Hyderabad: Two men in Telangana, who failed to get land under a Dalit scheme, were on Sunday admitted to a hospital with serious burn injuries after they allegedly self-immolation.
The incident took place on Sunday outside an office of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), in Telangana, after they were asked to pay a bribe of Rs 20,000.
M Srinivas and Y Parushuram, had been running from pillar to post for several months, only to claim a piece of land that they were promised under a Dalits scheme, by the TRS.
The two men who were prevented from committing suicide, alleged that the village revenue office (VRO) was not only asking for a bribe of Rs 20,000 for the land, but some officers were also distributing the lands to ineligible beneficiaries.
The two men further sought an inquiry into the allocation of lands in Gudem village.
The two Dalit men took the extreme step on Sunday when the Manakondur MLA failed to meet and address their problem.
One of the victims said, "For the past many days, we have been raising the issue that certain plots in our village were being allocated to non-beneficiaries. The VRO had also asked for a bribe and were told that the list for land distribution was out and our names were not there."
"When we went to meet the joint collector, he was very rude and asked us to leave. Then we tried to meet the MLA and waited till evening, but he did not meet us. There were no options left for us."
The two Dalit men suffered serious burn injuries and have been shifted to Hyderabad for better treatment now.
Attacking the ruling TRS government on the incident, BJP spokesperson Krishna Sagar Rao said, "In the 2014 manifesto, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao promised the landless Dalits 3 acres of free agriculture land. We are asking the CM, why make false promises when you cannot deliver. Who is responsible for this? This is an anti-Dalit government. Dalits have been oppressed in the state for several times and few days back, there were incidents of police brutality on Dalits in Sircilla too."
Meanwhile, Telangana Finance Minister Etala Rajender promised stern action against those guilty. Speaking to media, Etala Rajender said, "We have suspended the VRO and an inquiry has been ordered into the allegations of wrongful allocation of land and the collector has been asked to submit a report. Sixty acres of land have been distributed in the area to the poor and if need be, more land will be sanctioned."
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