Indian Salesian priest who championed Dalit rights dies

Father Arul Valan, a Salesian priest who led a movement for the rights of a Dalit or former untouchable community in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, has died at 54. Valan, who co-founded the Thurumbar Liberation Movement along with Sister Alphonsa, died of a heart attack on April 8, Radio Veritas Asia (RVA) reported on April 9. Father Devasagayaraj M. Zackarias, former executive secretary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India’s office for scheduled castes and backward classes, called Valan “a powerful fighter” for the Thurumbar community. The Thurumbars, also known as Puthirai Vannars, are considered “unseeable” because of their lower caste status. The community traditionally washed the clothes of other Dalits and was placed in the lowest rungs of Tamil Nadu’s caste-based society. Valan created “a new dawn for the politically, economically, and socially marginalized community. We cannot summarize his contributions in just a few lines,” Zackarias said. He fondly remembered the “deep ideological discussions” with Valan and noted how the deceased priest would not hesitate to invite leftist groups to the protest alongside the washermen.