"No caste issue in this," says Congress' Mallu Ravi on Nagarkurnool toddler death

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], March 1 (ANI): Congress MP Mallu Ravi on Saturday said there was no caste angle in the death of a two-year-old child in Kummera village of Nagarkurnool district, and cautioned against attempts to disturb social harmony.
Speaking to ANI, Ravi referred to the incident that took place on February 18, in which a two-year-old child was allegedly killed by upper caste men at the Mallanna Swamy temple fair in Kummera village, Nagarkurnool district, Telangana. The incident occurred after the child's family refused to pay a Rs 100 entry fee to the temple. The family, belonging to the backward Chakali community, was assaulted, and the child sustained injuries, dying two days later.
Ravi said a scuffle broke out between two individuals - Ganesh and Srinivas Reddy. "Both of them went to the police station and filed cases against each other. So, cases were booked," Ravi said.
He added that on February 21, Ganesh's two-year-old daughter was declared brought dead at a hospital.
"Doctors advised filing a medico-legal case and conducting a post-mortem, which the parents initially did not accept. Later, they returned and made allegations against the other party, claiming the girl died because the others had kicked her," Ravi said.
Based on that, another case was registered on February 21. Ravi pointed out that in the original complaint filed on February 18, there was no mention of injuries to the child.
"But on the 21st, they filed another case, saying her death was due to the beating," he added.
"Because of this, many stories began to circulate, and many caste-oriented leaders, as well as people from BRS and BJP, arrived. All of them were demanding various things. Meanwhile, they also claimed that the girl was from a Scheduled Caste," Ravi further said.
He added that police and revenue authorities examined the caste details and found that she belonged to the BC-C category.
Ravi further said that some accused persons have been arrested and remanded to judicial custody, while others are absconding and being traced by the police.
Ravi appealed for calm, stating that there was no confirmed link between the earlier altercation and the child's death. He cautioned against giving the incident a caste dimension, saying such narratives could disturb social harmony.
"What I want to tell society today is that there is no caste issue in this. There is no connection between the baby's death and this incident. I am saying this because when people think an incident happened because of caste, it can cause disturbance in society, which I do not want to see," he added.
Meanwhile, reports have claimed that a two-year-old child was allegedly assaulted at the Mallanna Swamy temple fair in Kummera village after her family refused to pay an entry fee.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought a report from the Nagarkurnool Collector and Superintendent of Police, and the police have registered a case under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Three people have been arrested so far.
The incident has sparked protests and demands for justice, with politicians and community leaders condemning the alleged caste-based violence. (ANI)