One elderly Dalit man was killed and 40 others-including women and children thrashed by upper caste villagers in Bihar. The dispute over a piece of land contested by both - and the unfurling of the tricolour on Independence Day. How free is India in its 66th year of freedom that dalits are killed raising the flag? Is Bihar still cast in caste politics rather than the development mantra its chief minister proclaims. Is caste arithmetic still crucial in the electoral crucible in Bihar?