A Dream Come True

To bring out a journal of our own has been our long cherished dream. Persecuted minorities all over India in general and members of the Karnataka Dalit Action Committee in particular have been urging us to start a publication.

No doubt we had all the talents and enthusiasm. But what we lacked was funds. Funds will pour if we swim with the current. But the Dalit cause means swimming against the current. There is a chance of getting drowned also. Who will give us funds?

So for quite sometime, we were handicapped for want of funds. But funds alone should not stand in the way. When good wishes are there in plenty, funds will prove to be no problem. This has been our experience.

We could not withstand the mounting pressure of our Dalit comrades-representatives of the persecuted minorities: untouchables, tribals, other backward class (OBCs), Muslims and Christians.

Oppression is increasing day by day. Caste riots have spread from Marathwada to Gujarat. Anti-reservation agitations is threatening to engulf the whole country. Hindu-Muslim clashes are becoming a daily feature. Muslims and Christians are feeling that they are second-rate citizens. Even the very guardians of law and order are joining the forces of oppression.

The persecuted minorities are having hardly any friends in political parties, the government, judiciary, police, administration, professions. Intellectuals are turning dishonest. When there is no friend in these, how can they get a friend in the press? And the Press in India owned by corrupt capitalists and manned by high-caste journalists, with some minor exceptions.

The milk of kindness is getting dried up. The rich are getting richer, the poor poorer. Perhaps, these are signs of revolution, Therefore, we thought we better not delay.

About 10% of the Indian population is ruling us. This “ruling class” is composed of those rich who mostly come from the high castes. It is a class-caste dictatorship. Naked dance of Hindu communalism.

We dedicate this journal to fight this “ruling class” as the Dalit Voice, the voice of all the persecuted minorities of India.

We have a long way to go. Even a million-mile-march begins with a first step. And ours is a modest step. We fully know our limitations. But we will try to improve in days to come.

We suffer from no prejudice, no rancour, no ill-will. To us, no single individual is our enemy. We are concerned more with issues – primarily social and cultural and then economic.

We therefore, attack the existing corrupt system. We assure that we will mercilessly attack the corrupt system.

Politics is not our playfield. While we may comment, we consider every political party as no friend of the Dalits – persecuted minorities. And the woman is Dalit among Dalits, A slave of the slave.

For all those reasons, therefore, ours will be a unique experiment Bangalore City has a vast working class and student population and they can consider us their trusted friend – a friend of all the poor struggling people. Dalit writers will be encouraged.

We will support the Left movement – the CPM, CPI and the Naxalites – as we have the greatest respect for Marxism, Leninism and Maoism. Our Only suggestion is that while adopting Marxism to Indian conditions, it has to be Indianised by taking into consideration the havoc played by the caste system.

We will do our best to propagate the philosophy of Ambedkar, Periyar and Lohia and all other progressive thinkers. Genuine Marxists and Rationalists and all those working for social change shall count on our support in their struggles. It is the “Dalit Voice”.

If Untouchability Must Go, Caste Must Go: Bola Paswan Shastri

The first report of the Scheduled Caste & Tribes Commission headed by Bola Paswan Shastri says: “Untouchability is a byproduct of the Hindu caste system”. It also calls for “determined and consistent onslaught on the basic evil: i.e. the caste system”. But the commission, whose first report (total pages 230) is yet to be accepted by the Government of India though it was submitted over a year ago (Feb. 8, 1980), does not indicate how caste system can be destroyed. Some suggestions made by it to fight caste system are akin to Gandhian prescriptions, all of which have been tried but failed to cure the patient. 

Shastri, a highly respected former Chief Minister of Bihar and himself an untouchable, makes an important point when he says that caste riots are spreading from rural to urban centres. This is a new development in the history of India. Visiting (12-8-78) Villupuram (Tamil Nadu) where largescale atrocities broke out resulting in the death of several untouchables, he says (Page 113): A new phenomenon, is developing ……. The clash between the caste Hindus and the Harijans has so far confined to the rural areas only. I have no knowledge of any clash between caste Hindus and Harijans in the urban area in the recent past. Villupuram is the first urban area”. This is an eye-opener. Just as ‘caste riots’ (Hindu-Dalit) are spreading to urban areas, communal riots (Hindu- Muslim) so far confined to urban areas are spreading to rural areas. The over-fed Hindu communalists are out for the blood of the untouchables, tribes and minorities. Therefore, the persecuted minorities should be more vigilant. This is the message in the Shastri Commission report.

The Commission has regretted that no State Government has conducted a survey of the working of the PCR, Act nor set up any special court for trial. It is foolish to expect the government to undertake such a work because if any Government makes such an attempt the government will be toppled by the ruling class. The high castes who control every Government do not want to enforce the PCR Act. This is the simple truth.

As regards the root causes of atrocities (page 86) the Commission cites social causes. The social cause lies in the practice of untouchability which is a byproduct of the Hindu caste system pushing the SCs down to the lowest rung of the social ladder in the caste hierarchy. How can we remove untouchability without disturbing the caste scaffolding? Will not the Hindu religion shake if the caste system – its very foundation – is sought to be destroyed? Who is prepared to make such a sacrifice? If caste goes all the property and privileges enjoyed by the high castes of India will also go. Therefore, we can safely conclude that as long as the ruling class of India is allowed to continue, the caste system will also continue. Hence the need to destroys the ruling class becomes all the more urgent. We thank Bola Paswan Shastri for boldly hinting at the need to destroy caste.  

We also appreciate the commission’s recommendation for a special police force comprising 50% SC constables to be posted particularly in sensitive areas. We would go a step forward and recommend that the other half the special force should be Muslims. In that case, the jurisdiction of such a force can be extended to areas prone to Hindu-Muslim riots as well. Such a force should be airlifted within four hours of the violence breaking out. But why confine the recruitment of the special police force only to the level of constables? Even officers manning it should be SCs, STs and Muslims – 50:50.  

The Commission has passed strictures on the work of the Central and State Governments for not fulfilling the job quota to SCs. The SCs will not come to the desired level even after the next 10 years, it says.  

The percentage of reservation was raised by the Government of India vide resolution No. 27/25/68 – ESTT (S.C.T) dt. 25th March 1979 in proportion to the population of these communities as shown in the 1961 census. The report mentions that the 15% reservation to SCs is to be enforced through direct recruitment on all-India basis: – a) by open competition b) posts to be filled by promotions c) and on the basis of seniority. But, the commission, observes that “the actual percentage of SCs are nowhere near the prescribed one”. In annexure I, it has given the data to prove the failure of the Government. However, in Class IV posts, reservations have exceeded the quota fixed because these positions of sweepers, scavengers etc. are permanently reserved for the untouchables, as there are none else to take up these jobs. The real position of SCs, in RBI, nationalised banks, public industries different Government departments are all furnished. A very valuable document.