Staff Report
MIRPURKHAS: The Scheduled Castes Federation of Pakistan (SCFP) has strongly condemned discrimination against its candidates from Tharparker to medical colleges and asked the government to stop the promotion of Hindus at the cost of Dalits.
SCFP President Surendar Valasai, senior Vice-President Bherulal Balani and Secretary General Arjundas said in a joint statement on Sunday, �While President Gen Pervez Musharraf keeps telling the world that there is no discrimination against any caste, creed and religion in the country, the Sindh coalition has begun discrimination against the Scheduled Castes in Tharparker.�
During the pre-admission test carried out by a private university, none of the Scheduled Castes candidates received a seat in any medical college in Tharparker despite the fact that 35 percent of the desert district population belonged to the Scheduled Castes.
The 19 seats allocated for Tharparker district have been distributed by the Health Department on the recommendations from Hindu members of the National Assembly and their allied politicians.
�MPA Rajiv Singh, along with others, has been given three seats each for distribution among the Hindu candidates who historically prefer to study in Pakistan and migrate to the neighbouring country to serve their nation,� they added.
They blamed the Sindh government for selling out Dalits in order to save its power. SCFP leaders urged the patriotic forces of Pakistan to use their influence to stop discrimination against Pakistani Dalits, especially in Tharparker.
�Our rulers are tacitly supporting the Hindu caste system in which Dalits have been barred from getting an education for centuries,� they added.
The SCFP demanded that a judicial commission be appointed to look into reports of discrimination.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_29-9-2003_pg7_33