THE ASIAN INDEPENDENT UK-
Dr. Shrikant Borkar
Research Fellow @ School of Oriental and African Studies
(SOAS University of London)
The extra-judicial killing of promising law student Somnath Suryavanshi by casteist police personnel in Maharashtra’s Parbhani district is a black spot-on entire police department. It has exposed Maharashtra state’s inability to maintain law and order and systematic suppression of democratic rights of awaken Indian citizenry. Maharashtra, often regarded as one of India’s most progressive states, now faces shame and intense scrutiny for its blatant violation of citizens’ rights with complete impunity- whether it is a daylight murder of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh in Latur or honour killing of Scheduled caste youth Vikram Gaikwad in Bhor district of, Maharashtra.
The events unfolded in the wake of a state-sponsored riot orchestrated in Parbhani following a communal procession led by the (Rashtriya Swaysevak Sagh) RSS-affiliated outfit Sakal Hindu Samaj (All Hindu Society). The riot escalated on December 10, 2024, when a replica of the Indian Constitution was desecrated. In response, civil society organizations organized a peaceful protest against this act of desecration. However, instead of protecting democratic dissent, the state deployed police forces to crush the protests through a brutal crackdown.
During this police-led combing operation, officers unleashed violence against pro-democracy protesters. Amid this chaos, Somnath Suryavanshi, a young law student, began recording the police atrocities on his phone. His courageous act of documenting state repression made him a target. He was mercilessly beaten and later killed in police custody. Along with a lady Vatsala Bai who was recording the police brutality on her phone was also viciously kicked, punched and jumped on by male police official. Police vindicated hundreds of innocent citizens, many from the defiant marginalized communities, and severely injured them for their protest near Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s statue after the protesters retreated to their homes. RSS-BJP culture of institutionalizing prejudice against religious minority communities like Sikh, Muslim, Christian and socially excluded Hindus is well documented in Anderson and Damle (2019), moreover, policing in India is tainted by bias towards minorities, scheduled castes and defiant communities. Muslims, Dalits and Adivasis being frequently targeted by the criminal justice system unfairly and resulting in these groups being disproportionately over-incarcerated .
The brutal killing of Somnath Suryavanshi, who was merely exercising his constitutional right to document police brutality, highlights the deep-seated casteist oppression within India’s law enforcement as observed and documented in several commissions and reports. His death is not just a personal tragedy but glaring example of the ongoing assault on democracy and constitutional values in India now armed with RSS fangs.
After mounting pressure from the opposition and persistent efforts by influential (Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi) leader Adv Balasaheb Ambedkar and Prof. Sushma Tai Andhare, an outspoken mass leader, casteist police inspector Ashok Ghorband—known for sinister targeting marginalized communities within his jurisdiction—was suspended. However, according to Prof. Andhare his two casteist accomplice, Inspector Mare and Sub-Inspector Toornar, who played a direct role in the extra-judicial killing of Somnath Suryavanshi, have neither been suspended nor subjected to a departmental inquiry.
Somnath Suryavanshi, a first-generation higher-educated youth, came from a struggling family. He is survived by his brother and mother, who toils in stone quarries to make ends meet. Despite the hardships, she encouraged her son to pursue a law degree, working tirelessly as a stone breaker to support his education. Now, with tears welling in her eyes, she demands justice, vowing that no other mother should endure the same fate. Sobbing bitterly, she questions Maharashtra’s RSS-backed BJP Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his casteist colleagues asking the mother to forgive atrocious police officers: “Would you forgive the casteist police responsible for my son’s death if your own child was beaten to death in police custody?”
Indian democracy, irrespective of Congress or BJP rule -which often functions as a superficial framework rather than a true people’s democracy, remains a distant dream when it comes to responsible governance and integrity in leadership. Medieval feudal mindsets of caste Hindus continue to thrive within populist political cultures, upheld by vested caste interests that control both the media and the masses. Even the so-called intellectual and educated elite are not exempt from this caste bias, as many remain committed to their own sectarian caste interests, rather than advocating for true social justice. Meanwhile, the illiterate and semi-literate masses are left at the mercy of intellectual mercenaries and predatory capitalist forces that manipulate governance, ensuring power remains concentrated in the hands of traditional ruling castes within a deeply entrenched hierarchical Indian caste society.
