Khetri/Jhunjhunu: A Dalit groom's baarat was taken out under heavy security at Govinddaspur village under Mehara police station area of Jhunjhunu district.
Over 60 jawans of Quick Reaction Team and police personnel stood guard as the baarat was taken out in the village with the groom Rakesh riding a mare while holding a framed portrait of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar. Mehara police station in-charge Bhajanram said a complaint was received alleging Rakesh was threatened of dire consequences if he sat on the mare for the baarat procession. He said police personnel rushed to the village two days back and detained a few people accused of threatening Rakesh.
Rakesh and his family were threatened by some youth of the village who asked him not to sit on the mare. Rakesh's family then reported the matter to the police which detained over half a dozen people from the village. Personnel from Mehara, Khetri, Khetri Nagar and Babai police stations were deployed in the village while Rakesh's baarat was taken out. Apart from the police personnel, Bhim Army district president Vikas Aalha and State Secretary Ravi Marodiya were present at the village.
In December last year, a Dalit groom was forced off the mare and stones thrown at his wedding procession as it was passing through a upper-caste neighbourhood in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr district. Robin Singh, a police constable, was on his way to the bride's home on December 11 when a group of men seized the horse by the reins and forced him down, the family alleged in its complaint. They threw stones and harassed the women in the wedding party. The accused also damaged the music system and a DJ was injured in the stone-pelting, according to the complaint by the groom's father Nandram Singh.
