Abolish Caste System

Recent studies show that 45 to 50 per cent of the villages in India are denying water, burial
grounds, saloons, laundry facilities, and roads to the Dalits.
Indias whole caste system should be abolished
According to a survey made some time ago by the International Movement Against All Forms of
Discrimination and Racism (IMADR), in India, on an average two dalits are assaulted every
hour, three dalit women are raped every day, two dalits are murdered and two dalit houses burnt
down everyday. And this is happening to a community that forms 19.8 per cent of Indias
population.
India's caste system is perhaps the world's longest surviving social hierarchy. A defining feature
of Hinduism, caste encompasses a complex ordering of social groups on the basis of ritual purity.
A person is considered a member of the caste into which he or she is born and remains within
that caste until death, although the particular ranking of that caste may vary among regions and
over time. Differences in status are traditionally justified by the religious doctrine of karma, a
belief that one's place in life is determined by one's deeds in previous lifetimes.
Traditional scholarship has described this more than 2,000-year-old system within the context of
the four principal varnas, or large caste categories. In order of precedence these are
the Brahmins (priests and teachers), theKsyatriyas (rulers and soldiers), the Vaisyas (merchants
and traders), and the Shudras (laborers and artisans). A fifth category falls outside the varna
system and consists of those known as "untouchables" or Dalits; they are often assigned tasks too
ritually polluting to merit inclusion within the traditional varna system. Despite its constitutional
abolition in 1950, the practice of "untouchability"-the imposition of social disabilities on persons
Caste and Marriage
Often, rigid social norms of purity and pollution are socially enforced through strict prohibitions
on marriage or other social interaction between castes. While economic and social indicators
other than caste have gained in significance, allowing intermarriage among upper castes, in many
countries strong social barriers remain in place against marriage between lower and higher
castes.

Caste and Labour

Allocation of labor on the basis of caste is one of the fundamental tenets of many caste systems,
with lower-castes typically restricted to tasks and occupations that are deemed too "filthy" or
"polluting" for higher-caste communities.
According to government statistics, an estimated one million Dalits in India are "manual
scavengers" (a majority of them women) who clear feces from public and private latrines and
dispose of dead animals; unofficial estimates are much higher. Handling of human waste is a
caste-based occupation, deemed too "polluting and filthy" for anyone but Dalits. Manual
scavengers exist under different caste names throughout the country, such as the Bhangis in
Gujarat, the Pakhis in Andhra Pradesh, and the Sikkaliars in Tamil Nadu. Members of these
communities are invariably placed at the very bottom of the caste hierarchy, and even the
hierarchy of Dalit sub-castes. Using little more than a broom, a tin plate, and a basket, they are
made to clear feces from public and private latrines and carry waste to dumping grounds and
disposal sites. Though long outlawed, the practice of manual scavenging continues in most
states.
Debt Bondage and Slavery
The poor remuneration of manual scavenging, agricultural labor, and other forms of low-caste
employment often force families of lower castes or caste-like groups into bondage. A lack of
enforcement of relevant legislation prohibiting debt bondage in most of the countries concerned
allows for the practice to continue unabated.
An estimated forty million people in India, among them some fifteen million children, are
working in slave-like conditions in order to pay off debts as bonded laborers. Due to the high
interest rates charged, the employers' control over records, and the abysmally low wages paid,
the debts are seldom settled. Bonded laborers are frequently low-caste, illiterate, and extremely
poor, while the creditors/employers are usually higher-caste, literate, comparatively wealthy, and
relatively more powerful members of the community.
The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 abolishes all agreements and obligations
arising out of the bonded labor system. It aims to release all laborers from bondage, cancel any

outstanding debt, prohibit the creation of new bondage agreements, and order the economic
rehabilitation of freed bonded laborers by the state. It also punishes attempts to compel persons
into bondage with a maximum of three years in prison and a Rs. 2,000 fine. However, relatively
few bonded laborers have been identified, released, and rehabilitated in the country.
Women have also been held in custody by landowners when bonded male members of the family
leave the land or area, and have even been sold into marriage or prostitution should the male
family member fail to return. As in India, children often inherit their families' debts and remain
trapped in a cycle of debt bondage.
Caste and Socio-Economic Disparities
Significant economic and educational disparities persist between lower and higher-caste
communities in the countries highlighted in this report. Lower-caste communities are often
plagued by low literacy levels and a lack of access to health care and education. A lack of formal
education or training, as well as discrimination that effectively bars them from many forms of
employment, and the nonenforcement of protective legislation, perpetuates caste-based
employment and keeps its hereditary nature alive.
Awareness creation, income generation, education and health facilities programmes are
implemented to address the problems of the backward communities. However, the gap between
so-called higher and lower castes has not narrowed. There have hardly been any changes in the
society or the living standard of the poor. Consequently, the people of backward communities
have felt discriminated against and could not believe that the Government was doing anything
for their welfare and development. The main reasons for this are: lack of integrated programmes,
weak implementation and sustainability, failure to mainstream backward communities and
repressed people into the national development process, centre-oriented/based programmes
rather than community-based/participatory programmes, little attention to human resource
development and lack of encouragement to the development and modernization of traditional
occupations and skills, lack of effective institutional mechanisms, etc.
Access to Education
High drop-out and lower literacy rates among lower-caste populations have rather simplistically

been characterized as the natural consequences of poverty and underdevelopment. Though these
rates are partly attributable to the need for low-caste children to supplement their family wages
through labor, more insidious and less well-documented is the discriminatory and abusive
treatment faced by low-caste children who attempt to attend school, at the hands of their teachers
and fellow students.
Over fifty years since India's constitutional promise of free, compulsory, primary education for
all children up to the age of fourteen-with special care and consideration to be given to promote
the educational progress of scheduled castes-illiteracy still plagues almost two-thirds of the Dalit
population as compared to about one-half of the general population. The literacy gap between
Dalits and the rest of the population fell a scant 0.39 percent between 1961 and 1991. Most of the
government schools in which Dalit students are enrolled are deficient in basic infrastructure,
classrooms, teachers, and teaching aids. A majority of Dalit students are also enrolled in
vernacular schools whose students suffer serious disadvantages in the job market as compared to
those who learn in English-speaking schools.
Despite state assistance in primary education, Dalits also suffer from an alarming drop-out rate.
According to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes' 1996-1997
and 1997-1998 Report, the national drop-out rate for Dalit children-who often sit in the back of
classrooms-was a staggering 49.35 percent at the primary level, 67.77 percent for middle school,
and 77.65 percent for secondary school.86
Access to Land
Most Dalit victims of abuse in India are landless agricultural laborers who form the backbone of
the nation's agrarian economy. Despite decades of land reform legislation, over 86 percent of
Dalit households today are landless or near landless. Those who own land often own very little.
Land is the prime asset in rural areas that determines an individual's standard of living and social
status. As with many other low-caste populations, lack of access to land makes Dalits
economically vulnerable; their dependency is exploited by upper- and middle-caste landlords and
allows for many abuses to go unpunished. Landless agricultural laborers throughout the country
work for a few kilograms of rice or Rs. 15 to Rs. 35 a day, well below the minimum wage
prescribed in their state. Many laborers owe debts to their employers or other moneylenders.

Indian laws and regulations that prohibit alienation of Dalit lands, set ceilings on a single
landowner's holdings, or allocate surplus government lands to scheduled castes and scheduled
tribes have been largely ignored, or worse, manipulated by upper castes with the help of district
administrations.
Political Representation and Political Rights
India's policy of "reservations" or caste-based quotas is an attempt by the central government to
remedy past injustices related to low-caste status. To allow for proportional representation in
certain state and federal institutions, the constitution reserves 22.5 percent of federal government
jobs, seats in state legislatures, the lower house of parliament, and educational institutions for
scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.
The reservation policy, however, has not been fully implemented. The National Commission for
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes' (1996-1997 and 1997-1998) report indicates that of the
total scheduled caste reservation quota in the Central Government, 54 percent remains unfilled.
More than 88 percent of posts reserved in the public sector remain unfilled as do 45 percent in
state banks. A closer examination of the caste composition of government services, institutions
of education and other services, however, reveals what Dalit activists call an "unacknowledged
reservation policy" for upper-castes, particularly Brahmins, built into the system. Though they
represented only 5 percent of the population in 1989, Brahmins comprised 70 percent of the
Class I officers in governmental services. At universities, upper-castes occupy 90 percent of the
teaching posts in the social sciences and 94 percent in the sciences, while Dalit representation is
only 1.2 and 0.5 percent, respectively.95
Dalits throughout India also suffer in many instances from de facto disenfranchisement. While
India remains the world's largest democracy, for many of its Dalit citizens democracy has been a
sham. During elections, many are routinely threatened and beaten by political party strongmen in
order to compel them to vote for certain candidates. Already under the thumb of local landlords
and police officials, Dalit villagers who do not comply have been harassed, beaten, and
murdered.

Police and upper-caste militias, operating at the behest of powerful political leaders in India's
states, have also punished Dalit voters. Dalits who have contested political office in village
councils and municipalities through seats that have been constitutionally "reserved" for them
have been threatened with physical abuse and even death in order to get them to withdraw from
the campaign.
Physical and Economic Retaliation
A principal weapon in sustaining the low status of Dalits in India is the use of social and
economic boycotts and acts of retaliatory violence. Dalits are physically abused and threatened
with economic and social ostracism from the community for refusing to carry out various castebased tasks. Any attempt to alter village customs, defy the social order, or to demand land,
increased wages, or political rights leads to violence and economic retaliation on the part of those
most threatened by changes in the status quo. Dalit communities as a whole are summarily
punished for individual transgressions; Dalits are cut off from community land and employment
during social boycotts, Dalit women bear the brunt of physical attacks, and the law is rarely
enforced.
Since the early 1990s, violence against Dalits has escalated dramatically in response to growing
Dalit rights movements. Between 1995 and 1997, a total of 90,925 cases were registered with the
police nationwide as crimes and "atrocities" against scheduled castes. Of these 1,617 were for
murder, 12,591 for hurt, 2,824 for rape, and 31,376 for offenses listed under the Prevention of
Atrocities Act.103 Given that Dalits are often both reluctant and unable (for lack of police
cooperation) to report crimes against themselves, the actual number of abuses is presumably
much higher.104
India's National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes has reported that these
cases typically fall into one of three categories: cases relating to the practice of "untouchability"
and attempts to defy the social order; cases relating to land disputes and demands for minimum
wages; and cases of atrocities by police and forest officials. Most of the conflicts take place
within very narrow segments of the caste hierarchy, between the poor and the not so poor, the
landless laborer and the marginal landowner. The differences lie in the considerable amount of

leverage that the higher-caste Hindus or non-Dalits are able to wield over local police, district
administrations, and even state governments.105
On the night of December 1, 1997, an upper-caste landlord militia called the Ranvir Sena shot
dead sixteen children, twenty-seven women, and eighteen men in the village of LaxmanpurBathe, Jehanabad district Bihar. Five teenage girls were raped and mutilated before being shot in
the chest. The villagers were alleged to have been sympathetic to a guerilla group known as
Naxalites that had been demanding more equitable land redistribution in the area. When asked
why the sena killed children and women, one sena member told Human Rights Watch, "We kill
children because they will grow up to become Naxalites. We kill women because they will give
birth to Naxalites."106
The senas, which claim many politicians as members, operate with virtual impunity. In some
cases, police have accompanied them on raids and have stood by as they killed villagers and
burned down their homes. On April 10, 1997, in the village of Ekwari, located in the Bhojpur
district of Bihar, police stationed in the area to protect lower-caste villagers instead pried open
the doors of their residences as members of the sena entered and killed eight residents. In other
cases, police raids have followed attacks by the senas. Sena leaders are rarely prosecuted for
such killings, and the villagers are rarely or inadequately compensated for their losses. Even in
cases where police are not hostile to Dalits, they are generally not accessible to call upon: most
police camps are located in the upper-caste section of the village and Dalits are simply unable to
approach them for protection.107
Caste

and

Gender

Lower-caste women are singularly positioned at the bottom of caste, class, and gender
hierarchies. Largely uneducated and consistently paid less than their male counterparts
worldwide they invariably bear the brunt of exploitation, discrimination, and physical attacks.
Sexual abuse and other forms of violence against women are often used by landlords and the
police to inflict political "lessons" and crush dissent within the community. Lower-caste women
also suffer disproportionately in terms of access to health care, education, and subsistence wages
as compared to women of higher castes.

Dalit women in India and Nepal make up the majority of landless laborers and scavengers, as
well as a significant percentage of the women forced into prostitution in rural areas or sold into
urban brothels. As such, they come into greater contact with landlords and enforcement agencies
than their upper-caste counterparts. Their subordinate position is exploited by those in power
who carry out their attacks with impunity. Incidents of gang-rape, stripping, and parading women
naked through the streets, and making them eat excrement are all crimes specific to Dalit women
in India. Sexual violence is also linked to debt bondage in India, Pakistan, and Nepal.
According to a Tamil Nadu state government official, the rape of Dalit women exposes the
hypocrisy of the caste system as "no one practices untouchability when it comes to sex."108 Like
other Indian women whose relatives are sought by the police, Dalit women have also been
arrested and tortured in custody as a means of punishing their male relatives who are hiding from
the authorities.
Gender-specific violence is a problem of epidemic proportions among low-caste plantation
workers in Sri Lanka.109 In Nepal, Dalit women are economically marginalized and exploited,
both within and outside their families. As the largest group of those engaged in manual labor and
agricultural production, their jobs often include waste disposal, clearing carcasses, and doing
leatherwork.110 Despite their grueling tasks and long hours, exploitative wages ensure that Dalit
women are unable to earn a subsistence living. In some rural areas Dalit women scarcely earn ten
to twenty kilograms of food grain a year, barely enough to sustain a family. 111 Many have been
driven to prostitution. One caste in particular, known as badis, is viewed as a prostitution caste.
Many Dalit women and girls, including those from the badi caste, are trafficked into sex work in
Indian brothels.112
Under the devadasi system, thousands of Dalit girls in India's southern states are ceremonially
"dedicated" or married to a deity or to a temple. Once dedicated, they are forced to become
prostitutes for upper-caste community members, and eventually auctioned into an urban
brothel.113 In Pakistan human rights organizations report that the rape of female bonded laborers
is one of the most pressing problems facing the movement to end debt bondage. Not only is it a
widespread, violent problem, but there is little legal recourse.114

In Mauritania, women are particularly burdened by the designation of "slave." While men are
sometimes able to escape, and by law cannot be forced to return to their "masters," women are
often forced to remain as their "masters" threaten to keep their children. The tenuous legal status
of slave children also keeps women tied to their masters.115
Caste

and

the

South

Asian

Diaspora

Caste has migrated with the South Asian diaspora to firmly take root in East and South Africa,
Mauritius, Fiji, Suriname, the Middle East, Malaysia, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, North
America, and other regions.116
Among migrant communities in North America and Europe, caste ideologies are perpetuated by
families returning to India to seek out marriage partners within their own caste. U.S.-based
matrimonial services, including regional conventions, are burgeoning alongside a growing
population of Indian origin.117 Families openly advertise their caste preference in the
matrimonial sections of Indian community papers in North America and Europe (a practice quite
common within India as well), as well as on Internet matchmaking sites.
In the United States, a rising number of caste-based groups-each with chapters throughout many
major cities-also points to the importance of caste as an identifier for migrant Indian
communities. Such caste-based associations in the United States are providing funds and
political support for a resurgence of caste fundamentalism in South Asia as well.118
In Britain emigrant Dalits must also worship in segregated temples and have thus formed an
umbrella group for low-caste temples-Guru Ravidass UK.119 Twenty-two of these temples
withheld (and ultimately redirected) funds raised for earthquake victims in Gujarat due to
incidents of caste discrimination in the distribution of earthquake relief.120
Also in Britain caste tensions frequently erupt between high-caste Punjabis (Jats) and low-caste
Punjabis (Chamars). Physical violence has also been known to erupt following intermarriage
between the two communities.121Caste consciousness becomes especially problematic given the
sizable population of both Jats and Chamars in the United Kingdom. According Sat Pal Muman,
a presenter at the September 2000 International Dalit Human Rights Conference in London,
inquiries about one's caste background are often made in privately run or Jat-run educational

institutions and places of employment. In the city of Wolverhampton incidents of upper-caste

Jats refusing to share water taps or make any physical contact with lower-caste persons have also
been reported. At a sports competition in Birmingham in 1999 Jats reportedly refused to eat food
that came from the Chamar community.122
In Suriname, Indians of Dalit-descent continue to be largely distinguished by their various castebased occupations.123 Chamars traditionally worked as drum beaters, beggars, hawkers, and
shoemakers; Pallen as landless laborers; Dhobis as washers; Collies as porters; and Dasis as
house servants. A higher-caste group includes Kurmis as cultivators, Ahir as cow herders,
and Chettyar as weavers, barbers, shopkeepers, and moneylenders. The third and highest caste
category consists of priests, scribes, and schoolmasters.124
In Mauritius, with its large concentration of people of Indian origin, social organization is based
on family, kinship networks, and "to a not negligible extent, caste-based organization."125 Castebased considerations have also been reported in the political and employment sector.126
Caste distinctions play a role in both private life and political organization within Malaysia's
minority "Indian" community although the extent of its influence on Malaysian Indian society is
the subject of considerable debate.127Caste considerations are most obvious in the private sphere,
particularly in the community's attitudes towards intermarriage. Many families seeking to
arrange marriages place matrimonial ads that include caste requirements, and marriage brokers
may be expected to take caste into account when finding suitable matches. 128 As one researcher
observed, "Caste has, indeed, such a strong hold in marriage matters that intercaste marriages
between different categories of higher caste status sometimes do not take place with parents'
approval, much less between higher and lower caste members. Abolition of caste discrimination
in this area remains a distant dream."129Though interactions outside the home seem to take place
without much emphasis on caste, within the home contact with castes thought to be polluting
may be quite limited. Some families, for example, refuse to dine with or accept food and drinks
from people they suspect of being lower caste.130
Mass migration of higher and lower-caste Indians to Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates,
and other Gulf states has brought with it vestiges of the caste system as well.

Failure

to

Implement

Domestic

and

International

Law

The practice of "untouchability," other caste-based discrimination, violence against lower-caste

men, women, and children, and other abuses outlined in this report violate numerous domestic
and international laws. International human rights law imposes on governments a duty to
guarantee the rights of all people without discrimination and to punish those who engage in
caste-based exploitation, violence, and discrimination.
In its August 2000 resolution, the U.N. Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of
Human Rights urged governments to ensure that "appropriate legal penalties and sanctions,
including criminal sanctions, are prescribed for and applied to all persons or entities within the
jurisdiction of the Governments concerned who may be found to have engaged in practices of
discrimination on the basis of work and descent."131
The subcommission's working paper on work and descent-based discrimination noted a year
later, "The laws are there, but there is a clear lack of will on the part of law enforcement officers
to take action owing to caste prejudice on their part or deference shown to higher-caste
perpetrators."132
Though constitutional guarantees and other national legislation banning caste discrimination
suggest that various governments have successfully tackled caste-related violations, much of the
legislation remains unenforced. Official condemnation alone has proven insufficient in many
countries in abolishing caste-based abuses.
In India, for example, laws are openly flouted while state complicity in attacks on Dalit
communities continues to reflect a well-documented pattern. India's own constitutional and
statutory bodies, including the National Human Rights Commission and the National
Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, have repeatedly confirmed and decried
the prevalence of the abuses outlined in this report. Other government authorities, however, have
facilitated continued discrimination. Indeed it would be difficult to convince Dalits that, over
fifty-four years after independence, the government had done anything to end the violence and
discrimination that has ruled their lives. The message sent from the judiciary on caste
discrimination is equally disturbing: in July 1998 in the state of Uttar Pradesh, an Allahabad

High Court judge reportedly had his chambers "purified with Ganga jal," water from the River
Ganges,

because

it

had

earlier

been

occupied

by

Dalit

judge.133

The state's failure to prosecute atrocities against Dalits is well illustrated by its manipulation of
the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Enacted in 1989, the
act provides for certain stiffer punishments for abuses against members of scheduled castes and
scheduled tribes when committed by non-scheduled caste or tribe members. Its enactment
represented an acknowledgment on the part of the government that abuses, in their most
degrading and violent forms, were still perpetrated against Dalits despite the constitutional
abolition of "untouchability" four decades earlier.
The potential of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,
1989, to bring about social change, however, has been hampered by police corruption and caste
bias, with the result that many allegations of caste crimes are not entered in police records.
Ignorance of procedures and a lack of knowledge of the act have also affected its
implementation. Even when cases are registered, the absence of special courts to try them can
delay prosecutions for up to three to four years. Some state governments dominated by higher
castes have attempted to repeal the legislation altogether.
In 1957 the government of Sri Lanka passed the Prevention of Social Disabilities Act making it
an offense to deny access to various public places to persons by reason of their caste. A 1971
amendment imposed stiffer punishments for the commission of offenses under the 1957 act.
According to the U.N. Subcommission's working paper: "Initially there were some prosecutions
in the North but there was a tendency for the police not to take action against violations. In a
celebrated temple-entry case, the Act was challenged as interfering with customs and ancient
usages that prohibited defilement of a Hindu temple by the entry of low-caste persons. This
argument was rejected by the Supreme Court and Privy Council."134
Unlike India's constitution, Sri Lanka's 1978 Constitution does not provide for community-based
affirmative action. It does however prohibit discrimination on the grounds of caste, including
caste-based restrictions on access to shops, public restaurants, hotels, places of public

entertainment, and places of worship of one's own religion. Despite these constitutional
prohibitions, serious problems remain.
Prohibitions on the denial of fundamental freedoms to Nigeria's Osu community are part and
parcel of the country's constitution and domestic laws. Legislation abolishing the Osu system has
been in force since the 1950s, and constitutional provisions prohibit discriminatory practices and
promote equal implementation of legal protections.135 Nigeria has also incorporated the African
Charter on Human and People's Rights into its national legislation, strengthening its commitment
on paper to end discriminatory practices such as the Osu caste system. However, these laws
remain largely unenforced.
According to the 1984 report of an expert to the then-U.N. Subcommission on Prevention of
Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, slavery "as an institution protected by law has been
genuinely abolished in Mauritania.... Nevertheless... it cannot be denied that in certain remote
corners of the country over which the administration has little control certain situations of de
facto slavery may still persist."136 Still many human rights groups, including Human Rights
Watch, have pointed to Mauritanian government inaction in enforcing its own ban on slave-like
practices.
In their oral submission before the fiftieth session of the U.N. Subcommission on Prevention of
Discrimination and Protection of Minorities in 1998, Anti-Slavery International stated that, "the
government does not have a pro-slavery policy, but its silence and inaction on this issue allow
centuries-old caste servitude to continue with impunity."137 In a 1999 letter Human Rights Watch
noted the following on the enforcement of laws against slavery:
The government has not taken any forceful steps to remove what it considers the "vestiges" or
"after effects" (sequelles) of slavery. While the courts have upheld individual rights in a few
cases, judges have failed to enforce systematically the laws abolishing slavery, in some cases
returning "slaves" to their "masters" even though this relationship in theory has ceased to exist.
Few lawyers are able and willing to appear in court to defend the rights of "slaves." There is no
law providing for the practice of slavery or forced labor to be an offense; while provisions in the
1980 law for compensation to be provided to slave-owners (but not slaves) have never been

implemented, encouraging an attitude among "masters" that they need take no action to ensure
substantive freedom for their "slaves."138
The success of legislation to combat caste discrimination in Japan may be coming to an end. To
counter various forms of discrimination against the Buraku population, the Japanese government
instituted the "Law on Special Measures for Dowa Projects." This series of reform efforts had
considerable success in improving housing areas for Buraku communities and increasing
education and literacy rates among Buraku children. As a case in point, from 1963 to 1997, the
enrolment of Buraku children in high school and public vocational schools rose from 30 percent
to 92 percent, while university and junior college rates rose from 14.2 percent to 28.6
percent.139 With the Special Measures set to lapse in March 2002, civil rights activists in Japan
worry that that progress will be halted and have urged the government to consider the need for
further such legislation.140
7 See generally, Ainslie Embree, ed., Sources of Indian Tradition: From the Beginnings to
1800 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1988); Pauline Kolenda, Caste in Contemporary
India: Beyond Organic Solidarity (Menlo Park: Benjamin/Cumming Publishing Co., 1978); M.
N. Srinivas, ed., Caste: Its Twentieth Century Avatar (New Delhi: Viking, 1996).
8 A caste system amongst Bali's predominantly Hindu population also mimics India's caste
system in structure though not in severity. While people still self-identify as belonging to
particular castes, and culturally abide by certain caste norms, the extent of discrimination based
on caste is unclear.
9 For more on caste-based violence and discrimination in India, see Human Rights
Watch, Broken People: Caste Violence Against India's "Untouchables" (New York: Human
Rights Watch, 1999).
10 According to a 1979 study, Punjabi Christians of the sweeper caste were also reportedly
treated as untouchables in Pakistan. Historically, Punjabi Christians belonged to a low-caste
Hindu group called the Chuhras. After the partition of India in 1947, many migrated to Pakistan
where they took on occupations that others considered to be impure, such as sweeping and
scavenging. They were regarded and treated as untouchables, as were those referred to as

Musallis, untouchable converts to Islam. Sweepers were confined to live in segregated areas,
such as the slaughterhouse neighborhood in Karachi. Such neighborhoods were extremely poor
and squalid. Members of the sweeper and other untouchable castes were also forbidden from
entering Muslim tea houses. Pieter H. Streefland, The Sweepers of the Slaughterhouse: Conflict
and Survival in a Karachi Neighborhood(Assen, the Netherlands: Van Gorcum, 1979), pp. 13
and 15. The status of these groups in modern day Pakistan is unclear.
'If I could change just one thing in India, I would abolish the caste system'
Last updated on: October 22, 2013 11:44 IST
'There is a human aspect to relationships in India which is missing in the West...'
'What really makes me sad with our country is that the majority feel that politics should be
avoided. We don't have our best people in politics. We could have been a developed
country in 15 years if our best brains had come forward to lead the country,' says
politician, academician, activist Dr Subramanian Swamy inRediff.com's special series
where well-known Indians speak about their India.
I could have lived abroad, but I chose to come back here because this is a better country to live
in.
There is a human aspect to relationships here which is missing in the West. Here we make lasting
friendships which are based on warmth and understanding and an emotional connect.
In the West, friends are business-like and contractual. Here family relationships and bonds are
stronger.
We have an extended family here whereas in the West it is a nuclear family and even that nuclear
family does not last. Mom and Dad live separately in many cases which is a norm there but a
rarity here. Here, marriages are sacred.
Here we accept people for what they are with all their faults and shortcomings. We are not
judgmental. While over there, people are very judgmental and point out shortcomings. They
accept only a certain kind of behaviour and will be upset if you behave differently.

What really makes me sad with our country is that the majority feel that politics should be
avoided. So what has happened is that we don't have our best people in politics. We are saddled
with leaders who never place the country before themselves.
We could have been a developed country in 15 years if our best brains had come forward to lead
the country. Instead, we are led by corrupt politicians and after 66 years we are still
underdeveloped.
Good people are not in politics and that is my greatest regret. People look down on politics and
politicians. The elite think it is declasse to indulge in politics. The intelligentsia looks down on
politics. The middle class does not respect politics.
Our leaders have lost the trust, confidence and love of the people.
This has to change and good people should come to lead the country. There is still hope.
If I could change just one thing in India, I would abolish the caste system.

Dr Subramanian Swamy was president of the Janata Party which merged with the
Bharatiya Janata Party in August. A former Union minister he has been a member of the
Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha twice.
He spoke to A Ganesh Nadar.
The complete series: Why I love India
Abolition of caste
Given below is an English translation of Savarkars assorted views on abolition of caste

The basic aim of consolidating Hindu society

The Hindu social jurists had based social organization on the principle of distribution of duties
sans competition and mutual co-operation as means to attain earthly prosperity on the path to
salvation of the soul. The duties of every individual from the shudra to the Brahmin were defined

to facilitate societal development. But fighting spirit (kshaatratej) is necessary to fulfill these
duties properly and to protect social life. (Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 6, p.522)

The practice of caste and consolidation of Hindu society

Firstly, it should not be forgotten that the practice of birth-based caste division must have been
responsible for the mighty consolidation and amazing stability of the Hindu society under certain
circumstances and conditions. While evaluating its merits and demerits, it will be sheer
ingratitude to only point fingers at the latter day ill-effects of the institution of caste.
It must also be admitted that keeping the interests of the Hindu Nation at heart, the Hindus of
yesteryears gave birth to or allowed birth- based caste divisions to develop spontaneously with
the aim of preserving the purity of blood ties, community life and tradition. (1963, Sahaa soneri
pane or Six Glorious Epochs of Indian History; Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 4, p. 710)
Birth-based caste system as an experiment in the science of heredity
Considering its sheer magnitude, the amazing diligence and the epochal time-frame over which
this inspirational experiment was played out, the human race should be certainly grateful to this
great experiment played by birth-based caste system to find out the extent to which natural laws
of heredity may possibly benefit the human race. Assuming that the experiment temporarily
failed due to its extreme practice or distortion, it is no mean achievement to prove that such an
experiment failed in such a form and under such conditions. By thus failing in this great
experiment of the caste system, our Hindu race enriched human experience and has thereby
succeeded in earning the gratitude of the human race; such was the scientific outlook and
thought, sheer guts and amazing diligence at the root of this experiment. (1931, Jatyuchchedak
nibandha or essays on abolition of caste, Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 457)
The role of heredity in the development of merit
Heredity is not the sole determinant of merit; rather it is one of its many determinants.
Even if inbreeding occurs, change in other factors such as light, food, water, climate, mental
makeup of ancestors, their upbringing, education, availability of opportunity and means enhance
or

diminish

or

change

the

innate

merit

of

children.

Even where inbreeding occurs, like good qualities, bad qualities too may get enhanced or
accentuated; hence occasionally heredity may prove harmful in the extreme and crossbreeding
becomes the most effective means of removing defects or disabilities in children.

Even if inbreeding occurs, the good qualities of ancestors may occasionally diminish or get
distorted with passage of time. In such circumstances too, cross-breeding proves beneficial to
animals.
While it is possible to maintain blood purity by inbreeding in case of natural species, it is
virtually impossible to maintain it if the same is ordained by scriptures or belief.
And in those Hindu castes such as the Brahmins etc. too which have strict rules regarding intermarriages, cross-breeding has been occurring for generations past as ordained by scriptures or
secretly due to sexual attraction. This will undoubtedly continue in future too and hence even if
inter-marriages are strictly prohibited, the very belief that the son of a Brahmin has the innate
qualities of a Brahmin or that the son of a Kshatriya must be naturally imbued with the qualities
of a Kshatriya needs to be discarded. This is because of the fact that due to cross-breeding
between all our castes from time immemorial, no caste can claim monopoly over a specific
merit. (1931, Jatyuchchedak nibandha or essays on abolition of caste, Samagra Savarkar
vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 472)
The meaning of chaturvarnya mayaa srishtam (I have created the chaturvarnya system)
Chaturvarnya means the four varnas (* the word varna is virtually untranslatable. It denotes the
old Hindu idea of a four-tiered society with an intellectual or spiritual class called the Brahmins;
the ruling, political or warrior class called the Kshatriyas; the merchant or commercial class
called the Vaishyas and the servant or service-oriented class called the Shudras. They represent
the four human tendencies of learning, fighting, trading and serving). These four varnas were
determined by merit and actions and not by birth Chaturvarnya mayaa srishtam means I
have created the chaturvarnya system. Nowhere in this shloka (by Sri Krishna in the Bhagwad
Gita) is any there any suggestion whatsoever, that He gives birth to people on basis of merit and
that this perpetuates on basis of birth in a particular family. .. The smritis clearly say, janmanaa
jaayate shudraha or everyone is a shudra at birth. It is only after imbibing samskaras that one
attains

the

status

(1930, Jatyuchchedak

of

the

twice-born

nibandha or essays

vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 444)

(meaning
on

abolition

Brahmin,
of

caste,

Kshatriya,
Samagra

Vaishya).
Savarkar

.The present-day caste division has arisen from the debris of the chaturvarnya of yore.
(1930, Jatyuchchedak nibandha or essays on abolition of caste, Samagra Savarkar
vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 449)

The Sanatana Dharma will not die if the caste system goes away
Both chaturvarnya and caste divisions are but practices. They are not coterminous with Sanatana
Dharma (*lit: timeless code, though the word Dharma is virtually untranslatable). The practice of
caste division arose from a tectonic change in the practice of chaturvarnya. As the Sanatana
Dharma did not die due to this tectonic change, so too it will not die if the present-day distortion
that is caste division is destroyed. The trueSanatana Dharma, those true philosophical ideas
expounding the character of ishwar-jeev-jagat (God-individual-creation) and the First Principle
can never die. (1930, Jatyuchchedak nibandha or essays on abolition of caste, Samagra Savarkar
vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 444)
Notions of high and low on basis of qualities, Hindu is the caste by birth
No one should ever think that a certain Hindu caste is high or that another is low. The notion of
high

and

low

will

be

determined

by

overt

merit

of

individuals.

Every Hindu child has but one caste at birth- Hindu. Other than that, consider no other subcaste. Janmanaa jaayate Hinduhu (every one is a Hindu by birth)! In truth, every man has but
one caste at birth- human. But at least so long as other religionists such as Muslims and
Christians keep aside that lofty aim and consider themselves Muslims and Christians by birth and
endeavour to swallow the Hindu, we too must cling to the identity of our race. On every occasion
and especially during census, register yourselves as Hindus only. Consider all castes as
occupations. (1930, Jatyuchchedak nibandha or essays on abolition of caste, Samagra Savarkar
vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 479)
Present-day caste divisions are scripture-based
Scripture-based caste division is a mental illness. It gets cured instantly when the mind refuses to
accept it. The seven indigenous shackles whose breaking will liberate this Hindu Nation from the
illness and demonic possession that is caste division are as follows: vedokta bandi(prohibition of
Vedic recital and worshipping according to Vedas), vyavasaya bandi (prohibition of certain
occupations), sparsha bandi(untouchability), sindhu bandi (prohibition of sea faring), shuddhi

bandi (prohibiton

of

re-conversion), roti

bandi (prohibition

of

inter-dining), beti

bandi (prohibition of inter-marriages). (1935, Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 497-499)

I felt like rebelling against the caste system

Just as I felt I should rebel against the foreign rule over Hindusthan, I also felt that I should rebel
against the caste system and untouchability in Hindusthan. (1920, Letters from the Andamans,
Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 5, p. 490)

The social discrimination amongst different castes should end

The present-day birth-based caste division and social discrimination amongst different castes
should go forthwith for this social revolution to succeed. This is imperative for the rise,
rejuvenation and prosperity of the Hindu Nation. If the root of this poisonous tree dies, the
poisonous creeper of special privileges that thrives on it will automatically die. (1936, Samagra
Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 641)
Every one possessed by the craze of caste
This craze of caste is not limited to the Brahmin alone; it pervades the non-Brahmin Chandala,
indeed the whole of Hindusthan is imbued with it! The societal body has become wasted with
this disease of caste arrogance, caste hatred and caste conflict. (1930, Jatyuchchedak
nibandha oressays on abolition of caste, Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 440)
Caste division is not the conspiracy of a handful of Brahminsit is not the joint conspiracy of
the Brahmins and Kshatriyas. (1930,Jatyuchchedak nibandha or essays on abolition of caste,
Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 450-451)

Every one preserved caste division, reform is a collective responsibility

Indeed, the blame for the atrocities perpetrated by the higher castes on lower castes due to
scripture-based caste division lies with all castes, from the Brahmin to the Bhangi (Balmiki), not
with Brahmins and Kshatriyas alone! This scripture-based caste division enabled the Bhangi to
assert his superiority over the Domb, hence every one in his own way preserved and is still
preserving it. The blame for unnecessarily allowing it to thrive rests on every oneso the best
way is to accept that every one is to be blamed and that the responsibility of reform is collective!
Every one destroyed the edifice (* of society) together. Now in the fitness of things, let all of us

Hindus together rebuild it on the firm foundation of all-embracing Hindutva. (1935, Ksha kirane
or X-rays, Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 178)
There should be no link between caste and human discrimination/ special privileges
The aspect of caste division that we have to mainly abolish because it is nationally undesirable
is not merely its basis in birth but its link to discrimination and special privilegesIf one were to
remove its basis in birth and the resulting discrimination and attendant special privileges without
regard to merit, then even if the other causes of caste division were to somehow remain for
several years, they would not cause much harm. In that case, if each caste were to continue to
maintain its specific occupations, names, caste-based organizations, its non-discriminatory and
harmless rituals, familial duties and practices as well as gotra traditions, these per se would not
cause any significant harm to the Hindu Nation. (1935, Hindutvache panchapran or The Spirit of
Hindutva, Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 55-67)
Wrong to label an entire caste as wicked or harmless
In Brahmins and Bhangis (*Balmikis) alike, just as you would find caste egoist,
discriminatory and wicked people, in the same measure you would also find reformers who stand
for equality and abolition of caste. If a champion of abolition of caste division were to hold that
only Brahmins and Kshatriyas are wicked while others are altruistic, harmless gentlemen who
stand for equality, such a person would inadvertently prove the validity of caste division and
contribute to caste hatred through his slogan of abolition of caste. For to say that the entire caste
of the Brahmin or someone else is wicked and that of some others is unexceptionably good is to
say that these castes are not man-made or scripture- based but that they are innately different.
(Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 541)
The use of the term non-Brahmins is improper
The use of the term non-Brahmins is improper. It means that on one side you have all nonBrahmins

including

Englishmen

and

Americans!

(1924, Hindu

samaj

sanrakshak

Savarkar or Savarkar as the defender of Hindu society, p. 69)

Primacy of priests
Though the word priest instantly conjures the image of the Brahmin, yet the Guravs, Gurus,
Jangams, even the Mahar Bhats amongst the Mahars are all priests! Though they are all nonBrahmins, there is nevertheless primacy of the priests (original word used by Savarkar

isbhatshaahi). (1935, Hindutvache panchapran or The Spirit of Hindutva, Samagra Savarkar

vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 74)
Priest should be based on merit
If you must have a priest, every reformer should choose him not on the basis of caste but on
merit. (1935, Hindutvache panchapran or The Spirit of Hindutva, Samagra Savarkar
vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 75)
What should be the nature of religious practices?
The priest is redundant on hundreds of occasions. One may read the scripture oneself and
worship after expressing sentiments in chaste Marathi. Thanksgiving alms may be given away to
institutions doing useful work. (1935, Hindutvache panchapran or The Spirit of Hindutva,
Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 74)
God Himself would be more pleased to see His devotee perform worship on his own without
help from others! ((1934, Hindu samaj sanrakshak Savarkar or Savarkar as the defender of
Hindu society, p. 304)
Caste organizations and Hindu consolidation
Caste organizations are inevitable though undesirable in a period of changeSo long as most
castes have their organizations, the remaining ones find it difficult and harmful to shun
themAs of now, the institution of caste is deep-rooted and alive with an innate sense of high
and low appended to each caste. Hence, they have their specific issues of their interest. When
caste-specific disabilities, injustices or needs gradually disappear, when all castes reach the same
level or in other words when caste discrimination decreases leading to loosening of caste
divisions, such caste organizations will automatically become redundant and tread the path to
extinctionTo organize the Hindu Nation, it is extremely difficult to bring together individuals.
It is relatively easier to begin by bringing together different castes.. Bringing people together can
be initially done by caste organizationsif you talk of organizations of sub-castes, some subcastes will be excluded. If you talk of an umbrella organization of castes, you increasingly tend
to amalgamate sub-castes. If umbrella organizations of different castes make keen efforts in the
right direction then it will not be difficult to tread the path leading to the national temple of
Hindu

consolidation

Though caste organizations are obstacles in the path to abolition of caste, yet in the absence of
other means, if these organizations are skillfully made use of, these obstacles may be

paradoxically used to weaken the foundation of caste division to a great extent; it is imperative
that they are put to such use. (1937, Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p. 620-624)
The policy of caste abolitionists towards caste organizations
The first essential thing is to start a caste abolitionist group in each town and village that would
have no link whatsoever to any caste organizationWe should not start any caste organization.
We should not claim any caste as our own present day-caste. However, just as it is
unexceptionable to say that I was born in such and such family, it is also unexceptionable to say
that I was born in such and such caste. To deny it would be laughableIt is foolish and even
harmful for caste abolitionists to totally boycott all caste organizations for they need to use the
desirable element in caste organizations to abolish caste itselfAmongst existing caste
organizations, there are those that have been established with the sole aim of asserting their caste
superiority. Abolitionists who belong to that caste would have to give up their own freedom to
reject caste divisions and participate in inter-dining if they wish to participate in such
organizations. If that is the case, abolitionists should have no truck with such caste
organizationsOur Hindu caste abolitionist brethren should most certainly participate in
progressive caste organizations to make them more receptive to abolitionist principles, ensure
that they abolish sub-castes, cause elimination of the practices of untouchability, prohibition of
inter-dining etc. and encourage them to do useful things such as education and the like. In fact
they should go in such organizations in numbers large enough to create their majority and make
their brothers in caste receptive to its abolition. ((1935, Samagra Savarkar vangmaya, Vol. 3, p.
624-628)

What is the best way to remove caste system in india?

Traditionally, caste system in Hindu religion was based on the division of labour (i.e. a Shudra
was one who was to serve others, Kshatrias were the warriers or protectors, the Banias the
traders or the business community and Brahmins the intellectuals or the erudite of the
community) and since the vocation of the children was the same as that of the father - it was
considered that you are born into a particular caste. Each part or labour group of society was as
important as the other for the society to be able to function properly. Hinduism , which firmly
believes that all humans have a soul which is part of the Supreme Being and hence all human

beings are essentially equal , could never have advocated the concept of some humans being
superior

to

others.

Later on with the human tendency to exploit and subjugate the weak, the service class was
relegated to a status of being untouchable and they lived on the edge of society - looked down by
the

other

three

castes.

In modern times there is no inheritence of division of labour and our vocation is based on our
education

and

interests

thus

caste

system

has

no

relevance

whatsover.

But the political parties for their vested interests are promoting and increasing the concept of
caste to garner their vote bank. Education should have helped totally eradicate the caste concept but it has not - as it is very deeply ingrained in the Indian psyche. Where families are open and
free from the concept of caste - the children also imbibe the same values - but with political
parties promoting the SC/STs, OBC etc. those children not belonging to this category feel
exploited as they feel that merit is not getting the correct due - thus they start having a negative
feeling for this group which is considered backward by politicians as they are getting an undue
advantage

in

education

as

well

as

jobs

vis-a-vis

the

so

called

upper

castes.

If a person is truly spiritual - he cannot even try to exploit or suppress another individual for his
gain - as in his eyes all are equal. In my views , increasing spirituality through techniques like
"Art of Living Kriya" , "Vipaasana" , satsangh etc. will make us all less self centered and selfish
and more rational and open in our outlook and thus make us realize how irrelevant caste system
is today. It will make us realize is that what we have to do is to help the economically weaker
section

of

society

to

become

literate

and

self

reliant.

In short the best way to remove caste system in India is through value based education both at
home and school where there is a holistic development of a child to make him into a rational
adult who works for the development of society at large and not just self-gain.
Traditionally, caste system in Hindu religion was based on the division of labour (i.e. a
Shudra was one who was to serve others, Kshatrias were the warriers or protectors, the

Banias the traders or the business community and Brahmins the intellectuals or the erudite
of the community) and since the vocation of the children was the same as that of the father
- it was considered that you are born into a particular caste. Each part or labour group of
society was as important as the other for the society to be able to function properly.
Hinduism , which firmly believes that all humans have a soul which is part of the Supreme
Being and hence all human beings are essentially equal , could never have advocated the
concept

of

some

humans

being

superior

to

others.

Later on with the human tendency to exploit and subjugate the weak, the service class was
relegated to a status of being untouchable and they lived on the edge of society - looked
down

by

the

other

three

castes.

In modern times there is no inheritence of division of labour and our vocation is based on
our education and interests - thus caste system has no relevance whatsover.

But the political parties for their vested interests are promoting and increasing the concept
of caste to garner their vote bank. Education should have helped totally eradicate the caste
concept - but it has not - as it is very deeply ingrained in the Indian psyche. Where families
are open and free from the concept of caste - the children also imbibe the same values - but
with political parties promoting the SC/STs, OBC etc. those children not belonging to this
category feel exploited as they feel that merit is not getting the correct due - thus they start
having a negative feeling for this group which is considered backward by politicians as they
are getting an undue advantage in education as well as jobs vis-a-vis the so called upper
castes.

If a person is truly spiritual - he cannot even try to exploit or suppress another individual
for his gain - as in his eyes all are equal. In my views , increasing spirituality through
techniques like "Art of Living Kriya" , "Vipaasana" , satsangh etc. will make us all less self
centered and selfish and more rational and open in our outlook and thus make us realize
how irrelevant caste system is today. It will make us realize is that what we have to do is to
help the economically weaker section of society to become literate and self reliant.

In short the best way to remove caste system in India is through value based education
both at home and school where there is a holistic development of a child to make him into a
rational adult who works for the development of society at large and not just self-gain.

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy and the eradication of caste

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy[1] (Tamil: ,) (September 17, 1879 December 24, 1973),
also known as Ramaswami, EVR, Thanthai Periyar, or Periyar, was a Dravidian social
reformer and politician from India, who founded the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar
Kazhagam.[2][3][4] On the caste system in India, Periyar dealt harshly with the practice of
discrimination and its subordination of the different levels it created in society. He attacked those
who used the system to take advantage of the masses through exploitation and subjugation.

Today, caste system is one of the biggest impediments in the path of Indias success as a country.
This system makes the power and resources of country divided. Also, the existence of
hierarchical caste system causes disharmony and gives rise to hatred among common people.
Political leaders have actually deteriorated the condition by playing their dirty games of making
the caste an issue of elections. It is an open secret that in many places across the country, the
votes are cast , keeping in mind the caste of the candidate, rather than his or her work in the
direction of development. The intermingling of caste and politics has played a havoc with the
progress of the nation.
The problem lies in the mindset of the country on the whole and hence require more
humanitarian steps rather than political gimmicks of caste-games and reservations. It requires a
genuine youth-oriented government aided drive across the nation by the help of electronic and
print media apart from a personal awareness campaign to make people understand the principle
of equality. There can be no drastic change such as the abolition of caste system, but at least its
retrogressions can be removed slowly. There must be dignity of labor to streamline these classes
into the general public.

CFI India Launches New Movement to Eliminate Caste System in India

With the cooperation of several non-government organizations, the Center for InquiryIndia launched a new movement to incorporate practical solutions for eliminating the
problematic and discriminatory caste system widely present throughout India. The
groups presented a joint action-plan for the media on Oct. 31, 2009 at the Hyderabad
Press Club.
The following positions and proposed solutions were promoted at the
conference:

Caste is not a hereditary situation. Parents should claim the right to refuse giving
their caste to their children upon birth.

Intercaste marriages should be allowed and encouraged. People should be free to

marry who they choose, regardless of the caste placed upon them by society.
Children of intercaste marriages should not be branded with the caste of the
parents.

Political parties, leaders, celebrities in movies, sports stars and other role models
should use their positions to further human rights for all by removing caste mark in
their names. This simple act can help pave the way for society and future
generations to follow.

Schools and educational institutions should not demand the labeling of children into
castes as a requirement of admission.

Commercial institutions, shops, labs, and other public venues should encourage the
furthering of human rights by avoiding caste marks and removing such sign boards.

Legislation should be enacted to eradicate the caste system through the force of
laws and other legal avenues that promote equality.

Five methods to end the oppressiveness of the caste system

I've just tweeted five examples of possible ways by which the oppressiveness of caste
can be brought to an end. Two of these I'd already mentioned earlier (in BFN). The
fifth method involves abandoning caste entirely. The first two are new suggestions.
I welcome other alternative suggestions.

It is my view that the Hindu is NOT going to give up caste that easily. When
something has been drilled into one's head for 3000 years, it takes some time to
get rid of it.
It is desirable, therefore, to operationalise the PRETEND/BOGUS (FALSE!!!!)
claims of Arya Samaj and others who claim that caste is not hereditary by challenging
them to CREATE A PROCESS by which people's caste can be OFFICIALLY
changed.
Stop fooling me and others with a fake view that caste is not hereditary. I challenge
you to build a system to allocate caste AFTER birth. Then and only then will your
fake claims become real. Else I treat them as pure rubbish. Bogus and intended to
cheat.
Someone told me that he thought that Dr BR Ambedkar was actually a Brahmin.
Sorry, but no one told him that!
So why not create a system WITHIN THE RELIGION to ensure that caste is not
determined at birth but at age 18 (say).
I recommend method No. 2 as the most practical method to allocate caste. I'm
happy to help create a system by which such an exam can be administered to all
the billion Hindus.
Why not method no. 5 (total elimination)? Because that's a delusion. It is never going
to happen. After method #2 is implemented for 200 years people will realise this
whole thing is sheer red tape and will therefore stop wasting time on the "exam" and
stop bothering about caste.
Note that method #2 means that the lastname of each Hindu will NECESSARILY
CHANGE at age 18 after the exam. And a key consequence is that there could be
members from all four castes within the same family.

METHODS
1. One method to eliminate the oppressiveness of caste would be to give everyone the
choice to choose their caste.
2. A second method to end the oppressiveness of caste would be to establish an
"exam" at age 18 when caste is determined.
3. A third method (I've already mentioned in BFN) is for all Brahmins to lose caste
along with others.
4. A fourth method (again, mentioned in BFN) is for ALL lower castes to become
Brahmins.
5. Yet another method but the least likely to succeed is for all Hindus to renounce
caste.

13 Factors Responsible for Change in

Caste System in India
Some of the important Factors Responsible for Change in
Caste System in India are as follows:
Caste system under the impact of certain powerful factors is
undergoing rapid transformation in modern India. The factors
responsible for such a change in the system are as follows:

1. Modern education:
Modern liberal education introduced into the country by the British
has played a crucial role in undermining the importance of caste in
Indian social life.

Modern education is based on such democratic values like equality,

liberty and fraternity. It is also grounded on such scientific values like
reason and observation. Hence it is quite natural that with the spread
of modern education, the peoples belief in the divine origin of caste,
Karma and Karmaphala has received a severe setback.
As modern education is usually imparted in co-educational
institutions, it encourages inter-caste marriage and inter-caste mixing.
Moreover, it acts as a powerful force towards the removal of
untouchability.

2. Industrialization:
The process of industrialization has affected caste structure to a
remarkable extent. Industrial growth has provided new sources of
livelihood to people and made occupational mobility possible.
Factories, mills and offices are agog with activity.
In the midst of all this, the people belonging to various castes consider
it mediaevalistic to go into the question of ones caste. In a factory a
Brahmin works side by side with a Shudra. He cannot avoid his touch
or shadow.

3. Urbanization:
Industrialization has given rise to the process of urbanization. New
townships have emerged. The ruralites migrate to these towns in order
to avail better employment opportunities.
With the coming up of big hotels, restaurants, theatres, clubs and
educational institutions it is not at all possible to observe communal
inhibitions and taboos against food-sharing. Kingsley Davis rightly

observes that the anonymity, congestion, mobility, secularism and

changeability of the city make the operation of the caste virtually
impossible.

4. Modern means of transport and communication:

Modern means of transport and communication are instrumental in
increasing spatial mobility of the people and thereby put an end to the
caste system. Means of transport like train, bus, tram, airplane etc.
cannot provide for distinctions between castes, and a leveling effect
has been brought into the society.
It is absurd for any transport authority to reserve berths for Brahmins
to the exclusion of the Shudras. During travel, too, one must of
necessity take his meals without questioning the propriety of doing so
in the company of low-caste persons.

5. Increase in the importance of wealth:

Under the caste system, birth was taken as the basis of social prestige.
But today, wealth has replaced birth as the basis of social prestige.
Occupations are now no longer caste-based. People while choosing
their occupations attach greater importance to income rather than
anything else.
It is because of this reason a high-born may be ill-placed in society
while a man of low caste with ample wealth at his disposal has a room
at the top. With this change of emphasis, the Indian caste system is in
the process of being replaced by the system of social classification as
prevails in western countries.

6. The new legal system:

The new legal system, introduced by the British Government, has
given a severe blow to the caste system in India. Equality before law
irrespective of castes has been firmly instituted. Consequently, the age
old discrimination against the lower castes has been removed.
Further, with the establishment of law courts, the traditional castes
Panchayats have lost their power and effectiveness to punish the
deviants. Not only that a number of Acts like the Untouchability
Offences Act of 1955 and the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955 have
abnegated the evil effects of the caste system.

7. Sanskritization:
Srinivas defines sanskritization as the process by which a low Hindu
caste or tribal or any other group changes its customs, rituals, ideology
and way of life in the direction of a high and frequently twice-born
caste. The members of the lower castes leave their own traditional
ideals and behaviour patterns and accept the ideals and standards of
higher castes.
The caste system being a closed one, sanskritization does not entail
structural change. It entails positional change. Hence through
sanskritization the lower caste people move up slightly in the scale of
Jatis within a particular varna.

8. Westernization:
The term Westernization was coined by Srinivas to signify the
changes in the Indian society during the British rule. By promoting
education, egalitarianism, rationalism, humanism and above all a
critical outlook towards various social issues and problems,

westernization has gone a long way in undermining the influence of

the caste system.
t has given severe blow to practices like child marriage, purity and
pollution, commensality, untouchability etc. The effects of
westernization are prominently visible in the form of inter-caste
marriages, intercommunity marriages, inter-religious marriages,
occupational changes etc. In this way westernization has brought
about profound changes in the Indian society.

9. Secularization:
The role of secularization in weakening the caste system is great. By
legitimizing secular ideologies and formal legal doctrines and
promoting rationality, scientific attitude and differentiation,
secularization has affected certain characteristics of the caste system
especially the concept of purity and pollution, commensality, fixity of
occupation etc.

10. Socialistic ideas:

Caste system is based on the ideas of high birth and low birth. On the
other hand, socialists say, the differences between human beings have
been created by society; hence the society only can remove them. As a
result of such socialist thought, caste system is breaking.

11. New social movements:

Some social movements have also attacked the caste system. The
Brahmo Samaj movement led by Raja Ram Mohan Roy rejected the
barriers of caste divisions and stood for universalisation and
brotherhood of man. The Prarthana Sabha movement supported by

Justice Ranade brought about certain social reforms like inter-caste

marriage, interdining and remarriage of widows, etc.
The Arya Samaj movement founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati
and Ramakrishna Mission movement raised voice against the
hereditary caste system based on birth and stood for its abolition. In
this way all these social movements succeeded, in no small measure, in
affecting some of the structural features of the caste system.

12. Rise of new social classes:

Industrialization has given rise to the emergence of new social classes.
These social classes are replacing the traditional castes. Trade Unions,
Merchants Associations and Political Parties are replacing the old
caste loyalties. An increase in class consciousness leads to a decrease
in caste consciousness.

13. Influence of Indian Constitution:

Indian Constitution bestows some fundamental rights on the citizens
irrespective of caste, creed, colour or sex. It offers equal opportunities
to all. Para 15(2) of the Constitution, which declares all citizens as
equal, directly attacks the Hindu social order based on inherited
inequality. No wonder that caste system is withering away.
In fine, such factors have vitally affected the caste system.
But it is highly improbable that the system will altogether be
eliminated from the Indian social scene. It may assume new
forms and perform new functions in the changed conditions
of modern society.

Recent Changes in Indian Caste

System!

Recent Changes in Indian Caste System!

Change is universal law of nature. This law of nature has been
prevailing from the primitive period till now. Since Caste System is a
social institution, its aspects are naturally changed. In the modern age,
many changes happen in the features and functions of Caste System.
Modernisation has deeply influenced Caste System. Therefore, it is
gradually losing its rigid and conservative principles. The changing
aspect of Caste System in India is discussed below:
(1) Declined Superiority of Brahmins:
In the social hierarchy of Caste System, the Brahmins occupy the topmost position. They are recongnised as superior caste till now, but
their predetermined importance has been declined. The Brahmins
cannot impulse their dignity and importance on other castes, as it was
in ancient days.
Today, in various industries, government offices and other
occupational institutions efficiency of the people is given more priority
that birth. Though Caste System had established the importance of
Brahmins, yet the importance is on the process of steady decline. As a
result, the caste status of Brahmins is declining. They cannot enjoy
their high social status as a dominant caste unlike in ancient days.
(2) Changes in the Restrictions Regarding Social Habits:
In the past, Caste System had imposed certain restrictions on social
habits such as food, drink and intercourse. But modern education,
transportation and communication have brought a radical change in
those restrictions.

Though, Caste System has existed today, yet its restrictions on social
intercourse have been declined. The member of different castes sits
and eats together. The sense of purity-pollution is gradually
disappearing among them.
(3) Changes in the Restrictions Regarding Marriage:
The introduction of inter-caste marriage is one of the major changes in
Caste System. Inter-caste marriage was strictly prohibited in the
Hindu Society in ancient times but now-a-days, the spread of western
education, cultural changes and female education has declined all
restrictions of marriage within the caste inter-caste marriage destroys
the backbone of Caste System. Indian Parliament also encourages
inter caste marriage by implementing many Acts.
(4) Changes in the Restrictions Regarding Occupation:
In the past, a particular occupation had been fixed for every caste. The
members belonging a particular caste had no specialty in selecting
occupations. They followed the determined occupation from birth of
death. Now-a-days, the members of Shudra caste are established in
higher post in government offices and the Brahmins works as their
subordinate employees.
After independence the Government has abolished the occupational
restrictions through law. A person of any caste can follow any capacity.
It is clearly noted that changes have taken place in occupational
restrictions to some extent.
(5) Changes in Caste Structure:
In ancient period, the structure of caste was closed and rigid. There
were different customs, traditions, folkways and mores for different

castes. These rules and principles were so closed and rigid that the
lower caste people could not even touch the shadow of the higher caste
people. But now-a-days the structure of caste has become open and
flexible.
(6) Change in Caste Status:
The caste status was determined in the past. Caste System gave social
status to its members on the basis of birth. For example, Caste System
placed Brahmins in higher social status and gave lower social status to
Shudras.
But now-a-days, a radical change has taken place in the social status of
Shudras and other lower castes as a result of speedy scientific and
technological progress. Besides birth, wealth, power and genius
determine the social status of the people.
The lower caste people gradually adopt the customs, rites and beliefs
of Brahmins. They follow the life style of Brahmins and try to develop
their social status in caste hierarchy.
Prof. M.N. Srinivas called this process as Sanskritisation. The higher
caste people on the other hand, adopt the principles of Western
civilisation on their food, clothing, shelter and behavioral pattern. It is
called as westernisation.
(7) Change in Conditions of Lower Caste:
Lastly many changes have taken place it the conditions of lower caste
people. In the past, the condition of the lower caste people was very
pitiable. They had no rights in the society. The lower castes were
oppressed and neglected as Harijan Castes.

But due to the direct attempt of Gandhiji, quick development has

taken place in their conditions. Gandhiji lovingly called them as the
people of God.
Now-a-days the Harijans get much more opportunities than other
castes. The Government has brought a quick change in their
conditions by legislating different Acts. They are given priority in
education and services and seats are reserved for them.
The lower caste people are given equal rights and opportunities in
social, economic and political spheres almost like higher castes people.
As a result of this, the condition of lower caste people has been quickly
improved.
Caste Census in India!
The much debated topic in India has been the Caste Census. Is there
really a need for a caste census in India? Well first of all, what is caste
census? Census is a term used for numbering of people, valuation of
their estate for the purpose of imposing taxes.
Caste is a social reality which determines ones social status and the
limits of the social relations and also opportunities for advancement in
the life of an individual. The 2011 Indian census, is considering
collection of caste data. On one hand we say that India is growing and
becoming a developed nation while on the other we are agreeing to the
caste based census.
Are we really trying to show to the world that we are still tied in the
ropes of a caste based society? In a secular and independent country

like India, is there still any scope for the old caste based census that
used to be followed during the British rule?
Among the urban elite, caste is private information while in the rural
places caste is public information. Clearly, caste is neither relevant,
nor sought to be known in anonymous urban spaces like worksites or
commercial areas. But it is known in places of residence, which is
where the census is conducted.
Now, like any other topic, caste census has its own pros and cons.
Starting with the pros of the caste-based census. It definitely will help
in identify the various backward and downtrodden classes. These
classes may benefit if the government implements development plans
effectively.
It would also help in understanding the change in society. They say
having this data will strengthen the democratic system and will help to
uplift a particular caste and in future there will hopefully be a casteless
society. Also the caste-based system could help in eradicating
inequality in the society.
Now the cons of the caste-based system. First of all a caste-based
census will give rise to caste division. Also there will be a difficulty in
the operation of ascertaining the correctness of the caste claimed by a
person as the census authorities do not have any such final list.
The census may be misused by a person to move up the social order.
Does the government really want to label a person by caste? The castebased census will not help the common man. It is only going to add
fuel to the fire. If the government really wants to work for the progress

of the country they should divide the people on the basis of educated
and non-educated, literate and illiterate, rich and poor(above poverty
line and below poverty line). When we talk about a secular India, then
where does the question of caste division arise?
Also there are more than 4000 castes in India. How many different
caste divisions are they actually going to do? Will it be feasible to take
into account all the different castes? Also will you consider an Aiyar
and an Aiyangar as 2 different castes or just as one caste (i.e.
Brahmin).
If the latter is true then how are you giving justice to both the castes?
Also there are some castes that are spelled differently. For example a
Gaunder might spell it or pronounce it as Kaundan. What if a person
does not want to identify himself by caste? What will he put in the
caste box? How will the government keep a track of all these various
issues?
Politicians are doing everything possible to divide the country rather
than integrating it. A caste- based census will further divide it. It will
merely become a tool for formation of vote banks and be wielded
power hungry leaders.
Caste division earlier was just a reminder to the societal vocations. But
now the government has ended up giving an official status to caste.
They have used the caste label for quotas and reservations in
education and job.
By creating such caste divisions the government is giving rise to
casteism. People have started showing more interest in their caste

status so that they can use it to fill up application forms for the various
examinations, jobs etc to become eligible for quota privilege.
The policy of the government to give quotas and reservation on the
basis of caste rather than on the basis of economic status is
discriminatory towards people of other caste and is often condemned
by the common people.
We talk about equality. But by creating a caste division and on that
basis making quotas and reservations, is the government really
showing equality? Well if they really wish to develop the country and
eradicate poverty and illiteracy then the government should give more
importance to economic division, education, health etc. and not caste.