7 Dalit youths attempt suicide in Gujarat to protest Una incident

In a shocking incident, Dalit youths attempted suicide at two places in Rajkot district of Gujarat today to protest the brutal assault on fellow community members for allegedly killing a cow at Una last week.

At Gondal, five Dalit youths identified as Rajesh Parmar, Ramesh Pardhi, Jagdish Rathod, Bharat Solanki and Anil Maghad tried to end their lives by drinking poison.

At Jamkandorna in the district, Kishor Solanki (30) and Amrit Parmar (25), tried to commit suicide. All seven are now being treated at a hospital in Gondal.

According to a PTI report, Inspector Vijay Chaudhary said the five youths who tried to commit suicide in Gondal had threatened to take such a step and police had deployed adequate security to prevent it, but they still managed to consume a poisonous substance.

"They were protesting the brutal assault on fellow Dalit youths in Una town of Gir Somnath district," he said.

DSP Gir Somnath, KM Joshi said nine persons have been arrested in the Una assault case.

The incident at Una, where Dalit youths were paraded and flogged for allegedly killing a cow, caused nation-wide outrage after its video went viral.

-With inputs from PTI