->GreenC bot at 01:59, 9 August 2021

2021-08-09T01:59:50Z

New page

{{Short description|Caste based massacre in Bihar}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2018}}
{{Infobox civilian attack
| title = Laxmanpur Bathe massacre
| location = Laxmanpur Bathe, [[Bihar]]
| date = {{end date and age|1 December 1997}}
| partof = [[Caste-related violence in India|caste-related violence]] [[List of massacres in Bihar|massacre in Bihar]]
| map =
| coordinates =
| victims = [[Dalits|Scheduled caste people]]
| weapons =
| fatalities = 58 killed
| verdict =
}}
The '''Laxmanpur Bathe massacre''' was a massacre conducted in the village of Laxmanpur Bathe in southwestern Bihar, where 58 [[scheduled caste]] people were allegedly killed by members of the [[Ranvir Sena]] in retaliation for the [[Bara massacre]] in which 37 upper castes were killed.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Sinha|first1=Arvind|last2=Sinha|first2=Indu|date=2001|title=Ranveer Sena and 'Massacre Widows'|journal=Economic and Political Weekly|volume=36|issue=43|pages=4095–4099|jstor=4411296|issn=0012-9976}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/india/terroristoutfits/ranvir_sena.htm|title=Ranvir Sena - Left Wing Extremism, India, South Asia Terrorism Portal|website=www.satp.org|access-date=2020-04-11}}</ref> Laxmanpur Bathe is a village in Arwal district in [[Bihar]], on the Son river about 90–km from Patna.

== Killings ==
The village was the site of a massacre of 58 Dalits allegedly killed by the [[Forward caste|upper-caste]] Ranvir Sena on the night of 1 December 1997. All the victims were [[Dalit]]s and many among them were children, the youngest being a one-year-old, and pregnant women.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.firstpost.com/politics/laxmanpur-bathe-massacre-no-one-killed-58-dalits-1166975.html|title=Laxmanpur-Bathe massacre: No one killed 58 Dalits|website=Firstpost|access-date=2020-04-11}}</ref> To remove the last shred of evidence of their outrageous act, they crossed the river and slit the throats of the two boatmen who had rowed them, before disappearing in Bhojpur district.<ref name=":0" /> Laxmanpur-Bathe was targeted because [[Ranvir Sena]] members believed the village's Dalits, mostly poor and landless, were sympathizers of the [[Naxalite–Maoist insurgency|Maoists]] behind the [[Bara massacre|killing]] of 37 upper caste men in Bara in [[Gaya district]] in 1992. Ranvir Sena, a far-right wing militia of upper caste landlords, was created by Bhumihar caste to take on the [[Left-wing politics|Leftists]].<ref name=":0">{{cite news|author=Arun Kumar |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-08/india/28125248_1_ranvir-sena-arwal-district-upper-caste |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811055629/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-08/india/28125248_1_ranvir-sena-arwal-district-upper-caste |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 11, 2011 |title=16 to hang for killing 58 in Bihar village |date=Apr 8, 2010 |work=[[The Times of India]] |accessdate=2013-10-10}}</ref>

In the well-planned operation, about 100 Ranbir Sena activists carrying firearms had descended on Lakshmanpur Bathe at around 11 pm. They forced their way into huts by breaking open the doors and fired indiscriminately at people who were asleep. The entire hamlet located on the banks of the Sone river was virtually decimated in the attack that lasted more than three hours. The youngest victim was one year old.<ref name="ndtv.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/16-sentenced-to-death-for-1997-jehanabad-carnage-19422 |title=16 sentenced to death for 1997 Jehanabad carnage |publisher=NDTV.com |date=2010-04-07 |accessdate=2013-10-10}}</ref>

The incident sent shockwaves across the country. The [[Lalu Prasad]]-led RJD government was then ruling the state. The then President [[K R Narayanan]] had expressed his shock and dismay over the mass murder of 58 Dalits in Central Bihar. In his strong-worded reaction, he had termed the massacre as "national shame".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/Laxmanpur-Bathe-massacre-case-HC-order-unacceptable-says-Left/article11800740.ece|title=Laxmanpur-Bathe massacre case: HC order unacceptable, says Left|date=2013-10-11|work=The Hindu|access-date=2020-04-11|others=PTI|language=en-IN|issn=0971-751X}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deccanherald.com/content/62543/sixteen-sentenced-death-laxmanpur-bacarnage.html |title=Death to 16 in Dalit massacre|publisher=Deccan Herald |date=April 7, 2010 |accessdate=2013-10-10}}</ref>

==Trial==
In December 2008, charges were made against 46 [[Ranvir Sena]] men. Sessions Judge Mishra, on conclusion of trial in the case on 1 April, fixed 7 April 2010 as the date for announcing the verdict. Earlier, the case was transferred to Patna from Jehanabad following a Patna High Court order in October 1999.<ref name="ndtv.com"/>

On 7 April 2010, the Additional District and Sessions Judge Vijai Prakash Mishra of the Patna Civil Court sentenced 16 men to death and 10 to life imprisonment for the massacre. While pronouncing the verdict, sessions judge Mishra described the killings as a “stigma on civil society and rarest of rare cases of brutality.<ref name="Telegraph7April2010">{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100408/jsp/nation/story_12314143.jsp |title=Death for 16 Ranvir Sena men |publisher=The Telegraph |date=2010-04-08 |accessdate=2013-10-10 |location=Calcutta, India}}</ref>

On 9 October 2013, [[Patna High Court]] acquitted all 26 accused persons, due to "lack of evidence".<ref>{{cite news| title = Bihar: HC acquits 26 convicted of Laxmanpur-Bathe carnage| url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Bihar-HC-acquits-26-convicted-of-Laxmanpur-Bathe-carnage/articleshow/23841960.cms|date=Oct 10, 2013| accessdate = 2013-10-10| work = The Times of India}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| title = Patna High Court acquits all 26 in Dalit massacre case |work=The Hindu| url = http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/patna-high-court-acquits-all-26-accused-in-laxmanpur-bathe-massacre-case/article5218083.ece|date=Oct 9, 2013| accessdate = 2013-10-10|author= Rahi Gaikwad| location=Chennai, India}}</ref> The CPI (ML) staged a Bandh throughout central Bihar.

===Reaction===

Some commented that the High Court judgement did not get the attention it merited in the media. The acquittal of massacre-accused were overshadowed by another big news of that time - the retirement of [[Sachin Tendulkar]] from cricket.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-24830995 | work=BBC News | title=Why Indians love Sachin Tendulkar | date=2013-11-14}}</ref> There was an angry reaction from the Bihar government and various political parties in the state. The government replied that it will appeal against the order,<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/10369794/Anger-among-Indias-untouchables-after-26-people-acquitted-over-caste-massacres.html | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph | first=Dean | last=Nelson | title=Anger among India's 'untouchables' after 26 people acquitted over caste massacres | date=2013-10-10}}</ref> while [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|CPI(M)]] termed the verdict as “unacceptable” and asked the Nitish Kumar government to immediately file an appeal against it.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/laxmanpurbathe-massacre-case-hc-order-unacceptable-says-left/article5224978.ece|title= laxmanpurbathe-massacre-case-hc-order-unacceptable-says-left|website=[[The Hindu]]|accessdate=2020-08-12}} </ref> The [[Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist)|CPI-ML]] criticised the state government and said that it would appeal in the [[Supreme Court of India|apex court]] to appoint the SIT(special investigation team) probing all the massacre cases in Bihar.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://m.timesofindia.com/city/patna/CPI-ML-rally-against-Baathe-carnage-acquittals/articleshow/23930386.cms|title=CPI-ML-rally-against-Baathe-carnage-acquittals|website=[[Times of India]]|accessdate=2020-08-12}} </ref> Other state parties [[Lok Janshakti Party|LJP]] and [[Rashtriya Janata Dal|RJD]] demanded [[Central Bureau of Investigation|CBI]] investigation in High Court's decision and alleged that the state government is protecting the interests of Ranvir Sena.<ref>{{Cite web|title=LJP Seeks CBI Probe in the Laxmanpur Bathe Massacre Acquittal - PatnaDaily|url=https://www.patnadaily.com/index.php/news/8932-ljp-seeks-cbi-probe-in-the-laxmanpur-bathe-massacre-acquittal.html|access-date=2021-08-06|website=www.patnadaily.com}}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20131011092448/http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Bihar/No-one-killed-58-Bihar-Dalits-HC-acquits-all-accused/Article1-1133303.aspx Hindustan Times]</ref>

Maoists called for a 24-hour strike against the court's decision in Bihar's [[Muzaffarpur district]], and the police advised that the banks and shops remain close.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2013-10-27|title=Angry with 1997 Laxmanpur-Bathe massacre verdict, Maoists blast a mobile tower|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/angry-with-1997-laxmanpurbathe-massacre-verdict-maoists-blast-a-mobile-tower/430214-3-232.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131027090607/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/angry-with-1997-laxmanpurbathe-massacre-verdict-maoists-blast-a-mobile-tower/430214-3-232.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2013-10-27|access-date=2021-08-06}}</ref> Seven people, including one suspected member from the Ranvir Sena, were killed in [[Aurangabad district, Bihar|Aurangabad district]] on 18 October.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1131019/jsp/bihar/story_17469941.jsp#.UniEgloW1Ml | location=Calcutta, India | work=The Telegraph | first=Dipak | last=Mishra | title=Blast signals clear and present danger Massacre rerun fear haunts police | date=2013-10-19}}</ref> The Dalits in the area feared that there may be a retaliation from the [[Ranvir Sena]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/after-acquittals-fear-haunts-dalit-village/article5223811.ece | location=Chennai, India | work=The Hindu | first=Rahi | last=Gaikwad | title=After acquittals, fear haunts Dalit village | date=2013-10-11}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Dalelchak-Bhagaura Massacre 1987]]
* [[1996 Bathani Tola Massacre]]
* [[Caste-related violence in India]]
* [[List of massacres in India]]

==References==
<references />

{{coord missing|Bihar}}

[[Category:1997 crimes in India]]
[[Category:Mass murder in 1997]]
[[Category:December 1997 crimes]]
[[Category:December 1997 events in Asia]]
[[Category:1990s in Bihar]]
[[Category:Massacres in the 1990s]]
[[Category:Villages in Arwal district]]
[[Category:Caste-related violence in Bihar]]
[[Category:Dalit history]]
[[Category:Massacres in India]]
[[Category:Crime in Bihar]]
[[Category:Caste-related violence in India]]

Laxmanpur Bathe massacre - Revision history

->GreenC bot at 01:59, 9 August 2021