http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-43665887
India Dalits: Who is Raja Chauhan?
Image caption Mr Chauhan has quickly become the face of upper-caste aggression
Video of a man firing a pistol during massive caste-related protests that killed eight people on Monday went viral on Indian social media, sparking a manhunt. BBC Hindi's Faisal Ali finds out more about who he is.
"My son is an engineer," says Surendra Chauhan, an upper-caste landowner and businessman, at his home in Gwalior, a city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. "He was away for work on 2 April [Monday]."
Mr Chauhan is worried as his son Raja has become the face of upper-class aggression against Dalits (formerly form as untouchables) who took to the streets in their tens of thousands across India to protest against what they say is the dilution of a law meant to protect them.
Gwalior saw some of the worst violence during the protests, where clashes between Dalits and upper-caste crowds left three people dead.
Police suspect Raja Chauhan, who in his mid-20s, is the man in the video. He is seen firing a pistol as a crowd of men around him shout slogans. It is not clear if he actually injured anyone.
A senior police official told BBC Hindi an order had been issued for his arrest and a search was on. He has been on the run since the video became public and the target of mainstream and social media ire.
The video began circulating on social media after it became clear the protests had descended into violence. It even appeared on regional television news channels.
Within hours, Devashish Jarariya, a local political activist, had identified the man in the video as Raja Chauhan, with whom he said he had studied in the same school with.
Mr Jarariya also tweeted screenshots of Mr Chauhan's photos on Facebook in which he is seen holding a gun, and accused him of hatred towards Dalits. He accused him of killing the three Dalits
But Mr Chahuan's father insists that while the man in the video is Raja, the footage is old.
However, Raja's uncle, Narendra Singh Chauhan, told the BBC that men in his family had fired their guns that day. He insisted they had only acted in self-defence. He accused the Dalit protesters of turning violent, leaving them with no option but to fire their guns.
India Dalits: Who is Raja Chauhan?
- 7 April 2018
Image caption Mr Chauhan has quickly become the face of upper-caste aggression
Video of a man firing a pistol during massive caste-related protests that killed eight people on Monday went viral on Indian social media, sparking a manhunt. BBC Hindi's Faisal Ali finds out more about who he is.
"My son is an engineer," says Surendra Chauhan, an upper-caste landowner and businessman, at his home in Gwalior, a city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. "He was away for work on 2 April [Monday]."
Mr Chauhan is worried as his son Raja has become the face of upper-class aggression against Dalits (formerly form as untouchables) who took to the streets in their tens of thousands across India to protest against what they say is the dilution of a law meant to protect them.
Gwalior saw some of the worst violence during the protests, where clashes between Dalits and upper-caste crowds left three people dead.
Police suspect Raja Chauhan, who in his mid-20s, is the man in the video. He is seen firing a pistol as a crowd of men around him shout slogans. It is not clear if he actually injured anyone.
A senior police official told BBC Hindi an order had been issued for his arrest and a search was on. He has been on the run since the video became public and the target of mainstream and social media ire.
The video began circulating on social media after it became clear the protests had descended into violence. It even appeared on regional television news channels.
Within hours, Devashish Jarariya, a local political activist, had identified the man in the video as Raja Chauhan, with whom he said he had studied in the same school with.
Mr Jarariya also tweeted screenshots of Mr Chauhan's photos on Facebook in which he is seen holding a gun, and accused him of hatred towards Dalits. He accused him of killing the three Dalits
But Mr Chahuan's father insists that while the man in the video is Raja, the footage is old.
However, Raja's uncle, Narendra Singh Chauhan, told the BBC that men in his family had fired their guns that day. He insisted they had only acted in self-defence. He accused the Dalit protesters of turning violent, leaving them with no option but to fire their guns.
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