The Shame of Upper Caste India and the Furor over OBC Reservation in Institutes of Higher Learning
Truth is that upper caste India has enjoyed a perverse system of reservation for 3,000 years,
by Dr. Joseph D’souza
For the last couple of days I have watched with huge embarrassment the upper caste-led English media TV talk shows in India react to the proposal of India’s Union Ministry for Human Resources to give the Other Backward Castes (OBCs) reservation in the Central Government-aided institutions of higher learning such as the IITs, IIMs and other central universities.
I am deeply ashamed at the blindness of upper caste India as demonstrated by the talk show hosts and the majority upper caste studio audience members who seem to be completely out of touch with the realities of the social injustices and inequities meted out to the majority Dalit-Bahujan people by the oppressive and degrading caste system. Above all there seems to be a complete lack of the history of modern India vis-à-vis the caste system and a total ignorance of the works of Ambedkar, Phule and Periyar. It seems upper caste India wants to be socially ignorant, comfortable, secure and content in their modern, globalized, English-speaking enclave and let the rest of the caste-oppressed Indians be condemned in their own struggle for existence.
One Indian talk show host described the television audience within the studio as a representative sample of “middle class Indians”. But when pushed into the corner to mark out the identity of those English-speaking Indians in the studio, it was clear to those of us who were watching the show across the nation that the studio audience was 90% upper caste.
In another show, the OBC/Dalit minority audience in the studio staged a walk out because of the farce of the so-called “impartial middle class” India in the studio and the agenda of the show itself which heavily favored the majority audience in the studio.
What is English-speaking, middle class India if not a mainly upper caste India who are there because of opportunity, economics, power and freedom enjoyed by upper caste Indians for 3,000 years? The truth is that upper caste India has enjoyed a perverse system of reservation for 3,000 years through the enforcement of the caste system. The minority upper castes who make up just 17% of the population have usurped over 90% of all economic, educational, political, spiritual and social power in India for 3,000 years. Why not discuss that issue for five minutes in the talk shows? Or is it threatening to the very system that runs India? It is only now in a democratic India that some attempt is being made to redress this horrendous injustice.
Talk of meritocracy in this context is highly hypocritical. Meritocracy works where there has been a consistent level playing field for all over a consistent period. Do most of the Dalits and OBCs have the same level playing field and opportunities? How many Dalits and OBCs in the past 50 years have had access to the highly expensive private English-medium school education?
Why is upper caste India not bearing its shame in what has been done to the oppressed castes in India down through the centuries? Without this sharing of guilt and shame there will be no healing and reconciliation in India. The caste system will bitterly divide and bleed our India.
Why is upper caste India so blind? How can we walk the streets of India and fail to notice what our oppressive caste system has done to the country and her majority people? How can we ignore the oppression and poverty of our people? Is just economics the primary reason for this or is social injustice meted out by a degrading social system? Just look at the conditions of most Dalits whatever their religious affiliation. Are we not ashamed at all for the part we have played in their deplorable condition?
How can we deny that we are faced with two Indias? President Bush may cause us revel in an “India Shining”, but what about the “India in Darkness” which is present in our streets, slums, towns, villages and forests – the India of the vast majority?
And do we think that a mere 50 years of reservation has resolved the Dalit problem and that the OBC reservation of the past two decades has resolved the problems of the Backward Castes?
Upper caste India has to carry its historic shame and guilt and lead the struggle to abolish the caste system permanently in India. Upper caste India must develop a social conscience that intentionally includes the Dalits and the OBCs in all spheres of power – economics, education, politics, science and spirituality – this will mean proportional representation. Upper caste India must embrace and entwine their lives, future and their bloodline with Dalit-Bahujan India for the sake of their own children’s future.
Our politicians will not deliver. We the citizens of India must deliver emancipation to the Dalits and the oppressed backward castes – now and forever.
by Dr. Joseph D’souza
For the last couple of days I have watched with huge embarrassment the upper caste-led English media TV talk shows in India react to the proposal of India’s Union Ministry for Human Resources to give the Other Backward Castes (OBCs) reservation in the Central Government-aided institutions of higher learning such as the IITs, IIMs and other central universities.
I am deeply ashamed at the blindness of upper caste India as demonstrated by the talk show hosts and the majority upper caste studio audience members who seem to be completely out of touch with the realities of the social injustices and inequities meted out to the majority Dalit-Bahujan people by the oppressive and degrading caste system. Above all there seems to be a complete lack of the history of modern India vis-à-vis the caste system and a total ignorance of the works of Ambedkar, Phule and Periyar. It seems upper caste India wants to be socially ignorant, comfortable, secure and content in their modern, globalized, English-speaking enclave and let the rest of the caste-oppressed Indians be condemned in their own struggle for existence.
One Indian talk show host described the television audience within the studio as a representative sample of “middle class Indians”. But when pushed into the corner to mark out the identity of those English-speaking Indians in the studio, it was clear to those of us who were watching the show across the nation that the studio audience was 90% upper caste.
In another show, the OBC/Dalit minority audience in the studio staged a walk out because of the farce of the so-called “impartial middle class” India in the studio and the agenda of the show itself which heavily favored the majority audience in the studio.
What is English-speaking, middle class India if not a mainly upper caste India who are there because of opportunity, economics, power and freedom enjoyed by upper caste Indians for 3,000 years? The truth is that upper caste India has enjoyed a perverse system of reservation for 3,000 years through the enforcement of the caste system. The minority upper castes who make up just 17% of the population have usurped over 90% of all economic, educational, political, spiritual and social power in India for 3,000 years. Why not discuss that issue for five minutes in the talk shows? Or is it threatening to the very system that runs India? It is only now in a democratic India that some attempt is being made to redress this horrendous injustice.
Talk of meritocracy in this context is highly hypocritical. Meritocracy works where there has been a consistent level playing field for all over a consistent period. Do most of the Dalits and OBCs have the same level playing field and opportunities? How many Dalits and OBCs in the past 50 years have had access to the highly expensive private English-medium school education?
Why is upper caste India not bearing its shame in what has been done to the oppressed castes in India down through the centuries? Without this sharing of guilt and shame there will be no healing and reconciliation in India. The caste system will bitterly divide and bleed our India.
Why is upper caste India so blind? How can we walk the streets of India and fail to notice what our oppressive caste system has done to the country and her majority people? How can we ignore the oppression and poverty of our people? Is just economics the primary reason for this or is social injustice meted out by a degrading social system? Just look at the conditions of most Dalits whatever their religious affiliation. Are we not ashamed at all for the part we have played in their deplorable condition?
How can we deny that we are faced with two Indias? President Bush may cause us revel in an “India Shining”, but what about the “India in Darkness” which is present in our streets, slums, towns, villages and forests – the India of the vast majority?
And do we think that a mere 50 years of reservation has resolved the Dalit problem and that the OBC reservation of the past two decades has resolved the problems of the Backward Castes?
Upper caste India has to carry its historic shame and guilt and lead the struggle to abolish the caste system permanently in India. Upper caste India must develop a social conscience that intentionally includes the Dalits and the OBCs in all spheres of power – economics, education, politics, science and spirituality – this will mean proportional representation. Upper caste India must embrace and entwine their lives, future and their bloodline with Dalit-Bahujan India for the sake of their own children’s future.
Our politicians will not deliver. We the citizens of India must deliver emancipation to the Dalits and the oppressed backward castes – now and forever.
posted by PRO RESERVATION FRONT @ 9:48 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
welll said, sir you are exactly right,
But the upper casteswill never mendtheir ways.
The media has shown its true colours. Indian upper castes are worst than the South African whites during the aparthied days. It is more shocking how the media has become a party in this entire campaign to defame the Dalits and Bahujans.
Obsessed with merit, these upper caste boys and girls simply do not know the history of social justice movement. Perhaps, because the arrogance does not allow them read the great works of Ambedkar, Phule, Periyar, M.N.Roy or even the work of Vivekananda againt priesthood.
I have posed a question of ethic also. Media should report impartially. But can you expect the disciples of Dronacharyas and Parshurams to be impartial. Now the religous thugs are also in the fray, preaching us how the reservation would divide the country. They do not want to admit that their forefathers had divided the country by inventing the 'cast system', India's only 'great' invention.
The media led by the upper caste seculars as well as Sangh parivar fed saffronites, have crossed all their limits of decency. I would say, they have lost their mental balance. They have become a party to destroy people's mendate. They use democracy just to 'market' them in front of the western world to get resources and funds. Otherwise, these guys have hatred for democracy because democracy has threatened India's caste structure and their old 'mathadhis'. The new mathadis will also feel the heat once they get exposed. Democracy ultimately would not allow any one to become Mathadhis because every identity has mutliple identities in India and every one want to excel. It is a great thing that every one want to succeed and live a life successfully, then why are the upper caste unable to digest this. Why are they unable to admit that there are others also who have merit. Merit is not just speaking English or abusing or misquoting others. Merit is in the shirts and trousers available in Fab India and Dastakars and which these 'seculars' as well as capitalists both together wears. All of them are created by the Dalit, backward and Muslim women. How much these upper caste masters give to them in terms of money ?
If reservation should be on the basis of economy, how many brahmins are ready to leave Tirupathi and Badrinath. Can they ask a Dalit or a backward to be the priests of these temples ? How many brahmins are cleaning toilets or carrying nightsoil. Definitely there may be many 'poor', 'uneducated' brahmins who might not be a doctor or even a primary school teachers, how many of them apply for a job of manual scavenger ?
The government should not succumb to this blackmail. I want to ask one question of ethics. Christian girls from Kerala are the backgone of nursing profession in India. Violence against Christian has increased all over the country. Government is not recognising the Christian Dalits. Should the Chrisitian community ask its nurses as well as its school to keep off indefinitely unless the demands are met. India's 'world class' medical industry would collapse immediately. We can live without these castiest doctors but it is impossible to live without the nurses.
Another most important thing is should the Dalit Safai Karmacharis all over the country should go on indefinite strike for a raise in their salary and against their continuous humiliation. India would come to a stand still.
I am sure the court would then not say 'strike' is illegal. I am not surprised, therefore, when Supreme Court of India use 'polite' words to the upper caste doctors to end the strike. The same courts have rejected 'right to strike' of the labour community. It is up to us to explain things to people.
Rajdeep Sardesai spoke against Mr Udit Raj on the reservation issue. Rajdeep should inform us how many Dalits and bahujans are there in his organisation ? Does he think that there is not a single Dalit and backward community person in this country who can make a presentable face ? Does he think, all those notorious brahmin and bania presenters the best in the industry ? I have a challenge.
These upper caste seculars have exposed their characters. The only option is now for all the truely seculars ( who can take on the religious gangs and thugs also)to come out and unite. The only option for India is to demolish this is to strengthen alternative media, alternative medical college, alternative institutions of execellence exclusively meant for Dalits and backward communities.
Why should we not demand Several exclusive National Universities, medical colleges exclusively for Dalits and backward communities like AMU? Why don't the Christian Insittutions, who have money and manpower, employ Dalits and train them ? Why don't the Dalit elite class, which has money also start their own institutions ?
You can not just remain mute to this upper caste intellectual violence and the most dangerous and crude propaganda war that we have ever witnessed. Let this propagandist media be demolished by more people friendly alternative media. It is time we think over all the alternative for our people.
Finally, those who have been supporting privatisation, should now realise, that the INdian Industries run by the Banias and their chums would not ever do justice with Dalits and backward communities even if "Mira Kumar' feel so. It is not possible. Start your own industries, own banks and ofcourse, the government cannot abdicate its responsibility.
Come friends. The only answer is to question our own leaders who have kept quiet on the issue. It is more than ironical that major stakeholders of the vote bank of Dalits and backward have chosen to remain quiet. Shockingly, those who give this slogan, Dalit-brahmin bhai bhai and backward Brahmin bhai bhai, are ignoring and betraying the greater cause of both the communities. An Alliance of Dalits can only be possible with those forces who are ready to join their struggle of human rights, who reject institutional ostracisation of Dalits and who are equally oposed to crony capitalism of exclusive Indian quality. Dalits can not be with those who are religious lunatics and have faith in caste practices of the primitive period.
Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Post a Comment
<< Home