Weeks after teen girl found dead, village wants her family out

KOREGAON BHIMA RIOTS AFTERMATH

The plot thickens into the death of 19-year-old Puja Sakat, as locals claim her father has long been a ‘nuisance’; the Sakats’ resolve to stay on gets firmer

In April, 19-year-old Puja Sakat’s body was found floating in a well at Koregaon Bhima, four months after the January 1 riots that shook the region. The death soon achieved a political colour, with the Sambhaji Brigade blaming the government for its ‘shoddy job’ in managing the situation. Circumstances escalated, with the Sakats claiming there was a threat to their lives, as the deceased girl had witnessed the unrest; they also demanded rehabilitation to Pune.

But this, and their decade-long history in the village, has been branded a “nuisance that has tainted the village’s image” by others, who want the Sakats to be ostracised and rehabilitated to another village. On the other hand, the family has reacted to this decision saying it has furthered their resolve to be reinstated in Koregaon Bhima itself.

The ‘worried’ villagers’ demand was officially discussed in the gram sabha on Monday, where the topic evolved into a heated discussion. A resolution had been reached by the gram panchayat, before the letter was submitted to the sarpanch. It will now be discussed on Tuesday for a final decision. Besides the ouster of the Sakats, villagers also want an impartial inquiry into Puja’s case.

Flaunting the written resolution, gram panchayat member Anil Kashid said, “Puja’s father, Suresh Sakat, does not belong to our village. During his decadelong residence here, he has troubled us over several occasions. We want the whole family to be rehabilitated outside Koregaon Bhima. The village is being tainted by one person.”

Suresh’s house was burned during the riots in January, following which his daughter Puja, a witness to the violence, was found dead. Soon after, her uncle Dilip Sakat lodged an FIR claiming Puja might have been murdered, since she had named nine accused in the unrest.

The villagers, however, feel that the matter has nothing to do with the riots at all. Gram panchayat member Yogesh Gavhane reiterated this thought, by accusing certain factions of politicising the girl’s death. “What political parties have failed to realise is that Suresh is a habitual complainant, who has been lodging five-six atrocity cases every month. This also prompted us to make our demand — a detailed inquiry in this particular case, before levelling allegations against other villagers,” he said.



Another member, Narayan Phadtare, feels that this development has escalated issues for them at a time when they have been trying to recover from the “damaging” riots. He said, “Leaders like Prakash Ambedkar are issuing statements sitting in Pune. But, he hasn’t bothered coming to the village to understand the onground scenario.”

Sarpanch Sangeeta Kamble shared the villagers’ sentiments. She told Mirror they have helped the Sakats even when they are not legal residents, by submitting their residence proof to the panchayat when they did not have documents. “This is what it has led to. They are now levelling allegations against us. If the resolution is passed in the gram sabha, we will approve it and send it to the government,” she said.

Interestingly, this is not the first time that the villagers have tried to evict the Sakats. A similar resolution was submitted by them in 2014 to the then home minister, RR Patil.

Rajesh Gawade, a villager who had signed the latest resolution, said that Suresh was ousted from Sanaswadi after which he relocated to Koregaon Bhima. “We want him out of here, too, for constantly filing atrocity cases against villagers. We had cleared and submitted a resolution to this effect to the home minister. The family should not stay in the village,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Sakats are still striving hard to bring justice to Puja. Suresh, who has worked as a masseur for Koregaon Bhima and Sanaswadi, said that his life has turned tumultuous after the riots. “I lost my home where I used to operate from. The villagers ceased communication and shunned my business. My son, who used to rent out an auto-rickshaw and ride it in the village, had to stop working, too. We have been surviving on borrowed money and then, we lost Puja, who witnessed the violence. The owner of the house that I am living in has asked me to vacate. How do I live? What do I do?”

The family claimed to be taken aback upon knowing the villagers’ stance. Suresh’s brother, Vasant Sakat, said he is bewildered by their statements. “This is ostracism. While we were demanding that we should be rehabilitated in Pune, if this is the case we will demand rehabilitation in the village itself. They cannot decide who gets to stay and who doesn’t,” he said.

In the meanwhile, the government is looking into relocating the family since their home was an encroachment. The collectorate has sent a special proposal to the state requesting them to permit their transfer to Pune. Deputy mayor Siddharth Dhende, a member of the Republican Party of India (RPI), said, “We are considering relocating them under the basic services for urban poor (BSUP) schemes that are built by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). But since only Pune residents can avail of these, we will need special permission from the state. We met minister of revenue and public works Chandrakant Patil a few days ago and have given him a letter to approve the Sakats’ rehabilitation as a special case.”