New Delhi   

Celebrating resistance

Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar

NEW DELHI: The Forum for Democratic Initiatives will be organising an evening of cultural performances to honour Bant Singh, a Dalit agrarian labourer from Mansa in Punjab who lost his limbs when he was attacked during his pursuit of justice for his minor daughter who had been raped. The events for celebrating "resistance'' will be held at the JNU City Centre near Mandi House here on Sunday. While there will be an exhibition of photographs by Raghu Rai, a video letter from Bant Singh will be shown to the people. There will also be a musical performance by Rahul Ram of `Indian Ocean' and Bhojpuri songs by Hirawal, the Patna unit of Jan Sanskriti Manch.

Lending a touch of pain would be Sufi songs by Dhruv Sangari. A play, Akarmashi by Mandala, will also be staged during the day. Then there will be revolutionary Punjabi songs by Iqbal Udasi to awaken people to rise and speak up against injustice. There will also be protest poetry by Balli Singh Cheema and others to elucidate the issue of injustice to Bant Singh. On the sombre side, the cultural events will feature `Dastangoi', the lost art of Urdu storytelling by Mahmood and Danish.

Bant Singh was attacked on January 5 this year for seeking justice for his minor daughter who had been raped. His hands and legs were amputated following the attack. But showing exemplary courage in the face of extreme adversity, he refused to drop the case against the rapists of his minor daughter and relentlessly pursued legal justice by declaring that the struggle that he pursued for his daughter was also the struggle for the dignity of similarly oppressed women.

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