Samajwadi Party leader and president of Pihani Municipality in Hardoi Shaheen Begum insulted a Dalit man named Rajaram, son of Rampal. The video has gone viral since the evening of 14 July on social media and earned furious reactions from the netizens who called out the politician for her despicable behaviour.
The man laid his head near the feet of the politician and asked her for forgiveness with folded hands while some people commented about apologising loudly in the background. Meanwhile, Shaheen Begum kept smiling throughout the instance.
Municipal President Shahin Begum forced a Dalit man to beg when he came here seeking a small help.
— Mr Sinha (@MrSinha_) July 15, 2023
Since she's a MusIim & belongs to Samajwadi party, no DaIit activists will open their mouths.
Had she been a UC Hindu, Brahmanical Patriarchy would've been trending for weeks. pic.twitter.com/5t5Vk2xS3r
After the footage surfaced on social media platforms, the individual who is a resident of Mohalla Mir Sarai and a sweeper by profession claimed that the entire episode is manipulated and he only touched her feet to seek her blessings. He also referred to Shaheen Begum as a mother figure.
On the other hand, she labelled it as a political conspiracy against her. Despite all the justifications, Rajaram can be clearly heard pleading, “Forgive me for my big mistake.” Furthermore, someone from behind directed him to speak in a higher voice. “Forgive me once, and there will be no mistake again,” the victim reiterated. Afterwards, the woman commanded him to get back to his feet.
Now, he has registered a complaint at the police station and alleged that the 16-second video is presenting facts wrongly.
The infuriated reaction of the netizens
Social media users, however, have not hesitated to vent their indignation about the occurrence. Randomsena urged Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to use bulldozers at the house of the Samajwadi leader.
Drawing a comparison with the Sidhi urination case, he asked, “If the house of Pravesh Shukla who urinated on a poor man can be bulldozed, then why can’t her house be bulldozed?” He further questioned the silence of Dalit activists over the shameful event.
Update: After the video went viral on social media, the poor man denied the whole incident by giving a written tahrir to the police.
— Randomsena (@randomsena) July 15, 2023
Not to forget that in Pravesh Shukla's case also, an affidavit was given that the culprit did nothing and the video was fake. Now Connect the… pic.twitter.com/Nh8NdJ8a4o
Another netizen charged, “Since she’s a Muslim and belongs to the Samajwadi Party, no Dalit activists will open their mouths. Had she been an upper-caste Hindu, Brahmanical Patriarchy would’ve been trending for weeks.”
“This is SP’s municipality president Shaheen Begum. There is a Dalit sweeper begging at her feet. Her smile reflects SP’s socialist thinking,” Sudhir Mishra inquired. He added, “Think about what individuals like Azam, Atiq and she would do to Dalits and the poor if SP had been in power?”
ये हैं सपा की नगर पालिका अध्यक्ष “शाहीन बेगम”
— Sudhir Mishra 🇮🇳 (@Sudhir_mish) July 15, 2023
उनके पैरों में गिड़गिड़ाता “दलित” सफाई कर्मी है, चेयरमैन साहिबा की “मुस्कान” सपा के समाजवादी सोंच को दर्शाती है?
सोचो “सपा” सत्ता में होती होगी, तो आजम, अतीक, बेगम, जैसे लोग दलितों, गरीबों पर क्या करते होंगे? pic.twitter.com/Oh6n4BBISh
Aquib Mir tagged the Samajwadi Party supremo and former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh Akhilesh Yadav and wrote, “Municipal President Shahin Begum forced a Dalit man to beg when he came here seeking a small help. Since she’s a Muslim and belongs to the Samajwadi Party, no Dalit activists will open their mouths.” He urged people to retweet the clip.
What the hell is this @yadavakhilesh.
— Aquib Mir (@aquibmir71) July 15, 2023
Municipal President Shahin Begum forced a Dalit man to beg when he came here seeking a small help.
Since she's a MusIim & belongs to Samajwadi party, no DaIit activists will open their mouths.
Retweet it .
pic.twitter.com/BPXfV7SxUh
Another user slammed the politician and repeated, “Municipal President Shahin Begum forced a Dalit man to beg when he came here seeking a small help. Since she’s a Muslim and belongs to the Samajwadi Party, no Dalit activists will open their mouths.”
Municipal President Shahin Begum forced a Dalit man to beg when he came here seeking a small help.
— सिद्धार्थ बंसल (@sidbansalbjp) July 15, 2023
Since she's a MusIim & belongs to Samajwadi party, no DaIit activists will open their mouths. pic.twitter.com/fzYtZ7s1fh
Comparison with the Sidhi urination incident
The occurrence has sparked widespread resentment online, and it is being contrasted to the Sidhi urination case where Pravesh Shukla (30) was accused of urinating upon a tribal man, named Dashmat Rawat and the video of the incident went viral on social media.
He was thereafter arrested and booked under various sections of the Indian penal Code, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and in addition to the National Security Act. A portion of his residence which was constructed illegally was also demolished by the administration.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan apologised to Dashmat Rawat and washed his feet at his official residence in Bhopal. He also received financial support from the state government in the amount of Rs 5 lakh and another Rs 1.5 lakh for the construction of his home.
