Amrut Desai, who comes from an Upper caste community, lives in Ajimna village which is around 7km away from Patan town in Gujarat, initiated a social change during his daughter’s marriage. He married off seven girls who belong to a Dalit community along with his daughter in the same wedding ceremony. Not only the entire expense of the wedding ceremony, attended by over 3,000 people, was paid by Amrut Desai, but he even gifted the newly married couples with the necessary household items.

“By marrying off the Dalit girls in the same ceremony along with my daughter, we tried to break the centuries-old evil of caste divide. We planned to get rid of the social evil and indifferent attitude towards the people of Dalit community that is deeply rooted in our society,” Desai told The Times of India.

“I saw a good opportunity to initiate social change when my daughter’s marriage was finalized. After getting the nod from my daughters and her in-laws, we discussed the idea with the villagers. They not only accepted it but also agreed to actively participate in the ceremony,” he added.

The villagers from Ajimna and surrounding areas attended the wedding of Dalit girls and bestowed blessings on the couples. “This is an attempt to root out the stigma that still exists in the society,” said Desai.

The Logical Indian community extends its gratitude to Amrut who has chosen to fight against stereotypes.It is the ethics and morals of humanity which stands tall above the evils of caste discrimination. It is heartening to see what Amrut Desai did for those poor Dalit girls; he has set an example that if we try and take the initiative then inevitably we can eradicate the inequality in our society. To become a prosperous nation, we have to ensure that all people are treated fairly, with compassion irrespective of their gender, race, colour, caste and religion. Hence, people like Amrut are essential for nation’s progress and society’s betterment.

Also published on Medium.