Key Points
There is no traditional caste system in Shillong society, but the struggles of over 300 Dalit Sikh families tell a story of class and ethnic divideriots, the long red tape of land relocation paperwork, and the debate over the beautification of the Bara Bazaar..
In Punjabi Lane,a clamped-up area of 3.5 acres, descendants of Dalit Sikhs find themselves locked in a bitter legal battle with the Meghalaya government over the socially sensitive issue of relocation..
Originally housing the Dalit Sikh orMazhabiSikh community, traditionally employed as sweepers in the Shillong municipality, it hasnowgrown into a densely packed residential areawith342 Punjabi families residing in 220 houses...
Advocate Ritesh Khatri, representing the Dalit Sikhs in theMeghalayaHigh Court, said the community settled in the area, also known as Them Lew Mawlong, before 1863...
The primary reason the community was made to settle in the Bara Bazaar area by the British was its proximity to the Shillong Municipal Board,saidHimadri Banerjee, a retired professorand author of the book Beyond Punjab: Sikhs in East and Northeast India...
