Rajasthan’s Dangawas Massacre That Shocked India 11 Years Ago: 40 Accused of Killing Dalits Walk Free

Nagaur- Eleven years after the brutal killing of six people, five of them Dalits, in a land dispute in Dangawas village of Nagaur district, the Merta SC/ST Special Court on Wednesday acquitted all 40 accused. The verdict has come as a profound shock to the Dalit community, leaving families in mourning and raising serious questions about justice in cases of caste violence.

Judge Ashish Bijraniya of the Merta SC/ST Special Court pronounced the judgment, declaring all 40 accused not guilty. According to advocate Mahipal Latiyal, the complainant side presented 8 witnesses while the prosecution examined 82 witnesses during the long trial.

A large number of people had gathered outside the court premises when the verdict was being pronounced. While the faces of the accused side reflected happiness, clear expressions of disappointment and despair were visible among the victim families.

A wave of deep disappointment and mourning has swept through the community. The victim families are questioning, “If all the accused have been acquitted, then who killed our five people? We will approach the High Court.”

What Was the Dispute?

The case stemmed from a nearly 40-year-old land dispute over 3.77 hectares in Dangawas village. A Dalit (Meghwal) family claimed that decades earlier they had allowed a Jat family to cultivate the land after taking a loan of ₹1,500. When the money was repaid, the land was not returned. Under Section 42 of the Rajasthan Tenancy Act, 1955, land belonging to a Scheduled Caste person cannot be sold or transferred to a non-SC individual.

In May 2015, Ratnaram Meghwal began constructing a house on the disputed land, escalating tensions. On 14 May 2015, more than 200 members of the Jat community allegedly attacked the Dalit family with sticks, sharp weapons and tractors. Dalit women were molested, men were severely beaten, and several victims were crushed under tractors. The attackers reportedly filmed the violence and circulated the videos.

Six people lost their lives: Ratnaram Meghwal, Pokharram Meghwal, Pancharam Meghwal, Khemaram Meghwal, Ganpatram Meghwal and Rampal Gosain. Five of the victims belonged to the Dalit Meghwal family.

The victims’ families have expressed deep anguish and asserted firmly to appeal before the High Court.

Dalit thinker and writer Bhanwar Meghwanshi told The Mooknayak: “The acquittal of all the accused in the Dangawas massacre is not merely the end of a trial. It raises a fundamental question about the right of Dalits to justice. The question is direct: did no one kill those six innocent people? Did they die on their own? When six people were brutally murdered, the entire country witnessed the barbarity. For years the victims’ families waited for justice, moving from one court to another. If no one is held guilty in the end, it signals not only a failure of the prosecution but of the entire judicial process. When accused are acquitted in such cases due to the absence of impartial investigation, fearless evidence and fair trial, the strongest message that goes out is that justice is becoming increasingly difficult for Dalits." Meghwanshi further said, " It weakens the faith of marginalised communities in the judiciary. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act was meant to deliver effective justice to victims. When even such heinous cases end without conviction, it raises serious questions about the implementation of the law. The victims of Dangawas have not received justice. This is not just the defeat of the victims’ families; it is also the defeat of the promise of Indian democracy that the law is equal for all. This verdict forces us to introspect: where is the path to justice for Dalits?”

The Dangawas judgment has reopened old wounds and once again highlighted the long and difficult road to justice for victims of caste atrocities in India.