Two children from India’s lowest caste were allegedly beaten to death after defecating in public, according to authorities.
Roshni Valmiki, 12, and her 10-year-old brother Avinash were attacked on Wednesday, Sept. 25 morning while defecating on a public street in Bhakhedi village in the Shivpuri district of Madhya Pradesh state in central India, said local police deputy superintendent Viren Singh.
After being beaten with sticks, the siblings were taken to the district hospital where doctors declared them both dead, Singh said. Defecating in that village is banned, he added. The two siblings were believed to be on their way to visit their grandfather.
Police have arrested two brothers over the attack. Singh said the incident is still under investigation. The authorities have given the family 60,000 rupees ($845) in financial assistance for the funeral costs and other expenses. Under India’s law, they will also receive 400,000 rupees ($5,600) in compensation.Both children were Dalit, an ethnic group in India that makes up just over 16% of the population, according to the country’s most-recent census. Dalits are among the most marginalized groups in India, a legacy of the now-outlawed caste system which stratified Indian society for generations. Seen as “unclean,” they are considered untouchable by the higher castes.
It’s not the first time there has been violence against Dalits in India.
