AHMEDABAD
Tension is simmering between Dalits and Rajputs in Gondal in the Saurashtra region after NSUI leader Sanjay Solanki was allegedly assaulted by Ganesh Gondal, son of BJP MLA Geetaba Jadeja.
On June 12, Dalits held a rally demanding justice for Mr. Solanki, who was reportedly kidnapped and beaten by Ganesh Gondal. Gondal’s parents, legislator Geetaba and her husband and former legislator Jayrajsinh Jadeja, wield considerable influence in the area.
Ganesh Gondal has been arrested and he is in judicial custody. The incident was apparently triggered when NSUI leader Sanjay Solanki, whose father is also a community leader among Dalits, told Ganesh Gondal alias Ganesh Jadeja to drive carefully after his car nearly hit the two-wheeler Solanki was riding, on June 6 in Junagadh.
The next day, reportedly at the instance of Ganesh Jadeja, Solanki’s two-wheeler was rammed by attackers in a car who dragged him into their car. According to the complaint, Mr. Solanki was “abducted and badly thrashed.”
On Wednesday; a bike rally demanding justice for Solanki was organised by a Dalit community outfit from Junagadh to Gondal.
“After the first altercation, a series of incidents occurred and that has aggravated the situation,” a police official said.
As Dalits took out a bike rally, supporters of the Jadeja family ensured that nearly 50 villages in Gondal taluka and its marketing yard; which is one of the largest in Saurashtra region, remained closed in solidarity with Ganesh and his family.
Ganesh’s father, Jayrajsinh Jadeja, refused to comment on the bike rally organised by the Dalits and the strike called by his supporters in the villages and Gondal APMC.
