On 15 August, Meira Kumar, the former Lok Sabha speaker, tweeted: “100 years ago my father Babu Jagjivan Ram was prohibited from drinking water in school from the pitcher meant for Savarna Hindus. It was a miracle his life was saved. Today, a nine-year-old #Dalit boy has been killed for the same reason. 75 long years after Independence, caste system remains our greatest enemy.”

Babu Jagjivan Ram was the Deputy Prime Minister of India, and a Dalit leader.

Kumar was speaking about Indra Meghwal, a class three student, who died on 13 August, after he was brutally thrashed by his upper-caste teacher for allegedly drinking water from a pot meant for the teacher.

On this episode of News and Views, Meira Kumar speaks to The Quint's Somya Lakhani.