Punjab Dalits Crave For Social Acceptance, AAP Says Ready To Help

Fatehgarh Sahib:: At a first glance, Bant Singh appears like any other Aam Aadmi Party or AAP supporter. But in Punjab he is an icon. In 2006, Mr Singh lost his arms and a leg in an attack by the upper caste residents of his village. They assaulted him for going after his daughter's rapists, who later were imprisoned for life.

In this election, he is the star campaigner for AAP.

"Other parties have marginalised Dalit leaders and cut them down to size. For them we (the Dalits) are merely votebank. AAP is different. Even with my leftover limbs I shall campaign for them," Mr Singh says.

Dalits form a third of the Punjab voters -- the highest of any Indian state. But they have had little political representation. To consolidate this vote bank, AAP has given a record 34 tickets to Dalit candidates. Besides, party chief Arvind Kejriwal's promise that if his party comes to power, the Deputy Chief Minister will be a Dalit, seems to have struck a chord.
 Another Dalit candidate, Santokh Singh Salana from Bassi, told NDTV that with his limited means, no party was ready to give him a ticket. "When a Dalit sits on the chair that's currently occupied by Sukhbir Badal (deputy chief minister) only then the fate of Dalits will change," he said.

"Dalits have always been used for political benefits. But our kids still go to public schools and we still don't own farm lands," said Rupinder Singh Happy, another Dalit resident in the area.

The Dalit powerhouse Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP, which is fielding 60 Dalit candidates in Punjab, has called AAPs plans "votebank politics".

"AAP has only promised a Deputy Chief Minister. If BSP comes to power, even the Chief Minister will be a Dalit. Only the BSP can uplift the Dalits of Punjab," SR Meghraj, Punjab convenor of BSP told NDTV.

Unlike other states, Punjabi Dalits are financially empowered. But they still crave social entitlement. Even now, they stay in colonies on the outskirts of villages. It is for this change that the Dalit of Punjab will vote on February 4.