District Superintendent of Police (DSP) G C Malik said that six persons, including the sarpanch, had been arrested for causing grievious injuries to the Dalits. The six have also been charged under the Atrocities Act and lodged in judicial custody. Around five accused are still absconding.

One of the injured -- identified as 23-year-old Sanjay Dalpat Vaghela -- has received 25 stitches on his head and two fractures in the left foot. Sanjay, who has polio in one leg, has been admitted to New Civil Hospital here. The other injured are Bhupat Prabhudas, Jitendra Vaghela and Pravin Jasubhai.

Though old rivalry is believed to have prompted the attack, the immediate provocation was Dalit boys playing volleyball on a playground near Harijan Vaas. ``The Kolis did not want the Dalit boys to play there,'' says Valjibhai Patel of Council for Social Justice, who has taken up the cudgels for the Dalits.

Speaking from his hospital bed, Sanjay Dalpat Vaghela said, ``I was sitting under a lamp post near our locality with my friends when a mob of about 100 people charged at us. They were armed with axes, sharp weapons, pipes and hockey sticks.''

According to Sanjay, the mob abused them and started beating them up. ``The others managed to escape from the site. Since I am on crutches, I was unable to leave the place and suffered serious injuries,'' he said.

Sanjay said the volleyball ground had been a bone of contention between the two groups since quite some time. ``They used to come to the ground often and ask us to leave the place. They claimed that it was meant for them and we could not use it'', he said.

Valjibhai questioned the role played by the local police. ``The complainant was not given a copy of the FIR till November 11 despite the fact that the report was filed on November 9. The copy was provided by the district superintendent of police's office only after an affidavit in this regard was produced,'' he alleged.

Patel has also requested the police to add the offence of attempt to kill in the FIR. ``The mob had come with sharp-edged weapons and brutally beaten up the victims. Despite the serious injuries, the offence was not mentioned in the FIR,'' he said.

Another clash
In another incident, four Dalits were injured when they were assaulted by members of another community in Sontha village in the same taluka on November 12. DSP Malik said that 26 persons were arrested in this connection, but later released on bail. A dispute over not allowing some Harijan men into a Hanuman temple is said to have sparked off the incident.