Kejriwal meets members of Valmiki community who converted to Buddhism over Hathras incident

New Delhi, Oct 21: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday met members of the Valmiki community who reportedly left the Hindu religion to protest against the alleged gangrape of a Dalit woman in Uttar Pradesh's Hathras, AAP leader Sanjay Singh said.

Singh, in a tweet, shared pictures of Kejriwal with members of the community. "There is no justice for Dalits under the rule of Adityanath. Incidents like murder of Dalits are happening; Dalit society is suffering. People of the Valmiki community who have left Hindu religion over the Hathras scandal met CM of Delhi @ArvindKejriwal and shared their pain," Singh tweeted.

According to media reports, around 236 people from 50 families belonging to the socially backward Valmiki community have reportedly embraced Buddhism in Ghaziabad. The families said they have been hurt by the Hathras incident. They also said even though they have been facing financial distress, the government hasn't heard their woes, media reports quoted them as saying.

The Dalit woman was allegedly raped in a Hathras village by four upper caste men on September 14. After her condition deteriorated, she was referred to Delhi's Safdarjung hospital where she succumbed to her injuries. She was cremated in the early hours, with her family alleging that the local police forced them to conduct the last rites in the dead of the night.

Local police officers, however, had said the cremation was carried out "as per the wishes of the family". The incident led to protests across the country with people from different sections of society demanding justice for the victim.