DALIT ADHIKAR AND SAMMAN RALLY
As the Reservation Bill 2008 was passed on the last day of the Parliament in the Rajya Sabha, CADAM’s platform NACDAOR prepared for the worst. They organised a DELHI CHALO (March to Delhi) rally and SAVE RESERVATION rally on 24th February 2009. Titled as the Dalit Adhikar and Samman Rally (Rally for the Rights and Dignity of the Dalits), the rally was held at the Constitution Club Lawns, the closest public location to the Parliament. Thousands of people from all over India participated. Leaders of the Dalits and marginalized communities at the grassroots, leaders of Employee Associations/Federations of the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes also participated and addressed the rally. Political leaders from different political parties participated to lend their support to oppose the anti-reservation bill unequivocally. ABBardhan, General Secretary of Communist Party of India, Brinda Karat MP and Polit Bureau Member of CPI (M), D Raja, MP and National Secretary of CPI, Danish Ali, General Secretary of Janata Dal (S) addressed the rally and assured that they won’t allow this bill to be passed in the Lok Sabha. As a result of this struggle and mounting political pressure, the Government decided not to present the Bill in the previous and the last session of the 14th Lok Sabha. However, the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes need to remember that the danger has not been overcome permanently. The Bill is still alive, and so is the NACDAOR’s resolve to protect the Constitutional rights of the Dalits.