Mettupalayam, Tamil Nadu: Thousands of Dalits from Tamil Nadu’s Mettupalayam of Coimbatore district have decided to embrace Islam citing ill-treatment by the dominant Hindus.
It is said that the decision was taken by the outfit Tamil Puligal at its state-level meeting on Sunday. The reason cited was the injustice meted out to the Dalits at Nadur where 17 people were killed on December 2 in a wall collapse incident.
As per media reports as many as 3,000 Dalits have decided to convert to Islam on January 5.
It was on December 2 that 17 Dalits including ten women and two children breathed their last after a portion of the over 15-foot high compound wall collapsed due to heavy rains in Nadur village. The wall had fallen on four houses killing the 17 persons.
What was shocking was the fact that the owner of a particular house had built the wall to separate his house from the Dalits. Though the owner identified as Shivasubramanian was arrested the outfit was raged when the accused was released on bail.
The outfit members, who are irked by the police and the judiciary have said that there is inequality everywhere and looking at the inequality in Hinduism they want to embrace Islam.
