Not mulling ban on word 'Dalit' as it is not used in official communication: UP govt

The Uttar Pradesh government on Thursday said there was no question of banning the word "Dalit" as it was not used in official communication.

Social Welfare Minister Ramapati Shastri said, "The word Dalit means those who are oppressed and it includes everyone who who has been exploited or oppressed. Dalit is a not 'parliamentary word' and is not used in official communication, so (the question of banning) it does not arise."

He was replying to a written question by BSP member Mohammad Aslam Raini in the state assembly who asked whether the government would consider banning the use of the word "Dalit", which was an "unparliamentary" word.