The marginalisation and intimidation of Dalits have become more intense after 2014, with the perpetrators emboldened by the State apathy
UPSET over Chief Justice of India BR Gavai’s verdict on a PIL (public interest litigation) asking for restoration of the head of Lord Vishnu idol in one of the temples in Khajuraho, advocate Rakesh Kishore hurled a shoe at him in the court. Justice Gavai stated that the matter was not a PIL but a publicity ploy and that the petitioner should have gone to the Archaeological Survey of India or should have asked the deity to restore its head.
This comment infuriated Kishore. He claims that the Lord appeared in his dream and asked him to take action. The dream and the directive spurred him to throw his shoe at the CJI, who happens to be the second Dalit and first Buddhist to occupy the country’s highest judicial office. The attack of this sort is also very reflective of the plight of Dalits under the current dispensation.
The attack on the CJI came close on the heels of an invitation extended to Justice Gavai’s mother to be chief guest at a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) event in in a city in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. She declined the invitation, saying that she was an Ambedkarite and as such was not inclined towards attending the programme. One recalls here that the RSS agenda of Hindu Rashtra is unfolding at a rapid pace and only ideologically blind people may not be able to discern this. The likes of Justice Gavai’s mother must be remembering Babasaheb opposing the demand of Pakistan on the ground that this may pave the way for Hindu Raj, which will be a calamity for the country. (Ambedkar, revised edition of Pakistan or Partition of India)
At the same time a social media influencer, Ajeet Bharti, also wrote something derogatory against the CJI. When the media was abuzz that action may be taken against him, he said: “The government is ours; the system is ours.” Bharti posted in Hindi, late evening on October 7. Just before that, he wrote another X post: “If the entire system were against me, I wouldn’t be out and about, having coffee, roasted almonds, and cashews. The entire system is with me, that is, your system — the system of our ideas. Disagreements will continue to happen, but we are all one, having been, and will remain. I am grateful to all of you. Jai Sri Ram!”
An unfazed Justice Gavai told court officials to ignore the attack on him and directed that the court proceedings should continue, not making it a point of distraction. With a magnanimous heart, he said that no action should be taken against Kishore. Meanwhile, what the police did was to call him to the police station and after a chit chat they returned his shoe to him.
Now FIRs are being filed against Kishore at different places. As far as Bharti is concerned, he was also called to the police station, treated to a warm cup of tea and was allowed to let go! Imagine if such an atrocious act of throwing a shoe at the CJI was done by someone with a Muslim name! By now all the NSA (National Security Act) and other such clauses would have been slapped on him.
As far as the CJI’s comments on appealing to the deity, much ruckus has been created on the social media, terming it as an “insult” to the Sanatan Dharma. Even Kishore shouted: “Sanatan ka apmaan nahin sahega Hindustan, (Insult of Sanatan will not be tolerated by India)! Incidentally, the slogan began with ‘Say with Pride we are Hindus’ (Garv se kaho hum Hindu hain) but now instead of ‘Hindu’ the word ‘Sanatan’ is being used as the flagbearer of right-wing politics.
One of the main reasons for the formation of RSS, the major vehicle of Hindutva nationalism and Hindu Rashtra, was to confront the rising awareness amongst Dalits about their exploitation by the landlord-clergy alliance.
The RSS always upheld caste (varna) as its anchor, the values of Manusmriti being articulated by its earlier ideologues. Today, its articulation has become cleverer, where on the one hand, they say that all castes are equal, and on the other, as far as policies are concerned, they ensure that atrocities on Dalits and their social marginalisation are implemented far and wide.
This marginalisation and intimidation of Dalits have become more intense after 2014, when Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to full majority on its own. Ever since the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government came to power in 2014, these incidents have climbed significantly. [Crimes against Dalits and Adivasis increased by 27.3% and 20.3%, respectively, in 2018.]
As per data provided by scholar Anand Teltumbde: “The assault on Gavai thus mirrors the broader social pattern where caste violence persists amid formal equality. Over 55,000 cases of atrocities against Dalits are registered each year; on average, four Dalits are murdered and a dozen Dalit women are raped every day.”
This incident was not taken seriously by the State; we have seen the attitude of the police. Prime Minister Narendra Modi woke up to the negative electoral impact of this on Dalit voters and the maximum he did was to come out with a bland tweet.
On the one hand, it is the affirmative action given by our Constitution that people like Gavai have risen to such heights in the Indian judicial system. But, social attitudes toward Dalits and women have not changed in tune with the democratic norms.
The yeoman efforts of Ambedkar were backed by Gandhi’s marathon efforts to fight untouchability in society. Social norms have started to change to some extent. But the roots of those prejudices and biases against Dalits have not removed completely.
Ambedkar and Gandhi emphasised on inter-caste marriages to root out the rigidities and atrocities wrought by the caste system. The past three-four decades have seen not only a widening gulf between different religions, the caste system is also getting a boost due to rising sectarianism. One sectarianism strengthens the other. That is at the core of what the ilk of Rakesh Kishore are manifesting and the likes of Ajeet Bharti tell us — that due to the right-wing party being in power, these elements get an assurance about going scot-free. They do enjoy close to absolute impunity.
______________
Ram Puniyani is an eminent author, activist and a former professor at IIT Mumbai. The views expressed here are author’s personal and Clarion India does not necessarily share or subscribe to them.
