Introduction
Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar writes” you must make your efforts to
uproot caste, if not in my way then do it in your way. I am sorry, I will not
be with you. I have decided to change. But even when I am gone out of
your fold, I will watch your movement with active sympathy”.
This year India has celebrated its 72nd Independence Day. Indian
constitution came into the force on 26th January 1950 where Article 15 of
the Indian Constitution says that the “State shall not discriminate against
any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or
any of them.
The question arises here, have we got the freedom from casteism even
after nearly seven decades of independence? The answer is no, we haven’t
got the freedom from casteism even after the seven decades of
independence. Rather day by day casteism is gaining its hold and
strengthening its roots in society.
I remember when I passed the seventh standard and went to eight standard.
In class seventh standard, my Civics teacher taught us a chapter on
equality but they didn’t touch the portion of the Constitution. When I
asked him to teach more related to the Constitutional topic, then he told
me that keep patience and I will teach more topics when you go to class
eight.
So in eight classes, I read many things related to the Constitution and came
to know the importance of fundamental rights and how does Constitution
matters in someone’s life?. I was surprised to know that we can also make
the state a party when my fundamental rights infringed.
There is an incident that happened to me. The strength of my class was
sixty and each belongs to a different caste and some belong to the different
religions. So, one day I asked my friend for a water bottle and he passed it
and drank water from his bottle. But after some time one of my friends
whispered in my ear and told me that do you have any idea that which
caste is the boy you drink water from? I said, no I don’t know. He told me
that he belongs to the DUSADH caste (Paswan) and on our side, we do not
touch anything touched by the DUSADH (PASWAN) caste and you drank
the water from his bottle. Basically, in Bihar, DUSADH caste comes and
Scheduled caste category. I didn’t say anything to him because at that time
I did not have an answer for him.
How was the caste system born?
How was the caste system born? This is the debatable issue and each one
has different theories regarding the establishment of the caste system in
India. Manusmriti is one of the oldest legal books of Hindu law. As per the
religious theory, the caste system originated from Brahma, and further, the
caste system is divided into four categories that are Brahman, Kshatriya,
Vaishya’s, and Sudras.
When we talk about the Brahman (Priest and Teacher) then he used to be
superior to all three and in the categories of Brahman only the teacher and
intellectual used to come. The Brahmans were created from his naval.
The second is Kshatriya (Rulers and soldiers) who are created from his
hands and in the Kshatriya categories warriors and rulers people used to
come.
The third is Vaishya’s (Merchant and traders) who were created from the
thigh and in the Vaishya’s categories, the traders used to come.
The fourth is Sudras who were created from the Brahma feet and they used
to do all types of menial work.
The fifth category of people who fall outside of the caste system is Dalit.
How does social class work?
In a rural area, society is divided based on their caste status. Like each
society has a different colony and colony are named after based on their
caste. Every locality is named after the particular caste based on the people
living in it. Society is divided based on the upper caste and lower caste.
In a rural area particular place, where the people of the Bhumihar
community, Brahman caste lives, it is called as Bhumihar tola, and where
the people of the Yadav caste lives, it is called as Yadav tola. Just like that
where the people of the Ravidas community, Dalit community lives it is
called Chamar tola (Colony) (SC Categories) or Mushahar tola (Colony)
(SC Categories) respectively. Resources of the rural area are also divided
based on their caste. In a rural area, the temple is also divided based on
their caste and each community has a separate temple where they worship.
In 2014, the former chief minister of Bihar, Jitan Ram Manjhi who
belongs from the lower caste alleged that deities were washed after he
visited a temple in north Bihar. Even today you will get such type of news
in news headlines.
In primary school, History teachers used to teach that before independence
or after independence, lower caste people were not allowed to use water
wells or hand pumps of the upper caste people. So this practice hasn’t been
abolished. In the current day also, we get to read this type of news which is
illegal or morally wrong.
The society has divided the caste in such a way that even in a party
function in the village area, the people of the lower caste are given food in
a separate row.
The Constitution of India says that the right to marry a person of one’s
choice is integral to Article 21 which talks about the protection of life and
life and personal liberty. But it is unfortunate that if a boy belonging to a
small caste marries a girl above his own, then the society does not accept
him and boycott their family from society. The practice of boycotting is
not only limited to the caste rather this boycotting practice is also done
according to religion when a boy from another religion marries a girl from
another religion. Such type of illegal and moral activity will also come
under the ambit of caste discrimination; the only difference is that society
is discriminating based on religion. These all practices are the bitter truth
of the society which is all being followed in the twentieth century.
The constitutional framework and Law related to Scheduled Caste and
Scheduled Caste, people
Article 17 of the Indian Constitution says that “Untouchability” is
abolished and its practice in any form is forbidden. The enforcement of
any disability arising out of ‘Untouchability’ shall be an offence
punishable by the law. When any person discriminates based on
untouchability then an Indian citizen has a fundamental right to file a suit
against him. The constitution of India protects the fundamental right of
every Indian citizen.
Further Article 46 of the Indian Constitution says that the promotion of the
educational and economic interest of scheduled castes, scheduled tribes,
and other weaker sections. It is the responsibility of the state to promote
with special care the educational and economic interest of the weaker
section of the people, and in particular, of the scheduled castes and the
scheduled tribes. Further Article 46 of the Indian Constitution says that the
state has a responsibility to protect the scheduled caste and scheduled
tribes, peoples from social injustice, and all forms of exploitation in the
society.
To protect the social, economic, cultural interest of the scheduled caste
people, the Indian Constitution has set up a constitutional body with a
view to providing a safeguard against the exploitation of scheduled caste
and Anglo Indian Communities. Article 338 of the Indian Constitution
deals with the National Commission for Scheduled Castes. It is a duty of
the commission to investigate all types of atrocities, to inquire into specific
complaints concerning the deprivation of rights, and to safeguard the
scheduled caste people.
The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes has been established by
the 89th Constitutional Amendment in 2003. The Scheduled Tribes
Commission has a responsibility to investigate all matters related to the
Scheduled tribes and inquire into specific complaints concerning the
deprivation of rights and safeguard of the Scheduled Tribes.
However, many acts have been passed by the parliament to prevent the
atrocities against the scheduled caste and scheduled tribes people. The
Protection of Civil Rights, 1955, and the Prevention of Atrocities Act,
1989 prescribe punishment for a crime against the Dalit. There are many
special courts and fast track courts have been established for speedy trial
of cases.
Has caste discrimination taken the shape of religious discrimination?
India is a secular country. In the 42nd amendment, Secular word has been
inserted in the Indian Constitution which means equal treatment to all
religions by the State.
Day by day the ambit of caste discrimination is taking the shape of
religious discrimination which means People of one society have started
discriminating and hating people of another society based on religion. In
the coming few years India has seen rigorous hate crime towards the
minority communities. There is no proper definition of a minority in the
Indian Constitution. A minority of some places can also be Muslim or a
minority of some places can also be Dalit. In the last few years, the
number of hatred in Dalit society has increased as much as hatred in
Muslim society. In the last few years, the number of hatred in the Muslim
community and the Dalit community has constituted equally.
In current times many people are lynched by the mob just because of not
chanting the Jay Shree ram or in the name of eating the beef. Leaders,
political parties, and affiliated organizations are responsible for increasing
hate and violence in society. You cannot ignore the role of the TV debate
for promoting hate and violence in society. Political parties and news
channels played a crucial role in polarising the country and to transform
the good society into a bad society in the name of nationalism.
Recent Example of Incidents that transform Caste discrimination into
Religious hate
Rohit Vemula Incident
Everyone is aware of the Rohit Vemula incident. Rohit Vemula, a Ph.D.
student, was a student at the University of Hyderabad. Akhil Bharatiya
Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), a student being of the Bhartiya Janta Party
filed a complaint against the Rohit Vemula. University has suspended
Rohit Vemula along with four other students. University also suspended
the scholarship of Rohit Vemula and another four students. Rohit Vemula
and four students were unable to bear the expense and they set up a tent
inside the campus and started a hunger strike.
On 17th January 2016, Rohit Vemula committed suicide, and left behind
the letter in which he wrote that “Birth was his fatal accident”.
Akhlaq Incident
On 28th September 2015, a mob had gathered near the Akhlaq house.
Akhlaq’s house was in Dadri tehsil of Uttar Pradesh State. The name of his
village was Bisara. A rumour was made from the temple loudspeaker
where an announcer requested the villagers to gather near the Bada
transformer because someone has slaughtered a cow in the village. Just
after some time, a mob entered the Akhlaq house and the mob forcefully
dragged Akhlaq and his son whose name was Danish from the house and
beaten. The mob killed Akhlaq at the same time while his younger son
Danish who was 22 years old got several head injuries.
Tabrez Ansari Incident
Tabrej Ansari who belonged from Jharkhand. He was returning from
Jamshedpur on 17th June with two other friends. On the suspicion of theft,
a group of people caught him on 17th June 2019. His family members
alleged that a mob thrashed him and forced him to chant Jay Shree ram
and Jay Hanuman. Just after four days, on 22nd June, Tabrej Ansari died.
Mob killed him just because he belonged from the Muslim community and
didn’t chant Jay Shree Ram and Jay Hanuman.
Implementation issues of law and why are deprived sections of society
afraid of administration?
The problem is not with the legislation but with the implementation of that
particular law. No doubt, many laws in India deal with caste
discrimination, violence, hate but there is an implementation issue on the
ground level. Many Commission and Fast Track courts have been
established so that victims can get justice quickly. Even there is a time
limit to the FastTrack Court to deliver justice on time. But the court fails to
deliver justice on time. But the commission and the FastTrack Court are
taking more time in delivering justice to the victim. Sometimes politicians,
people from the upper caste, or rich people made pressure on the victim to
negotiate or to do the settlement with the case. Just because the victim is
poor he is not able to bear the all-expense of the court or he is not as much
as educated to approach the case to the right authority. Sometimes, we see
that siscrimination and violence with someone happen two years ago, but
they do not report to the police for fear of that person. The reason for that
is he is one of the deprived sections of the society and the people of the
higher caste have been suppressed and threatened since the beginning and
they are unable to open their mouth due to their fear.
The only solution is to run away the fear from the hearts of the poor people
or deprived section of the society is to raise awareness to them and the
government needs to be told that this is your fundamental right or legal
right or if anyone violates these right then you have the right the to file a
case against him without any fear from them or without any fear from the
administrative body. In the rural area, if something wrong goes with poor
people or society discriminate him based on colour, caste, religion, or sex
So he does not even know to whom he should take his complaint or
suppose he supposes if he goes to the right place to complain then
authority doesn’t treat well because the complainant belongs from the
backward section of the society, he is not aware of their right and
complaint is not registered. That’s why the administration should be more
friendly with the last man of the society So that if any wrong happens with
him then get his complaint registered without fear.
The reasons behind the backwardness of Dalit and untouchability in
society
When Baba Saheb Ambedkar went to school then he was asked to sit
outside the school and he studied but after the century the scenario has not
changed much. Dalit is not a caste it is an identity. The person who
exploits, tortures, cannot be a Dalit, rather he is exploited and discriminate
against to others. The person who discriminates to lower caste people that
shows his mentality.
In India, Caste discrimination and the caste system are one of the world’s
longest social hierarchy and patriarchy things in the world. A man’s caste
and caste discrimination begin with the birth of a person. If a person is
born in a Dalit family, then it is a social assumption is he belongs from the
Dalit community and the Dalit community is untouchable in society. No
one thinks that before Dalit he is a human being and he has all the right to
live life as upper caste people’s lives.
Here the question arises is that after the 72 years of independence why the
condition of Dalit or discrimination in the society didn’t improve?
Lack of education
By the Eighty-sixth amendment act, Article 21A was inserted in the Indian
Constitution which talks about Free and compulsory education to all the
children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right.
Education is the only means to improve society. Indian Constitution
provides the reservation to the backward class people but the Reservation
will go in vain when the beneficiary is not getting the benefit. A particular
community is getting the benefit of the reservation because he belongs
from the backward society and he is not in the position to bear the expense
of the education as a well-settled family able to bear the education
expense. But we see that after all, they are not growing in society as they
should.
When any child grows in a Dalit family then his father’s financial
condition is not so good or he does not understand the value of education
due to which he is unable to send to school. And when the child’s age is
studying, then his father takes him to work with him and the root problem
arises here, and just because of the father’s fault or his illiteracy the
coming generations also spend their lives under the guise of illiteracy.
Sometimes If a family dares to teach its child in the school, then its
poverty does not allow it to teach that why the only option left to him is to
take his children to work together.
So the illiteracy in society is one of the root causes of the backwardness
and discrimination of the deprived people.
Lack of Agricultural land
India is an agricultural country wherein the rural area most of the
population is dependent on agriculture. In rural areas, the source of income
is farming. But most of the land belongs to the upper caste people. Dalit
does not have its land but those who own land often own very little Where
he cannot grow the crop or sell it in the market and get a reasonable price.
Because he does not have the land the only option left to him to earn
money by the daily wages or work in someone’s agricultural land.
Lack of access to the land makes Dalit economically weak and that’s why
one has to work in another field. Exploitation arises here when he starts
working in another field because poor people have to work according to
their boss. When poor people work on the daily wages then he earns three
hundred rupees in a day where he has to buy his ration for the same three
hundred rupees and run the whole family. Therefore, instead of sending
children to school, poor people think that it is appropriate to take them to
work together so that two people can earn six hundred in a day. Here the
society fails.
So lack of land plays an important role in the exploitation, discrimination
of the poor people in society.
Fear from high society classes
There is fear in the eye of poor people that have been going on for years
and that fear remains as it is today. We used to see in the movie or teacher
used to teach that when any lower caste people were crossing from the
upper caste people’s house then he had to remove his sleeper and put it on
his head and pass-through front of that house. Today these all practice
rarely happen but cannot deny that these all practice has been abolished.
The people of the upper caste used to keep the poor as bonded labour and
they used to get some agricultural land from the boss for farming. And
these bonded labour used to run as hierarchy like if that bonded labourer
dies then his son will work in his father’s place. That is why the poor
people in the society are still afraid of the people of high caste. That’s
hierarchy should be change and poor people need to be treated with love
rather than fear so that the gap between a lower caste and upper caste can
be ended and also eliminate discrimination from society.
The low number of Inter Caste Marriage Ratio
Nowadays we read the news in the newspaper that a lower caste boy runs
away with an upper-caste boy and the family of the boy killed the girl. We
don’t get to hear or read the news that Upper caste boy has been murdered
for marrying a Dalit woman or lower caste girl. If an Upper cate men
marriage a Dalit or lower caste girl, then the family of the Upper caste
wants to murder the Dalit girl while the family of the Dalit girl or lower
caste family does not complain about that marriage.
That means society accepts the inter-caste marriage but not all inter-caste
marriage. They accept the inter-caste marriage where the boy should be
from the upper caste while girls should be from the lower caste or if the
opposite happens then society will murder you.
A way to remove the caste discrimination from society is inter-caste
marriage. The more inter-caste marriages in the society, the sooner the
discrimination in people will end.
Lack of political representation and command while taking any decision
You can estimate the country’s development by looking at the
development of the village. Because most of the population lives in rural
areas. In an urban area, everyone is aware of their right while in rural areas
they are aware of their right.
The Panchayat election is held every five years and the Indian Constitution
gives the reservation to contest the panchayat election. So, if someone
comes from the lower caste and he can make their own decision without
any interference of upper caste people or pressure from someone strong
people of the society so they can eliminate the caste discrimination and
atrocities from the society. Sometimes we see that because of the
reservation lower caste candidate win the election but the key to power is
in someone’s else hand and all the decision are taken by other people and
he remains just dummy.
So more and more participants in the Panchayat election or State Assemble
Election and to work for the marginalized sections of the society can
eradicate the caste discrimination and atrocities from society.
Conclusion
India is a diverse country and it is the world’s largest democratic country.
Here, when we retrospect then India is in question that after more than the
seven decades of independence, people are discriminating one another
based on their caste. It is not as same as poverty that western country will
allocate some funds to eradicate it. It is totally the perception and mindset
of the common people of the society where they can finish it themselves.
Caste discrimination is not something that has emerged post colonially.
Caste discrimination is a type of poison and it has become the one of the
social tradition and social culture which is increasing day by day in the
society.
