COMMUNICATION
Honest doubts on "caste identity"
S.V. HUMANE, 12 - RAJIV CO-OP. HSG. SOCIETY, BANDRA-KURLA COMPLEX, BANDRA (E), BOMBAY - 400 051

The DV Debate on "caste identity" has been going on for several years. The Debate initiated by our Editor has stirred even the most powerful brains. The forceful arguments advanced by the Editor are that every caste in India is peculiar in itself and has ingredients of a "nation". So, to challenge and destroy the Brahminical Order each caste must play its role to demand its share of political and economic power in proportion to its population. He says SC/STs are not Hindu but corrupted and co-opted by Brahminism and included under Hindu —poisoning them with various religious scriptures, rituals, gods to remain as free and permanent slaves of Brahminism.

Brahminised BCs: Sanskrit, so far reserved for Brahmins, is being forced on our people to hinduise (enslave) our people. Only Dalit followers of Dr. Ambedkar particularly in Maharashtra, UP and some other states have been fighting against Brahminism. But their leaders are corrupted and co-opted by the Brahminised political parties.

The mental setup of BCs is rigidly within the Brahminism. No BC caste has came out forcefully to fight Brahminism. Because they don't suffer from untouchability. The BCs not only suffered much less than Dalits but being economically well off they think they are safe under Hinduism. Hence they are much more hinduised than Dalits.

In some states like UP, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka etc., BCs came to power by forming regional and caste-based parties. But they are not out of the grip of Brahminism.

As such the Brahmins will always rule the minds and hearts of the BCs so long as they happily follow Hinduism. This is where I find the vulnerability of the "caste identity" thesis. Dr. Ambedkar had urged BCs to discard the puranas to bring about a conceptual unity among SCs and BCs. Until the BCs carry out Dr. Ambedkar suggestion, the BSO will continue to play one against the other and place one caste against another and thereby divide and rule the society.

Today, the BCs think themselves superior to SCs and try to suppress them although BCs also carry the burden of Brahmins sitting over their heads. The aim of the "caste identity" should be to establish a lasting harmony among different castes rather than to achieve political power for some period for some castes. The "caste identity" among BCs must eradicate caste hatred, making them unite with Dalits. The "caste identity" must make the BCs to support the SCs. Otherwise "caste identity" may strengthen the pride of BCs and promote inequality, hate and oppression of the weaker castes.

Yet efforts to promote "caste identity" among BCs must continue as that will weaken Brahminism. They may even think to abandon Hinduism and convert to any egalitarian religion to establish concrete "caste identity" against BSO. Will the Bahujan BCs rise and revolt against Brahminism and change the course of history?

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Muslim sect claims separate identity
B.A. MUHAMMAD HANIF, ADVOCATE, CAPITAL AVENUE, BASEMENT FLOOR, HAMILTON CIRCLE, MANGALORE - 575 001

Islam recognizes different ethnic identities but only for purposes of identification of different people though all Muslims are equal and none is superior. Under Islam ethnic identity is upheld but caste system (graded inequality) is prohibited. If we study the existence of different ethnic identities among Muslims, we will be surprised to note the existence of thousands of ethnic identities all over the world. Examples are Kuraishis, Patans, Muhajirs, Pasthuns, Mughals, Memons, Navayths, Bearys, Moplas. All of them profess Islam and yet they suffer from no graded inequality (caste system).

Beary identity: "Caste" under Indian conditions is nothing but our ethnic identity though caste system refers to graded inequality —religiously enforced by Hindu religion. Islam does not recognize such a caste system but recognizes caste (sect) which is the other name for ethnic identity. Even the Mandal Commission has recognised the different sects among Muslims.

The Beary community with a 1,200-year-old history has its own ethnic identity (caste) and its own language. The Beary language is, however, not confined to Beary community. The mother tongue of the non-Muslim Belchadas of South Kanara dt. is Beary language. Even the Kodava language and Beary language has 60% common words.

Every Muslim community in S.K dt. is not called Bearys. There are Dakhanis (Urdu-speaking Muslims), Memons (Gujarati Muslims), Navayths (Bhatkali Muslims) and Bearys. Hence to call one sect of Muslims of this area as Bearys, there is a definite link and origin from either Arabic word or from the word Malabari. More study is required on this subject. So it is baseless to state that the word Beary is originated from the Tulu word byara (Vyapara or business) since religion is much above business. We need more research. According to Syed Mohammed Beary of the Bearys Real Estates, Bangalore and a former president of the Beary Association, his community population in Karnataka is 15 lakhs. In the Mangalore district, they form 80% of the Muslim population and 60% in Udupi district.

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Editor V.T. Rajshekar's epoch-making book, Caste — A Nation Within the Nation, has not only created waves among SC/ST/BCs but now it has spread to religious minorities. The Beary's of South Kanara, a Muslim sect, became the first in India to claim a distinct ethnic identity inspired by our Editor's thesis. J.Hussain, president of the All-India Beary Parishat, Mangalore, in an article in a Kannada daily Varta Bharati (Oct.9, 2005) profusely quotes our Editor to assert that his backward Muslim sect is a separate ethnic identity and hence deserves reservation in proportion to its population.

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EDITOR'S THEORY GIVES HIGH VOLTAGE SHOCK TO HINDUS
"Caste identity", a must to assure socio-economic justice
Dr. V.D. CHANDANSHIVE, COTTAGE VAISHALI, SHAHU NAGAR, NANDED - 431 602

Healthy and wholesome differences among thinkers and writers enhance the reader's understanding of the subject under scrutiny. But if these differences go astray and become unwholesome attacks and result in a personal satire, they are bound to create a hazy and perplexing scenario before the readers. The allusion here is our Editor's advice to Dr. Teltumbde (DV June 16, 2005 p.25: "Teltumbde must come out of sinister Socialist Brahmin grip") and Dr. Teltumbde's reply to the Editor (DV July 16, 2005 p.7: "Socialist Brahmin calls DV casteist").

I confess that I have not read Dr. Teltumbde's books nor do I know anything about his age and calling. It is only from the Editor's remarks in the June 16 issue that I came to know Dr. Teltumbde's close relationship with Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and that he is an "honest intellectual".

The title of these remarks is, "Teltumbde must come out of sinister socialist Brahmin grip" which is a bit of advisory in nature and which narrate our Editor's own experiences while working with the marxists, most of them being Brahmins. This, in fact is the Editor's comment on a review of Dr. Teltumbde's book, Anti-Imperialism & Annihilation of Castes. The review is titled, "Dalit intellectuals bid to convert black crow into white" (DV June 16, 2004 p.24).

While going through the review the general impression the readers gets is that Dr. Teltumbde has marxist overtones in his book and so he is accusing the Leftists of neglecting Dalit emancipation and the fight against caste. With the help of marxist ideology he expects the Indian Left to dismantle caste and their failure in doing so is attributed by Dr. Teltumbde to the Indian marxists being upper castes.

If this marxist shade of Dr. Teltumbde has propelled our Editor to let lose himself from the grip of "Socialist Brahmins" through the comments, there appears nothing objectionable on the part of the Editor. Being a close relative of Babasaheb, who has profusely criticised marxists, the Editor's comments seem quite on the right track.

D.V. DUBBED CASTEIST

But the regret is: Dr. Teltumbde has gone astray in his reply to the Editor dubbing the DV as casteist and incriminating the Editor of Brahmin-bashing. He has not stopped here, but cast aspersions on the Editor's "caste identity" theory and has gone to the extent of asking the Editor to call Dalit Voice as "Shetty Voice" though the Editor has revealed his caste umpteen times through his writings and speeches. This smacks of profanation on the part of Dr. Teltumbde whom the Editor has called with respect as "an honest intellectual"?

I have not invented the above sub-caption keeping in mind Dr. Teltumbde but this has been my serious observation for the last 20 years. I am , of course, referring to Ambedkarite intellectuals generally, who fall under the categories: politicians, social workers, writers and even monks. They claim that they are staunch Ambedkarite scholars. Some say they are born Ambedkarites. But frankly there has been among them catastrophic ideological disintegration which has percolated even among the masses. The disarray into which Ambedkarite movement has fallen after the parinirvana of Babasaheb, speaks volumes about the intellectual dishonesty and disintegration of these worthies. They have left the marks of this brittleness through their writings and also the sundry institutions they run. The solid mirror of Ambedkarite caravan can show the post-Ambedkarite cracks to those who have eyes to see.

Let me point out the dimension of this disintegration in very clear terms. Peculiarly, Ambedkarite thought has been used as a tag to truck it to: 1 gandhism, 2. marxism and 3. Hedgewar's Hindu nationalism. So, the expressions that naturally emanate from such extricate trucking are:1. Gandhian-Ambedkarites, 2. Marxist-Ambedkarites and 3. Samrasta-Ambedkarites.

These anomalous manifestations are visible in Maharashtra glaringly during election times when the fragmented blue flag is attached to different vehicles of upper caste political parties. Not only the political aspect but even social, cultural and literary aspects of Phule-Ambedkarite movement are contaminated by this kind of trucking. And what an arrogance these satellites developed over the years. Some of my collegemates, educated in the institutions founded by Babasaheb himself, wish me laal salaam (red salute), instead of Jai Bhim, through their letters and writings. And mind well, they are being projected as very great literary figures in Maharashtra. Some worthies have penned books to bring forcibly an affinity between Marx and Babasaheb and have gone to the extent of demanding an evaluation of Ambedkarite thought as Aristotle had done with Plato. Their frenzies do not stop here but vomit such sweeping statements as:

Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar had nothing to do with political power and his conversion to Budhism has totally failed.

Those under the grip gandhians work — and they are highly educated —in such organizations as: Rashtra Seva Dal, Yuvak Kranti Dal and Dalit Yuvak Aghadi — all gandhian fronts. Some from this variety shamelessly throw the statement:

Aagarkar was greater than Ambedkar.

Again some highly educated have joined Samrasta Manch —a Hindu terrorist RSS outfit —and bathe in the sunshine of Shiv Shakti-Bheemshakti slogan-mongering. This is the plight of Ambedkarite thought in Maharashtra. These worthies write and speak in such a manner as if Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar has left some terrible lacunae in his thought and movement and they could be removed only by using him as a tag as these fellows have been doing for the last 50 years.

There is yet another cult known as "Osho-Ambedkar" emerging in Maharashtra with books on it which surely will bring one more cleavage among the so-called Ambedkarites.

Surprisingly, all these brand ambassadors seem to worry more about what will happen to Brahmins than to their own samaj, in future and point out that Babasaheb has worked with upper castes. But the truth was Babasaheb was the leader to these upper caste persons and they were his assistants. So, in Maharashtra it is a clear case of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" and the suffering of Ambedkarites from split mental personality reaching schizophrenic dimensions.

This is general scenario of intellectual honesty in Maharashtra which has generated an absolute deadlock in social, cultural and political fronts of Phule-Ambedkarite movement. But the moment you point out their relative brand and call them gandhian, marxist and RSS Ambedkarites, they take it as an insult and explode like landmines hidden underground and strive their nerves to stick up to their fake Ambedkarite guns. I am not writing this to malign anybody but have striven to hold a mirror to the realities in Maharashtra that reflect the fallacious claims of Ambedkarite intellectuals. May sanity dwell upon them to end this factionalism and cult-mania.

It was in 1936 that Babasaheb's undelivered speech, Annihilation of Caste, was published. This was his last speech addressed to Hindus expecting from them demolition of caste system by adopting two ways: 1. intercaste marriages and 2. destruction of Hindu scriptures that uphold caste system which he was sure the upper castes (Hindus) would not be able to accomplish for the simple reason that the shastras were written by Brahmin megalomaniacs to monopolise power and to subjugate all those who did not subscribe to their supremacy. In his earlier writing, Castes in India, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar has held Brahmins exclusively responsible for creating the caste-process. According to him the four varnas:

1. Brahmins, the priestly class; 2. Kshatriyas, the military class; 3. Vaishyas, the merchant class and 4. The shudra, the artisan and menial class – was essentially a class system, in which individuals, when qualified, could change their class, and therefore classes did change their personnel. At some time in the history of the Hindus, the priestly class socially detached itself from the rest of the body of people and through a closed-door policy became a caste by itself. The other classes being subject to the law of social division of labour underwent differentiation, some into large, others into very minute groups. The Vaishya and shudra classes were the original inchoate plasm, which formed the sources of the numerous castes of today. As the military occupation does not very easily lend itself to very minute sub-division, the Kshatriya class could have differentiated into soldiers and administrators.

DOORS CLOSED

This sub-division of a society is quite natural. But the unnatural thing about these sub-divisions is that they have lost the open-door character of the class system and have become self-enclosed units called castes.The question is: were they compelled to close their doors and become endogamous, or did they close them of their own accord? I submit that there is a double line of answer: Some closed the door: Others found it closed against them....". (Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar: Writings & Speeches, Vol.1, 1979 p.18).

That the Brahmins first closed in and became endogamous was reason enough for the nearer classes to Brahmins to imitate them; has been explained by Babasaheb with the help of Gabriel Tarde's Law of Imitation (ibid pp.19-20). Kshatriyas and Vaishyas, being in proximity with Brahmins in the sociological sense of trade, imitated even the most obnoxious customs of Brahmins like girl marriage and sati (Ibid p.20) to maintain and perpetuate endogamy. Shudras automatically found the doors closed against them. It was after the codification of caste system that privileges and punishments were prescribed by Manu. It was after this that caste system became terror-culture with legalising hereditary untouchability. The shudra class was further cleavaged, forcibly, into: 1. touchable shudras (present BCs) and 2. Untouchable shudras (present SCs).

After having explained to the upper castes: the genesis, mechanism and growth of caste system and after having pointed out the ways to dismantle it Babasaheb expected them to do something substantial in that direction till 1956 and ultimately got himself converted, along with 6 lakh followers, to an egalitarian, casteless religion, Budhism, and took a pledge to convert entire India to Budhism.

Now, the very pertinent question for us is: what attempts we have made, what line of action we have taken to fulfil his dream to create "a casteless India" through Budhism? Ambedkarites are scattered throughout India. Taking into account the pan-Indian presence of Ambedkarites, is it not possible for them to establish a pan-Indian Budhist organisation in which every Indian state and union territory can be represented and the process of Budhist India can be accelerated?

SHOCKING CASE OF LAXMAN MANE

Let me acquaint the DV readers with a reality in Maharashtra. A famous tribal writer and leader, Laxman Mane, is ready to convert himself, along with his tribe, to Budhism. But shockingly, no religious or political and influential organization has welcomed this move. Only a group of employees arranged his programme a month back.

BRAHMIN MUST FIRST DESTROY HIS CASTE

The Budhist Society of India, (Boudh Mahasabha) established by Babasaheb himself instead of becoming a pan-Indian organisation functions like a marriage bureau. How are we going to convert India to Budhism? Surely, not just by slogan shouting.

Maharashtrian Ambedkarites do not bother a whit about introspection, evaluation, research and development. The deadlock is dreadful.

That, caste is to be annihilated and done away with once and for all, nobody would deny and for that matter, it would be the most welcome social ideal for India. But what is the reality? The reality concerning caste has been very clearly laid down by Babasaheb throughout the Annihilation of Caste from section to section. After pointing out origin, mechanism and development of caste in the Castes in India Babasaheb pointed the way to destroy it in the Annihilation of Caste. Who should begin the process of destruction, he has pointed out. The process should begin from the top and percolate to the bottom as per the law of imitation put forth by the sociologist Gabriel Tarde. He has not left the marxists and has explained in very clear terms how caste puts a moratorium on their efforts. Babasaheb says:

To excite the proletariat to bring about an economic revolution, Karl Marx told them: "You have nothing to lose except your chains". But the artful way in which the social and religious rights are distributed among the different castes whereby some have more and some have less, makes the slogan of Karl Marx quite useless to excite the Hindus against the caste system. Castes form a graded system of sovereignties, high and low, which are jealous of their status and which know that if a general dissolution came, some of them stand to lose more of their prestige and power than others do. You cannot, therefore, have a general mobilization of the Hindus, to use a military expression, for an attack on the caste system.
(Dr. Ambedkar, W&S, Vol.1, p.72).

And about the priestly class (Brahmins), on whose shoulders Babasaheb puts the onus to destroy it, he has pointed out:

You may argue that there are secular Brahmins and priestly Brahmins and if the latter do not take up the cudgels on behalf of those who want to break Caste, the former will. All this of course sounds very plausible. But in all this it is forgotten that the break up of the caste system is bound to affect adversely the Brahmin Caste. Having regard to this, is it reasonable to expect that the Brahmins will ever consent to lead a movement the ultimate result of which is to destroy the power and prestige of the Brahmin Caste?... In my judgment, it is useless to make a distinction between the secular Brahmins and priestly Brahmins..." (Ibid p. 70).

Now leaving aside the beneficiaries of the caste system who are quite a minority — just 15-20%– and who are deadly against its destruction, should the process of destruction be undertaken by the shudras and atishudras who form a whopping 80-85% in the population? If the answer is yet, then what movement has been undertaken? And if no, what is the alternative? Brahmins and marxists have already been written off to accomplish this task. At the fag end of his life Babasaheb pointed out through his movement, conversion to casteless religion, by materializing conversion to Budhism which was to be a pan-Indian movement. But this process has been abandoned by his followers in Maharashtra, who claim to be Ambedkarites.

Conversion to casteless religion can, to a great extent, reduce caste hatred, discrimination and blatant exploitation. About the non-Hindu religions, Babasaheb says:

"There may be castes among Sikhs and Mohammedans, but the Sikh and the Mohammedan will not outcast a Sikh or a Mohammedan if he broke his caste. Indeed the very idea of excommunication is foreign to the Sikhs and Mohammedans... Religion does not compel the non-Hindus to take the same attitude (as Hindus) toward caste..." (Ibid p.65).

Castes are to stay in India because the massive movements — by the upper castes, by the marxists and the Ambedkarites are not visible. Though Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar has not called "castes" as "ethnic identities" directly, nevertheless he has described them as "grade sovereignties, high and low..." (Ibid p.72), while describing their dominant power.

It is also true that Babasaheb created consciousness and self-respect, an awareness about their human rights and justice, through "caste identity campaigns", among the Backward Untouchable castes.

If castes are to stay in India, if the Indian Constitution has prescribed caste-based social justice — economic, social and political, what is the alternative before the majority of Backward Castes which are victims of Brahminism? Brahmins and the allied upper castes have not only closed in by practising endogamy but they have also closed out the shudra and atishudra castes from the power structure of the country.

Now, the simple question is: Why did the Brahmins and the allied upper castes monopolise the power structure leaving, so flagrantly, the shudra and atishudra castes high and dry – even after 57 years of "independence"? Now that the occupational compulsions prescribed by Manu are considerably loosened and people of different castes have been empowered through the Constitution to take up any occupation, as a result of which Brahmins themselves have given up their ancestral calling by monopolising the superstructure –to use a marxist term – why are the victim castes prohibited from participation in it? There must be some reason. Is it because of some ancestral hatred and enmity? Neither the Brahmin initiated the caste-eradication process nor he — and his allied castes — has allowed the Backward Castes any participation and share in the power structure. Is it because of any racial jealousy, cultural conflict? Again to quote Babasaheb:

According to well-known ethnologists, the population of India is a mixture of Aryans, Dravidians, Mongolians and Scythians. All these stocks of people came into India from various directions and with various cultures, centuries ago, when they were in a tribal state. They all in turn elbowed their entry into the country by fighting with their predecessors, and after a stomach-full of it settled down as peaceful neighbours. Through constant contact and mutual intercourse they evolved a common culture that superseded their distinctive cultures. It may be granted that there has not been a thorough amalgamation of the various stocks that make up the peoples of India... Ethnically all people are heterogeneous. It is the unity of culture that is the basis of homogeneity. (Ibid p. 6).

Babasaheb has mentioned above that there has not been thorough amalgamation of various stocks of people belonging to the different race groups. Can we not say that Aryans, Mongolians and Cythians got themselves closed in caste clusters and closed out the Dravidian caste clusters from political, economic, educational, agricultural and industrial power sharing which the shudra and atishudra castes have been suffering from? What then is the meaning of "there has not been a thorough amalgamation of the various stocks that make up the peoples of India"?

Undoubtedly, it refers to the deprived Dravidian caste clusters. There cannot be any other meaning of the above statement. And moreover, what does unity of culture mean? It does not, surely, mean that you should marginalise, deprive and exploit 60-65% population of your own country in the name of religion, culture.

If annihilation of caste is an impossibility – either by upper castes or by marxists or by Ambedkarites through Budhist conversions – the only alternative that remains to be adopted is the caste-based justice — social, economic and political as enshrined in the Indian Constitution. The expression "we the people of India" in the preamble – which regards "people" as sovereign —means "caste sovereignties" scattered in the nook and corner of the country.

If justice implies equality in social, economic and political sectors, then we have political equality given to each caste through "adult suffrage" with the underlying principle — one man one vote and one vote one value. Social justice or equality also implies caste-based equality not with a hierarchical and vertical system but with a horizontal positioning of castes and communities operating as "greater but equal". The Hindu fascists, in whatever garb they are — fundamentalists, marxists, gandhians etc. — want the system to be vertical with the poison of hatred, jealousy, superiority and inferiority complexes and with all the exploitative mechanism. Economic justice or equality presupposes share of the national incomes to each caste with a participation in the economic sectors: agriculture, trade industry, banking and all other "wealth-producing" professions and occupations. The Indian Constitution wants to bring the caste-edifice to a horizontal position killing its deadly poison.

Babasaheb's warning to the upper caste rulers is, therefore, meaningful in the sense that he appeals them to create social and economic equality with the help of political equality. Now that political equality (right to vote) has begun dismantling upper caste monopoly politics, in future the nature of political economy (annual budget system) will also change.

Editor V.T. Rajshekar has mentioned in his Editorial (July 1, 2005: "Caste-wise budget allotment to caste based economic planning ensures social justice") the necessity of caste-based budgeting for economic justice in the country. A country like America – which is not caste-ridden and whose constitution does not contain reservation policy — has recognized the significance of safeguards for its minorities such as Hispanics, Blacks and Red Indians in the name of "affirmative action" and "inclusiveness" in the fields of films, journalism, TV, banking and industries private and public. But India's upper caste rulers, industrialists and the judiciary have been shamelessly using "merit" as a subterfuge to deny their share to the backward castes and communities despite the fact that the Indian Constitution vehemently recommends reservation policy as the best way to impart social (caste) justice.

Yes. Hindu caste, as it stands vertically, with all its poison, is bad. It is to be destroyed lock, stock and barrel. Babasaheb and many other great personalities wanted its eradication. He wanted the upper castes to dismantle it in their own way –if not the way he had suggested. Babasaheb also told the upper castes that he would strive in his own way — by converting India to Budhism – to do away with it. But in the absence of a pan-Indian mass movement in that direction what is the way-out to fetch justice to the deprived castes?

Let there be no ambivalence regarding V.T. Rajshekar's "caste identity" and caste-based budget concepts. It is becoming amply clear that these concepts are sending shivers down the upper caste spinal chords as they have been witnessing their reflection in the present-day coalition politics of India.

The Dalit-Bahujan intellectuals — who claim to be Ambedkarites — should not be in two minds about empowerment of different marginalised castes to materialize the constitutional justice.

If castes are to be imparted justice then their dormant ignorance is to be removed through caste-awakening which ultimately amounts to "caste identity" and the overall position of caste in the vertical hierarchical caste-edifice.

DV Aug.1, 2005 p.7: "Caste identity thesis practical, time-tested & fully Ambedkarite", Dr. V.D. Chandanshive.

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Book on Editor's life & mission
Mrs. ATHRADI AMRITA

Mangalore: The first book on Editor V.T. Rajshekar's revolutionary life and mission is scheduled to be released here in the west-coast South Kanara dt. of Karnataka, on Dec.4, 2005 (Sunday).

Written by a noted Dalit writer, Rajendra, a retired Director of Information of the Karnataka Govt., a familiar name for DV family members, it is also published by the Dr. Ambedkar Pratisthan established by him at his native place, Malur, Kolar district. The book in Kannada, about 300 pages, covers the entire life of the 73-year Editor who has established the country's oldest (25 year) and the largest circulated Dalit journal (English) published in six languages.

The book covers his struggle as a motherless child, his early days under marxism, in daily newspaper journalism, dismissal from the Indian Express, starting of DV (1981), several arrests, "Chandigarh jail yatra". And finally the different theories he propounded including the most famous "caste identity" for which he won an international award in London.

DV family members in different parts of India are requested to attend the function. They may write to Advocate Hanif, Capital Avenue, Basement Floor, Near DC Office, Hamilton Circle, Mangalore - 575 001, phone: 244167, mobile - 93435 63717).

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Glorious fall of a Dalit surgeon fighting Brahmins
DR. ASHOK BHOYAR, 46 - HILL ROAD, SHIVAJI NAGAR, NAGPUR - 440 010

To utter the Truth, or to write about the Truth is the most difficult thing. Then why does a Dalit writer underatke such a most difficult job and puts himself into trouble? There has to be some purpose, and that purpose has to be a noble one. Otherwise, no writer would risk his career, risk his life.

The Dalit writer has to be a different one, different from run-of-the mill writers. He is not writing for writing sake. He has to be a spokesperson of his community. He carries the burden of his society on his shoulders. He is a bard. And he can even be the prophet to lead his people to the Promised Land.

A Dalit writer, of all the things, has to be a good human being first. It is the inhumanity that troubles him the most. He hits at inhumanity. He will not spare anybody, be it a Brahmin, or be it a Dalit. He is not calculative in his writings. He does not hit Brahmins just to please the Dalits. He does not agree with VTR, nor he agrees with Nagesh Chaudhary. If BCs are the friends of the Dalits, then why Mulayam Singh Yadav is the sworn enemy of Mayawati, and why Laloo that of Paswan?

The Dalit writer is the seeker of the Truth. He places the things as they are. There is a Kabir in him. He is a phakir. He is neither a Hindu nor a Muslim. He belongs to everybody (the world humanity), and thus to nobody. To whom did Kabir really belong? Nobody claimed him. With my anti-Brahminism stand, Brahmins hate me. But do the Dalits love me? At least the Dalit doctors in Nagpur hate me. I am outcast and isolated. It is the most painful thing for a man, a man who is a social animal and a social animal craves for belonging. Why should a writer risk such a killing isolation?

A Dalit writer is pained with the unjust society and to him no pain is bigger than this pain. He writes to make the society just. He thinks with his writings he will bring change in the society and a change for better. That is his sacred concern. If he wants Brahmins to change, he also wants Dalits to bring changes in themselves. He wants to arouse the soul in the Brahmins and the Dalits alike. And he thinks literature can do that. It is its prime objective. His expectations from his own Dalits are much more. Because it is Dalits who are going to change the society. It is they who are going to make the unjust society the just.

Truth is bitter. It hurts. Dalit writings hurt. But he doesn't want to hurt anybody. He is pure and simple at his heart — like a child. But if his writings hurt, his intentions are good. It is the hurt that brings the person to realization. And with realization, he shows the desired change. The society doesn't understand the true intentions of the writer. For a Dalit writer, writing is a passion. And for that passion, I have spent sleepless nights, thousands of rupees, and now lost my job.

The more he writes about the truth, more the society gets hurt. And so much hurt that the writer himself gets hurtful. History is replete with such examples.

All seekers of the Truth were persecuted. They lost everything including their lives in many cases. They became martyrs to free the humanity from the clutches of the Brahminism. Their martyrdom will not go waste.

In a fight with the Brahminism, I lost my job. Rather, I gave up my job and especially when I was at the peak of my career. When I look back it was a self-destructive move. But human emotions do have value and sometimes they count supreme. If they spat in my face, I too spat in their faces, once for all. I maintained my dignity and pride and I did not allow my enemies to laugh at me. Profession and especially the profession of cardiac surgery is not a mere source of income to earn livelihood. It is much more than that. My profession was my identity. With the turn of events in my life I lost my profession, I lost my identity. I couldn't digest this.

I knocked at the doors to get a job. Some of them opened the door and immediately closed it on my face, both the Dalits and the Brahmins. Some of them did allow me inside but put the conditions so humiliating that they were intolerable beyond my dignity. My writings had reached them even before I had approached them. I quit before they asked me to quit. This is the price I paid for my writings. And what did I write? I wrote the Truth. At the age of 51 I am out of my profession. I am no more a practicing cardiac surgeon. Am I a loser? Am I not a successful man? What is the measure of success in a human life?

To live for 100 years is success. No it is not. To earn truckloads of money is success. No, it is not. Where does Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar fit into these calculations. He doesn't fit anywhere. And by all means, he was most successful man in his mission.

To take birth is in nobody's hands. However, one can become the master of his destiny. With this to lead the life is in one's hands. But this is also partly true. There are so many external forces that are beyond one's control.

Every active person wants to do much more beyond his capabilities. He wants to prove himself. He wants to give the fruits of his capabilities to the society. That is true. But does the society want to receive the fruits of the capabilities of that particular person? Possibly it is the time period in the history that answers this question.

There are many a great people whose capabilities remain greatly under utilized. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar is the perfect example. And there are also many a great people who were assigned jobs much beyond their capabilities.

What am I to do? At the age of 51 years I am out of cardiac surgery, out of active profession. To be in the active profession should I kneel before the Brahmins, lick their feet and wag the tail like dog? Does the society expect this from me? And especially when I declared: Brahmins, Oh Brahmins. This is the head of your father, and the father of your forefathers. He is not only casteist and mean, he is moron too. If I kneel before the Brahmins, society will lose faith in me, lose faith in human values that all noble men cherish. It will be the worst mistake of my life — as a professional and as a writer. Should I continue to insult my knife and my pen?

To become a role model I must sacrifice something and that something is my profession which I cannot continue without wagging my tail. I must pay the price for my writings.

I can't expect modern Dronacharyas to spare me from humiliation and indignity. They will heap humiliation and indignity on me and that too with vengeance. I will make myself a joker and the Brahmins will make fun of me. I shall be a laughing stock which I was never. I roared like a tiger for 51 years. Now the society doesn't expect me to bleat like a bakri — the goat.

If I am born, there must some purpose. Society expected from me to become a heart surgeon. That I did. Society expected me to prove professionally because I availed the facilities of reservation. That I proved. For that I rode on the back of a tiger for 15 long years. It was a hot seat and really a hot one just unbearable at any given moment. Society expected from me to write, My Encounter with Dronacharya, Soul-Searching of an Educated Dalit and Genesis of Discrimination. Society expected from me to become a role model and give message to the younger generation — save your thumb and behead Dronacharya intellectually. That I did. In turn, I cut short my professional career.

What did the society give me in turn? Much more than I had expected in my life. I enjoyed thoroughly as a professional — as a heart surgeon. Even after working in the hostile atmosphere and the primitive set-up I have many more achievements to my credit. I documented this in my book, My Encounter with Dronacharya. Even the dead fish flows with the current. I swam against the currents and covered the distance beyond my imaginations. It was a great pleasure and an unique one. I received unparalleled love and respect from the patients, relatives and the society at large. Society gave me enough money to survive with dignity (not necessarily affluence) for the rest of my life.

My writings were taken seriously. How many Dalit writers claim to have got reprinted the full chapter of the book in Dalit Voice? Genesis of Discrimination has hit the last nail in the coffin of Brahminism — the intellectual supremacy. It has stirred the conscience of both the Dalits and the Brahmins. Brahmins took revenge on me.

Hopefully, it will arouse their soul and bring the desired change. Soul-Searching of an Educated Dalit is reprinted, translated and circulated by many. The letters of appreciation that I receive across the country make me nostalgic. My writings carved a new milestone in the Dalit literature. It made cover stories in Malayalam weeklies like the Kerala Sabdam and Madhyamam. It will take time for my fellow Dalit brothers and sisters to understand the importance of Beheading Dronacharya intellectually. But surely they will understand. My writings and the professional sacrifices that I made for that will not go waste.

When I came to Nagpur in 1989, I was armed with the knowledge and with the art of cardiac surgery. Like any other surgeon I had stars in the eyes and fire in the belly. I had more of it because I was a Dalit and my competency was always questioned. I wanted to prove myself. And to prove myself I needed patients which the hospital had none. One needs congenial atmosphere to grow. I was not so fortunate.

The upper caste, highly educated, foreign-returned, super-specialist colleagues deliberately spat casteist and derogatory remarks on my face. This shows the criminal level of opposition I had to face. I was unwanted. I was a stepson.

Where to go? Casteism is there every where. And I had to overcome it. I put in bone-wearing hard work. I put to test my surgical skill. I was honest. It paid. I operated upon the patients rejected by other reputed surgeons. I didn't get the appreciation I deserved. Like any other super-specialist doctor I also wanted to be a leader in my profession. But all the energy I had was spent defending my job. My patients were hijacked. I didn't get the privileges which other surgeons got. I was made a scapegoat. I was projected as a black sheep.

I was court martialled. My honesty was questioned and a check was put on my professional work. My very survival was threatened. Publicity for me was denied. Criminal blame game was slapped on me to save one doctor in favour.

A respectable gandhian finally became a liar to malign my image. For 15 years I had to undergo the test of fire. Every day I had to prove that I am made up of pure gold. That means I had to burn myself every day. It was the test of my patience of my other human qualities and of my surgical skill.

I am a human being. Like any other human being, I am made up of flesh and blood. I have a head. And I have a heart. I am left with a broken heart and an injured psyche. There is a limit even for the god's patience. I am a mortal human being. I am a battle-wearied soldier. Being a Dalit I was looked upon as an intellectually inferior doctor. It hurt me like a thorn in my flesh. With the passage of time I proved my professional supremacy. I spat in the faces of those who had spat in mine. I had beheaded the modern Dronacharyas and I had stripped the gandhians naked. I believed and I believe that the casteism can be overcome but not without the price tag. The injured Dronacharyas and the gandhians hit back with vengeance.

What ultimately happens to a fish taking enmity with the crocodile happened to me. I am destroyed but not defeated.

I am not a crying baby. I did not write the books to tell that there is casteism. I wrote the books to tell that the casteism can be overcome and that the high and the mighty can be silenced. I knew that I will have to pay the price for writing the books —the truth. But I didn't know the price would be so heavy. The progress of the Dalits is cyclical and not linear. From the phase of invisibility they move to the phase of ambivalence. From the phase of ambivalence, they move to the phase of reaffirmation. From the phase of reaffirmation, they do not go linearly forward but they come back to the phase of ambivalence. The phase of reaffirmation is short-lived for the Dalits. However, the phase of reaffirmation signifies victories and celebrations. I have written about victories and celebrations. I have written the books to inspire Dalits for bigger victories and grand celebrations.

I do not see myself as a crying baby. I am not crying and I am not beating my chest that the Brahmins victimized me. I see myself as a valiant soldier.

Surely I went down fighting Brahminism and lost few years of professional career. The fighting gave me premature grey hair, aging body (I look like an invalid 65 years old man at the age of 51 years) and possibly will give me premature death too. In America, the longevity of the Black people is far less than that of the White people. Such is the stress of racism. Casteism is worse than racism.

I might be destroyed but I am not defeated. As a valiant, I had taken the bull of Brahminical supremacy by horn. At the end I went down fighting. That is sure. But I inflicted enough injuries on the bull — the Brahminical supremacy.

When they will read my Dronacharya book and its interpretation Genesis of Discrimination they will hang their heads in shame. On the other hand, these books will continue to inspire the Dalits to fight with the Brahminical supremacy. Dronacharyas will be beheaded intellectually with increasing frequency.

I couldn't have expected much more than what I have received in my life. I have every reason to be happy. My professional career is cut short by few years. That is for sure. But the society expects me to live with dignity and be a role model. The message is clear – do not devalue yourself.

The root cause of sorrow is craving. Let us stop craving.

That is the message of Budha. Are educated Dalits listening? Will they stop craving? Will they contribute something to the society? Will they make sacrifices? Will they understand a writer in me?

(bhoyarmilind@rediffmail.com)

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J.N.U. CONVENTION
Dalit students discuss hidden Hindu hostility
ANOOP KUMAR, 122 -PERIYAR HOSTEL, JNU, NEW DELHI - 110 67

The first National Dalit Student's Convention was held at JNU on Oct.21-23, 2005. Important decisions were taken by the student-delegates from various part of the country.

The most prominent was the formation of a national body of Dalit students to promote and propagate Ambedkarite consciousness in various campuses of the country. Another was to focus on gender sensitivity and to create a space for Dalit women students.

The National Dalit Student's Forum was born at this convention, which was organized to commemorate one year of the publication of the Insight, a journal of the JNU Dalit students.

Over 50 students from about 20 institutions of higher learning came together for the first time. Bhagwan Das, Supreme Court advocate and a long-time associate of Babasaheb Ambedkar, inaugurated the convention. Cynthia Stephens, a writer and a activist from Bangalore, spoke on the situation of Dalit women, Murali, a Ph.D. scholar from Hyderabad Central University, spoke about the need for a common language to unite Dalits. This can only be English.

Some students shared intensely painful experiences about their lives on the campuses and also how they cope and responded to the challenges. It became clear that their experiences of educational institutions were shaped by the climate these students faced in the form of hidden hostility, biased system of marking and even active discouragement from upper caste managements, teachers and classmates during school days. But when they realized their own personal strengths vis a vis the rest they felt quite capable of holding their own in any situation as well as act as a support system for others who need their support.

An 11-member drafting committee would prepare the Constitution of the body. The members are: Ramana, Osmania, Hyderabad; Anoop, JNU, Swathy Ciefl, Hyderabad; Cynthia Bangalore; Murali, HCU; Manjula, BHU; Sanjay, BHU; Mitali, Mhow; Kamlesh, Jaipur; Ratnesh, Mhow; Y.Srinivas, IIT Madras, Gyanendra, IISc, Bangalore.

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S.N. Goenka must stop speaking on Budhism
Dr. Sudarshan T. Kurwadkar, 1400 - North Pine Street, Apartment#7, Rolla, MO - 65401, USA:

I read the article of Dr. Jamanadas questioning S.N. Goenka authority to speak on behalf of Budhists. I have attended his Vipassana programme and I feel he is using Budha's philosophy without subscribing to Budhism. His teaching has a Hindu overtone. I knew it the moment I attended his 10-day Vipassana program in Delhi in 1998. His preference to Hinduism while using Budha's teaching is confusing to me. It is because of this duality, that Vipassana has become hugely popular in India. He must be credited however, for spreading Budhism among the "not so receptive" Hindus. Budhism is not a religion per se, it is a way of life and if Goenka chose to remain a Hindu, we need not worry. The problem is a Hindu obviously cannot represent a Budhist then. Goenka need to declare on what ground he can speak and sign agreement for Budhist. If tomorrow, Asarambapu (another guru of different kind), starts preaching Budhism does that mean we need to ask him to lead the Budhist? Imagine a situation, a man with a kamandalu, a tilak speaking on behalf of Budhist. So it is better that Goenka should restrict himself to spreading Budha's word, he should not meddle in politics. There are less ordinary morals that could do this job.

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BOOK REVIEW
American scholar calls Editor an eminent political scientist
Curtis Maynard

After reading V.T. Rajshekar's book, The Shape of Things to Come (DSA-2005), I at first set it down, stored it away in a bookshelf. Initially I didn't give the book a great deal of thought, but then I began to think about some of the things Rajshekar had mentioned in respect to World Zionism and the United States. Being an American, I am naturally blinded by a certain degree of bias. I am not wholeheartedly in agreement with his thesis. But then again, neither am I in disagreement with the work in its entirety.

The book is not long, a mere 66 pages, it isn't written in the indifferent manner I am used to, at one point he suggests that a ridiculous proposition was in fact bullshit, however upon further consideration, I had to agree that the suggestion posited was nothing less than bovine feces.

Being Indian and a Dalit to boot, he is obviously concerned with what he refers to as Hindu Nazism, which apparently amounts to a form of racism perpetrated on the majority of Indians by a small minority of Brahmins.

It isn't in his assessment of India's domestic problems, an area in which I know very little, that I find so fascinating, but rather his world-view, his perception of what is behind the West's inexorable march to self-destruction.

He believes that the world's problems can best be summed up as the consequences of the actions of three primary groups:

1.White Western Racism. (2). Zionism (especially in how it fuels and supports the former), (3.) Hindu Nazi Brahminical forces.

He asserts that almost every trouble in the world [today] can be traced to one or other forces in this Tripod. The theories propounded by these forces, though not new, were finally crystallized and concretized by Francis Fukayama in his book, The End of History, and later elaborated by Samuel P. Huntington's The Clash of Civilizations. Without going into great detail, he accurately identifies those the above three seek to victimize—Africans, Muslims and Asians. I can agree with this.

His analysis includes the absolutely precise statement that America's imperial arrogance [has] crossed all limits of tolerance. Lately, the Neo-Con-ruled America has turned even against their own White-European ancestors in Europe. Truer words have never been spoken. He identifies America as the leading proponent of globalization; something he well understands will not benefit the Indian sub-continent in the long run.

He also clearly comprehends the role of what he rightly refers to as a new brand of Christianity, evangelical Christian-Zionism. Its followers, believe that with the exception of Israel, there is no country more blessed by god than the USA.

But Rajshekar's genius truly lies in his ability to surgically remove the rhetoric and get right to the point, something I initially neglected to notice in his writing. Rajshekar refers to the very strange, but empirical fact that "godless America, is suddenly in love with god," and how these new adherents and those around the world are being kept in the dark in respect to these new developments by a powerful Jewish lobby and media stranglehold in the USA.

He says:

"On one side, Christians talk of morals, ethics, love and compassion, and on the other side they preach hatred and wage war."

The ever-insightful Rajshekar states, "something is seriously wrong in America". How right he is. Something is seriously wrong with this country, a country I call home, a country I served in the US Army, a country I intend to raise my children and intend to see that they can then in turn raise their children in.

The one thing in Rajshekar's writing that most caught my attention was his deep and profound understanding of the dynamics at play within Western society, his comprehension is so much more developed than that of the average American, despite the fact that he lives half a world away in Bangalore, India.

The one area in which I am not in full agreement with him has to do with what he perceives to be the manifestation of "White racism". No doubt racism exists among the US Whites, but it isn't what it once was. In a very real sense, and it is most difficult to explain rationally to someone in another country, Whites here have been effectively emasculated by Jews and their pernicious influence upon Western society via their media monopoly. How so, the inquisitive would ask.

Ben Adams, one particularly astute blogger says: Most Americans will secretly admit that they know the media is liberally biased, but they fear the alternative, an allegedly conservative voice. Let me assure you this won't happen, the entire media, from Fox News to NPR is, has been and will continue to be socially liberal and pseudo-conservative when it comes to justifying its one overwhelmingly singular agenda, Israel and Jewish supremacism.

The fact is and you know it, the Western media is monopolized by Jews and has been for decades.

I don't even bother to debate this fact with people anymore, as I consider doubters to be one of three things, stupid, delusional or complicit, in any case, a waste of my precious time.

Adams then reveals a little known but absolutely accurate phenomenon, those the Western media paints as racists, are as a rule critical of Jews and for that reason are marginalized as anti-Semites, Nazis and/or racists. The power behind these words cannot be overemphasized. It is nothing less than incredible. George Bush and the Republican Party are said to be "conservative" and for that reason "conservatism" has been tainted with the label of being racist, when in fact true conservative views amount to the last line of defense against the growing power of the Jews in this country. Bush is certainly not a conservative. He may well belong to the "Neo-Conservative" movement, which sprang from the ideological well of Trotskyism in the late 1960s, but he is not a conservative in the true sense of the word.

According to Adams, and he is correct, the vast majority of Americans are against mainstreaming or normalizing homosexuality. But the media doesn't care, they are going to continue forcing this deviant life-style down our throats whether we like it or not. Rajshekar too notes the fact that the allegedly "Christian" US has embraced "Gay marriage" and numerous other deviant social constructs.

What I don't think Rajshekar fully understands however, is that "Gay marriage" is rejected by the vast majority of American citizens, who recognize it for what it is, deviancy.

However, the Western media is broadcast around the world, into the homes of billions of people, and it paints America as it likes. The media would have us believe it is only giving us what we want, submitting to the capitalist ideal, supplying what we demand. This is absolutely false, the media is in fact telling us what we want, normalizing the abnormal, mainstreaming the deviant, creating a false image of what America is, where we came from and where we are going.

In respect to Rajshekar's thesis that all the world's ills can be traced to the racist Triad of Whites, Zionists and Brahmins, I must say in the defense of White Europeans that our role in racist exploitation has been usurped and exploited by Jews in such a way that they are able to engage in the most heinous of racist crimes and then hide in anonimity among Whites, when in fact Jews have so successfully smeared Anglo-Americans as racists, that we [Whites] are constantly on the defensive, unable to recover from one accusation, before being inundated with others. The reputation of our forefathers has been shamefully destroyed in the interests of Jews in US and around the world, our forefathers inherent "conservative" values ridiculed and invalidated, so that the Jews might fabricate their own world-view, and do so behind the cover and security of "White European racism."

As long as Zionists are able to conceal their crimes behind a facade of White-racism and can continue to neutralize White European power with accusations of the same, there is no reason to believe their machinations will end any time soon. No Congressman, let alone President will ever speak out about their growing power and influence, lest they be branded an anti-Semite and/or racist, it's a vicious cycle that well-meaning, caring and concerned world citizens advance rather than negate. There truly is no right or left in the American govt., it is more a matter of "us vs. them" and the "us" is the political elite and their Zionist masters, and the "them" is all the rest of us, Black, White, Yellow or Brown.

I am not attempting to dodge the responsibility that Americans must accept, our apathy, ignorance and unwillingness to address the realities of the world around us has led us to this sorry state, we aren't victims in the same sense that our weaknesses and limitations have victimized others, but then again, we, the Americans, aren't directly to blame for the policies our government has adopted. It cares not what the American people want, as it proves on a daily basis. So how is it that the American people allow its government to conduct itself as it does? Simple, most Americans aren't paying attention. The media tells us that everything is fine, sedates us with meaningless entertainment, material excess, and everyday distractions. In this respect, we Americans are truly guilty, we are ignorant, but refuse to admit as much.

Another argument that Rajshekar extends that I don't fully agree with is that "Nationalism leads to fascism", primarily because we are currently under the hegemonic influence of an Internationalist entity that has already fully embraced fascism, without the ultra-nationalist bent. Nationalism is in fact this entities greatest enemy and threat. A nation that operates in its own best interests is unlikely to operate in the best interests of a parasitic element like zionism [read organized Jewry]. A truly Nationalist government acts in the best interests of its own citizens and never in the best interests of Internationalism, the two are mutually exclusive, one cannot flourish in the presence of the other, that is why Globalist's go after budding Nationalist regimes quicker than anyone else.

All in all, however, Rajshekar’s thesis is eye-opening and soundly logical. He identifies Zionism as the all-powerful, all-encompassing evil that it is, he identifies how an insidious parasite exploits the educational system to dumb down the targeted populations in order to maintain control over them.

In the end, Rajshekar’s book, The Shape of Things to Come, deserves to be included in the library of the most discerning political scientists. (melcur@sbcglobal.net)

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