Dalit village head alleges years of caste discrimination in India
Elected official says she was denied chair, prevented from hoisting national flag and stripped of administrative powers because of her caste
NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — A Dalit woman elected to lead a village in southern India says she was denied a chair in her own office, prevented from hoisting the national flag and obstructed from exercising her authority for more than four years because of her caste.
The allegation highlights how deeply entrenched discrimination can undermine political representation for India’s historically oppressed communities.
G Malarvizhi is the elected president of Kodungal village council in Tamil Nadu state, a position that makes her the head of the village-level local government and gives her responsibility for public works and other administrative functions.
According to The New Indian Express, Malarvizhi alleged that the discrimination began because she belongs to a Scheduled Caste, the official designation covering Dalit communities that have historically faced “untouchability” and remain at the bottom of Hinduism’s centuries-old caste hierarchy.
Despite holding the village’s highest elected position, Malarvizhi said she was not allowed a chair at the panchayat office and was prevented from participating in official activities for nearly four and a half years.
She also alleged that she was stopped from hoisting India’s national flag during official occasions, an act normally performed by the elected head of a local government.
Malarvizhi accused village vice president Muniyammal and her brother Kathavarayan, whom she described as caste Hindus, of interfering in her work and using their influence over other elected members to prevent her from making decisions independently.
Whenever she attempted to exercise her authority, she said, she was threatened with a no-confidence vote that could remove her from office.
Her allegations illustrate a wider problem confronting Dalit representatives in India’s system of local democracy.
The country’s Constitution abolished “untouchability,” while electoral quotas reserved hundreds of thousands of positions in village and municipal governments for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to ensure communities historically excluded from power receive political representation.
But Dalit representatives, particularly women, have repeatedly reported being treated as figureheads while dominant-caste individuals attempt to exercise power on their behalf or prevent them from performing official duties.
Malarvizhi said her authority to sign checks was eventually withdrawn and payments for public works undertaken under her leadership were withheld.
She alleged that she repeatedly complained to local administrative officials but was instead advised to “adjust” with those she accused of discriminating against her.
Malarvizhi also accused officials and local representatives of later pressuring her to approve an alleged commission of more than 1 million Indian rupees ($10,500), connected to work carried out under India’s rural employment guarantee program.
After months of complaints failed to bring action, Malarvizhi attempted to set herself on fire outside the Villupuram district administration headquarters this week.
Police intervened before she could do so, after which she was allowed to submit another petition seeking an investigation.
She has asked authorities to restore her financial powers, release payments for completed village projects and investigate those she accused of caste discrimination, intimidation and interference in her elected authority.
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