It was a surprise phone call by the late Dr. M.M. Thomas, then Director of the CISRS, that perhaps brought about a turning point in my life and made me plunge into the Dalit movement wholesale. Until the 70s, was fully immersed in Marxism though I was gradually getting disappointed with its leadership’s stubborn adherence to “class struggle” ignoring the fact of caste in India. I tried my best to persuade the upper caste Marxist leadership to take note of the “caste’ but it was not willing. “Class” is nothing but caste in India. India’s Marxist leadership used Marxism to deceive the vast Dalits and Backward Castes to maintain the upper caste hegemony on the party. I was slowly getting disappointed with the Marxists and taking interest in Dr. Ambedkar, independent India’s leader of the oppressed masses.
I was then in the Indian Express, Bangalore, as its Deputy Chief Reporter. Indian Express in those days was the country’s largest circulated English daily. Infits Aug. 15, 1975, edition, it carried my article, “Dalit movement in Karnataka”, on its prestigious edit page.
SLAVES OF HINDU INDIA
Next day I got a call from Dr. Thomas asking me if I could develop the article and write a book itself which the CISRS would publish. I jumped at the idea because that would give me an opportunity to write my first book. Next day I went to CISRS office on Millers Road in Bangalore and met Dr. Thomas whom I found an extraordinary person.
Dalits are Hindu India’s slaves — not only neglected and forgotten but the worst persecuted lot despite the fact they comprise the country’s single largest segment (20%), 1 was wondering how the head of a big Christian organisation spared a thought for the forgotten “Wretched of the earth”?
Dr. M.M. Thomas later rose to great heights in the World Council of Churches and then became Governor of Nagaland after retirement from the WCC. I had occasion to visit his home in Thiruvalla, Kerala, after his death. His whole house was converted into a memorial for this great man who lived a simple life and gave a Dalit thrust to the Christian theology. Like a true Christian, Dr. M.M. Thomas tried to bend his Christian Institute (CISRS) towards Dalits, realising the Christian duty towards the country’s worst persecuted segment of the society.
SANCTIFIED RACISM
By commissioning me to write the book, CISRS helped me travel all over Karnataka and observe for myself the inhuman exploitation of a set of people who are strangely called It Hindu by the Hindu rulers of India.
It is true that certain sections of the population are persecuted in different parts of the world. But in the case of India the persecution of Dalits has also the religious sanction under Hinduism. it is this sanctified racism that is the speciality of Hinduism. And Dr. M.M. Thomas was deeply worried about this and on several occasions, he opened up his heart to me.
Today, after a gap of 22 years I can say that it is this book (Dalit Movement in Karnataka, 1978, pp.150, CISRS) which the CISRS helped me to write not only made me jump into Dalit movement but also launch in 1981 the Dalit Voice, English fortnightly, which later turned out be the country’s oldest and the largest circulated organ of the persecuted nationalities denied human rights. To that extent I must acknowledge my gratefulness to Dr. M.M. Thomas and Prof. Saral Chatterji who succeeded him.
| am therefore grateful to CISRS for opening a new chapter in my life.
ROLE OF CHURCH IN DALIT LIBERATION
The Christian Institute until the publication of my book was concerned mainly with Christian issues. But my book brought good deal of discussions within the CISRS and the Christian circle outside. I participated in many such discussions in different parts of India. Just as the book gradually changed my very career, am I right in saying that it also helped the CISRS to think of the Dalits for the first time?
Even before Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar came on the scene and launched the Dalit movement — which is today a major force — the first to think of liberating the Dalits was the Christian church particularly the Protestant church.
That Christianity is a liberating religion is an acknowledged fact. And it helped liberate the oppressed Dalits who were caught suffocating in the dungeon of Hinduism.
My association with CISRS got further strengthened after I was dismissed from the Indian Express (1981) and became unemployed. I was offered a fellowship and encouraged to start the Dalit Voice which gained instant popularity being the first publication of its kind in the country. That is how I cam closer to Christians and particularly the Dalit and Backward Caste Christians. It was during my discussion with such Christian leaders and tour of the country [ could find out the domination of the upper caste Christians within the church. Comparatively the Protestant church is better than the Roman Catholics.
But even the Protestant church and the CISRS in particular is not doing enough in this direction to take the liberating message of Christ closer to Dalits and Dalit Christians in particular.
Christian theology needs to be suitably amended to make Dalit liberation as its principal goal. When about 80% of the Christians in India are Dalits, it can be safely said that the Indian church itself is Dalit church. CISRS, as the intellectual leader of the deprived Dalits, can do a lot to establish such a Dalit church in India.
During discussions with CISRS authorities I had suggested to fulfill the dreams of Dr. Ambedkar by implementing the “Three Commandments” of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, namely “Educate,) Agitate, Organise” (Dalit Sahitya Akademy, 2005). This is a must because the country’s upper caste political leadership, under the impact of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation (LPG) is gradually e — forgetting the “Wretched of the earth” being more interested in promoting the interests of the urban- dwelling upper castes (15%).
Under the first Commandment, “Educate”, CISRS can start translating the revolutionary works of Dalit writers in different languages into English. Right now, such works being in the local languages are lost to the country and the world outside. Its English translation will bring such revolutionary writers to limelight and help spread their message and thereby promote the movement.
DALIT CHRISTIAN ESERVATION
The second Commandment, “‘Agitate”, can be promoted by bringing the Dalit Christian activists closer to leaders of Dalit movement. A great gulf exists today between the two sections of the Dalit brothers. They need to be united.
The Govt. of India is consistently ignoring the claims of Dalit Christians for reservation because they are a micro-minority but once the Dalit Christians join hands with the powerful Dalit movement, they turn out to be a big force which no government can ignore. Such awork of uniting the two blood brothers can begin from the South India where the Dalit Christian population is big. Right now the Dalit leaders are not taking any interest in the Dalit Christian struggle having been influenced by the Hindu nazi propaganda that Dalit Christians are well advanced and if they get reservations in jobs, they will take away the little space available for Dalit aspirants. This is false propaganda which can be corrected easily. As the Dalit reservations itself is dying under the onslaught of the higher judiciary, the efforts to unite Dalit Christians and Dalits will quickly catch up.
The Third Commandment is “Organise”. Under the powerful and well-funded Hindu nazi RSS-BJP drive, fully supported by the country’s Brahminical media, the country’s 20% Dalits and 10% Adivasis are fast getting hinduised, meaning enslaved. The principal objective of the Hindutva movement is to hinduise (enslave) the SC/ST/BCs and then instigate them against Muslims and Christians. BJP came to power in Delhi by instigating bloody riots against Muslims. The “Gujarat Genocide-2002” is the most glaring example of such a hinduisation drive. The killing of the Australian missionary Stains is yet another. RSS-BJP is coming in the way of religious conversion which is granted by the Constitution of India itself.
CISRS can help save the country and the Dalits from Hindu nazis if it implements the Dr. Ambedkar third Commandment of “Organise”.
Such a liberating mission will help CISRS gain the goodwill of all the right-thinking people inside India and support from the church outside. We are here to assist the CISRS in this noble endeavour by its new Director, Dr. Godwin Shiri.
