Thread by @parthpunter

Suresh Sakat has passed away. Not exactly a household name. But you should know about him. He was one of the victims of the violence at Bhima Koregaon.

This is his story:-

His house was burnt down on 2 January 2018 by a mob of 150 people.

"I have lodged a complaint about it at the police station and named the ones behind this act. The attacks on 1 and 2 January on the Dalits were pre-planned and aimed at terrorising the community," he stated in his affidavit

But it gets worse. His daughter, Pooja, was one of the eyewitnesses of the riots. After their house was burnt down, the family had received threats. The police had been flagged, but no action was taken. This was the life of an eyewitness at stake.

Four months later, Pooja went missing. And a week after that, her body was found in a well near her home. She was 19.

A fact-finding committee stated that police did not even examine the area where Pooja’s body was found.

The committee claimed the police concluded it to be a suicide without looking for a note. But when the body was found, it was not bloated and her nose was still bleeding.

Suresh ended up leaving the village. When he went back a few weeks later, the people tried to drive him out.

A fierce Dalit activist, Suresh had told me his daughter was murdered when I worked on the story. "There were 16 marks on her face. Only two people were arrested after that, and they are now out on bail," he had said.

He was 52. Died of a heart attack. Couldn't see his daughter get justice.

What he saw, instead, was the fabrication of the entire case, where real culprits remained unscathed, and human rights activists ended up paying for it.

Rest in peace, Suresh.
We failed you.