Karnataka’s Social Welfare Department inaugurated the state’s first government-run barber shop in Gadag district on February 26, weeks after a barber refused to cut the hair of a Dalit customer and others in the village followed suit by shutting their shops.
Residents said tensions had been simmering in Shingatalur village after the incident. The barbers, rather than backing down, justified their refusal. They claimed that since the deity Veerabhadreshwara Swamy visits the homes of the Hadapada community during Mahanavami every year, cutting the hair of Dalits during this period would bring misfortune upon them, the Indian Express reported
“Every year, the deity visits the homes of the Hadapada community, and the barbers claimed they could not serve Dalits during this period,” a government official said.
Local administration officials attempted to reason with the barbers, but warnings went unheeded. Authorities eventually issued a notice to the errant shop, which prompted other barbers in the area to down their shutters in solidarity, compounding the problem for Dalit residents who had nowhere to go.
Following petitions from affected residents, officials stepped in. The barber shop has been set up jointly by the Social Welfare Department, the Taluk administration, the Taluk panchayat, a body of Dalit organisations and the Shivasharana Hadapada Appanna community. Basavaraj Hadapada from neighbouring Tippapur village has been allotted the shop.
“The initiative has been taken under the untouchability eradication awareness and harmonious living programme to promote social harmony and ensure equal access to basic services,” a department source said.
The shop was formally opened in the presence of officials and villagers.
(With inputs from PTI)
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