MP man 'boycotted' for eating in Dalit home, panchayat’s diktat triggers probe

India's caste system once again reared its ugly head in Madhya Pradesh as a man from Raisen district alleged that his village panchayat imposed a social boycott on him and his family after he shared a meal at a Dalit household during a post-death ritual (shraddh), triggering an official inquiry. The village sarpanch (head) has rejected the allegations.

The episode, which took place around a month ago in Piparia Puaria village of Udaypura — about 100 km from the district headquarters — surfaced publicly on Tuesday when the matter was raised during a jan sunwai (public hearing).

According to the complainant, the panchayat declared that three members of an upper-caste group had violated caste norms by eating at the Dalit man’s home and instructed them to fulfil specific conditions, including hosting a village feast, if they wished to avoid being cast out of community life.

Two of the men agreed to the panchayat’s demands and carried out the acts, described as “penance”. But one of them, Bharat Singh Dhakad, approached the police instead, filing a complaint that he and his family were being treated as “untouchables” and excluded from all social gatherings, a police official said.

Udaypura falls under the assembly segment represented by Madhya Pradesh minister of state for health Narendra Shivaji Patel. Udaypura tehsildar Dinesh Bargale said Dhakad submitted an application to the collector during Tuesday’s public hearing, alleging that the panchayat had formally ordered the boycott.

The complaint names the sarpanch, deputy sarpanch and panchs of the gram panchayat, he added. “The matter is being investigated and if the allegations are found to be true, legal action will be taken against those involved,” Bargale said.

Dhakad said he and two colleagues — gram panchayat assistant secretary Manoj Patel and teacher Satyendra Singh Raghuvanshi — had eaten at the Dalit family’s home as part of a shraddh ceremony.

But following the meal, he said, the panchayat passed a resolution declaring that dining in a Dalit household amounted to a “greater sin than cow slaughter” and that the men were required to purify themselves by bathing in the Ganga and offering a feast to the village.

Dhakad claimed that Patel and Raghuvanshi, under pressure from village leaders, complied with the directives: they travelled to bathe in the Ganga and organised the required feast. He, however, refused to take part in what he called a forced ritual of atonement. As a result, he said, he and his family were subjected to a sweeping social boycott and barred from every event in the village.

Dhakad added that he was being treated as if he were “untouchable” and not allowed to enter the village temple. He further alleged that when he confronted the panchayat about the discrimination, members demanded yet another ritual of repentance — that he shave his head and perform pind daan (post-death rites) for his father, who is still alive.

When contacted, sarpanch Bhagwan Singh Patel dismissed the accusations as unfounded. “If someone in the village is not inviting him to their programme due to personal reasons, then it is his personal matter. Allegations like untouchability are not correct,” he said. The sarpanch added that minister Patel had visited the village to speak with residents. “But if they are not listening, what can he do?” he said.

Sub-divisional police officer Kunwar Singh Mukati said punishments such as excluding someone from social functions, treating them as untouchable, or compelling them to undertake rituals like bathing in the Ganga, hosting feasts or undergoing tonsuring are offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

“Spreading social animosity, forcing social punishment through pressure or threats, and preventing social participation are crimes. Every citizen has the right to live with dignity and equality. Therefore, if such a case comes to light, an investigation will be conducted and the culprits will be prosecuted,” he said.

When Raghuvanshi, who ate with Dhakad at the Dalit man’s home, was contacted, he said he was no longer facing any boycott, and explained that he had taught at the village government middle school for 16 years and that the Dalit man whose house he visited — Santosh Mehtar — had long been his friend.

“I do not believe in the caste system, so I went to my friend Santosh Mehtar’s house to eat during the shraddh ceremony. Someone made a video of the incident and circulated it locally, which led to a controversy,” he said.

Speaking to PTI, Raghuvanshi acknowledged that he followed the panchayat’s instruction and travelled to his guru’s ashram in Allahabad, returning only after bathing at the Sangam (confluence of Ganga and Yamuna). “I have no complaints against anyone,” he added.

With PTI inputs