Rohtas/Bihar: In an appalling incident that throws light on the existing inequality in our system, one man was killed and 40 others, including old women and children, were injured on Independence Day when they dared to disobey a formal order not to unfurl the national flag in front of a temple of Guru Ravidas, a lower-caste saint prominent with Dalits across the country. The incident happened in Baddi village in Bihars Rohtas district, 160 km from Patna.

 The statue stands on land where the upper castes of the village wanted to erect a statue of Nishant Singh, considered to be a freedom fighter from the area.

 A fact-finding team that went to the village said the villagers had vandalized the statue and torched the temple and a hut next to it. It has been alleged that the entire incident could have been preplanned and the district administration did nothing, despite knowing about it.

The injured have been admitted to the Patna Medical College Hospital. One person died on his way to the hospital.

The incident, ironically, happened on the day when Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar visited a Dalit village close to Patna to unfurl the national flag there.