'Samvad' with Jyothi and MC Raj
Our women are the hope of our Salvation say Jyothi and MC Raj
They are a very rare couple complimenting each other, in today’s movements. They are advocating women’s role in leadership at all the level and have ensured 50% reservation for women in Dalit Panchayats in Tumkur region of Karnatka. Jyothi Raj and MC Raj have done with great determination and commitment what should have been followed by many of us in our villages. A new Dalit movement is visible in Tumkur, which is thoroughly based on a positive alternative. The Bhuskhatikendram developed at Tumkur is an example set on a high scale by this couple. The development of Dalit Panchayat is another concept which need to be strengthened at all level. Both of them have been contributing in terms of literature and philosophy for the community. In a wide ranging interaction with Vidya Bhushan Rawat, Jyothi and MC Raj talks of the issues related confronting us and their vision for the future.
VB: You have been working diligently in Tumkur and have been very focused on your work on empowerment. Visiting to Tumkur at your place, we find many things, changes particularly cultural practices and attitudinal issues. I have not found you much in the ‘campaign’ based programmes of the Dalits. Is this a deliberate decision or you feel that we need more focused work at a particular place.
Jyothi & MC
There are two things. We are very clear that we need to do a focused work and should not allow other macro work to take us away from our grassroots engagements with our people as well as with the dominant caste communities. We are also very clear that we cannot win our struggles working all alone in isolated pockets of micro world that we create. However, it is an art to make a healthy mix of both. We have been doing this all over the world and in many states of India.
It has been a bit difficult for us to blindly support all macro efforts. For example we do find some part of our leadership auctioning the pains and sufferings of our people in the International development market. Internationalization of the Dalit cause for advocacy and lobbying is very different and much needed. But selling pathos and ghetto is not good for the future of our community. It may bring short term benefits such as visibility in the larger circles, plane travels all over the world, contact with big shots etc. we are not inclined to it. It does not make us any better. We are just different in our approach to liberation that is all.
Actually we are deeply aware that since the type of ways that we propose are totally new for many people it is only natural that prejudices, lack of understanding and in some cases political agenda of some interests creep in. Therefore, we have not said ‘no’ to any macro involvement. In some circles people are just cautious about what we might say. This is natural and we do not grudge this type of a reservation about us. It takes time. Soon we are starting a Campaign for Electoral Reforms in India. This will be a macro work.
VB : Your struggle for land rights is remarkable. In this focused work, you have been able to help people directly rather than asking them to wait for a change in the system or wait for a revolution. This itself is a revolution for what we see the way Dalit Panchayats are functioning in your region. You have focused your work in the villages while the leadership that emerging is urban and more agitated on ‘power’ politics and patronage which has unfortunately relegated the issue of land to the backstage in the broader Ambedkarite movement. Your take on it.
Jyothi & MC
Land is the lifeline of our people and there cannot be any let down on this. While taking on the issue of land very directly we are also working on long term strategies. What we have achieved is very minimal. We have managed only 6051 acres of land and have another 3000 acres of struggles on hand. We need a policy from the government. A long term struggle for a revolution is being brewed. It will also become national. Of course, our urban leaders are busy with issues that concern urban situations and reservation. These issues have their legitimacy and we cannot arrive at a position of either or. Of course even in urban areas and in other parts of India Dalit Panchayat model must be promoted. But since the Dalit Panchayat Movement is associated with individuals it will take time to spread as a strategy when it is delineated from the personality dimension.
It is a pity that the Ambedkarite Movement has not paid much attention to this. It is mainly because the Ambedkarite Movement seems to have got stuck in the quagmire of reservation. It is necessary to have reservation. But Dalit liberation has to move fast beyond reservation. We have many other issues to deal with. Land is a crucial one. But even here it is not an exclusive issue. Land is at the same time cultural, at the same time political, at the same time psychological. This is what we find missing in today’s Dalit liberation effort. We compartmentalize our cause too much in the Western model.
VB : Dalit socio-political movement revolves around Baba Saheb Ambedkar’s philosophy and work. Many people focus on conversion as an important tool for Dalit liberation while other feel that conversion is more political in nature and less emancipatory. The history of Dalits conversion to Buddhism is much before Ambedkear as Pandith Iyothee Thass, in Madras province had already launched South India Buddhist Sabha short of thing and was promoting conversion of Dalits to Buddhism. Here in the Bhudevi Nagar (Booshakthi Kendra), you are talking of a Dalith Dharma which is basically the oldest philosophy of India, like worshipping nature, trees, mountains, land, water.. What is the difference between your Dalithology with other ‘mainstream dharma’ and how will it liberate them. Is there any chance of it become a cult culture or you want a free thinking philosophy emerging out working with nature.
Jyothi and MC
If we accept conversion as an emancipation variable then logically we need to give the freedom for Dalits to also convert to other religions such as Christianity and Islam. The argumentation that we were originally Buddhist does not hold water as we have many myths in our culture taken from our history that our ancestors were existent much before the Aryans arrived in India. We have also now evidences of philosophy and spirituality that existed in the pre-Aryan period that belonged to the present Dalit people. It is very difficult to accept that the hatred of the Dasyu race in the Rg Veda emanated after the Buddha period. It is a racial hatred that you see in this Veda. If we were the same people who branched off into different schools of philosophy and theology it is impossible to see such type of hatred. The Shivites and the Vishnuvites fought tooth and nail against each other and were always hitting below the belt of one another. However, since they knew that they were the same people belonging to the same stock we do not see such supplication in their scriptures to destroy one race of them.
Dalit Dharma is not a conversion to any religion. It is simply recognition of the existence of Dalit culture and history resources and a determination to walk according to the wisdom of our ancestors. Enlightened Dalits do have the right to choose their own religion. But a community for which education has been banned in the last three millennia cannot be expected to use their choice of religion this fast. Our people cannot be allowed to be used by these dominant religions in this manner.
Dalit religion is an unprecedented attempt in India to bring in the great cultural tradition of internal governance of the community. Now it is the caste rule that governs, our people are governed by the subjugating norms of the caste village. It promotes a spirituality of drawing strength from the cosmos and from our ancestors. Dalit religion is a major shift in the liberation approach. Instead of crying over what other people are doing to us in terms of denial of rights Dalit religion asserts the inherent strengths of the Dalit people and makes used of these strengths as capital for building a future for our children.
Dalit religion is the cry of a people who have risen from the burning ashes of anti history written by the caste forces of India. It is an attempt to make the Dalit people the makers of their own history instead allowing themselves to be the objects of history that other people make.
Today we are not in a position to say that it will not become a cult one day. We have tried our best to demolish the grounds of it becoming a cult in the model of the dominant religions. But when Dalit people gain their strength through this culture resource no one can say what they will do. Yet, the lessons from the past clearly indicate that Dalit people definitely will not take up to dominance and violence as have capitalism and Brahminism done.
Dalit religion will liberate the Dalit people because it is not a mere sentimental appeal to people to be pious. It is an appeal to Dalits to be rational about everything that happens to them. Dalit religion is simultaneously political, economic, social and cultural. It is the biggest platform of restoring the primacy of women in Dalit community as never before.
VB : You have seen the Dalit movement and its growth. In many places political movement have failed. So, the Dalits have to join the political formations. The Bahujan concept also developed but there also the contradiction developed. So far there has not been effort to work on these contradictions but attempt are to ignore them. Can there be a broader unity among different Dalit-Bahujan communities given the ambitions of different political leaders. What do you think of a coalition of Dalit Bahujan. How do you put minorities in it? Do you think that this is a feasible idea?
Jyothi & MC
Dalit is one category. Bahujan is a different category. Only people with some hidden or subconscious agenda will try to club these two categories together as one political formation. There should be a conscious recognition that these are two different categories and they must try to come together as different people. Otherwise the Bahjan Shudras will once again oppress the Dalits. This is the lesson of history. Muslims and Dalits are not the same category but they can form a political coalition which we are trying to do now. Likewise Dalit people must take the leadership to form a coalition with Shudras and other communities. Such a coalition should also be initiated by what you call the Bahujan. Therefore, we are sure that the category of Dalit Bahujan is artificial and will be counterproductive to Dalit liberation. The type of coalition that we are promoting is Dalit (Adijan)-Adivasi-Muslim and Women. Even Kanshiram was terribly against the Dalit Bahujan category. He asked people to use the Dalit or the Bahujan categories separately.
Here the model of Dalit Panchayat and the work of REDS must be seen as a research material for Dalit liberation. If it is possible in one district of India it is also possible all over. We have expended much of our energy looking at the enemy. We need to focus on our interiority which is very resourceful. Our leadership has been busy with reflexive actualization making the caste forces as our reference point all the time. We need to get seriously into the business of self actualization as a community of people. We have a lot of work on our hand before we launch into the type of politics that we have been talking about. When we are strong as a community, minorities will come running to us. The Christians will never come to Dalits. But it is still possible with the Muslims to make a coalition. Most Muslims are very supportive of Dalit struggles.
In our next book Dyche we are dealing with the question of blind following in Dalit communities, which have led to the present state of affairs in Dalit movements.
VB : The Dalit movement has mostly been in the agitational mode hence when we speak, we are not really bothered about the consequences but targeting an ‘enemy’. Ambedkar’s life span is an example. He was very agitated in 1930s, had long debates with Gandhi and other leaders, declared that he would not die as a Hindu, in post 30s, he was more in to legal frame work, joined the governance structure where ever he found the opportunity and in post 40s, he was developing vision for his community, like started schools and colleges, developed libraries, send scholars abroad and gave them a new cultural slogan. But afterwards, we have not seen such work where the Dalits can come and see the changes and hence this work at Tumkur is not only refreshing and enlightening but inspiring for all of us. What was your idea behind the move..?
Jyothi and MC
Actually we did not think anything big in the beginning of our involvement with our people. We have picked up our precious lessons from our people. The first thing we developed was to sit at the feet of our Dalit women in the villages and learn from them many lessons. We also learned to ‘waste’ time with our people. Therefore, we have been growing organically with the people. We cast aside our University education and make our village Dalit people as our biggest universities. We found that, as you rightly say, we are led by the psyche of failure. We realized that unless we changed the psyche of our people and their self image we would do nothing for their liberation. Therefore, we would take up only struggles that would build a psyche of success in our people. Small successes led to bigger ones and so also increased their confidence in themselves.
Even now we consider our work only as a microcosm. We have such a huge task in front of us. But we do it at a pace that our people can manage. The success is because of our women also. They have been in the forefront of our struggles. We did not import any agenda for the development of our people. We drew them from our people. Nobody has till now succeeded to tell us what we should do. We have only allowed our people to guide us. This is not possible for you to believe. But this is the truth. Working for liberation of an oppressed people is a completely different proposition from mainstream politics and economic development. It implies culture, wisdom, history, humility, ability to let go of your learning and many such things. We had no big idea behind, we had our people always before us.
VB : When we start working with a positive frame work, we work on both the strength and weaknesses of our community as without that no work could succeed. What do you think are the strength of Dalits and what are their weaknesses and how can the overcome them.
Jyothi & MC
We have just now completed writing a book Dyche, the Dalit Psyche precisely as an answer to your question. The book is 1000 pages. We have highlighted all the latent strengths of our community of people in this book. If it is read and understood it will serve for a few generations to come.
1. Resilience
2. Hospitality
3. Inclusiveness
4. Providing
5. Protection
6. Making space available to all people
7. We belong to the Earth and not the other way round
8. No criminalization
9. Forbearance
10. Forgiveness
11. Inherent Non-violence
12. Peace loving
As a principle we do not highlight the weaknesses. This is not an attempt to bury our weaknesses. But we follow a specific approach to liberation and that is when move from strength to strength your weaknesses will have no space to live in you. When you move from weakness to strength your weaknesses are likely to grow as you give so much of attentions and energy to them.
VB: Despite so-called conversion, Dalits still remain Hinduised in their cultural practices. It is easier to say that we are not among them but cultural practices including dowry, women’s subjugation and oppression is very much part of the middle class Dalits, if not at the poor households. In the Panchayats, the dalit women sarpanches are being represented by their husbands and other male members. I am not blaming the dalits only. I mean every one is doing so; hence should we also be doing the same...
Jyothi and MC
It is Frantz Fannon who has said about the Black people the following that the ultimate aim of every Black is to become a White. Babasaheb Ambedkar has said that the liberation will not come from the educated leaders of the Dalits. The less said the better.
VB : A lot has been said about empowerment. What exactly is empowerment in your term? Often it is being said that politics is the key to empowerment. Now, there is not a single post in India, except for the Prime minister, which might also come in future, that a Dalit has not donned, yet the situation at the grassroots, for the rural poor remain the same. The land issue has rarely been settled and we have to go the courts and fight it out. Numbers of atrocities on Dalits are increasing and the leadership does not take cognigence of it except if the matter has to be politicized.
Jyothi & MC
For us empowerment is the self actualization of the Dalit people in all areas of life. It will mean a healthy mixture of philosophy, psychology and spirituality. Unfortunately all these are being looked down upon by the present Dalit leadership to a great extent. These processes require a lot of patience and do not give the type of fast forward visibility that an oppressed psyche is in search of. But hard realization has to dawn on us that unless we build up our people from the scratches our search for Dalit liberation will always remain a mirage. The Dalit leadership is busy with gaining a space in the mainstream which they must know is not possible in the near future. They know it well. Therefore, they settle for a ‘gifted’ space from the caste forces and return their services in kind. They have time only for this. If we build up our people slowly but strongly then we shall gain a space in the mainstream that is our own and not gifted to us by the dominant caste people.
VB : Do you think that time has come for a renew the debate on perils of Parliamentary democracy. Is it time for ask for separate electorate. Politicians will never demand it but should the right thinking Dalits start a debate on it.
Jyothi and MC
Ambedkar himself has reverted his earlier position on separate electorate. On August 27, 1955 he passed a resolution as the Chairman of the Scheduled Caste Federation that we do not need separate electorate. What we need is a multimember electoral constituency. This is the humility of Babasaheb. He did not stand by his personal prestige. He changed his earlier position in the light of his new learning about other electoral systems in Europe.
We are taking up our political point of departure from where Babasaheb has left it in 1955 and not in 1932. Reviving the issue of Separate electorate will be trying to infuse life into a dead horse. This is not necessary. What is more relevant today is the Proportionate Electoral System. REDS is starting a 10 years Campaign on Electoral Reforms in India (CERI).
Unfortunately there is not enough education in our leadership on Electoral systems in the world. We know one system and we think that it is the only system that is available in the world. We need to look around. Dalitocracy, our latest book which has been published is a book on the Electoral systems. We have also developed a Dalit political theory which is being put into practice in Tumkur District. May be after we die, Dalit leadership will take up to what we are saying now. After we die we shall not grab anybody’s space and visibility. But this is very important. The more we delay this farther will our liberation move. We need to wake up towards this very important political dimension of Dalit future.
We do not want this Campaign to be our legacy. It is anybody’s right. We are proposing that an Electoral Reform in India and its subsequent coalitions will permanently ring the death knell of Brahminic hegemony. Dalits can lead the way not only for India but for the whole world if we succeed in this. This is possible. We should believe in it.
VB: Where are women in our movement? What leadership role do you think for them? Why are they not visible in the main platform when we had society which was matrilineal? Ofcourse, Mayawati is there and so are many others, but then they do not speak on women’s agenda at all. And above all so far none of us have started a retrospection of our own work. Do you think there is a need of both introspection and retrospection of the Dalit movement and Dalit politics in India.
Jyothi and MC
Our Men have spoiled the future of our children by pledging it for pittance that they borrowed from the caste fellows. Our men have brought slavery on our community. It is our women who have kept our people together as a community not because of our men but in spite of our men. Unless our women grab leadership in the community and begin to lead the affairs of our community there will not be any liberation. Our men will not bring liberation for our children. They will seal their slavery to the caste forces. This is what history has taught us. Therefore, in the interest of themselves our men should stand back and recognize the wisdom of our women. At least as an experiment our men should refuse to take up any leadership in the next 200 years and let our women be in the forefront. If this is done, not only the history of Dalits but also the history of India will be re-written. Our women are the hope of our salvation. This is not a romantic statement. We know it in our hearts.
VB: Finally, you are worked on Dalithology and developed Dalitatva. What exactly is it.
Are you talking about a cadre based religion or a political religion like Hindutva or Political Islam or you are talking of a cultural change. Do this Dalithology take any cue from the materialism of the past and philosophy of Lokayata or is it totally different in the form and action. What has the response of the people in Mysore and Tumkur? Do you want to replicate this elsewhere also?
Jyothi & MC
Dalitology takes its basic tenets from Shamanic Cosmism and Charvaka’s Materialism. It is the same as Lokayata materialism. However, you must know that when Raj wrote Dalitology first he did not read anything about Shamanism and Charvaka. Later when he read this the similarity was very striking. Therefore, he wrote DALITHINK which is a book on Dalit Philosophy. Dalit religion and Dalitology are not designed by anybody’s brain. It is an emergence from the pains of an oppressed people. It has its deep roots in the history and culture resource of our people. Raj is only a tool in this whole emergence. He has the language, the flavor and the energy to write. But if you ask him to write the same thing again it may be very difficult for him as he believes that his ideas dawn on him from the thought and feeling waves of our ancestors. They gush into his body without him asking for it. Then he sits and writes. Therefore, we cannot say that Dalit religion is designed to be this or that. It is the cumulative manifestation of the buried aspirations of our people. It is delivery. This has to grow. How it will grow cannot be and should not be determined by us. The decision should belong to future generations of our children. However, we must say that Dalit religion should not become ritualistic and dogmatic. It should be the symbol of a garden with thousand flowers with thousand different colours. It should be like a butterfly. It should be absolute freedom for all the people of the world. This is way it will be deeply social, economic, political and cultural. But a psyche of more than three millennia old is at work at the bottom.
VB: And finally your message to activists working for the Dalit rights. What are the major threat and precautions they should take to move ahead. Who could be their alliance partners and how can they develop a coalition for the betterment of humanity as a whole.
Jyothi & Raj
We very firmly believe that we have not yet grown wise enough to give any message to anyone in the world. Some people like us and people dislike us and each one has a reason for this. If our life is in any way an inspiration for people to work a bit harder than they are doing, a bit more committed than they are now, a bit more peaceful within themselves that will be the ultimate message of our life. Young people will find their way in their own wisdom. Future generations will design their path. We are just two easily dispensable entities in the ocean of humanity.
Contact Jyothi and Raj at
www.dalitreds.in
email them at
jothiraj12@rediffmail.com
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Monday, September 01, 2008
Bihar's Anguish, Orissa's Pain
Anarchy and chaos in the East India
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
East India Company started from the Eastern Coast of India which is Bengal to do business in India but the main aim of the company was to control India and its natural resources. The company succeeded in spreading their empire all over India using all the tricks of the governance.
In the post independent India, the Eastern Sector continue to be a tough challenge for the new avatar of the company i.e. Sangh Parivar. It is an upper caste limited company where the shudras and Adivasis are kept as foot soldiers. Having won the western and northern frontier, the Parivar know it well that it would be difficult to stake a claim for the throne at Indraprastha unless the Patlipatra comes under its full control. And hence the tandava in Orissa were essential part of the entire exercise.
One wonder why people are fighting in Orissa, a state in news for all wrong reasons all the time. With enormous resources at hand, Orissa is one of the richest state of India, with similar story of poorest people in terms of economy. The rich cultivable land is in the hands of powerful companies. Therefore, right from Posco to Tatas, every one has ventured in Orissa. While the people die of hunger and starvation, it is Posco and Mittals which make news from Orissa. And chief minister Naveen Patnaik gets appreciation and acknowledgment from his supporters in the pink sitting at the India International Centres and deciding about the fate of millions of people. Yes, when the land of the poor from Orissa was being snatched there was no one except the poor themselves. When the issue of fighting against this iniquitous system came the ‘god fearing’ Sangh Parivar kept quiet. Perhaps that is not an issue for them. The issue for them is ‘conversion’. And often repeated charges of missionaries converting the people. What is wrong with that? If the RSS and Sangh Parivar want to give a better idea, let them do the same. But how are they doing. Full state patronage in Orissa. The Sangh Parivar’s goondaism has been exposed in Orissa. The multi headed monsters in the form of Bajrang Dal, VHP and others and language of Togadia who has been exiled from his own state of Gujarat, Orissa is a grim reminder of the divisive politics of the Sangh Parivar.
Of course, this is not to exonerate the Christian Missionaries who are despite all the protest take shelter under the garb of freedom of choice of religion. How would a starving and hungry person has a choice to select a religion. And why do they starve even after coming to your place. It is absolutely no control when the goons and thugs of Sangh Parivar are forcing people to reconvert to ‘Hinduism’. One does not know where will these Swayamsewaks place the new converts but one thing is sure, that there caste remain unchanged. They can not be the upper caste Brahmins or Patnaiks of Orissa.
This is the most unfortunate side of Orissa when the country should have been concerned about the incident; we hear nothing of that short since Christians in India are no Muslims. For the Sangh’s regular nautankis Muslims are terrorists, now they can not blame the Christians to be terrorists hence the charges of conversion. Orissa’s Dalits and tribal have been pushed to each other. They have been made to fight against each other in the name of Hindu and Christian. At the end of the day it is these people who are killing each other, burning the property of each other. The religious thugs will ultimately survive but the loss of livelihood of the poor will haunt them always. That the goons of Hindutva have not cared to burn a young woman who tried to save the orphan children unmask the demonic face of the Parivar. They have no time to take care of the orphans and tribal. And those who are at least trying to do some work for them are being threatened. Naveen Patnaik will always get the best chief minister’s prize from his friends in Delhi for inviting all big companies to loot Orissa and rape its natural resources. It is also important to understand that both the Dalits and tribals are made to fight each other in the name of religion. At the end of the day, a Dalit and tribal remain with in his community despite his conversion. However, my point is not to equate the Christian groups with the fundamentalist Hindu groups which have got full protection from the state police and state government. The question here is the role of state government and how come it surrendered itself to the Trishul wielding Hindutva fanatics. That Swami Lakshmananda was killed by the Maoist who have openly blamed him for spreading communal poison in the area. But the Sangh parivar refuses to buy the argument that the Hindu Maoist could kill a Hindu fanatic and hence they rioted and destroyed the houses of the Christians Dalits. It is reported that the Christian Kandh tribals were not attacked in their own village. It looks that the Hindutva gangs can not take on the Maoist head on. They know well that fighting against Maoist or the Naxal is a lost battle as even the state police are unable to do so hence the Christian become easy target for them. Here the police and administration also become their favorite choice. It also reflects a bit about Orissa’s social relations where the Sangh Parivar and its wings have carefully infiltrated among the tribal and Hinduised them completely. On the other side, the Dalits seems to have been converted to Christianity. And in this football game of religious identities the end result is that both the Dalits and tribals destroying each other. What an irony that in Orissa where both the Dalits and tribals are facing assault on their livelihood they have become pawns in the hands of religious organization to champion their cause. The government must work hard to restore normalcy and rule of law. They can not absolve themselves from the duty of protecting the people. Orissa can not be allowed to become another Gujarat just because Amarnath’s drama has failed to take notice of the country. Ofcourse, it has helped the communal fanatics in Kashmir Valley. All such organizations and political parties should be banned from contesting elections which raise the majoritarian communalism. I am particularly referring to Hindu communalism because the law is already punishing the others, it is these perpetrators of communal riots who have not been punished so far and need to be punished at the earliest.
Just near to Orissa is another legendary state of India named as Bihar. Today, it is passing through another anarchy, which is man made. While in Orissa, the religious goons played the tandava, in Bihar, it is river Kosi which has destroyed the livelihood of millions of people. If reports are to be believed an estimated 5 million people have been displaced in this Tsunami which has uprooted people from their places and rendered them homeless. There is not even a vacant space where people can hide themselves. In past 14 days people of Bihar have been left to fetch themselves. A state which proudly can proclaim an example of how different communities live together, Bihar is today seeking national attention. Unlike Orissa, Bihar has not seen communal disturbances in past 20 years. That Sangh Parivar and its monsters find it difficult to enter Bihar. It is to the spirit of Bihar’s people that such rabid rabble rousers remain at the outskirt of politics, even when the BJP is sharing power in Bihar yet it has to change its rabid anti Muslim rhetoric’s.
Apart from the communal politics, so called capital also has not reached Bihar. In India it is the cocktail of capital with religion which become the toast of the states. We have seen it happening in Gujarat followed by Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharastra. Now it has found it way in Orissa which is attracting not only investment but conversion and reconversion, but people remain hungry and starving. Bihar’s people are known to work hard and migrate. It is not that they are not religious. They are religious and perhaps have focused too much on politicized version of Chhuth in Delhi and Mumbai which has become a bone of contention for the local politicians. Chhuth is fastly becoming a festival of unity of all Biharis world over very much similar to what Ganesh Chaturthy was meant for Maharastrians. Of course, so far Chhuth has not been communalized and it remains true to its roots and the commercial interest has not yet taken over it.
But a national tragedy of this quantity which the prime minister himself referred as unprecedented, has not attracted nation’s attention is a matter of great anguish. Except for The Indian Express, none of the private organizations have so far taken up the cause for relief. During Tsunami and earthquake in Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Kashmir, the civil society organizations led from the front, news media, electronic channels lent their support but this time it does not look so. One does not know what are non resident Biharis doing? Is it because Bihar’s over assertion of its politics has damaged its cause? Is it because Bihari politicians have failed their own people? Where are they? Well, Ram Vilas Paswan is busy with his party’s meeting in Rajasthan, BJP and its hero Lal Krishna Advani does not take much interest in Bihar, Togadia and other Hindus perhaps do not think that Bihar’s Dalits and backwards too are Hindus or not. Neither Dalit organizations nor human rights groups seem to think of it. The only visible face at the moment is of Laloo Yadav, whose Ministry of Railways has been pumped into service in Bihar.
Actually both Orissa and Bihar give striking similarities. Both face natural calamities. But this time both faced man made calamities, whose impact have been enormous. It will take years to rebuild the lives of those who have lost everything, as Kosi’s fury is still on rampage. Orissa is burning. The chapels, the churches, the Bible, the houses of poor Dalits and tribal are explaining the enormity of this man made tragedy. That both Orissa and Bihar have some of the poorest regions yet they all have been living life of their own in these areas. These rural poor, the Dalits and Adivasis always had lived together in complete harmony of nature till one fine day the outsiders preach them and use them in their hatred and the result is destruction. This destruction of life and property in both Bihar and Orissa reminds us the madness of human being, madness of religious thugs and the madness of politicians who are ready to sacrifice people for their own political agendas. Bihar’s politicians failed to see that Kosi’s embankment was not repaired and still unable to respond to this catastrophe, the chief minister of Orissa has yet to visit Kandhamal and assure the Dalits, mostly Christians, that their life will be safe and that they will not become stranger in their own land just because they are not reciting Gita and Ramayana. State has to act. In the both the places it has failed. The poor Bihari is running to save his/her life from the villages as over 800 villages have been completely destroyed in 15 districts. More than 5 lakhs have been evacuated. Similarly, in Orrisa the Christians have migrated to the forest to save them from further assault from the rampaging Hindu goons. One hope that the state, civil society and other local organizations will not remain mute to such threats and work for unity among people so that all these migrants from both Bihar and Orissa, whenever they return to their roots, do not feel stranger and isolated in their own villages. If state fails in its duties then it will clearly be meant that it has succumbed to the forces of divisiveness and destruction and that would be the worst day for all of us who feel human endeavor to live a purposeful life with freedom and dignity is the essence of any successful democracy.
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
East India Company started from the Eastern Coast of India which is Bengal to do business in India but the main aim of the company was to control India and its natural resources. The company succeeded in spreading their empire all over India using all the tricks of the governance.
In the post independent India, the Eastern Sector continue to be a tough challenge for the new avatar of the company i.e. Sangh Parivar. It is an upper caste limited company where the shudras and Adivasis are kept as foot soldiers. Having won the western and northern frontier, the Parivar know it well that it would be difficult to stake a claim for the throne at Indraprastha unless the Patlipatra comes under its full control. And hence the tandava in Orissa were essential part of the entire exercise.
One wonder why people are fighting in Orissa, a state in news for all wrong reasons all the time. With enormous resources at hand, Orissa is one of the richest state of India, with similar story of poorest people in terms of economy. The rich cultivable land is in the hands of powerful companies. Therefore, right from Posco to Tatas, every one has ventured in Orissa. While the people die of hunger and starvation, it is Posco and Mittals which make news from Orissa. And chief minister Naveen Patnaik gets appreciation and acknowledgment from his supporters in the pink sitting at the India International Centres and deciding about the fate of millions of people. Yes, when the land of the poor from Orissa was being snatched there was no one except the poor themselves. When the issue of fighting against this iniquitous system came the ‘god fearing’ Sangh Parivar kept quiet. Perhaps that is not an issue for them. The issue for them is ‘conversion’. And often repeated charges of missionaries converting the people. What is wrong with that? If the RSS and Sangh Parivar want to give a better idea, let them do the same. But how are they doing. Full state patronage in Orissa. The Sangh Parivar’s goondaism has been exposed in Orissa. The multi headed monsters in the form of Bajrang Dal, VHP and others and language of Togadia who has been exiled from his own state of Gujarat, Orissa is a grim reminder of the divisive politics of the Sangh Parivar.
Of course, this is not to exonerate the Christian Missionaries who are despite all the protest take shelter under the garb of freedom of choice of religion. How would a starving and hungry person has a choice to select a religion. And why do they starve even after coming to your place. It is absolutely no control when the goons and thugs of Sangh Parivar are forcing people to reconvert to ‘Hinduism’. One does not know where will these Swayamsewaks place the new converts but one thing is sure, that there caste remain unchanged. They can not be the upper caste Brahmins or Patnaiks of Orissa.
This is the most unfortunate side of Orissa when the country should have been concerned about the incident; we hear nothing of that short since Christians in India are no Muslims. For the Sangh’s regular nautankis Muslims are terrorists, now they can not blame the Christians to be terrorists hence the charges of conversion. Orissa’s Dalits and tribal have been pushed to each other. They have been made to fight against each other in the name of Hindu and Christian. At the end of the day it is these people who are killing each other, burning the property of each other. The religious thugs will ultimately survive but the loss of livelihood of the poor will haunt them always. That the goons of Hindutva have not cared to burn a young woman who tried to save the orphan children unmask the demonic face of the Parivar. They have no time to take care of the orphans and tribal. And those who are at least trying to do some work for them are being threatened. Naveen Patnaik will always get the best chief minister’s prize from his friends in Delhi for inviting all big companies to loot Orissa and rape its natural resources. It is also important to understand that both the Dalits and tribals are made to fight each other in the name of religion. At the end of the day, a Dalit and tribal remain with in his community despite his conversion. However, my point is not to equate the Christian groups with the fundamentalist Hindu groups which have got full protection from the state police and state government. The question here is the role of state government and how come it surrendered itself to the Trishul wielding Hindutva fanatics. That Swami Lakshmananda was killed by the Maoist who have openly blamed him for spreading communal poison in the area. But the Sangh parivar refuses to buy the argument that the Hindu Maoist could kill a Hindu fanatic and hence they rioted and destroyed the houses of the Christians Dalits. It is reported that the Christian Kandh tribals were not attacked in their own village. It looks that the Hindutva gangs can not take on the Maoist head on. They know well that fighting against Maoist or the Naxal is a lost battle as even the state police are unable to do so hence the Christian become easy target for them. Here the police and administration also become their favorite choice. It also reflects a bit about Orissa’s social relations where the Sangh Parivar and its wings have carefully infiltrated among the tribal and Hinduised them completely. On the other side, the Dalits seems to have been converted to Christianity. And in this football game of religious identities the end result is that both the Dalits and tribals destroying each other. What an irony that in Orissa where both the Dalits and tribals are facing assault on their livelihood they have become pawns in the hands of religious organization to champion their cause. The government must work hard to restore normalcy and rule of law. They can not absolve themselves from the duty of protecting the people. Orissa can not be allowed to become another Gujarat just because Amarnath’s drama has failed to take notice of the country. Ofcourse, it has helped the communal fanatics in Kashmir Valley. All such organizations and political parties should be banned from contesting elections which raise the majoritarian communalism. I am particularly referring to Hindu communalism because the law is already punishing the others, it is these perpetrators of communal riots who have not been punished so far and need to be punished at the earliest.
Just near to Orissa is another legendary state of India named as Bihar. Today, it is passing through another anarchy, which is man made. While in Orissa, the religious goons played the tandava, in Bihar, it is river Kosi which has destroyed the livelihood of millions of people. If reports are to be believed an estimated 5 million people have been displaced in this Tsunami which has uprooted people from their places and rendered them homeless. There is not even a vacant space where people can hide themselves. In past 14 days people of Bihar have been left to fetch themselves. A state which proudly can proclaim an example of how different communities live together, Bihar is today seeking national attention. Unlike Orissa, Bihar has not seen communal disturbances in past 20 years. That Sangh Parivar and its monsters find it difficult to enter Bihar. It is to the spirit of Bihar’s people that such rabid rabble rousers remain at the outskirt of politics, even when the BJP is sharing power in Bihar yet it has to change its rabid anti Muslim rhetoric’s.
Apart from the communal politics, so called capital also has not reached Bihar. In India it is the cocktail of capital with religion which become the toast of the states. We have seen it happening in Gujarat followed by Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharastra. Now it has found it way in Orissa which is attracting not only investment but conversion and reconversion, but people remain hungry and starving. Bihar’s people are known to work hard and migrate. It is not that they are not religious. They are religious and perhaps have focused too much on politicized version of Chhuth in Delhi and Mumbai which has become a bone of contention for the local politicians. Chhuth is fastly becoming a festival of unity of all Biharis world over very much similar to what Ganesh Chaturthy was meant for Maharastrians. Of course, so far Chhuth has not been communalized and it remains true to its roots and the commercial interest has not yet taken over it.
But a national tragedy of this quantity which the prime minister himself referred as unprecedented, has not attracted nation’s attention is a matter of great anguish. Except for The Indian Express, none of the private organizations have so far taken up the cause for relief. During Tsunami and earthquake in Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Kashmir, the civil society organizations led from the front, news media, electronic channels lent their support but this time it does not look so. One does not know what are non resident Biharis doing? Is it because Bihar’s over assertion of its politics has damaged its cause? Is it because Bihari politicians have failed their own people? Where are they? Well, Ram Vilas Paswan is busy with his party’s meeting in Rajasthan, BJP and its hero Lal Krishna Advani does not take much interest in Bihar, Togadia and other Hindus perhaps do not think that Bihar’s Dalits and backwards too are Hindus or not. Neither Dalit organizations nor human rights groups seem to think of it. The only visible face at the moment is of Laloo Yadav, whose Ministry of Railways has been pumped into service in Bihar.
Actually both Orissa and Bihar give striking similarities. Both face natural calamities. But this time both faced man made calamities, whose impact have been enormous. It will take years to rebuild the lives of those who have lost everything, as Kosi’s fury is still on rampage. Orissa is burning. The chapels, the churches, the Bible, the houses of poor Dalits and tribal are explaining the enormity of this man made tragedy. That both Orissa and Bihar have some of the poorest regions yet they all have been living life of their own in these areas. These rural poor, the Dalits and Adivasis always had lived together in complete harmony of nature till one fine day the outsiders preach them and use them in their hatred and the result is destruction. This destruction of life and property in both Bihar and Orissa reminds us the madness of human being, madness of religious thugs and the madness of politicians who are ready to sacrifice people for their own political agendas. Bihar’s politicians failed to see that Kosi’s embankment was not repaired and still unable to respond to this catastrophe, the chief minister of Orissa has yet to visit Kandhamal and assure the Dalits, mostly Christians, that their life will be safe and that they will not become stranger in their own land just because they are not reciting Gita and Ramayana. State has to act. In the both the places it has failed. The poor Bihari is running to save his/her life from the villages as over 800 villages have been completely destroyed in 15 districts. More than 5 lakhs have been evacuated. Similarly, in Orrisa the Christians have migrated to the forest to save them from further assault from the rampaging Hindu goons. One hope that the state, civil society and other local organizations will not remain mute to such threats and work for unity among people so that all these migrants from both Bihar and Orissa, whenever they return to their roots, do not feel stranger and isolated in their own villages. If state fails in its duties then it will clearly be meant that it has succumbed to the forces of divisiveness and destruction and that would be the worst day for all of us who feel human endeavor to live a purposeful life with freedom and dignity is the essence of any successful democracy.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
New Democracy in Nepal
Nepal’s Historic moment of Liberation
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
August 15th, 2008, will go down in the history of Nepal as a true red letter day when Pushp Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ was elected leader of Nepal by its constituent assembly, which met on this historic day to elect a new prime minister. The victory of the Maoist in Nepal nearly four months ago had clearly indicated that there would be a clear shift in the priorities and policy shift of the new nation. Nepal, which was subjugated for years under the tyranny of a monarch who claimed to be the incarnation of Hindu God Vishnu who was persistently being supported by various regimes in Delhi in the name of Nepal’s internal affair despite well known fact how Indian interventions in Nepal’s were visible even in those days.
Nepal’s election threw unpredictable results in the constituent assembly. Even when the Communist Party of Nepal won a mandate from the people, the way behind the scene activities happened in Kathmandu reflected the growing influence of both India and America in the domestic matters of Nepal. It is alarming that political parties played the same role of their unpredictability till the last vote counted. The first Secular democratic government of Nepal had two new faces as President and Vice President. While there was nothing much to celebrate once Dr Ram Narayan Yadav took over as president of Nepal but when the vice President Pandey took oath in Hindi, the matter did not remain as fact of choice. Nepal burnt for many days as youths took over the streets, burnt tires and protested against a vice president who they felt was symbol of Hindi imperialism. Pandey comes from Madesh and Hindi was not his mother tongue, secondly, in the Nepalese constitution, the head of the states and other ministers have to take oath in Nepali. A petition is already there in the Nepal’s Supreme Court, a member of newly elected Constituent Assembly informed me. ‘ What was the need for a vice president to take oath in Hindi when it is not even his mother tongue, said the Member of Parliament.
It is not that Nepalese have developed hatred to Hindi. Hindi channels, Hindi books sales in large number. Hindi films are hugely popular here but today Hindi is not being seen in terms of a widely understood and spoken language in Nepal but a symbol of Indian imperialism in that country. Nepalese youth are exerting their pride and Hindi simply coming as an obstacle for them. Between English and Hindi imperialism, they would definitely go with the previous one which offer them much greater market and space to develop as latter have treated them in the worst ways.
Unlike his predecessors, Nepal’s Prime Minister Prachanda started his ‘career’ with visiting China. It was a ritual for the every new Nepalese government to pay a curtsy visit to Delhi which enjoyed king’s patronage which gave Nepal outdated and unequal water treaties in 1950. Now, the Indian administration is unduly worried. Problem with Delhi’s thinking is that any assertion of Kathmandu is taken as anti Indian stand. How can a country so close to India in culture and values turn over night anti Indian. The dependency of people, their relationship, the close people to people contacts make Nepal India’s natural ally but that does not make India to lord over Nepal for every action that it want to take to protect its integrity and interest. It must have a right to decide about the fate of its people and its territory.
The members of the new constituent assembly know better about relationship with India. After all, whether it is Maoist or anybody else, close relations with India are part of Nepal’s culture but that should be treated on an equal footing and not as another ‘ Sikkim’ as many in Nepal perceive. This attitude of mini United State in South Asia will make India highly unpopular like the United States under George Bush itself. If the Indian class perceive itself as leader of South Asia it is highly questionable as in today’s free world, the days of colonization are over and people will always rise up and revolt against any dominating power. Hence, Indian authorities will have to understand those sensibilities in Nepal. Second, Nepalese people do understand how the Indian authorities made very effort to create confusion till the last date of the election of Prime minister in parliament. Though, things are not seen in open yet people of Nepal did not like India’s overzealousness in what was entirely their internal affair. The irony of the entire situation is that while Indian Ambassador in Nepal was over busy related to political situation there, Indian media discourteously downplayed the entire event. How can media which claim to be a free media ignore such a big event in our neighboring country which has wide ranging implications for our foreign policy? A country which over threw monarchy and where the new leadership is emerging from the ground can not be ignored. Nepal need kudos from all those who believe in equality of law and secular democratic values that it chose secular democratic constitution. And those who have any doubt should see that in Nepal’s Constituent Assembly there are about 55 members hailing from Dalit communities and 22 of them are women. There are debates on proposed constitutions. The newspaper industry is booming and political debates talks of the town. In the local buses, in schools and colleges, at the FM channels, we find talks of the new constituent assembly and proposed constitution. Unlike our corporate media which is depoliticizing the people, glamorizing Bollywood and cricket as if all other issues of dignity and livelihood have been resolved, Nepal’s focus on issue need appreciations from us. Ofcourse, the new Constituent Assembly can take a few lessons from India. The first and foremost is that India did not abolish right to hold property. There was no big reference in our constituent Assembly as major members of the assembly were themselves holding huge lands and property. Nepal must constitutionally abolish big properties and put a ceiling law into practice. In India to avoid ceiling, our leaders and religious thugs are doing big business. They have started acquiring land in the names of mutts, temples, Gurudwaras and churches. Nepal must do away with this. While, it would be futile to say to demolish religious institutions but there should be a clear limit that these religious places need land for worshipping and not for business. Nepal must come out with progressive land laws.
The new Nepalese government must be careful of this international Hindu brotherhood which is taking its wings in Nepal. It is already learnt that former Royal family is not yet a gone case. They have strong loyalist in Nepal as well as outside Nepal. They will wait for right moment to strike back. And since now Nepal is opting for a secular constitution, the Hindu Right wing supported by India, will take deep root there. Already, there have been cases of violence in Madhesh and other regions. Nepal must issue stern warning to all such forces which want to disturb peace and brotherhood in the region. It must respect different ethnic groups and give them representation in power structure. The Dalits in Nepal need special protection in the form of not only powerful land reforms but also in terms of representation in government jobs and bureaucracy and judiciary. It would be advisable that all these areas must have representation from such communities otherwise they will spoil every political action that the new government takes in public interest. Special provisions like abolition of untouchability and discrimination and provisions for stringent penalties and criminal charges against those who exploits the Dalits in the name of age old traditions.
Untouchability is a blot on Nepalese society. India that way had a better record in terms of social revolts like Ambedkar, Phule, Periyar and others. One does not know fully how much Nepal’s Maoist leadership understand the struggles of Dalits and Bahujans in India. They will have to mix up their Maoism with Ambedkarism to fulfill their long cherish desire to bring a complete change in the Nepalese system. A mere change of head of state and government will not change the social structure of Nepal and working of the governance. Nepal needs a social resurgent movement and this is the right moment to do so. The people of Nepal can not keep quiet because there is a new government. They have to put continuous pressure so that these rebels of yesteryears do not become ‘belagam ghoda’ i.e. uncontrolled horses, who destroy every institution.
Let Secular Socialist Democratic Republic become values of Nepal and be part of its preamble which no authoritarian regime could change. Also important will be people’s right to be secular. While each of our government says we must defend religious freedom, what happen to those who do not believe in these organized religions? India has become a jugular’s state where all this ‘religious’ freedom exist except those who disagree with them. Hence those of who voice our concern and condemnation against religious hatred face the music. A painting of a painter hurt our religious sentiments, writing of an author make Islam under threat and many more things, one hope that Nepal’s secularism will not become a joke like Indian multiculturalism where every thug is enjoying except the common man, in the name of religion. Nepal must allow people a choice to opt for atheism or secularism beyond their conventional religion, a choice already given in Europe and other countries.
Nepal and India need to work together on equal basis. Today, we all are witnessing the fury of river Kosi which has brought a new Tsunami in Bihar which is unprecedented and need emergency help. Though this is no time to discuss the issues of who did it but definitely the government of India can not keep silent on its own follies on those out dated water treaties with Nepal which did not allow efficient functioning of dam as well as made India highly unpopular in Nepal. Today, we are seen as people who are misusing Nepal’s water and other natural resources while thousands of people die every year because of flood fury which originates from Nepal. Hope Prime Minister Prachanda has this in mind. His foreign Minister is expected in Delhi soon and we hope they will discuss all the issues. While differences in democracy will always be there even then a new democratic Secular republic of Nepal will be of greater strength for not only its people but also for India.
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
August 15th, 2008, will go down in the history of Nepal as a true red letter day when Pushp Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ was elected leader of Nepal by its constituent assembly, which met on this historic day to elect a new prime minister. The victory of the Maoist in Nepal nearly four months ago had clearly indicated that there would be a clear shift in the priorities and policy shift of the new nation. Nepal, which was subjugated for years under the tyranny of a monarch who claimed to be the incarnation of Hindu God Vishnu who was persistently being supported by various regimes in Delhi in the name of Nepal’s internal affair despite well known fact how Indian interventions in Nepal’s were visible even in those days.
Nepal’s election threw unpredictable results in the constituent assembly. Even when the Communist Party of Nepal won a mandate from the people, the way behind the scene activities happened in Kathmandu reflected the growing influence of both India and America in the domestic matters of Nepal. It is alarming that political parties played the same role of their unpredictability till the last vote counted. The first Secular democratic government of Nepal had two new faces as President and Vice President. While there was nothing much to celebrate once Dr Ram Narayan Yadav took over as president of Nepal but when the vice President Pandey took oath in Hindi, the matter did not remain as fact of choice. Nepal burnt for many days as youths took over the streets, burnt tires and protested against a vice president who they felt was symbol of Hindi imperialism. Pandey comes from Madesh and Hindi was not his mother tongue, secondly, in the Nepalese constitution, the head of the states and other ministers have to take oath in Nepali. A petition is already there in the Nepal’s Supreme Court, a member of newly elected Constituent Assembly informed me. ‘ What was the need for a vice president to take oath in Hindi when it is not even his mother tongue, said the Member of Parliament.
It is not that Nepalese have developed hatred to Hindi. Hindi channels, Hindi books sales in large number. Hindi films are hugely popular here but today Hindi is not being seen in terms of a widely understood and spoken language in Nepal but a symbol of Indian imperialism in that country. Nepalese youth are exerting their pride and Hindi simply coming as an obstacle for them. Between English and Hindi imperialism, they would definitely go with the previous one which offer them much greater market and space to develop as latter have treated them in the worst ways.
Unlike his predecessors, Nepal’s Prime Minister Prachanda started his ‘career’ with visiting China. It was a ritual for the every new Nepalese government to pay a curtsy visit to Delhi which enjoyed king’s patronage which gave Nepal outdated and unequal water treaties in 1950. Now, the Indian administration is unduly worried. Problem with Delhi’s thinking is that any assertion of Kathmandu is taken as anti Indian stand. How can a country so close to India in culture and values turn over night anti Indian. The dependency of people, their relationship, the close people to people contacts make Nepal India’s natural ally but that does not make India to lord over Nepal for every action that it want to take to protect its integrity and interest. It must have a right to decide about the fate of its people and its territory.
The members of the new constituent assembly know better about relationship with India. After all, whether it is Maoist or anybody else, close relations with India are part of Nepal’s culture but that should be treated on an equal footing and not as another ‘ Sikkim’ as many in Nepal perceive. This attitude of mini United State in South Asia will make India highly unpopular like the United States under George Bush itself. If the Indian class perceive itself as leader of South Asia it is highly questionable as in today’s free world, the days of colonization are over and people will always rise up and revolt against any dominating power. Hence, Indian authorities will have to understand those sensibilities in Nepal. Second, Nepalese people do understand how the Indian authorities made very effort to create confusion till the last date of the election of Prime minister in parliament. Though, things are not seen in open yet people of Nepal did not like India’s overzealousness in what was entirely their internal affair. The irony of the entire situation is that while Indian Ambassador in Nepal was over busy related to political situation there, Indian media discourteously downplayed the entire event. How can media which claim to be a free media ignore such a big event in our neighboring country which has wide ranging implications for our foreign policy? A country which over threw monarchy and where the new leadership is emerging from the ground can not be ignored. Nepal need kudos from all those who believe in equality of law and secular democratic values that it chose secular democratic constitution. And those who have any doubt should see that in Nepal’s Constituent Assembly there are about 55 members hailing from Dalit communities and 22 of them are women. There are debates on proposed constitutions. The newspaper industry is booming and political debates talks of the town. In the local buses, in schools and colleges, at the FM channels, we find talks of the new constituent assembly and proposed constitution. Unlike our corporate media which is depoliticizing the people, glamorizing Bollywood and cricket as if all other issues of dignity and livelihood have been resolved, Nepal’s focus on issue need appreciations from us. Ofcourse, the new Constituent Assembly can take a few lessons from India. The first and foremost is that India did not abolish right to hold property. There was no big reference in our constituent Assembly as major members of the assembly were themselves holding huge lands and property. Nepal must constitutionally abolish big properties and put a ceiling law into practice. In India to avoid ceiling, our leaders and religious thugs are doing big business. They have started acquiring land in the names of mutts, temples, Gurudwaras and churches. Nepal must do away with this. While, it would be futile to say to demolish religious institutions but there should be a clear limit that these religious places need land for worshipping and not for business. Nepal must come out with progressive land laws.
The new Nepalese government must be careful of this international Hindu brotherhood which is taking its wings in Nepal. It is already learnt that former Royal family is not yet a gone case. They have strong loyalist in Nepal as well as outside Nepal. They will wait for right moment to strike back. And since now Nepal is opting for a secular constitution, the Hindu Right wing supported by India, will take deep root there. Already, there have been cases of violence in Madhesh and other regions. Nepal must issue stern warning to all such forces which want to disturb peace and brotherhood in the region. It must respect different ethnic groups and give them representation in power structure. The Dalits in Nepal need special protection in the form of not only powerful land reforms but also in terms of representation in government jobs and bureaucracy and judiciary. It would be advisable that all these areas must have representation from such communities otherwise they will spoil every political action that the new government takes in public interest. Special provisions like abolition of untouchability and discrimination and provisions for stringent penalties and criminal charges against those who exploits the Dalits in the name of age old traditions.
Untouchability is a blot on Nepalese society. India that way had a better record in terms of social revolts like Ambedkar, Phule, Periyar and others. One does not know fully how much Nepal’s Maoist leadership understand the struggles of Dalits and Bahujans in India. They will have to mix up their Maoism with Ambedkarism to fulfill their long cherish desire to bring a complete change in the Nepalese system. A mere change of head of state and government will not change the social structure of Nepal and working of the governance. Nepal needs a social resurgent movement and this is the right moment to do so. The people of Nepal can not keep quiet because there is a new government. They have to put continuous pressure so that these rebels of yesteryears do not become ‘belagam ghoda’ i.e. uncontrolled horses, who destroy every institution.
Let Secular Socialist Democratic Republic become values of Nepal and be part of its preamble which no authoritarian regime could change. Also important will be people’s right to be secular. While each of our government says we must defend religious freedom, what happen to those who do not believe in these organized religions? India has become a jugular’s state where all this ‘religious’ freedom exist except those who disagree with them. Hence those of who voice our concern and condemnation against religious hatred face the music. A painting of a painter hurt our religious sentiments, writing of an author make Islam under threat and many more things, one hope that Nepal’s secularism will not become a joke like Indian multiculturalism where every thug is enjoying except the common man, in the name of religion. Nepal must allow people a choice to opt for atheism or secularism beyond their conventional religion, a choice already given in Europe and other countries.
Nepal and India need to work together on equal basis. Today, we all are witnessing the fury of river Kosi which has brought a new Tsunami in Bihar which is unprecedented and need emergency help. Though this is no time to discuss the issues of who did it but definitely the government of India can not keep silent on its own follies on those out dated water treaties with Nepal which did not allow efficient functioning of dam as well as made India highly unpopular in Nepal. Today, we are seen as people who are misusing Nepal’s water and other natural resources while thousands of people die every year because of flood fury which originates from Nepal. Hope Prime Minister Prachanda has this in mind. His foreign Minister is expected in Delhi soon and we hope they will discuss all the issues. While differences in democracy will always be there even then a new democratic Secular republic of Nepal will be of greater strength for not only its people but also for India.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Democracy : by the poor for the 'bigger'
A no confidence in current form of Parliamentary democracy
Vidya Bhushan Rawat
There have always been debates on which is the right form of governance for India: a presidential form of government or Parliamentary system adopted from the British. It is not that only two forms of governance are found world over and whatever be the constitutional provisions, in the end, it is the people, who are responsible make or unmake a system. Unfortunately, a society like India and when I say India, I include all in the South Asian region, is feudal and undemocratic in nature. Hence, how is it possible, that undemocratic people could make democracy successful? This question needs to be investigated and ponder over.
Dr Ambedkar when pressed for separate electorate for the depressed classes, feared that in the Parliamentary form of government, the voices of dissent would always be decried. It is a majority vote but majority can not always be right. Secondly, he feared that those who will represent the oppressed community might not be the ‘well-wishers’ of the community as they will be more bothered about getting votes of other communities, particularly if they are fighting from so called reserve constituencies, their worry would be more on focusing on other communities rather than their own. This will only create a leadership which would be corrupt and could easily be co-opted. Hence there was upper caste leadership of a majority of parties giving the Dalits ‘symbolic’ presence in their parties. Babu Jagjivan Ram and Dev Raj Urs were exception and immensely talented and committed politicians who rose to those heights despite all odds. However, they did not challenge the brahmanical supremacy and were part of parliamentary set up. Tamilnadu was the perhaps the only state where this ideological challenge to brahmanical system was open and in a more crude fashion.
It happened till 1990 before the wave of the Mandalisation process changed the political set up in the country and our parliament saw a virtual change in its demography as it was the dominance of Dalit Bahujan in the apex body of decision making. A new set of chief ministers and regional kshatraps took over the leadership who were more autonomous and blunt in their attitude and never really depended on the mercy of a power centre. We had likes of Ram Vilas Paswan and Sharad Yadav who were rising high while Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Yadav and others were ruling the state. Even in the Hindutva party of BJP, Kalyan Singh and others were enjoying their new found prominence. But one man was not in this entire scheme of things. Far away from the power brokers, he was silently making a revoluation in the villages and towns of India, waking the Dalits and spreading Ambedkarite perception. His name was Kanshi Ram. The Bahujan Samaj Party, that he formed actually could not succeed during his life time and remained confined to Uttar-Pradesh at large despite brave efforts to spread in states like Punjab and Madhya Pradesh. And he gave representation to those people who could never have even imagined to become even village Pradhan. It was a complete change from vote hamara raj tumhara to vote hamara raj bhee hamara philosophy. It changed the politics of Uttar-Pradesh so strongly that the brahmanical manipulators worked overnight to deconstruct the phenomena and break the multi caste alliance in Uttar-Pradesh. Ambition, egos created hurdles to further the cause of Dalit bahujans and the result is the reversal of strategies of two main political outfits from UP, mainly the SP and BSP. Both today target the upper castes who are enjoying this immense display of ‘affection’ from the Dalit Bahujans, as if they were dying for it from centuries.
The slogan of Dalit Bahujan grew up and we felt that leaders would do justice to their people. Instead they became Supremos and the distance from the party men and common man grew larger. We have more vehicles, armed commandos and power brokers surrounding them. These power brokers switch their loyalties according to those in power and their character was reflected very much during the no confidence vote in Parliament on July 22nd. But before that whatever happened not only shames us as Indian but will force us to think of whether we should really be proud of this democracy which is license to legtimise the illegitimate.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh smiled and the devotees of the high command danced in the street that their party has won the vote of confidence so that they can go further their grand international agenda, which once upon a time was the desire of saffron party.
The Hindutva party was talking of corruption that allegedly ‘purchased’ some of their MPs. The discussion was on nuclear deal which was an important issue as it will have long term impact on our foreign policy issue as well as internal maters. Unfortunately, it became a war between Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, his loud mouth deputy Amar Singh and Behenjee who came from Lucknow to ‘take over’ Delhi. And in this entire exercise whatever happened would make us ponder things whether this form of representative government and parties really help us or we are just happy that some one from us is ruling the country. The question remains whether the some one from us will remain some one from us or some one from them. That is the question.
The question I am raising is a bigger one. And it is not that we became worried by seeing a few member of parliament showing the displaying one crore rupees in parliament. That too is an issue but from the point of view of the Dalit Bahujan perspective, and what Ambedkar had perceived when he questioned the governance and sought protection and participation of the Dalits in the social set up.
Let us first come to what Ambedkar said about Indian democracy in an interview to Voice of America on May 20th, 1956. He asks this question whether there is a democracy in India and he says: ‘Democracy is quite different from a Republic as well as from parliamentary Government. The roots of democracy lie not in the form of Government, Parliamentary or otherwise. A democracy is more than a form of government. It is primarily a mode of associated living. The roots of democracy are to be searched in the social relationship, in the terms of associated life between people who form a society.’
What Ambedkar envisage and terms ideal are completely contrast to our political parties who are out and out there to hail their caste. As a Thakur MP of the BJP, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh switched his loyalty to Samajwadi Party, another one, Amar Singh said that he is a Kshatriya and never afraid of any one, he speak the truth, as if it is only his trait and all other communities are liars. But what Amar Singh was speaking was a deliberate attempt to create confusion and chaos in Uttar-Pradesh. With Dalits solidly behind Mayawati, Mulyam has to give a call for other communities to rally behind him. The problem in Uttar-Pradesh is not just caste identities but now sub stratification which is refusing to bring different Dalit communities together. Also there are many marginalized MBCs who need to be there are simply out. Hence the political mobilization in Uttar-Pradesh based on sub caste is becoming a self defeating exercise and will have wider consequences. Problem with identity and assertion is that they end up in creating a male dominance and a culture of hatred. Here Mayawati is definitely an exception. When the time was to sit together and discuss the issues, so much disbelief is bound to threaten the very cause of an egalitarian society which could be termed as democratic as Ambedkar perceived.
And to further his cause he points out: “The Indian society does not consist of individuals. It consists of innumerable collection of castes, which are exclusive in their life and have no common experience to share and have no bond of sympathy. The existence of caste system is a standing denial of the existence of those ideals of society and therefore of democracy. An Indian cannot eat or marry with an Indian simply because he or she does not belong to his or her caste. An Indian simply can not touch an Indian because he or she does belong to his or her caste.” Ambedkar questions the political system and how Congress party field its candidate and how they are selected carefully on the basis of their caste. Ambedkar says : “How does an Indian vote in an election? He votes for a candidate who belongs to his own caste and no other Further he considers caste system as a bane to democracy. ‘ Castes are not equal in their status. They are standing one above another. They are jealous of one another. It is an ascending scale of hatred and descending scale of contempt. The feature of caste system has most pernicious consequences. It destroys willing and helpful cooperation.”
Then formation of politics based on caste identities is relegating the basic issues and killing the individual concerns. Hence to come to power and attract more people, you just refuse to listen to your own people. While there is no doubt that Mayawati and BSP has got full support from her community in particular, the fact is that it is suffering in silence also. The prime ministerial posts, corporations etc are under the control of the bhudevtas. The same thing happened with Mulayam Singh Yadav who in technical terms should have been a friend of Dalits but unfortunately can not be given his track record, still being a farmer, his all efforts were to ignore Yadavas and attract the other communities. So, to remain at the top, the leaders are killing their second generation leaders. They do not get importance. Even when RSS made BJP, were the corporate honchos who were sitting with the party bosses in power. What I mean is that biggest fault of Indian democracy is its hypocrisy. Of course, like many, I too say that a bad democracy is better than any military dictatorship or a theocratic state yet if after fifty years of democracy, we have not been able to give justice to our communities.
Today, BSP is in power in Uttar-Pradesh. We all are happy and should rightly be so but what is the cost. You have got more than 65 Brahmins elected as MLAs and another 64 upper castes who had become redundant after the Mandalisation process particularly in politics. But today, they are the most sought after leaders. How can a villager, who has been exploited by these gangs, vote to same people, and simply because he has power to capture vote and the party has fielded him. Why are we denying individual his or her right to select people according her choice? Why can not we question their basic qualities? Why our leadership wants people to remain ignorant and worship them which Baba Saheb said would be damaging to the society as a whole. It is not that the Brahmins do not worship. They worship but then why should we follow their damn culture which has destroyed our culture and value system which was still much better and open in nature where individual had freedom to enjoy and life live of his own. Kanshiram’s slogan was virtually made redundant with the old philosophy of ‘vote huamara, top hamara baki tumahara. and this baki tumhara has created a lot of disquiet at the lower level as mafias, petrol pump owners, liquor mafias are the leader of the party but people still do not complain because those who have suffered for years, are waiting to see their leader in the position of the prime minister but whether it can change their fate or not does not matter.
Many of you saw the vote on the confidence Motion in Parliament. We heard speeches and found how politicians were organizing the press meets and happily claiming victory. A new alliance has been formed with BSP, left parties and other groups. One hope that the alliance will remain a long term friendship and will not disappear because change of commercial interest and political ambition of our leaders. In this age when politicians dine with you, sleep with enemy in the evening, come back to you for breakfast and vote on the motion once he is confirmed the deal as event showed, then we have to seriously think what exactly is empowerment of the community. Communities empowered through political process but unfortunately that has become highly apolitical. When left parties withdrew the support and Samajwadi Party decided to support the government, it was Amar Singh all the way on our television channel. Rajdeep Sardesai wrote an article how ideologies have become redundant and that the left has now become new ‘untouchable’. While, I have no love for CPM and its allies particularly not just because of Nandigram and Singur but because of the prevailing violence and discrimination against Dalits in West Bengal particularly against the immigrants scavengers in Howarah and Kolkata, one need to compliment them on the issue of nuclear deal, at least they were not party to government’s whims and fancies. They did not withdraw the support but were forced to do so. But question is different now. We have a UNPA and now Ajit Singh, Deve Gowda and Chandra Babu Naidu have expressed opinion that Mayawati is their ‘leader’. Actually, it does not mean that the upper caste supporters of these political parties will stop violence against Dalits. An alliance based on conviction is natural and long term but if it is on the basis of compulsion for survival then it would be damaging and defeat the purpose. All of them know the importance of Dalit votes in their states and want to have it at any cost. Despite their own parties virtually decimated in the states for their anti poor performances, they still feel to grab the chair in Delhi one day.
We might call it a strategy to reach the large segment or give it whatever name, it does not make any sense as long as the people who are victim remain the same as well those victimizing remain the same. If upper cast leadership used the Dalits for their purposes, the upper castes today are using Dalit Bahujan leadership for their own purposes. And that too when they are big mafias, who exploit our people, kill innocent lives and enjoy their freedom.
Yes, the most astonishing factor of the vote on the confidence motion was the MPs in the jail came voting. Facing with different charges, they were smiling and giving great sound bytes to television cameras. They never considered them criminal as ‘charges’ have to be proved in the court and nobody has power to do so. Not even state. During her previous tenure Mayawati taught Raja Bhaiya a lesson but her fight against corruption and mafias remain a matter of convenience as she targeted them according to their loyalty. Today, one man who joined BSP on the motion, was Atiq Ahmed, a member who won on Samajwadi Party ticket from Phoolpur constituency in Allahabad. Known for his ‘power’ in Allahabad region, Ahmed had allegedly been responsible for killing of a dynamic young Dalit leader Raju Pal from his own constituency. Raju Pal was an MLA. He was killed by the goons during the broad day light. Lot happened afterwards. As soon as Mayawati came to power, the police filed charges against Atik Ahmed and an Allahabad court issued non bailable warrant against him terming him as proclaimed offender. His property was attached and both he and chief minister Mayawati claimed that they face threat from each other. Interestingly Atiq Ahmed was arrested by Delhi police in August last year and then handed over to UP police. Though, Raju Pal’s widow Pooja Pal has won the Allahabad (West) seat, the question is how long will we compromise with those who are responsible to hit at our people at the ground, in the villages and small towns.
Hence, when somebody says that politics today has become non political, it reflect the grave reality. It has become a tool to legitimize everything that is anti people. Whether the criminals or other corporate interest, the common man, the committed activists remain frustrated. Where are the leaders with a vision and with pain and anguish of the community? We all feel proud of any one who is from one among us, if he or she reaches the height. It enlightens us, it gives us hope but when such situation comes, one wonder how is democracy functioning. In this democracy the biggest faith comes from the Dalits. It is they who votes in the largest number and elect our representative, but it is they who are betrayed. They elect leaders who later sale themselves and openly admit of bargaining and not for their community but for themselves and for children. They feel ‘our happiness is communities happiness and not the vice versa’.
Ambedkar had never envisaged this society. He talked of a Prabudha Bharat, an enlightened India. When we embrace his ideals we leave behind all those destructive and divisive brahmanical values which degrade us. Ambedkar, a man of dignity and modernity is again reminding us to create rebels who could question the injustice being done to them but also question. It is time to revisit the Poona Pact, and ponder over the warning what Baba Saheb had given to us, the ideals that he stood for and where do we stand. The perils of Parliamentary democracy were well-known to Baba Saheb and that is why he talked of separate electorate so that a responsible leadership is elected from the Dalit communities which do not succumb to upper caste lies and mischief. He was blackmailed to sign the Poona Pact and the rest is history. Baba Saheb himself became the first victim of the joint electorate system and could come to Lok Sabha from Bengal only. Though, some may feel this debate as outdated but given wide discontent in different communities which are still unrepresented in our system, is not it a time to ask for a responsible and accountable representation which could be proportionate to their numbers. Democracy can not go on become the mistress of corporate and mafias and doing all anti people things. It will have to rediscover it so that people do not have no confidence in the system itself. Prime Minister may feel happy but every right thinking person feel betrayed on the way things are moving. Before it reach cynical condition, its time to think over it and initiate a process.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Caste and Prejudices
Debrahmanise the Education’s holy cows
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Let me start this article with complimenting young Anoop Kumar, who has brought out a crude reality, the mess created by the caste prejudices in our educational institutions particularly those of higher learning. Anoop Kumar’s report on the conditions prevailing in Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, particularly in their treatment to Dalit students is actually not new. Those of us, who have been interacting with the Dalit students know well how these institutions are the domain of the brahmanical elites of India. We know how similar reports about IIT Powai also came out last year but passed as unimportant. Anoop Kumar need compliments for his work as it was timely and has helped highlight the issue of discrimination against Dalits at various level, particularly now at the centers of learning as Dalits are now challenging the brahmanical elite in their own caves.
Prior to the IIT’s discriminatory attitude, we had seen the prevailing conditions in AIIMS, India’s premier medical institutions which I renamed as All India Institute of Manuwadi Studies, as the students there were not really interested in learning and treating the patients but involved in controlling the institution. And one wonder why the Thorat
Committee report is pushed under the carpet which investigated the entire case of harassment of Dalit students in AIIMS. The way the anti reservation stir was created and publicized in the media shows how far the brahmanical mindset can go in denying the Dalits and other marginalized communities their constitutional guarantee as they rightly feel that once these institutions are debrahamnised, the hegemony of a particular caste will crumble and that is why such resistance against reservation.
It is also time to ponder as how just a few hours ago, the brahmanical friends of Dalits have been citing examples of the OBCs as being the real enemy of Dalits. Now time to think, whether, India’s elite institutions really have been debrahmanised. The Shudra slaves of the brahmanical system might be a cause of concern for the Dalits in the rural India but the fact of the matter is that they are no where in the institution of higher education and elsewhere to discriminate against Dalits. In these institutions of knowledge live the ‘soul’ of brahmanical order and they will go out and out to resist any changes in the structure in them.
Hence, it is time to take of their activities, expose their caste prejudices and use all methods that we have to debrahmanise them. These institutions dominated by the modern day Dronacharyas are a blot to civilization and time has come to make our final assault on them otherwise, they would never allow this to happen. They will use courts, media and even our political parties which want to look ‘modern’ and ‘progressive’ and are ‘interested’ in helping the ‘upper caste’ ‘poor’ students also. What should we do ? Expose them, unite all the oppress communities as hatred against them is common, push the agenda internationally also, send the reports to all international bodies like EU, American Congress, British Parliament and human rights bodies. Many nationalists would object to this, but definitely for us, when the media become a party to this whole
Nexus, it is important to make international community aware of such practices which still exist in India.
The games of brahmanical deception are bigger. They come through fake certificates in the name of Dalits to anything under the sun. that’s why transparency international finds India one of the most corrupt countries. Hence any one who is getting benefit under the quota for Dalits may not even be originally a Dalit. The case against an upper caste doctor in Delhi is still going whose ‘parents’ got him ‘adopted’ by his ‘Dalit’ servant. He did not know the game and signed things long back. So the upper castes are ready to become anything to get access to these institutions.
Even when the reservation never had an economic criteria and no body ever ask that the general seats should be filled with the poor students because the entire anti reservation debate is not based on merit but on total hatred and prejudice. It is an attempt to block the entry of Dalits into these institutions. If they enter by dint of their work, then they will be targeted.
About a year ago, our friend from United States send a general mail about a ‘poor’ Dalit
Student being kidnapped and kept as bonded in Badarpur area of Delhi. The mailer wrote a note that all the Dalits should help this guy from the clutches of the brahmanical forces. It was mentioned that this poor Dalit boy had done his MCA from Banarse Hindu University (BHU). The story goes like this that Mahesh hailed from a landless family near Faizabad. He had to take loan from some Vishwakarma ( MBC) for his education. Unfortunately, at the time of his final examination, his father fell ill and he had to further take the loan. Vishwkarma paid him the money but in lieu of it, he took the original certificate of this boy. When Manoj did not pay money, this man sold him to some truck driver in Delhi and since then he has been working as a bonded cleaner in the truck.
The contact number of this case was given. Out of sincerity, I decided to follow up the case by checking with a number of friends in Delhi. Since there was not much of information available about the person, I called Sanjay Chaudhury, our friend in Banglore, who was actually a friend of Manoj. Afterward, Sanjay became a dear friend. In him, I found a person really concerned about his fellow student friend. We both, kept in touch on phone and every day there was a new story coming up. Sanjay was passing me the vehicle numbers and I was becoming made contacting a few friends in the UP Police to find out. Sanjay too gave the details to a big legal luminary in Delhi who passed the information to UP’s police chief Vikram Singh. The police started calling me about it but they were too disturbed that every information that Sanjay or I was giving to them was turning out to be fake. For us this was a bad situation.
One day, I decided to put this information to some Dalit friends of BHU. I thought, it would be better to check with them the antecedent of Manoj and how come a person who has done his MCA, can be held like a mouse by a truck driver. All those police officers, I spoke to, actually felt that this person is absolutely of a brahmanical mindset, a slave. Our friend in BHU informed that Manoj was a very simple person but never really participated in Dalit programme. Ofcourse, the Dalit students used to collect funds for him to pay his fees because he was not in a condition to do so. I asked my friend Deepak Gautam, who is doing Ph.D. from BHU to investigate it separately. Let the police do the work, but let us also find out the details of this person, who he is and where he hails. In between Sanjay informed me that Manoj is not wanting the case to be pursued. I felt bad that for the past five six months, we had really felt disturbed because of his case, calling to different officials in UP, MP, Delhi and Chhatisgarh for help and this person has been telling us different stories and now he does not want us to follow. Something came up in my mind and I spoke to Deepak to go the Computer science Department and find out the details, the family of this boy. While the police was raiding different places and found that this person does not exist and all the addresses he has been giving us were fake. Our condition was becoming more embarrassing. Just when things were getting out of hand, Deepak informed me shocking news. ‘ Sir, Manoj was not a Dalit student, he was actually Manoj Pandey, and has betrayed us. For us the case was closed. I was keen the BHU Dalit student group file a case against him for forgery but nothing seemed to move.
The point I am mentioning here is how the Brahmins are ready to become Dalits, use their money and romanticize their poverty. Deepak informed me that University was not keen to pursue the case. Why will the university pursue a case against a Brahmin boy who has through forgery not only cheated the constitution but cheated the friendship of a number of his friends?
But the same facility is not available to the Dalits. Abhishek Priya Anand was a bright student pursuing a specialized course of Ph.D from National Law College, Raipur. A bright science student, Abhishek joined the university by dint of his merit and not through a quota. He completed his M.Phil on time. A change in the vice chancellor of the University changed his fortunes. The new vice chancellor, a shameless upper caste, never felt that he would be destroying the life of a bright student. He told Abhishek that the courses that he had applied for are not available in the University. Abhishek’s scholarship was also stopped. He complained to National Human Rights Commission. I filed the petition in the Commission but except for sending a show cause notice to the state, the Commission does not even know whether it has got the answer or not. These so-called autonomous bodies mean nothing for people who want justice. How long would a young boy wait for it. Today,. IIT’s students do not come out in open because they know that the teachers have the capacity to destroy their career. These modern day Dronacharyas want Eklavyas and modern day Dalit is not ready to follow the ideals of Eklavya. They are asking for their rights and share. The national institutions of repute could not save Abhishek. His vice chancellor threw him from the hostel for his blasphemous act of contacting the NHRC. Now, we talk so much but rarely find time for our fellow brothers. The person who fights the first hand knows it well that it is a difficult battle ahead. Abhishek dream of pursuing a Ph.D. lay shattered but then he is a dynamic boy and is pursing his dream from somewhere else. But not every one could be Abhishek. The family background of the youngsters shows that they can not wait for long. Parents want their children to send them money. They might not even know that their son or daughters pass through such a horrific test of life in these brahmanical institutions.
At every level there are such people who are out to harass the bright Dalit students. In 2001-2002, a bright young Engineer Jyoti Prakash Bishwas was harassed by his Bengali bosses on various charges in the PDIL Noida. Jyoti’s fault was that he was a bright engineer and could compete with any one outside the government. First, the officer charged him for dereliction of duty, simply because he responded to a caste remark made by the officer. Jyoti’s wife was a government teacher in Kolkata and precedence says that he should have been transferred there. Her medical expenses were rejected. Jyoti studied in the Rama Krishana Mission School in Kolkata so was still influenced by the Brahmanical values that time. He was tall and handsome and had never realized that he belong to ‘reserve’ category. After the harassment, he decided to quit the job and was getting offer in big multi national companies. The Brahmin bosses of Jyoti did not even allow him to resign. They were simply not pushing his application forward. Jyoti was a harassed person. I tried to help him out by investigating the matter through PUCL Delhi and submitting a report to NHRC and SC-ST Commission but nothing materialized. These commission can raise the political issues but when the life of a common person particularly a Dalit is concern, their officials behave according their castes.
Jyoti left Delhi. He decided to leave the job. We lost touch. He felt that these so called autonomous bodies are nothing but sham. The SC commission wanted a compromise because the connections of the higher up. He was frustrated man. But he still remembered me and used to send me greetings every year. One fine morning in 2004, I got a mail from him that He is happy with his children and wish me a happy new year. The most important point he mentioned was that he was going to Umra ( Haj), as he embraced Islam and became Abdur Rehman Vishwas. He was blunt that Indian institutions can not help the Dalits and their dignity whether we feel proud of our political class and political empowerment.
While One might not subscribe to the solution Jyoti offered in form of embracing Islam as it is entirely individual choices similarly as Baba Saheb embraced Buddhism, but Jyoti’s revolt against the system reflect he mindset prevailing over in our great institutions about the entire issue of representation of Dalits in our colleges, institutions and elsewhere. The teachers behave like defender of their caste, taking moral high grounds.
The institutions of higher learning are in control of this brahmanical elite and the religious rights of all variety are targeting Dalit and Adivasi children in to their educational system. Hence you find these Saraswati Shishu Mandirs in the rural areas. What is the attempt ? It is to catch you in the childhood and control the revolutionary spirit of a Dalit mind by pushing you to religion and religious practices. And that was the problem with religiousity as it converts you to nothing. Dalits battle for dignity is much bigger battle than a mere political one. It is the rejection of the murky world of brahmanical values which remain full of hatred, deception and betrayal. The war is multifaceted and can not be fought with corrupt political class which has been co-opted.
After the Mandal recommendation got implemented, a large number of Dalits and OBC students are qualifying there without using the quota but the UPSC is still pushing them in to quota bracket and therefore denying the others a right to enter. It is the fear of this elite that has made them respond like this. Initially they were blaming the Dalit Bahujan that these people lack merit, they can not compete with others but now when the students are topping the exams and entering into their domain through the merit defined by the brahmanical system itself, then they are bracketed into the OBC or Dalit category.
These unfortunately are the realities of Indian institutions. We have to get angry and ask questions. The power people of the Dalit community should unite and think of their own institutions in the similar terms of Christians and Muslims, to develop parallel institutions of excellence as Ambedkar tried in his last days, by sending Dalit scholars abroad and by starting educational institutions and libraries for Dalits in India itself. But then Ambedkar remained thoroughly committed to society and a man intellectually capable to hit the back bone if Brahmanism. Can we expect our friends to rise up the occasion and think on these lines? Debrahmanising the educational institutions is a must and for that Dalit not only should have alternative institutions so that their youngsters do not live in suffocation in these so called higher institutions, which actually are killing them inside, and making them lamb to be easily eaten by the power brokers and bhudevtas.
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Understanding legacy of Periyar through a Dalit Bahujan perspective
Review Article
Is deepening contradiction between Dalit-Bahujan brahmanical manipulations of information and ideas
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Periyar was one of the greatest revolutionaries of our times, though he has not been acknowledged because of particular political reasons. Periyar, father of Tamil nationalism today is under attack from not only the Brahmanical forces but ironically this time; the instrument which they have used is through Dalit writings. Before we move to Periyar and his legacy, it is important to analyse the politics of two Indian states which are important to understand the great vision of Periyar and legacy of Dalit-Bahujan movement in
Periyar was a revolutionary who felt that social empowerment and cultural changes should precede any political process. Unfortunately, his movement was thoroughly monopolized by those who had political ambition. In the name of social justice and anti Brahmanism, we saw another hegemony that ruled Tamilnadu. It was brutal without any ideological clarity. While it talked of injustice meted out to it by the upper castes, it still ignores the injustice done to Dalits. Is not it a shame that Tamilnadu’s powerful backward castes still not allow the Dalit Sarpanch to hoist the national flag? Is it not a shame that in many villages in Tamilnadu there is a virtual wall of separation between the upper castes and Dalits?
When Tamilnadu’s anti Brahmanism movement was failing to unite the OBCs and Dalits, similar things was happening in Uttar-Pradesh. Bahujan Samaj Party which claimed the slogan of Jiski Jitni Sankhya bhari, uskee utni bhagidari, suddenly took a Uturn and combined the Dalits and Brahmins together to build up a strong alliance. Not to content with the Brahmins, Mayawati is going ahead with wooing every upper castes including the Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Kayasthas. Keeping their view and sentiments in mind, the UP Chief Minister banned a film named ‘Teesari Azadi’, a film which has caused much heart burn among the upper castes for its plain speaking of the Brahmanical notoriety. The media portrayed it as ‘Jaharili CD’ , a poisonous CD. Those who understand the history of the Dalit Bahujan literature will vouch that Teesari Azadi was what Dr Ambedkar, Periyar and Phule cautioned their people from being mislead by the upper castes. They did not preach hatred but they educated all of us to be vigilant against Brahmanical politics of manipulations and subjugations.
And when the political parties known for their opportunism were working hard to destablise the Dalit-Bahujan coming together and virtually succeeded in both Tamilnadu and Uttar-Pradesh due to enough room allowed by the politicians, there were enough numbers of ‘intellectuals’ also who decided to hit the legacy of the Bahujan movement and started a slanderous campaign against Periyar. Without going into whom they are and their ideology, I am perturbed to see that similarities are being written between Dalits and Brahmins and OBCs are made villain. There is no doubt about the fact that the many of the so-called OBCs would not have been in the list but for political reasons. These powerful communities never ever thought of their being OBCs but for political reasons of power and they are as ruthless against Dalits in the villages as any one else. Some time, these farming communities are more anti dalit because of Dalits fight for land rights and the agrarian communities are up in arm against any kind of land reform
Since, Periyar is still revered in Tamilnadu and Dalit Bahujan movement for his fearless ideas and contribution; it is time that those forces who are at work in Uttar-Pradesh, romanticizing and cementing an alliance of two unnatural allies, decided to question not only Periyar but his entire contribution. Some put him worst than Gandhi who did nothing for the Dalits. Do we remember Periyar for ‘doing’ something for some one or do we remember him for dismantling the Brahmanical citadels in the Dravida land. Periyar was basically a social reformists with potential ideas. Ideas can not be killed. You have to produce a better idea, a better vision in case you disagree with some one.
Suddenly, the backward communities became villain in this entire scheme of things and Brahmins and other upper caste became ‘polite’ allies of the Dalits and tragically this justification is not coming from the upper caste but from some of the Dalit and Brahmin writers. And therefore it is important that this suspicion and farce being created need to be cleaned and clarified. Periyar’s ideas might not have the sophistication of Baba Saheb Ambedkar but definitely they were potent enough to shake the Brahmin domination in Tamilnadu. The jolts of those ideas are still felt in Tamilnadu state. To clear the ideas of Periyar and his legacy, two intellectuals S.V.Rajadurai and V.Geetha came out with a collection of book : The Periyar century : Themes in Caste, Gender and Religion’ published by Bharatidasan University, Thiruchirapally, Tamlinadu. These articles are collections of article written by both the writers over a period of time when Tamilnadu was witnessing seer political opportunism by the parties claiming to have Periyar’s legacy. That Jayalalitha overtures to Hindutva were well known to be described here and Karnunanidhi’s shake hand with BJP was shocking.
We are not writing our own ideas and vision. May be because we lack it and therefore our energy is basically confined to replacing the community and person, to maintain our own hegemony and that happened every where, in Tamilnadu, in Uttar-Pradesh, in Maharastra and in Andhra Pradesh. So, the broader vision of a Dalit Bahujan is lost somewhere to the tainted glorification of a few individuals whose empowerment is made synonymous to community empowerment. Its tragic as it reflect our idea of social change is nothing but a replacement. We want to change one from our castes and we know little about ideologies. Hence Ambedkar and Periyar become caste icons and not who benefited every one. It is these multiple identities that threaten the very basis of Dalit movement. For me, it was a movement of a common Dalit identity where we revolt against the priestly vision a few ‘enlightened’ and talk of Bahujan. It gives me freedom to question even Gods. It believes in mutual respect and does not relegate our women to backyard just as any other religion has done. If we want to confine Dalit movement and Dalit identity to any other religion, then I am afraid, it will be just a replacement and we will not be able to face the revolt with in.
It is therefore important to understand what Periyar meant for and how and why his vision gets tainted and who are vilifying him today. In today’s broader context when one hegemony is being replaced by creation of another one, completely at contrast with what the forces of social justice stood for, particularly likes of Ambedkar and Periyar, none could have been more authentic than S.V.Rajadurai and V.Geetha. Though both of them are definitely gone deep into understanding Periyar’s movement and are in awe with him. However, these articles have been updated and reproduced from Economic and Political Weekly, Seminar and Dalit International Newsletter and therefore definitely well balanced and not a propaganda material as being written by the opponents of Periyar.
In her forceful analysis ‘Anti Caste Radicalism in Tamilnadu : Remembered moments for a receding past V.Geetha take us to the history of anti caste movement in Tamilnadu followed by a more detailed analysis by her and S.Rajadurai in ‘Dalit and non Brahmin consciousness in colonial Tamilnadu’, in which they explain in details how Tamilnadu’s much neglected Dalit icon ‘ Iyothee Thass Pandithar founded Chakya Buddhist Sangam and prior to that Dravida Mahajana Sangam in 1881. Hence much before Ambedkar converted to Buddhism, Iyothee Thass has subscribed to Buddhist philosophy for the Dalits and Adi Dravidas of Tamilnadu. Said Iyothee,’ Self government would only be possible when Brahmin cease to run away from the fear of seeing a pariah and when pariahs cease to chase away Brahmins and throw cow dung at them, when the latter enter the pariah quarters in the village and harmony prevails between the two and they come together as brothers and when the Buddha Dhama is realized.’ In fact Rajadurrai and Geetha through their readings argue that Iyothee Thass said that the pariahs were the original Tamils and their religion was Buddhism and it is the Aryans who degraded them and destroyed their religion.
The article ‘ Neo Brahminism : An International Fallacy’ is well timed and has exposed the theoreticians who are targeting the OBCs and cleverly terming Brahmins as ‘friends’ of Dalits. While for me, it would not be prudent to mention those writers who for the past few years have been writing continuously in the ‘mainstream’ media about the ‘anti-dalit’ views of Periyar, a response was needed both in terms of ideology and politics. While nobody condone the politics of the Dravidian parties who do not really have much love for the Dalits yet as far as ideology is concern, both Rajadurai and Geetha have explained through meticulous work that the Brahman cal forces are gunning to the OBCs through the backdoor of dalit ideologues.
In their analysis to various charges leveled against the OBCs, the authors point out , ‘ BC-SC relationships are marked by conflicts and contradictions. The liberation of SCs cannot be imagined within a circle of oppression that locks them into perpetual conflict and confrontation with the BCs. The oppression must be seen as deriving its strength and persistence from its articulation with the ruling and hegemonic ideology of Brahminism and unless the multiple mediations that structure BC arrogance and power are clearly mapped out, the liberation of SCs will proceed along paths that only lead to the Congress and now BJP ‘solution’ for the oppression of the SCs.’
I think this is a serious analysis and one must see it how BJP today is using the OBCs on the one side and also SCs on the other side. In Uttar-Pradesh, though there is no BJP but their philosophy in power which says upper castes and Dalits are brothers. While SC-BC fight is basically because of their common interest in land, the real land owners are enjoying everything. And rightfully explain the authors: No single BC can be said to have monopolized educational and employment opportunities in the state. While some castes such as the Nadars and Gounders have taken to lucrative trade and entrepreneurship, the BCs even if put together, do not come anywhere near controlling capital and financial matters in the state.’
To prove their point further, the author again quote Iyothee Thass that the principal contradiction of all the marginalized communities particularly the Dalits is Brahmanism,’ saying that an ideological struggle against Brahmins and Brahmanism was primary and necessary.’
Apart from his strong views against Brahmanism, Periyar’s writing on women are not only fascinating but revealing. In fact, I would call him far ahead of his time and a human right defender of women. He said that we need to create a social and cultural movement of revolt- against, caste, Brahmanism, religion and rule of men over women. His bold views might be termed feminists by many of current day analysts when he says that ‘motherhood in this sense was very obverse of female selfhood and had to be consciously rejected if women were to grow into reason, autonomy and dignity.’
One can not be remain fully agree how women had continuously been degraded and one of the thing was masculinity which Periyar felt was a concept and practice degraded women, refused their humanity and worse enslaved them.
Periyar was not just a political ideologue; his forte was his linkages with masses. He not only blamed Brahmanical system for all the evils related to caste in our society but also provided alternatives. His self respect marriages was one such progressive idea that helped change the marriage system a lot in Tamilnadu but today, as Geetha point out in her essay that when other movement took over Tamilnadu particularly anti Hindi Movement, the women’s issue was relegated to back seat. That always happened. All the ‘mainstream movement’ actually sideline women’s issue. And rightfully, Geetha conclude that ‘ the marginalization of woman question was complete as the movement gave itself up to the symbolic languages of nationalism, a nationalism that did not even attempt to its female subject.
While due sympathies with both the writers, it is obvious that nationalism for political purposes will always take you to deep hatred towards those subject who do not fill into the majorities ideological pursuits. And therefore even when Periyar opposed ‘Indian Nationalism or Hindu nationalism or Brahmanical Nationalism, he was mistaking it with a backward nationalism under the garb of ‘Dravidian Nationalism’ and the result is that in Tamilnadu the chasm between the backward communities and Dalits is very big. That the political parties were responsible for this marginalization cannot take away the faulty politics of the leaders of Dravidian politics. Periyar would have become an all India Icon like Ambedkar had he not decried every one living in the North as an Aryan. His anti Hindi agitation might organized the powerful OBC communities but it ultimately damaged the linkages of Tamil people with rest of
Having said that, Periyar would always remain one of the giants of Tamilnadu and for many of us who followed his social movement and politics he would remain as relevant as ever as brahmanical poison is increasing day by day and we need a clear stand against cultural subjugation it is bringing. Periyar is one ideologue and icon we can look at for our mental liberation. A liberation which is not possible if the OBCs are not able to understand the concept of Bahujan and see that the Dalits are their natural allies. So is the truth with the Dalit leadership that for a stronger
Many thanks to both S.V.Rajadurrai and V.Geetha for their wonderful work in bringing Periyar’s interesting writing to us, to understand the greatness of the man and his ideas.
Name of the Book: The Periyar Century: Themes in Caste, Gender and Religion,
Writers : S.V.Rajadurrai,
Publishers :
First edition: 2007
Price: 105
Pages: 320
Friday, June 13, 2008
Civil Liberties Under the threat
Is India fast turning into a police state?
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
As India grows to become global power, the penetration of civil society, media and other instruments of state become stronger and visible. While it might not be to the likings of those in power when they see protest against forcible acquisition of land in the name of ‘development’. Portraying India as a democracy is easier as we have everything which makes us a successful democracy in the world. We have the ‘best’ constitution. We have president who ‘epitomizes’ ideal Indian woman, chief justice of India from the most marginalized community. The chief minister of India’s most populous and perhaps most criminal state of Uttar-Pradesh is a ‘Dalit woman’. We have so many from the marginalized communities that it looks as if we are a mature democracy.
But the brutal fact is that we are still a democracy which works on symbols. So when symbols are questioned, our maturity as a democracy comes to an end. Therefore, each of these symbols whether they belong to the most marginalized communities or women, feel irritated once they are questioned. The governments of the day feel that these babus in their secretariat provide them the true information. Every act of the state which is questioned is considered as blasphemy.
Over 30 years ago, Indira Gandhi became larger than life. Any criticism of Indira became a challenge to the nation and the critiques were put behind the bar. But that was very small thing. Today, the states are becoming highly inflammable and intolerant to any criticism of their functioning. They want a media which could report on their press releases. They want civil society to do the work designed and defined for the construction contractors hence you find more NGOs in the domain of contractors. Very few have got the guts to speak up against this tyranny.
One need not to go into political ideologies or international connections of civil society groups here but the basic of why the state and its authorities are getting tizzy over criticism need serious analysis. When Binayak Sen was arrested in Chhatisgarh, the same argument was given that he had linked with Naxalites. A state which has surrendered and can not protect its citizens is blaming a human rights activist who has been sincerely doing his work, is termed as a ‘sympathizers’ as if sympathy with a group become anti national. One does not know what does it mean but definitely all those who once upon of a time wrote that Maoists were terrorists in Nepal, will have to shut their mouth and sit with them as people’s power have brought them. Binayak Sen is still languishing in Jail despite appeal for his release by international community. His continuous confinement shows how mature are we as a democracy.
Just a few days back, about 18 farmers contested election as mark of protest in Polepally, Mehboob Nagar, Andhra Pradesh where Andhra Pradesh government is developing an SEZ. The land acquired made a majority of the people of the area completely landless and penniless. The state’s forced acquisition did not give people time to think. Political parties play blame game and yet when they come to power, behave in a very similar way. Hence when the farmers contested in the polls as independent candidates, they all calculated and yet were not allowed to protest. If the chief minister comes to the town, all the contestants were illegally detained and let off in far away places.
Illegal detention is part of our police culture. It is to stop you speaking in open. It is state’s intimidation with out killing you. It is basically killing us all the time. Movements are divided, rifts are created among them, laws are interpreted in such a way that no one would believe in democracy. Why should any one believe in it if after 20-30 years of struggle and faith in the highest law of the land, people do not get justice? The case point is Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar, where over 150 Dalit landless workers were involved in their struggle for livelihood. About 1167 acres of land was illegally possessed by a company named as M/s Escorts Farms Ltd. Despite Allahabad High Court verdict which was later upheld by Supreme Court, the state government refused to implement the order. Even the Lokayukta of Uttarakhand found that the officials of the government have violated the law and done contempt of the court, but nothing moves. A fresh petition was filed by Social Development Foundation in the Supreme Court of India with Justice K.G.Balakrishanan and Justice Ravindran issued notices to Uttarakhand government against the same. Not every one can go to the court. By the time, people reach Supreme Court, their patience is gone, and a number of them do not even remain alive to see the dooms day. Hence in democracy people are using other techniques for their redressal like social audits, public hearing, people’s tribunals and many innovative ideas. Unfortunately, the government officials have become too intolerant to these ideas as they have become instruments for public shows and media relation exercise. The officials, habitual of hiding facts know that under tremendous pressure of civil society, they won the issues like Right to Information which is being used by people to redress their issues. In fact, it has become an obstacle in the freedom of the officials. Now, issues like Social Audits of the government programmes have also made people aware of their rights. Those who enjoy ignorance of people at the cost of their livelihood are now feeling challenged and confronted and therefore various acts of intimidations.
Therefore, questioning government and authorities may cost you life as happened in the case of Lalit Mehta, a social activist of the right to food campaign in Jharkhand, who was shot dead when as he unearthed massive scandal in the NREGS. Shockingly rather than arresting the culprit, the government reports implicate noted economist Jean Dreze, the inspiration behind right to food campaign. It shows how the governments of the day function and how ignorant its officials are about the persons leading such movements. It is not their fault but the culture we have developed in the government which they are the law unto themselves.
The point is that these cases will go on and on. We will highlight them and ultimately put the erring officials to scrutiny but what happens to the people. Many of the people in these cases are old and by the time justice comes they are no more. In the Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar case many lost their children. Cases were filed against them for ‘disturbing’ peace. Similar thing happened in Polepally as just a day back, a young woman drank poison as her family was in a difficult situation after the land was forcibly taken over by the government. Now, over the years apart from mobilization as form of protest, organizing alternative strategies such as blogs, silent protests, fast and public hearing are fast becoming instruments of civil society. As corporatised media is controlled and give news according to their own interest, we have to find, who will be interested in our stories. But if you are not politically correct and are not into any fixation into ‘this’ or ‘that’ political formation, then even the best known ‘secular’ paper like ‘the Hindu’ can ditch you. And we know how faithfully it reported the events of Nandigram.
The ‘democratic’ Marxists are most undemocratic. Apart from fudging the data, playing with numbers to prove them with ‘impeccable’ credentials, they have been romanticized by aid agencies, people working for land rights and those working on secularism in India. Yes, outside Bengal, they fight for people’s right over resources, they are organising public hearing and being part of it. They are role models even for their ‘worst’ critiques like ‘world bank’. ‘Frontline’ gave them hundred percent marks for ‘elimination’ of manual scavenging and wonderfully handling the Nandigram crisis. When public hearings are considered as part of people’s protests and their faith in democratic values, in Bengal, the police order have put question mark over such things. That human rights organization, MASUM, which is working against torture and custodial deaths, organized a Public Hearing against the victims of police atrocities in Kolkata on June 9th and June 10th. It is strange that the state government felt offended with the activities of a civil society organization where a former Chief Justice of a state high court and a former chairperson of National Commission for Women, participated as observers. Have public hearing or people’s tribunal become parallel government? Perhaps the governments of the day want to believe that. Unfortunately, they do not understand that people’s tribunal helps the victims to understand the legal dynamics of their cases. People’s tribunals are like watch dogs of the government action so that they can be improved. Like any civil society these are lawful activities with legal luminaries and government authorities participating in it.
In a civilized society, governments of the day need to be on the toes. No government, however, old or big might be is above the rule of the law. Government’s authorities are responsible to people. Their activities need to be questioned. The state human rights commissions are becoming redundant. Even the activities of NHRC are limited. And even with in those parameters, the governments are not interested in forming these commissions. The case point is Haryana where a woman who was raped by the constables of Haryana police committed suicide in front of the DGP office after failing to get FIR against the erring policemen who instead of surrendering tried to implicate her husband. Haryana which is notorious for honored killing and caste based crimes, does not feel it necessary to have its own State Human Rights Commission.
The assaults on human rights defenders will grow in the coming days. They would be asked to toe the government line. Like the embedded press, perhaps, the government is looking for embedded human rights activism. They find it difficult since their own institutions which they constituted are not functioning according to their fancies. It is time, Indian officials and police adhere to international norms and practices. Any act of intimidations to human rights activists will only damage the forces of rule of law in the country. As long as there will be assault on people’s right whether they are fundamental rights or rights over resources, people will fight for justice and for that they will not only need strong national laws but support and collaboration from international laws and civil society. Human Rights movement world over are supporting people’s cause and need full support. We must decry and oppose to any attempt to intimidate people to express their opinion and exercise their right to organize a public hearing which is part of any civilized democratic system to highlight the plight of the victims. If that is taken away from us, there will be no difference between a democracy and a military junta or a martial law regime anywhere in the world. Wake up India, otherwise, it would be too late.
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
As India grows to become global power, the penetration of civil society, media and other instruments of state become stronger and visible. While it might not be to the likings of those in power when they see protest against forcible acquisition of land in the name of ‘development’. Portraying India as a democracy is easier as we have everything which makes us a successful democracy in the world. We have the ‘best’ constitution. We have president who ‘epitomizes’ ideal Indian woman, chief justice of India from the most marginalized community. The chief minister of India’s most populous and perhaps most criminal state of Uttar-Pradesh is a ‘Dalit woman’. We have so many from the marginalized communities that it looks as if we are a mature democracy.
But the brutal fact is that we are still a democracy which works on symbols. So when symbols are questioned, our maturity as a democracy comes to an end. Therefore, each of these symbols whether they belong to the most marginalized communities or women, feel irritated once they are questioned. The governments of the day feel that these babus in their secretariat provide them the true information. Every act of the state which is questioned is considered as blasphemy.
Over 30 years ago, Indira Gandhi became larger than life. Any criticism of Indira became a challenge to the nation and the critiques were put behind the bar. But that was very small thing. Today, the states are becoming highly inflammable and intolerant to any criticism of their functioning. They want a media which could report on their press releases. They want civil society to do the work designed and defined for the construction contractors hence you find more NGOs in the domain of contractors. Very few have got the guts to speak up against this tyranny.
One need not to go into political ideologies or international connections of civil society groups here but the basic of why the state and its authorities are getting tizzy over criticism need serious analysis. When Binayak Sen was arrested in Chhatisgarh, the same argument was given that he had linked with Naxalites. A state which has surrendered and can not protect its citizens is blaming a human rights activist who has been sincerely doing his work, is termed as a ‘sympathizers’ as if sympathy with a group become anti national. One does not know what does it mean but definitely all those who once upon of a time wrote that Maoists were terrorists in Nepal, will have to shut their mouth and sit with them as people’s power have brought them. Binayak Sen is still languishing in Jail despite appeal for his release by international community. His continuous confinement shows how mature are we as a democracy.
Just a few days back, about 18 farmers contested election as mark of protest in Polepally, Mehboob Nagar, Andhra Pradesh where Andhra Pradesh government is developing an SEZ. The land acquired made a majority of the people of the area completely landless and penniless. The state’s forced acquisition did not give people time to think. Political parties play blame game and yet when they come to power, behave in a very similar way. Hence when the farmers contested in the polls as independent candidates, they all calculated and yet were not allowed to protest. If the chief minister comes to the town, all the contestants were illegally detained and let off in far away places.
Illegal detention is part of our police culture. It is to stop you speaking in open. It is state’s intimidation with out killing you. It is basically killing us all the time. Movements are divided, rifts are created among them, laws are interpreted in such a way that no one would believe in democracy. Why should any one believe in it if after 20-30 years of struggle and faith in the highest law of the land, people do not get justice? The case point is Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar, where over 150 Dalit landless workers were involved in their struggle for livelihood. About 1167 acres of land was illegally possessed by a company named as M/s Escorts Farms Ltd. Despite Allahabad High Court verdict which was later upheld by Supreme Court, the state government refused to implement the order. Even the Lokayukta of Uttarakhand found that the officials of the government have violated the law and done contempt of the court, but nothing moves. A fresh petition was filed by Social Development Foundation in the Supreme Court of India with Justice K.G.Balakrishanan and Justice Ravindran issued notices to Uttarakhand government against the same. Not every one can go to the court. By the time, people reach Supreme Court, their patience is gone, and a number of them do not even remain alive to see the dooms day. Hence in democracy people are using other techniques for their redressal like social audits, public hearing, people’s tribunals and many innovative ideas. Unfortunately, the government officials have become too intolerant to these ideas as they have become instruments for public shows and media relation exercise. The officials, habitual of hiding facts know that under tremendous pressure of civil society, they won the issues like Right to Information which is being used by people to redress their issues. In fact, it has become an obstacle in the freedom of the officials. Now, issues like Social Audits of the government programmes have also made people aware of their rights. Those who enjoy ignorance of people at the cost of their livelihood are now feeling challenged and confronted and therefore various acts of intimidations.
Therefore, questioning government and authorities may cost you life as happened in the case of Lalit Mehta, a social activist of the right to food campaign in Jharkhand, who was shot dead when as he unearthed massive scandal in the NREGS. Shockingly rather than arresting the culprit, the government reports implicate noted economist Jean Dreze, the inspiration behind right to food campaign. It shows how the governments of the day function and how ignorant its officials are about the persons leading such movements. It is not their fault but the culture we have developed in the government which they are the law unto themselves.
The point is that these cases will go on and on. We will highlight them and ultimately put the erring officials to scrutiny but what happens to the people. Many of the people in these cases are old and by the time justice comes they are no more. In the Shaheed Udham Singh Nagar case many lost their children. Cases were filed against them for ‘disturbing’ peace. Similar thing happened in Polepally as just a day back, a young woman drank poison as her family was in a difficult situation after the land was forcibly taken over by the government. Now, over the years apart from mobilization as form of protest, organizing alternative strategies such as blogs, silent protests, fast and public hearing are fast becoming instruments of civil society. As corporatised media is controlled and give news according to their own interest, we have to find, who will be interested in our stories. But if you are not politically correct and are not into any fixation into ‘this’ or ‘that’ political formation, then even the best known ‘secular’ paper like ‘the Hindu’ can ditch you. And we know how faithfully it reported the events of Nandigram.
The ‘democratic’ Marxists are most undemocratic. Apart from fudging the data, playing with numbers to prove them with ‘impeccable’ credentials, they have been romanticized by aid agencies, people working for land rights and those working on secularism in India. Yes, outside Bengal, they fight for people’s right over resources, they are organising public hearing and being part of it. They are role models even for their ‘worst’ critiques like ‘world bank’. ‘Frontline’ gave them hundred percent marks for ‘elimination’ of manual scavenging and wonderfully handling the Nandigram crisis. When public hearings are considered as part of people’s protests and their faith in democratic values, in Bengal, the police order have put question mark over such things. That human rights organization, MASUM, which is working against torture and custodial deaths, organized a Public Hearing against the victims of police atrocities in Kolkata on June 9th and June 10th. It is strange that the state government felt offended with the activities of a civil society organization where a former Chief Justice of a state high court and a former chairperson of National Commission for Women, participated as observers. Have public hearing or people’s tribunal become parallel government? Perhaps the governments of the day want to believe that. Unfortunately, they do not understand that people’s tribunal helps the victims to understand the legal dynamics of their cases. People’s tribunals are like watch dogs of the government action so that they can be improved. Like any civil society these are lawful activities with legal luminaries and government authorities participating in it.
In a civilized society, governments of the day need to be on the toes. No government, however, old or big might be is above the rule of the law. Government’s authorities are responsible to people. Their activities need to be questioned. The state human rights commissions are becoming redundant. Even the activities of NHRC are limited. And even with in those parameters, the governments are not interested in forming these commissions. The case point is Haryana where a woman who was raped by the constables of Haryana police committed suicide in front of the DGP office after failing to get FIR against the erring policemen who instead of surrendering tried to implicate her husband. Haryana which is notorious for honored killing and caste based crimes, does not feel it necessary to have its own State Human Rights Commission.
The assaults on human rights defenders will grow in the coming days. They would be asked to toe the government line. Like the embedded press, perhaps, the government is looking for embedded human rights activism. They find it difficult since their own institutions which they constituted are not functioning according to their fancies. It is time, Indian officials and police adhere to international norms and practices. Any act of intimidations to human rights activists will only damage the forces of rule of law in the country. As long as there will be assault on people’s right whether they are fundamental rights or rights over resources, people will fight for justice and for that they will not only need strong national laws but support and collaboration from international laws and civil society. Human Rights movement world over are supporting people’s cause and need full support. We must decry and oppose to any attempt to intimidate people to express their opinion and exercise their right to organize a public hearing which is part of any civilized democratic system to highlight the plight of the victims. If that is taken away from us, there will be no difference between a democracy and a military junta or a martial law regime anywhere in the world. Wake up India, otherwise, it would be too late.
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