteed under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). In a statement, the Campaign termed the repeal of MGNREGA a “dark day for workers’ rights” and accused the government of converting a legally enforceable, demand-based employment guarantee into a centralised, discretionary welfare scheme.

Making rigid distinctions between Indian and foreign 'historically untenable'

By A Representative Oral historian, filmmaker and cultural conservationist Sohail Hashmi has said that everyday practices related to attire, food and architecture in India reflect long histories of interaction and adaptation rather than rigid or exclusionary ideas of identity. He was speaking at a webinar organised by the Indian History Forum (IHF).

India’s Halal economy 'faces an uncertain future' under the new food Bill

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The proposed Food Safety and Standards (Amendment) Bill, 2025 marks a decisive shift in India’s food regulation landscape by seeking to place Halal certification exclusively under government control while criminalising all private Halal certification bodies. Although the Bill claims to promote “transparency” and “standardisation,” its structure and implications raise serious concerns about religious freedom, economic marginalisation, and the systematic dismantling of a long-established, Muslim-led Halal ecosystem in India.

From jobless to ‘job-loss’ growth: Experts critique gig economy and fintech risks

By A Representative Leading economists and social activists gathered in the capital on Friday to launch the third edition of the State of Finance in India Report 2024-25 , issuing a stark warning that the rapid digitalization of the Indian economy is eroding welfare systems and entrenching "digital dystopia."

Search This Blog