Caste continues to cast its spell

Seventy-five years after Independence, caste continues to be the biggest influencer of political life in the country. So much so that on Monday, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Om Birla, had to warn members against referring to anyone’s caste and religion in the House after an MP alleged that a Union minister had made certain remarks about his proficiency in Hindi because he belonged to a particular community.

The Speaker was bang on target when he said that people have not elected members to the Lok Sabha on the basis of their caste and religion. Negative discrimination based on caste is banned as per the law but whether one likes it or not, caste continues to wield an overbearing influence on every facet of Indian society. Leaders are chosen to fight elections depending on the caste they belong to and if there is a substantial number of people of the particular caste in the constituency.

Caste-based outfits ensure that the government pays heed to their demands and their grievances are taken up by exerting pressure in the right quarters. Caste inevitably comes into play in social and matrimonial alliances and those lower on the social hierarchy are looked down and even excluded from community-based events. Can democracy based on social equality and the inalienable right to equal opportunities co-exist with a caste system that imposes a social hierarchy based on occupation denying respect and status to those on the lower rungs who are condemned to doing menial jobs?

Obviously not but the reality, whether one likes it or not, is that the caste system has survived and flourished even as democratic traditions took root with its practitioners finding ways to circumvent hurdles. There have been horrendous incidents of entire villages being burnt down out of rage against lower castes for transgressing their ‘limits’ and innumerable cases of the modesty of lower caste women being violated by upper castes.

Those down the caste hierarchy are denied entry to places of worship and the right to drink water from wells frequented by upper castes or consume food at the same table… the list of discriminatory practices goes on and on. The winds of change no doubt are blowing strong across the nation with out-dated social mores slowly but steadily giving way to modern practices and scientific thinking but wishing away the caste system would be naïve to say the least. Social reformers have come and gone even in highly literate states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu but can one say that caste no longer wields a role in people’s lives?

The tug-of-war is perpetually on between those eyeing a dominant role in society, and the deprived fighting for their rightful share of development after lagging far behind because of centuries of persecution and ostracism. In Karnataka too, the caste factor runs deep – from politics to rural life to education and employment opportunities. Quotas are fought for based on caste and the casualty is social harmony thanks to caste-based conflicts. And how do we fight and usher in a humane society based on respect for each other bereft of prejudice based on caste, colour or gender?

Laws are not enough for if they were, we would have had in place an egalitarian society by now in the seven decades after freedom. For one, the concept of freedom from biases of any kind and the quest for equality have to be ingrained right from childhood so that each child grows into a socially-aware and freedom-loving individual. Biases based on caste or religion, for that matter, will have to be culled out mercilessly if we are to have a people worthy of a nation that gave birth to the Mahatma and Ambedkar.