Ex-CM Rawat sits on fast against death of Dalit youth

Dehradun, May 13 (IANS) Congress General Secretary and former Chief Minister Harish Rawat on Monday observed an hour-long fast here in protest against the recent death of a Dalit youth in Tehri district of Uttarakhand.Rawat, along with his supporters, sat in front of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi at a park here, saying he thinks good sense will prevail upon the BJP government in the state through his “Maun Vrat” (oath of silence).”Such heinous anti-Dalit incidents must end in the state,” said Rawat.Jitenda Das, 23, a Dalit, was allegedly beaten up by upper caste men in Tehri district recently for eating in front of them while sitting on a chair.The next day when Das’ health deteriorated he was rushed to a Dehradun hospital where he died on May 5.Later, Rawat along with Pradesh Congress Committee chief Pritam Singh and a large number of Congress workers also burnt an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his comments against late Premier Rajiv Gandhi.–IANSstr/kr/bg