Police delaying action; victim mother and daughter left homeless
Latur, Oct 17
In a shocking incident of caste discrimination, a Buddhist (Dalit) widow’s house was demolished using a JCB machine by the village’s woman sarpanch and her husband at Karla village in Ausa taluka, Latur district, on October 15, 2025. The victim and her elderly mother have now been rendered homeless and are forced to live on the streets without shelter or basic facilities.
According to sources, the victim lived with her mother and earned their livelihood through daily wage labor. The land on which they lived had been allotted to the victim’s late father, Dadarav Govind Kamble, by the Government of Maharashtra in 1983, granting full ownership rights through a legal document (Kabala). The plot measures 33 by 33 feet, and the family had been residing there for over 42 years in a tin-roofed shed. The Gram Panchayat had provided a water connection, the electricity board had granted power supply, and property tax had been regularly paid till date.
The house is situated along the Kumtha–Killari main road, with the house and school of Suresh Sopan Pawar, belonging to the upper-caste community, located behind it. The school, named Late Smt. Kesarai Vidyalaya, Karla, and the residence of Sarpanch Alka Suresh Pawar are located adjacent to the demolished home. It is alleged that Alka Pawar, who currently serves as sarpanch, objected to the Dalit woman’s house being visible near her own house and school.
The victim has stated that Sarpanch Alka Pawar repeatedly abused her with caste-based insults, saying, “You Mahar woman, your filthy hut should not stand before my house! I am the sarpanch now, and I will not allow your house to remain here.” Acting on this caste hatred, Alka Pawar, along with her husband Suresh Pawar, Gram Sevak Jagannath Giri, Assistant Engineer Rohan Jadhav from the Public Works Department (Ausa), Anusayabai Namdev Ghodke, and around 4–5 masked men and women, allegedly attacked the widow’s house.
According to the victim, the group first physically assaulted her — Alka Pawar pulled her by the hair, while Suresh Pawar kicked her. The masked men and women dragged both mother and daughter out, beat them with fists and slaps, and publicly humiliated them in front of villagers. Following this assault, the JCB machine was used to completely demolish their home.
Despite repeated attempts to file a police complaint, the local police allegedly avoided registering an FIR against the accused.
With tears in her eyes, the victim told Samrat News:
> “We have no home, no roof over our heads… we are wandering on the streets. It’s better to die than live like this. I just want justice.”
This heart-wrenching case has exposed not only caste-based hatred in rural Maharashtra but also the indifference of the local administration towards atrocities against Dalits.
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