ISSUES OF CONCERN

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process of wooing Dalits by the political parties added to the existing grudge in the larger society. One can distinctly observe the co-optation of Dalit leaders, decimation of independent Dalit politics, building up of ‘Ambedkar icon’ as the manipulative tool and aggravating their vulnerability by unleashing atrocities happening simultaneously. This process further led to consolidation of the non-Dalit castes. The process of collapse of dwija castes through decimation of ritual aspects of castes extended to the upper class layer of the shudra castes as they increasingly involved in political and business transactions. With the caste ties, the shudra bandwagon also in course got hitched to the diwja bandwagon, thereby creating a virtual non-Dalit block. The Mandal Commission also could be seen as the manifestation of growing empowerment of the backward (shudra) castes. This process transformed castes into a simple class like configuration of Dalits and non-Dalits. Alongside, one must note that the intrigues around castes played out in the making of the Constitution. The Constituent Assembly had unanimously decided to outlaw untouchability with the cheers of Mahatma Gandhi ki Jai but skilfully preserved castes with a convoluted alibi that it wanted to provide for social justice for the lower castes. Everybody knew that all upper caste reformers, best represented by Gandhi, were embarrassed by the inhuman custom of untouchability and wanted it to go but none spoke unequivocally about annihilation of castes. Therefore, there was nothing surprising about them outlawing untouchability. However, untouchability was an integral manifestation of castes and could never disappear as long as castes survived. As such nothing really happened by outlawing untouchability. It is being rampantly practiced as the surveys after survey right from 1950s to just the previous day, NCAER (National Council of Applied Economic Research) report, reveals. Castes instead of being annihilated were given a new lease of life in the Constitution. As is known the alibi was to provide for the reservations. PM - Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru signing [30] a copy of the Indian Constitution (1950) When the colonial rulers instituted reservation policy in favour of Dalits, it, although not described in so many words, had a basic feature of being an exceptional policy measure for exceptional people. When the transfer of power took place, could this policy be discontinued? Although the theoretical answer to this question could be affirmative, none having political acumen could say so. Politically, it would have been the riskiest folly on the part of the rulers. If so, the reservations were not to be freshly instituted; they were principally stabilized in the colonial times. More importantly, the colonial powers, despite their zest for marshaling everything to serve their divide and rule strategy, had created an administrative category of ‘scheduled caste’ to supersede the religion-ordained caste of the Untouchables. There 10 Issues Of <strong>CONCERN</strong> No. 7 February 2016
was a clear opportunity for the new ruling classes, who took over from the British, to outlaw castes too. But they hoodwinked people outlawing only untouchability. They had not stopped at that; they diluted it by extending it to potentially all and sundry. They created a separate schedule for the tribals to have ditto provisions of the scheduled castes. Notwithstanding the lack of foolproof criteria to identify people in this schedule for tribes, they could have been merged into the existing schedule (suitably renaming it) and thereby diluted the caste stigma associated with the schedule for Dalits (because the tribals did not have caste). They haven’t even stopped at that. They would create a vague provision that the state would identify the ‘backward classes’ (read castes) so as to extend similar provisions in future. It verily amounted to constructing a can of caste worms the lid of which could be opened at an opportune time in future as the Prime Minister VP Singh did in 1990. The entire schema about castes being kept alive comes out clear when we see similar scheming around religion, the other weapon to divide people. VP Singh, Prime Minister of India (1990) [31] The Constitution scrupulously avoided the term ‘secular’ that could create a separating wall between religion and politics with an alibi to have space for the state to carry out religion-related reforms. The only reform that one could imagine was in the form of passing the Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987 in the wake of burning of Roop Kanwar on her husband’s pyre. It is important to understand these matters because they directly cross the emancipation agenda of Dalits. The answer to the second part of your question is thus yes. The post-independence ruling classes had overtaken the colonial masters in treachery. Castes, instead of an opportunity to annihilate as explained, were given a new lease of life. They have used the colonial policy but mutilated it in such a way as to forge a powerful weapon out of it. The Mandal Commission was a part of this schema. It was, as I said, a can of caste worms. Its implementation led to re-castization of society. The reservations for Dalits and Adivasis were almost normalized but the Mandal reservations opened up the entire issue of reservations and brought the reservations of Dalits into question. It was a mix of age old prejudice against Dalits as ‘inferior’ people, accentuated by their cultural assertion, and the perceived favour of the state which grew as the electoral competition increased by the late 1960s. The reservation became an open ended policy which could be granted to any caste if it could prove to be ‘socially and educationally’ backward. The agitations of castes broke out everywhere demanding reservations as the OBCs or the Scheduled Tribes but never as the Scheduled caste, proving thereby the salience of castes. The political parties promoted it to garner votes in elections. How does Casteism differ in Urban & Rural spaces? Caste has been a life - world of people February 2016 Issues Of <strong>CONCERN</strong> No. 7 11
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Page 3 and 4: we spend time in and finally in the
Page 5 and 6: of Casteist discrimination & abuse
Page 7 and 8: sectors of economy enabled by new t
Page 9: caste famers. The Green Revolution,
Page 13 and 14: caste marriages have happened; typi
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Page 17 and 18: their gains. It is not a moral prob
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Page 23 and 24: Documentary The Death of Merit [44]

ISSUES OF CONCERN

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