Khushi Ahmed, who got married to a Dalit boy named Sumit Kudiya said on Monday that she believed in the powers of Lord Shiva and that she daily worships the Hindu deities. Khushi and Sumit got married to each other in the year 2021 after which they fled from their home in Delhi following severe attacks by the girl’s family. The attacks continued despite a video was released by Khushi and Sumit saying that they both had married each other out of love and that nobody had forced Khushi to marry outside her religion.
Team OpIndia on Monday met Khushi and Sumit who have now returned to their home in the Sarai Kale Khan area of Delhi. Khushi said that she is happy to be a part of Sumit’s family and that she worships the Hindu deities wholeheartedly. “I believe in Lord Shiva. I worship him and perform the puja daily”, she said adding that she is granted all kinds of freedom by her new family. However, the family of Sumit is still suffering from the consequences of the aggressive attacks horned by Khushi Ahmed’s relatives a year ago.
Last year after the marriage, Khushi’s family had launched attacks in the locality where Sumit and his family had been staying for past many years. They had also threatened his father and had destroyed his house. Team OpIndia on March 21 observed that some parts of the house and the locality were still under construction.
‘We lost our jobs, no compensation received’, Sumit’s father Kishandeep
In an exclusive conversation with OpIndia, Sumit’s father Kishandeep informed that the atmosphere in the Sarai Kale Khan area is fine now but people are still afraid and are taking precautions from their side. However, they have not received any threats after the incident. Further, he said that during the crisis, people associated with BJP and RSS helped his family a lot but no one helped from the organizations who play politics in the name of Dalits. According to him, AAP councillors had also once visited him and left after unimplemented assurance of installing CCTV cameras for safety purposes.
“At present, there is no security in the area. The paramilitary has also moved out. We have not received any compensation for our loss. The case is still pending. Those who were arrested were released due to the COVID protocols within a month. After that nobody went back to the prisons. We demand legal action against the attackers so that they don’t do the same to anyone else in the future”, Kishandeep added.
Kishandeep further stated that his family is suffering financially. He said that he used to work in a hotel and both he and his daughter were made to resign from their jobs after the incident. “I had some money in hand and had to spend it on my daughter’s wedding. We do not have any source of income right now. I had met Khushi’s family before the marriage and had tried to convince them to agree upon the marriage for our children. I was even ready to stamp my property in Khushi’s name but they refused and kept on abusing us on our caste”, he stated.
‘Several Hindu organisations helped us’, says Sumit’s mother
Also, Sumit’s mother Rajni said to OpIndia that Khushi is happily staying with them and has willfully adopted the Hindu way of living. “Khushi is very happy in our house. Sometimes her younger sister comes to see her”, she said. She also added that now nobody was issuing threats to them as several Hindu organizations have been in support of the Dalit family after the incident.
Khushi Ahmed who has now become a Khushi Kudiya also said that she is happy with Sumit and his family. “I am very happy here. My family had a problem with Sumit’s caste”.
Sumit demands strict Police action-
Meanwhile, Sumit also confirmed that the family of the girl was no more threatening him or his family for marrying Khushi. He said, “I was not scared at the time of marriage as I was not aware of the upcoming chaos. We (I and Khushi) had told Khushi’s family about our relationship before the marriage but they didn’t listen to us. They abused me and my family and commented on our caste. We got married and then went to Gaziabad and returned nearly two months after the violent attacks stopped. My wife now doesn’t go to see her parents. I have occasional conversations with them on the phone”.
Recalling the events of violence from the past year, Sumit said that the then SHO Praveen Kumar and outpost in-charge Pradeep Kumar had refused to nab the main heads behind the attack though they were clearly visible in the CCTV footage. “Now both have been transferred. The Police have taken the DVR of our CCTV for investigation. They haven’t returned it to us since then. It’s been a year. What if we are attacked again tomorrow? How will we prove it?”, he said expressing concern for the safety of his family.
In March 2021, the Muslim mob had attacked many Dalit families in Sarai Kale Khan of Delhi along with Sumit’s family. The CCTV footage had captured the faces of attackers who hit the Dalits with sticks, bricks, and swords. They destroyed the assets belonging to the Dalits and threatened them for life. The Police had arrested 4 main accused and identified them as Farman, Shahrukh, Hasan Ali, and Raja from the CCTV record.
‘All the accused released, roaming free’, Sumit’s neighbor Rohit
According to Rohit, who stays in the neighborhood of Sumit and also was the victim of the mob attack, the accused have now been released and are roaming free. “They had tried to tear the clothes of my 10-year-old sister. Nobody is under arrest at present. They all have been released and are roaming free”. He added that they visit the locality sometimes and keep staring at the Dalit people.
OpIndia tried to contact SHO Vijay Shanwal of Sunlight Colony police station to know about the progress of the case regarding the complaints of the victims but to no avail. The SHO said, “We can’t disclose the information. In case there is any problem, you may send us the official application”.
