Goval and other adjoining villages under Berhan police station limits in Agra district remained tense on Thursday (October 8, 2026) after statue of Dr B.R. Ambedkar installed in a public park was damaged by miscreants. Amid protest by locals, mostly from Dalit community, police lodged a formal complaint and deployed additional force to prevent any law-and-order violation.
“The statue of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar Ji has been damaged in village Goval, under Berhan police station in Agra. This incident is extremely sad and condemnable. I appeal to the administration to take strict legal action against the culprits and have the statue reconstructed,” said Lalit Jatav, associated with Bhim Army, Agra.
“Information was received that an unknown person had damaged the finger of the statue, on which the Berhan police station immediately reached the spot and collected information from the people. With the help of local people, a new statue is being ordered for installation. Based on the complaint received, a case has been registered and further legal proceedings are underway. Peace and law and order are normal at the scene,” said the Agra police in an statement.
Congress criticized the incident adding that this is an organised pattern to humiliate the Dalit community, citing the significance of Agra having a high Scheduled Caste (SC) population. “It is an organised design to humiliate the Dalit community. After the BJP came to power in U.P., feudal elements get emboldened; hence by vandalising Ambedkar’s statue, a signal is sent to Dalits that even after almost 80-years of independence, they are a second-class citizen by feudal forces. Attack on statue in Agra is an attack on Dalit self-respect movement. The attack on statue is not limited to Ambedkar but also happening with other icons of marginalised sections,” said Anil Yadav, a senior U.P. Congress leader.
Published – October 09, 2026 01:23 am IST
