18 December, 2008
Buddhism: Beyond The Dalit Shadow
By Rahul Gade
Buddhism is spirit that has overcome the dalit shadow. Buddhism is the hope for the broken dalit. If the past has been dalit the future has to be Buddhist, anything lower would be less than honoring full human potential
12 November, 2008
Obama And Mayawati: A Comparison In Contrast
By S.R.Darapuri
From a brief comparison between Obama and Mayawati it becomes evident that it is not very appropriate because there is a world of difference between their personalities and deeds. Rather it can be said to be a comparison in contrast. Obama is to be judged in the near future but Mayawati has already been judged
03 November, 2008
Ayyankali: Legacy Of Organic Protest
By Muhammed Nafih
Book review- Ayyankali:A Dalit Leader of Organic Protest by Nisar.M.and Meena Kandasamy
26 October, 2008
Peace, Non-Violence And Secularism
In Dalit Perspective
By Ratnesh Katulkar
Ignorance and negligence of Dalit ideology by the mainstream secularists and the upper-class Muslims are harming Muslims to fall prey before Hindu fascist and it is dangerous in building the real foundation of secularism in India
24 October, 2008
The Struggle Of Dalitbahujan For Their Identity
And In Quest Of Their Spiritual And Political Destiny
By Dr. Kancha Ilaiah
Speech delivered on the occasion of presentation of 'LISA Book Award – 2008 for 'Why I am Not a Hindu'
18 September, 2008
Why Go For Conversion?
By Dr. B.R. Ambedkar
In 1935 at Nasik district, Maharashtra, Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar had declared his firm resolve to change his religion. He had declared that he was born as a Hindu but will not die as Hindu. About a year later, a massive Mahar conference was held on May 30 and 31, 1936, in Mumbai, to access the impact of that declaration on Mahar masses. In his address to the conference, Dr.Ambedkar expressed his views on conversion in an elaborate, well- prepared and written speech in Marathi. Here is an English translation of that speech by Mr.Vasant Moon, OSD to the committee of Govt. of Maharashtra for publication of Writings & speeches of Dr.B.R.Ambedkar
02 September, 2008
Even In Flood, India's `Untouchables' Last Rescued
By Gavin Rabinowitz
In the two weeks since a monsoon-swollen river burst its banks, ancient prejudices have run just as deep as the floodwaters. India's "untouchables" are the last to be rescued — if at all — from a deluge that has killed dozens and made 1.2 million homeless
What Mayawati Has Done To The Dalits Of U.P.?
By S.R.Darapuri
Without a vision and definite Dalit liberation agenda the attaining of political power is not going to solve the problems of the Dalits as well as that of the State. Structural changes and improvement in the delivery system only can remove the poverty syndrome prevailing amongst the Dalits. Grass-root level movements are the key to keep the political leaders under control and make them answerable to the people
31 August, 2008
"Let The Hindus Also Do Missionary Work"
By Kancha Ilaiah & Yoginder Sikand
Interview:Kancha Ilaiah on Dalit-Bahujans, Hinduism and Spiritual Fascism
Dr. Ambedkar On Women Liberation
By Ratnesh Katulkar
Dr. Ambedkar's first academic paper "Caste in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development" also begins with his concern towards women, where he located the linkages between caste and gender by observing that "Superimposition of endogamy on exogamy means creation of caste" and concluded that there is no divine or natural cause of origin of caste but Brahmins of ancient India craftily designed it by enclosing their class through means of controlling and subjugating their woman
15 August, 2008
Dalit Digital Media:- Shuddering
The Hinduized News Media!! Part I
By Saint
Anyone who goes through these alternate digital news blogs and sites would appreciate the sear knowledge, straightforward analysis of events by these individual writers can stand distinctively than that of Times of India, Hindu or New York Times. Is this is the beginning of demolishing the bigotry in the established trational media in the world which is simply owned by few people and they make billions through selling news that are made up stories, to the most part, but nothing to do with helping people and uplifting the needy society?
18 June, 2008
“Only Ash Knows The Experience Of Burning”
By Dr. Nilanshu Kumar Agarwal & Dr. Jai Prakash Kardam
An Interview with Dalit Writer Jai Prakash Kardam
06 June, 2008
Gujjars Of Rajasthan And S.T. Status
By Dr Javaid Rahi
This article examines whether the ST demands of Gujjars of Rajasthan is a genuine one and is it falling within the criteria of ST status as provided by Schedule Tribes Act
19 April, 2008
Dalits In U.P. Face Hunger Deaths And Suicides
By S.R.Darapuri
When George Bush is admonishing India for eating too much, Dalits in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh face hunger deaths and suicides
18 April, 2008
The Tikait Treatment
By Ravikiran Shinde
Jat leader Mahendra Singh Tikait finally surrendered meekly before the court after resisting arrest by UP Police. The dust has finally settled two weeks after his castiest remarks but it has raised a serious question. How 'normal' is the casteist abuse in day to day life of Dalits? If a chief minister can be abused publicly, what does it speak of common Dalits?
04 April, 2008
Mayawati's Burgeoning Wealth: Who Gains?
By S.R.Darapuri
In April, 2007 while filing her nomination papers for Assembly elections Mayawati had declared her assets to be worth Rs. 52 crores. While filing her income tax return for the assessment year 2008-09 she estimated her income to be Rs. 60 crores and had deposited Rs. 15 crores as advance tax. The actual income is likely to exceed this estimate at the end of this financial year. Now the question arises as to what are the sources of her income and what are the consequences of this amassing of wealth by her. It is also pertinent to discuss as to apart from Mayawati who else are the beneficiaries of this money game. What is the loss and gain of Dalits in this game of exchange of money?
26 Februay, 2008
What Reservation Implies?
By Amit Chamaria
"Caste reveals work or work reveals Caste"-these seem to be different in writings but are still carrying a similar message for the prevailing complex realities in a country like India. This fact is clearly reflected when the Central government and the Haryana state government associate the caste identity closely with work or vice- versa. It means - if some one belongs to a lower caste, he/she is bound to work as Safai Karamchari or very similar to this avocation
11 Februay, 2008
Stuck In A Hole
By Ashok Bharti
Despite committees, schemes and five-year plans, manual scavenging thrives in India. Ashok Bharti tells the story of failed reforms
21 Januay, 2008
Norwegian Medicine For Vedanta
By Kavaljit Singh
At the face of protest from the Dongria Kondh tribals of the Niyamgiri hilly region of Orissa Norwegian sovereign fund sells off its stake in Vedanta Resources which was preparing to build the upcoming $850 million aluminium refinery and bauxite mining project at Lanjigarh
18 December, 2007
Manual Scavenging: Nations Shame
By Sunil Kuksal
Despite laws abolishing the inhuman practice of manual scavenging, over a million dalits in ‘superpower India’ are caught in a vortex of severe social and economic exploitation. Cleaning and carrying headloads of human excreta, these ‘night soil’
17 December, 2007
The Adivasi Question In Assam
By Moirangthem Prakash
Recent violence involving Assam's adivasis highlights the region's uniquely complex realities
05 December, 2007
Ambedkar As A Human Rights Defender
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Ambedkar championed the cause of the down trodden. But to confine him to mere as a leader of Dalits will do him great injustice. He was the most accompalished political leader and philosopher among his contemporaries.No human rights discourse in India could be complete with out detailed discussion on the outstanding work of Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar
05 November, 2007
Equal Rights And Opportunities
By Nishikant Waghmare
Why the upper castes are not interested in giving up caste? Because caste (jati) helps him to exploit his fellowmen better — as it has a theological sanction under the Hindu religion. In the jungle of Hinduism this law has the blessings of its sacred scriptures. That is why in India wealth is getting accumulated in the bands of top 10% to 15% of the upper castes and the rest are getting pauperised. And yet there is no public debate on the merits of caste anywhere, not even among our university eggheads
25 October, 2007
Is It Emancipation Or Elimination Of
The Scavengers In Laar Town (Deoria)
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
In the eastern Uttar-Pradesh, they do not use the term Balmikis/Valmiks for the sweeper. Instead there are people from the communities of Rawats, Bansfors, Helas, Mehtars who are engaged in scavenging work. Many of the women narrated their plight and how they wish to get out of the scavenging hell
12 October, 2007
Hated, Humiliated, Butchered
By Mahasweta Devi
The mob murder of Nats in Bihar was no accidental atrocity, writes an outraged Mahasweta Devi. It was the consequence of preserved brutalities
07 October, 2007
Dalit Theology
By Sathianathan Clarke & Yoginder Sikand
Sathianathan Clarke talks about what Dalit Theology means to him in an interview with Yoginder Sikand
02 October, 2007
In Conversation With Mr Bhagwan Das
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
'It is good to break and bad to continue with a tradition that has subjugated the Dalits'
27 September, 2007
Land After Thirty Years Of 'Entitlement'
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Story of Land Reclamation of Dalits in village Rupchandrapur
13 August, 2007
Tsundur : A New Milestone In
The Movement For Dalit Emancipation
By Subhash Gatade
As rightly noted by an analyst the victory ( albeit a partial one) at Tsundur has come as breath of fresh air in the already smouldering world of dalit oppression. And it is high time that its fragrance is spread far and wide, so that people are told that oppressed people united would always be victorious
25 July, 2007
Hungry World Of Dalits In Poorvanchal
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Four districts of Poorvanchal (Eastern Uttar-Pradesh) namely Maharajganj, Kushingar, Deoria and Gorakhpur witness the dance of death every year. Two of these district Kushinagar and Gorakhpur were selected for the NREGA programme while Maharajganj has also been selected for the same from this year. All these districts saw a large number of deaths due to hunger and malnutrition despite all these programmes
16 July, 2007
Will Dalit Christians Get Justice?
By M. Madhu Chandra
After constitutional denial of Scheduled Caste origins converted to Christianity and Muslims after the Presidential Order 1950, a million dollar question remains in the minds of Indian Dalit Christians "Will the Judicial system of India give justice to Indian Dalit Christians now after 57 years of injustice done to them?"
03 June, 2007
India's Lower Castes
By Nishikant Waghmare
An empowered India bereft of the respect for women, values of civilised existence and morality will collapse in the face of the disaffection and discontent of those who have suffered for centuries. Day in and day out we take pride in claiming that India has a 5000-year-old civilization. But the way the Dalits and those suppressed are being treated by the people who wield power and authority speaks volumes for the degradation of our moral structure and civilized standards
01 June, 2007
The Only Solution To Reservation Imbroglio
By Satinath Choudhary
100% reservation for all segments of the society (as far as practicable) is the best way for amicable and peaceful coexistence. Otherwise a segment that has bigger control over power will succeed in appointing larger and larger percentage of its members to positions of power leading to what we currently see in the judiciary, armed forces and the media
20 May, 2007
India's Political Quake- Mayawati
By Ravikiran Shinde
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati is the winner. After handsomely winning the assembly elections in the biggest state in India, she has declared that she is on her way to capture "Delhi" and that plans to give UP the best government and Sarvasamaj (all sections of the society) the power to share with her
12 May, 2007
Defining Moment Of Dalit Empowerment
In Uttar-Pradesh
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Dalits defeats Hindutva with the help of Brahmins: Will it work?
09 May, 2007
Dalits, Panchayat Raj And Power Equations
By Goldy M. George
It is evident that the upper castes controlled the affairs of the village cannot tolerate the changes being brought about by the decentralized democratic institutions. In the backdrop of such incidences an array of question raises with reference to Panchayat Raj vis-à-vis Dalits. The initial prediction of decentralization envisioned through Panchayat Raj hasn’t become a reality. It also tells us how Panchayat Raj is utilised as a tool of disempowerment of Dalits and consolidation of caste system
02 May, 2007
Mandal II: The Struggle For
An Egalitarian Society
By Feroze H. Mithiborwala
India is again in the midst of an OBC upsurge and this "MANDAL II" has been instigated and provoked by the Supreme Court Bench comprising Justices Arijit Pasayat and Lokeshwar Singh Panta. This two bench judgement has issued an interim order staying the Reservations of OBC's in higher educational institutions and this has sent convulsions across the political and social landscape
24 April, 2007
Get Under Society’s Skin
By Gail Omvedt
The Supreme Court’s recent decision and reiteration to stay the order regarding OBC admissions until accurate data is available has brought forth the expected reactions. Defenders of ‘equality’ won by ignoring caste are hailing it; proponents of reservations are trying to put on a brave face. But in one way, the decision is helpful: the Supreme Court has given cogent arguments for the need for information to underlay policy. However, what many of the opponents of reservations may not appreciate is that this brings up squarely, once again, the argument for a caste-based census
19 April, 2007
Status Of Manual Scavengers In Laar, Deoria
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Time has come for all of us to scrutinize government's programmes and action to eliminate manual scavenging and take the officials of the department to task. India's 9% growth rate or shining India is absolutely farcical if this large community remains outside the ambit of global change
13 April, 2007
Valmiki's Illustrious Son Challenges The Hegemony Of
Knowledge And Merit In India
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Profile: Dr Bachchu Lal Valmiki
31 March, 2007
Mandal Will Have The Last Laugh
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Shockingly, the judgments in the past few years reflect of the growing trend to keep the middle classes happy. We have judges who speak for Hindutva terming it as a way of life. We have a former Supreme Court Judge who did not implicate a single politician in the anti Sikh riots in Delhi in 1984 and later became a Member of Parliament against all the ethics of impartiality of an institution. Right to Strike was also banned by the Kerala Highcourt, which was appreciated by the media and industries
27 March, 2007
Touch Me Not
By Chandi Sinnathurai
Nazism was based on racial purity and superiority. The system of Casteism determines a human’s destiny purely on the basis of caste. If Nazism and slavery were abolished, why then Casteism cannot be demolished and its evils uprooted?
24 March, 2007
The Case Of Academic Complicity In The Violence
Against Dalit And Dalit Women In India
By Abhinaya Ramesh
I wish to suggest to the UN related researches that unless sufficient scrutiny is not done by the respective authorities such reports should not be published because they are intentionally crammed with deceived information to create the confusion and further delay in the justice to the relevant communities
25 February, 2007
Status Of Manual Scavengers
In Gorakhpur, Uttar-Pradesh
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat, Ram Bhuvan & Kirti Singh
Scavenger community has all along been living in the urban areas serving the middle classes, upper elites, feudal lords, Hindus and Muslims every one alike, yet none of them ever bothered whether they have cared and bothered about those who clean their shit, enter deep into the sewage pit to continue the sewage line. In the coming days, we are going to cover a large part of Uttar-Pradesh and bring reports on this aspect
16 February, 2007
Dr. B.R.Ambedkar’s Contribution
To Buddhist Education In India
By Nishikant Waghmare
Buddhism makes enlightenment the sole aim of life. This was the philosophy that Ambedkar accepted and tried to revive. Besides this there was another reason. Buddha, whose life and movement Ambedkar had studied, was a believer of the educatability and the creativity of the people. Under the influence of those teachings, the most rejected peoples of India has once risen and uplifted their life as well as that of the whole society. If that was once possible in India, it must be possible again. He had a solid historical basis to trust India’s ordinary folk as India’s future democrats
07 February, 2007
Debating Discrimination, Differences
And Dissent In Our Part Of The World
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
The issue of racial discrimination has been in the news for quite some time. Some Indian pretended that they have been discriminated against in Britain while rarely speaking that India does not have its own house in order. Despite 60 years of independence India has not been able to transform itself into a modern state
03 February, 2007
A Tribute To M A Khan
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Remembering a man who committed his life for the tribals of Sonbhadra
30 December, 2006
P.K. Mahanandia: Salute To A Living Legend
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
A Dalit as India's cultural Ambassador in Europe
Democracy And Reinforced Building
By Amit Chamaria
Almost 90% of decision- makers in the English language print media and 79% in television are of the upper caste, although the upper castes are about 16% of the country population; Brahmin alone constitute 49% of this segment, and 71% of the total are upper caste men
23 December, 2006
Shame, Not In Doha But In India
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
I hope that India will grow simultaneously with diversity and dissent in the coming years. How can a nation and a society grow with such scandalous officials and reporters who criminalise the sexual deformity of a person and whose fight for people's right confine to the cases of certain high profile cases of page three parties, and who continue to ignore the bigger issues of dissent and disgust in India and whose ignorant reporters can simply call these dissenters as terrorists or Naxalites, both clearly meant for Muslims and Dalits respectively in the unofficial code of the officials too
20 December, 2006
Is Death Better Than Life For
Mushahars Of Kushingar
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
While politicians in Uttar-Pradesh are preparing for polls, the Mushahars, Bansfors and other such marginalized communities think of meal next day
06 December, 2006
Khairlanji: Conspiracy Of Silence
Government agency report agency report indicts officials in Khairlanji massacre
04 December, 2006
Hindutva Strategies And Dalit Movement
By Ram Puniyani
Book review of Vidya Bhushan Rawat's book "Ambedkar, Ayodhya aur Dalit Andolan"
02 December, 2006
A New Dalit Movement Emerging From Maharastra ?
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
The uprising in Maharastra has a signal for the self styled mainstream Dalit political leaders and parties. Mend your ways or get lost as the young Dynamic Dalit leadership would emerge out of a crisis from Maharastra. It is certain that incidents like Khairlanji and Gohana would fuel the Dalit anger and turn them to streets. Out of this anger and frustration would emerge a leadership which would not compromise like their leaders
Why Are Maharashtra's Dalits So Angry?
By Kalpana Sharma
Instead of looking at whether the protests by Dalits against the Khairlanji incident and against the desecration of Ambedkar's statue were "spontaneous" or part of an organised plan, we need to understand the basis of this fury
01 December, 2006
Khairlanji’s Strange And Bitter Crop
By Satya Sagar
The latest incidence of this ‘strange and bitter crop’ was in Khairlanji, a small village in Bhandara distict near Nagpur in the western Indian province of Maharashtra and a horrific ‘harvest’ it was too
18 November, 2006
Khairlanji : All Nero's Brethren
By Subhash Gatade
Looking at the fact that a militant mass movement has arisen to protest the killings, one can surmise that the legal wranglings in the Kherlanji massacre would not lead us to a blind alley and the perpetrators of the massacre would receive exemplary punishment. But there is no guarantee that it would be the case
14 November, 2006
Khairlanji's Dalit Victims Want
Justice With Dignity
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
The fire of Khairlanji in Bhandara district of Maharastra refuse to recede and has now entered in Delhi also
10 November, 2006
N.G.Uke: Remembering A True Humanist
By V.B. Rawat & N.G.Uke
N.G.Uke, a great Ambedkarite, a friend and guide died on November 4th, 2006 at his Vasant Kunj residence at the age of 82. Uke Saheb, as I would fondly call him was among the rare breed of Ambedkarite who saw Baba Saheb and was selected by him as a scholar though he had already got the same
31 October, 2006
An Open Letter To Rajdeep Sardesai
By Ravikiran Shinde
If you feel you have been at fault, then better be late than never. Cover the Kherlanji case and its legal proceedings. Awake the people on the gruesome caste realities in India. Telecast a half and hour program dedicated specially to Dalit atrocities every week
19 October, 2006
Buddha As Untouchable
By Raja Sekhar Vundru
Buddhism in India has a predominantly Dalit following, as a result of the revival by Ambedkar. For this reason, it appears that our society prefers to treat Buddha as an untouchable. In 2005, this event, which attracted an estimated 10 lakh people to Nagpur, escaped the national media attention
10 October, 2006
A Tribute To Kanshiramji
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
If India's politics has grown through a radical change with Dalit becoming the mainstream political force, the one man who made is possible was Kanshi Ram. He worked diligently and religiously to develop a cadre who could bring the party to National mainstream and ultimately to the power in Uttar-Pradesh
30 September, 2006
Building Up A New Movement Against Scavenging:
Tirunalveli's Dalits Show The Way
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Gram Udhayam is a great reflection of the power and vision of Dalits all over India. Their achievement would definitely help the communities living in other parts of the country to think about their self and work for a socio cultural revolution that would free from the bondage of the caste based discrimination
28 September, 2006
India’s Shame: Some Unanswered Questions
From The Frontline Reports
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Those who create a fascinating world of ‘great’ social cohesion outside West Bengal should try to sneak into the den and report independently on the conditions of Dalit in West Bengal. Hiding the pathetic condition of Dalits in West Bengal and particularly that of the scavengers is the bigger shame for India
27 Sepember, 2006
Mayawati: "No Promises,
No Manifesto, Only Performance"
By Vidya Subrahmaniam & Mayawati
Mayawati: "The BSP is more a social revolution, a political movement than a political party." - An Interview
24 September, 2006
Past As Living Present: Calamity And Discrimination
By Subhash Gatade
Water is said to be a great leveler. But even the ravaging flood waters which have created a havoc like situation in the districts of Barmer and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan just failed to crack an age old structure - the walls between caste
21 July, 2006
Indian Dalits: Law As Paper Tiger!
By Subhash Gatade
Thus India, a country of billion plus people, which is itching to get a superpower status, which takes pride in its ancient tradition and culture and whose elite goes gaga over the booming sensex, rather presents a strange spectacle of a nation. But a close look at the goings on within the society makes it clear that there is a disjunction between the world of economics and the lifeworlds of its people. The core of the society bears its encounter with barbarism in abundance
11 July, 2006
Ghettos Of A New Kind-Autonomy And Discrimination
By Subhash Gatade
The heated debate revolving around ‘autonomy’ of AIIMS ( All India Institute of Medical Sciences) and its alleged ‘intrusion’ has papered over the quantum jump in the discrimination faced by the reserved category students there. ‘Parts of AIIMS hostels are turning into SC/ST ghettos. Reserved category students said they were being “hunted out of the remaining rooms” by upper-caste students and driven to two floors of the hostels.’
10 July, 2006
Racism And Castiesm
By Jai Birdi & Indira Prahst
“Racism and Castiesm discussed at the World Peace Forum” By Jai Birdi Chair, Ending Racism Casteism Working Group for World Peace Forum and Indira Prahst, Race and Ethnic Relations Instructor, Department of Sociology, Langara College
08 May, 2006
Reservation Debate: A Great Opportunity
To Restrengthen Dalit Bahujan Alliance
By V.B.Rawat
It is time the Dalits, backwards, Adivasis come together and give a fitting reply. Organise debates and debunk the upper caste merit
22 April, 2006
War Against Naxals In Chhatishgarh:
Will Brahmanical Alternative Work
By V.B.Rawat
If the government wants to tackle the Naxal threat it has to introspect on its own position. It cannot deny tribals and Dalit their legitimate right over their resources. If the state apparatus continue to become more brahmanical by giving huge, palatial land to the corrupt Babas while the marginalized languish of hunger and malnutrition, nothing will move
18 April, 2006
Why Reservation For OBC Is A Must
By V.B.Rawat
Let Reform mean breaking age old Brahmanical hegemony
31 March, 2006
Fake Dalits, Bogus Tribals?
Whither Affirmative Action
By Subhash Gatade
While one is aware of the non filling of seats meant for scheduled castes and scheduled tirbes in various institutions of education and other employement opportunities, the filling of such seats with fake dalits or bogus tribals is a phenomenon which has rarely received the attention it deserves
20 March, 2006
Why Do India's Dalits Hate Gandhi?
By Thomas C. Mountain
As Dalits organize themselves and begin to challenge caste based rule in India, it behooves all people of good conscience to start to find out what the Dalits and their leadership are fighting for. A good place to start is with M.K. Gandhi and why he is so hated by Dalits in India
02 March, 2006
Re-reading Periyar
By Ravikumar
There are many appelations attached to Periyar, the main one being the saviour of the Untouchables. But instead of debating whether we should accept ‘their god’ as ‘our god’, the question is whether Periyar deserves to be regarded as the saviour of the untouchables?
15 February, 2006
Exposing An Abhorrent Practice
By S Viswanathan
Review of "India Stinking: Manual Scavengers in Andhra Pradesh and their work" By Gita Ramaswamy published by Navayana
30 January, 2006
Dawn Of Dalit?
By Ashok K Singh
A three-day seminar held recently to debate and deliberate on introducing Dalit Studies in universities provided fascinating insights into the space this emerging but exciting area of research could occupy in higher education
08 December, 2005
Salam Bhimrao!
By Goldy M. George
The only way to salute Bhimrao is by truly standing against oppressive structure, for equality and justice
31 October, 2005
Stranger In Their Own Land
By V.B.Rawat
150 kilometer away from Vishakapattanam towards Orissa in the Akru Valley and Anantgiri Mandal areas, Malaria has emerged as a major epidemic killing about 2000 people in two months
25 October, 2005
Untouchability In A Flat World
By Kancha Ilaiah
My visit to the famous Wheaton College in Chicago to deliver two lectures on caste and untouchability was an eye-opening experience. It struck me how students remained ignorant of the world around them even in a globalised world. It is an alarming thought that these are the future citizens of the world
05 October, 2005
Ali Anwar's Struggle
By Ali Anwar &Yoginder Sikand
Ali Anwar is the founder of the Pasmanda Muslim Mahaz ('Marginalised Muslim Front'), Patna, Bihar, a union of several Dalit Muslim and Backward Caste Muslim organisations. In this interview with Yoginder Sikand, he talks about his involvement in the struggle for the rights of the Backward Caste/Dalit Muslims
30 September, 2005
Ilayaperumal: A Dalit In The Congress
By Ravikumar
An important Dalit leader L Elayaperumal died at the age of 82 on September 9 in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. What BP Mandal did for the OBC-shudras, Elayaperumal did for the Dalits way back in 1969. However, given that Elayaperumal was a Dalit in the Congress, his report was never implemented
28 September, 2005
Iyothee Thass & The Politics Of Naming
By Ravikumar
Today, even uttering the name of Iyothee Thass in the Tamil public sphere has become an act of a rebellion. The Dravidian parties, communists and Tamil nationalists - nobody has any regard for Thass. No wonder his name has been dropped from the National Center for Siddha Research. This is an insult not just to Dalits but Tamils as such
27 September, 2005
A New Order For Today
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Strange as this might sound, several constituents of Indian society are turning abnormal. Unnoticed by sociologists, this exceptional phenomenon is taking place on a mass scale
23 September, 2005
Dalits In Pakistan
Book Review By Yoginder Sikand
Caste, the scourge of Hinduism, is so deeply entrenched in Indian society that it has not left the adherents of Islam, Sikhism, Christianity and Buddhism-theoretically egalitarian religions-unaffected. So firmly rooted is the cancer of caste in the region that it survives and thrives in neighbouring Pakistan, where over 95% of the population are Muslims
10 September, 2005
Guilty Of Gohana- In Search Of The Real Perpetrators
By Subhash Gatade
On 31 st August the town of Gohana witnessed burning of 50-60 houses belonging to Valmiki community in broad daylight. As it has been reported in the media a 1,500-2,000 strong of mob of upper caste people mainly belonging to the Jat community attacked their houses in a systematic manner
04 September, 2005
The Brahmanic Conspiracy
By Revd. Barnabas Alexander & Dr. Kristoffson Somanader
Cultural/spiritual corruption came via the Brahmins as they conspired to enslave the Tamils, inter alios, politically, intellectually, and spiritually
Buddha, The Feminist
By Chandrabhan Prasad
According to a UNICEF study conducted in 1984 in Mumbai, out of 8,000 sex determination cases, where fetuses were terminated, 7,999 were of females. According to another study, in Jaipur alone, about 3,500 female fetuses are terminated annually
23 August, 2005
Dalit Situation In Tamil Nadu
By K. Nagaraj
Painstaking chronicle of the deprivations, discriminations and atrocities faced by the Dalits in Tamil Nadu
17 August, 2005
Let's Talk Representation
If Reservation Is Against Merit
By V.B.Rawat
The supreme court verdict on the issue of unaided minority institution gives a freehand to the people who have always wanted the education to be the domain a few people and communities. Unfortunately, these institutions serving in the name of minorities will end up creating more brahmins for our country. The very purpose of educating poor andminorities gets defeated
11 August, 2005
Reservations In Private Sector:Not A Charity,
But A Social Necessity
By Dr. K. Vidyasagar Reddy
This concept of private reservation cannot be considered as charity, but a right from a government that exposed its hollowness. Further, it is a necessity as the government failed to create jobs to its qualified aspirants
09 August, 2005
Dalit movement At The Cross Road
By V.B.Rawat
It is time for us to provide our own democratic secular progressive vision and rather then just work on an agitation mode forever. We need to introspect and bring the last man into our mainstream, otherwise these contradiction are powerful enough to destroy the legacy of a powerful man, named as Ambedkar
23 July, 2005
Reservations- By Merit or birth?
By Vimlaksh Gautam
The caste Hindus have to realise that reservation is a direct result of our unkind past and it will take some adjustment and understanding on their behalf when the SC/ST's feel confident enough to pursue their progress without any state help
03 June, 2005
Cultural History And Emergent Dalit Alternatives
By Goldy M. George
Dalits search for alternative media is in fact the search for a counter-culture, that will stand as a paradigm to protect human existence; re-write history and evolve a new culture of love and caring
02 June, 2005
Education For Wealth Creation
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Around 30 million Dalit and Adivasi children are enrolled in thousands of primary schools. Out of them, 49.35 per cent drop out before joining junior high school
22 May, 2005
Muslim-Dalit Relations
By Gail Omvedt
A solid Dalit-Muslim alliance for the future should be directed to building a prosperous, equalitarian, caste- and patriarchy-freeIndia
27 April, 2005
The Question Of Dalit Human Rights
By Goldy M. George
The question of Dalit Human Right is not just a matter of addressing the atrocities, but at large it corroborates to the affirmation of land rights of Dalits, resisting the forces of globalisation, communalism, casteism, patriarchy and so on. This paves the way for collective action
23 April, 2005
A President To Be Proud Of
By Mari Marcel Thekaekara
Interviewing the former President of India, K.R. Narayanan, was an experience. One wanted his personal story to be incorporated into the school syllabus, for Dalit children to have a role model. So that they would be able to dream dreams beyond buckets and brooms...
19 April, 2005
Display Dalit Power
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Compared to the American Blacks, the Dalits have nothing but small grocery shops or manufacturing units here and there which don't find any mention even in the community's media
12 April, 2005
Growing Discontent Of Adivasis In Assam
By Kirti Mishra
Across Assam, the Adivasis face multiple deprivations which have their root in the historic exclusion and denial of tribal status to the community
22 March, 2005
No Land Even For Burial
By C.K Janu ,Jaison Chacko & Subhash Gatade
"Adivasis are the real owners of land. Our lands were snatched away from us. None of the governments came into power in the state took any serious initiative to provide this land back to these real owners." An interview with C.K. Janu, leader of the indigenous people of Kerala
10 March, 2005
Sustaining The Mutuality Of Life
By Goldy M George
An enquiry into the sustainable life style practices of the dalit and tribal population in the Indian state of Chattisgarh
06 March, 2005
From Manu To Manav
By Chandrabhan Prasad
There is a conflict brewing between the OBCs and the Dalit in North India. But will it lead it to a historic alliance between Brahmins and Dalits, asks Chandrabhan Prasad
22 February, 2005
De-Brahminise The Dalit
By Prem Pati & Yoginder Sikand
"Well, I would strongly urge de-Brahminisation or de-Sanskritisation of the Dalits, so as to liberate them from the trap in which 'upper' caste religious practices and beliefs have ensnared them"
17 February, 2005
The Logic Of Affirmative Action
By Sarbeswar Sahoo
Those who have been victimized in history have to be compensated through assured educational opportunities and income; so that the social injustice and inequality imposed by the caste system could someway be reduced
16 February, 2005
Needed A Tsunami To Destroy
The Ugly Relic Of Varna System
By V.B.Rawat
This Tsunami, on whose destruction we all are crying, have not been able to demolish the most powerful and destructive system of caste in India. Perhaps, we need a stronger Tsunami to destroy the ugly relic of caste system and racial discrimination from our society
Recognize Dalit Muslims
By Anand Bharat
A clear identification of Dalit Muslims and recognition their political and social needs will help bring together Dalit Muslims and Dalits, which can prove strong bulwark against the fundamentalist force working against them
14 February, 2005
'Dalit Voice' Speaks Out
By V.T Rajshekar & Yoginder Sikand
An interview with V.T.Rajshekar, the editor of the Bangalore-based English fortnightly 'Dalit Voice'. Here he speaks to Yoginder Sikand on various aspects of the Dalit movement and about Dalit-Muslim Relations
31 January, 2005
A Dalit Experience At WSF
By Zeynep Toufe
The experiences of a woman activist who participated a dalit panel discussion at WSF
28 January, 2005
Rise Of Dalit Assertion Is The First Sign Of
Defeat Of Brahmanical System
By V.B.Rawat
Tsundurs Dalits set an example for others to emulate in their fight against the tyranny of the upper castes
Calamity And Prejudice
By Subhash Gatade
All of us have been witness as well participant in the campaign to help the victims of Tsunami at some level or the other. But it is a moot question why Tsunami faced by the dalits daily has escaped our attention till date
13 January, 2005
Dalits Fight Tsunami Daily
By Udit Raj
Caste continues to batter Dalit tsunami victims in India. Most of the Dalits have not been allowed to share the relief material like food, shelter, medicine, toilets and others. Dalits are forced to carry water in plastic bags and are not allowed to use the water from tanks put up by the UNICEF
11 January, 2005
Looking At India Through African Eyes
By Runoko Rashidi
A travel perspective
07 December, 2004
Dalits Ask For Justice In West Bengal
By V.B.Rawat
Unlike other states and municipalities where officially scavenging is prohibited, in progressive Bengal, the Municipal Corporation feel it is its duty to get the manual scavenging done from the migrant Balmikis
06 December, 2004
Why Gandhi Lost And Ambedkar Won
By Shivam Vij
Mayawati, Mulayam and Laloo symbolise political empowerment of 'low' castes, without which you would have had, by now, a million Naxalite mutinies in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. But economic empowerment continues to elude large masses of Dalits
The Rs 300-Billion Club
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Thanks to reservation, there is a Dalit middle class in India which is a discerning customer of goods and services. Whatever they earn from the State, they spend on India's private sector. So, purely from a business angle, shouldn't the private sector come forward to confront the Rs 300 billion question an embrace reservations for Dalits!
01 December, 2004
Saffronization,Hinduization Or Brahminization?
By Dr. K. Jamanadas
Neither Safronization nor Hinduization denotes the true concepts the R.S.S. The proper word must be Brahminization
24 November, 2004
Big Winner In Indian Elections
Remains Best Kept Secret
By Thomas C. Mountain
The BSP increased the percentage of the national vote total it recieved in 2004 to 5.35% from 4.17% in 1999, over 25%, continuing a trend by increasing its percentage of the popular vote by nearly 50% since the 1996 election
17 November, 2004
The Power Of Sustenance
By Goldy M. George
Stories giving hope that marginalized people can lead the struggle for jusice
15 November, 2004
India's Top Secrets
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Those who condemn Lord Macaulay for imposing the 'wrong' education on India, never tell us as what was the education system which he fought, and eventually got replaced
10 November, 2004
Free Trade A war against Dalits & Adivasis
By Goldy M. George
Dalits and Adivasis (Indigenous people) have never been the part of the conventional trade systems in India. Today they are faced with the horrible hostility of trade and market policies
Dalits In Jammu: Demanding To Be Heard
By Yoginder Sikand
Dalits account for almost a tenth of the population of Jammu and Kashmir or about a third of the population of Jammu province, but in discussions about the Kashmir question the Dalit voice is almost completely absent
03 November, 2004
Roy, The Imperialist
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Was Raja Rammohun Roy an imperialist? Well, if we read him the way Lord Macaulay is read and understood by mainstream Indians, then we may well find Roy in the British camp
27 October , 2004
Reinventing Lord Macaulay
By Chandrabhan Prasad
The greatest celestial spirit for India, code named Thomas Babington Macaulay, was born on October 25, 1800. We must be enlightened enough to take his anti-Hindu, anti-Caste views, in correct spirit. Let us celebrate the birth anniversary of one of the greatest philosophers this planet has produced, not for the Lord, but for the India shinning
08 October , 2004
Quota Means Business
By Chandrabhan Prasad
In the ongoing debate on private sector quota for Dalits, new unknown faces with no knowledge about the rights of Dalits and reservation have shown up. And it's the Indian media
03 October , 2004
Tunnel Vision
By Chandrabhan Prasad
A satirical report of a hypothetical editor's guild meeting on Dalit reservation
01 October , 2004
Reservation In Private Sector For Dalits
A Political Stunt
By Dr.Vivek Kumar
Though there is a need for the policy of affirmative action in the private sector, Dalits are not convinced that the policy will see the light of day in the near future
24 September, 2004
Iconoclast, Or Lost Idol?
By S Anand
Periyar E.V. Ramasamy broke Ganesha idols, burnt Rama portraits. But his legacy has few takers today
23 September, 2004
The Periyar Legatees
By Chandrabhan Prasad
On Periyar's 125th birth anniversary, Dalit intellectuals of Tamil Nadu are engaged in serious re-thinking on Periyar, who is fast emerging a social villain. Now, Dalits in Tamil Nadu are taking pride in distancing themselves from the Dravidian movement
17 September, 2004
Navayana-Provoking Debates
By Shanta Gokhale
Three of the first four titles released by Navayana , the new publishing house launched to open up for public debate issues of caste and identity politics ignored by mainstream publishers, are about dalithood, its manifestation, expression and representation in public life and literature
16 September, 2004
Profit Knows No Caste
By Chandrabhan Prasad
The Indian industry should free itself from "caste interest", and democratise its workforce. It is in the private sector's interest to earn more. If a Dalit engineer creates more value, then the industry must prefer Dalits to non-Dalits
08 September, 2004
Despair And Hope Of The Mahadiga
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Will there be a Dalit film festival, say by 2020? By our standards, that would be a milestone in the history of the Dalit movement, albeit half a century behind the Black movement
Michael X, The Desperate Sectarian
By S Anand
A rejoinder to Harsh Sethi's review of Chandra Bhan Prasad's book ''Dalit Diary 1999-2003 -Reflection on Apartheid in India''
05 September, 2004
Dronacharya Mindset
By Gail Omvedt
Western "management gurus" have recognised the value of a diversified work force and management structure. In contrast, Indian companies continue, by and large, to operate in terms of traditional values; even as they begin to compete in the world, their feet remain mired in the mud of centuries of privilege
01 September, 2004
The Indian Media And Unity 2004
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Wouldn't it be in India's interest to have dozens of Dalits as editors, news channel heads, columnists, anchors and another thousand in the newsrooms?
23 August, 2004
Atttack On Dalits At Gumka
By Tamaskar Tandon and Goldy M. George
On 16th August 2004 nearly 250 Dalits were attacked by caste Hindus numbering about 800 at the village of Gumka, in the Chattisgarh state of India. More than 150 people including 35-40 women are injuried in this gruesome attack. The police and local administration is taking a lethargic attitude towards the culprits. Here is a fact finding report
21 August, 2004
Say Yes To Affirmative Action
By Praful Bidwai
India must emulate and adapt affirmative action methods from the US and post-apartheid South Africa too. To start with, we must ensure jobs for Dalits and Adivasis roughly in proportion to their share in the population
20 August, 2004
When Priests Preside Over Newsrooms
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Editors, columnists and anchors must be contemporary in their knowledge of events taking place in the world. If they are ignorant of American diversity, then they are terribly incompetent as media professionals. If they are aware of it but afraid of diversity, then they are terribly casteist
08 August, 2004
To Gain 10, Dalits Must Score 12.5 Points
By Chandrabhan Prasad
In societies all over the world, many individuals, in moments of crises, may sacrifice societal, national interests in favour of their own existence. In sharp contrast, in India, individuals sacrifice their own interests in favour of the caste order
05 August, 2004
All For The Cow
By T.K.Rajalakshmi
On July 10,32-year-old Abdul Waaris Khan was done to death in full public view in a crowded weekly market of Barghat, in Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh for trying to sell his bull
04 August, 2004
Seoni Gang Rape - As The World Looked On
By T.K.Rajalakshmi
Gowlis, numbering around 150 broke open the door the women through the streets of Bhomatola. The women were taken behind the Panchayat Bhawan and gang-raped
02 August, 2004
Measuring Merits, And Its Apologists
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Dalits students better their performance when they enter urban centres, hostels and relatively comfortable educational environments. Once there, they discover the material basis to explore their latent energies. On being recruited, they better their performance, and, given a chance, even excel over non-Dalits
24 July, 2004
Bengal's Caste Prejudices
By Sandip Bayopadhyay
Caste may have been cast aside in `progressive' Bengal's myth-making exercise supervised so assiduously by the ruling Marxist regime, but empirical and anecdotal evidence suggests that caste prejudices thrive in the state
23 July, 2004
Desaffronising Education
By Kancha Ilaiah
India suffers from both religious and caste communalism. So education should decasteise society as a whole
20 July, 2004
Dalit Diary 1999-2003
By Harsh Sethi
Review on the book "DALIT DIARY 1999-2003- Reflection on Apartheid in India" by Chandra Bhan Prasad
19 July, 2004
Videocon Int'l Ltd Is India's Future
By Chandrabhan Prasad
The recent job reservation debate in the private sector has mirrored the character of Indian society than ever before. The unpolished, private sector did not care to maintain minimum demeanour in rejecting the issue, and went on insulting the collective Dalit genius. But one corporate stood out among the crowd to welcome the move! Videocon Int'l Ltd
15 July, 2004
Dalits As 'Dalits' In Budget 2004
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Year after year since 1947 we have seen the ritual of the government presenting the Finance Bill. The common thread running through all the Budgets tabled so far is the exclusion of the Dalits. The political formations in power, or in the Opposition, transcend their ideological divide, howsoever artificial that may be, to unite on the Dalit question
07 July, 2004
The Indian Meaning Of Merit
By Chandrabhan Prasad
The slogan that rings out these days is this "Indian industry will loose it competitive advantage in the global market". The Dalits would, however, want to seek a very simple explanation: What competition are we talking about? With who is Indian industry competing or desires to compete?
05 July, 2004
The Caste Divide
By Naresh Puri
BBC's community affairs reporter Naresh Puri investigates the rise of one of the most hidden forms of hierarchy in Britain today: The Indian Caste system
22 June, 2004
Reservation For Dalits In Private Sector
By Dr. Udit Raj
It shocks me that some corporate houses are heard opposing the private sector reservation saying that private businesses are the result of their hardwork and money. I want to know if Indian software industry which is flourishing could have done even one per cent of it had their been no IITs and IIMs around?
21 June, 2004
Private Sector Arrogance Is 'Civilisational'
By Chandrabhan Prasad
In the grotesque eyes of Indian industrialists, the 250 million-plus Dalits must be born with some genetic problems which make them naturally "incompetent". The very existence of the shadow of a Dalit in a corporate office would make private industry lose its "competitive advantage" vis a vis the multinationals
20 June, 2004
Corporate Tax - A Tool For Affirmative Action
By S Sharath
For each 10% addition of backward castes to total recruitment for the year, provide a tax relief of 1%. For dalits, each 10% must attract 2% tax relief. The same may be extended to women and other weak sections
15 June, 2004
Social Stratification Among Muslims In India
By Salil Kader
The Muslims of India have gained the dubious distinction of sustaining a highly prejudiced and devious system of social stratification, which is nowhere to be found in the rest of the Muslim world. The community would do itself a great favour by purging this evil from within its character
14 June, 2004
Myths About Private Sector Reservation
By Chandrabhan Prasad
The Congress' "national level dialogue" slogan, and the Maharashtra government's legislation on job reservations in the private sector have infused new blood and hope among the unemployed Dalit youth.What is, however, missing in this euphoria is the limitation of the "emancipatory" role these jobs can play
06 June, 2004
Dalits Cheated Once Again
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Buy diluting the promises made to the Dalits in their election manifesto in the the Common Minimum Programme, Congress has dented its own image among the politically conscious section of Dalits. Even Sonia Gandhi is perceived as a suspect, howsoever unfair it may be
04 June, 2004
India Is Not Shining For The Dalits
By Neelesh Mishra
The lower castes, 80 percent of India's 1 billion people by government estimate, are still at the bottom in most social indicators -- education, income, employment, asset ownership and debt. It is extremely rare to find a Dalit software engineer, scientist or bank executive
30 May, 2004
Verdict 2004:Triumph non-Brahmins
By Chandrabhan Prasad
This is a historic moment for the Dalits in India's contemporary history. The Congress party too has the unique opportunity of making up for its past indifference towards the Dalit cause
29 May, 2004
BR Ambedkar: A Personal Tribute
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Dalit history may always seek the most uncomfortable question: "Why it is that post-Ambedkar, Dalits have not added even one chapter to the saga of the great trailblazer? Why it is so that when more than half the Dalit population is illiterate?"
25 May, 2004
Anti-Brahman Upsurge Of Elections 2004
By Chandrabhan Prasad
Frightened by the anti-dalit, anti-poor policies of the NDA government, most non-Brahman, non-Baniya castes reached the polling booths with the resolve to vote the NDA out of power. A caste-wise study would conclusively prove that the XIVth Lok Sabha has the least number of Brahman-Baniya MPs since 1952
20 May, 2004
Dalit Warrior
By P L Mimroth
Society and authorities in Rajasthan collude to torture a man simply because he refuses to be ill-treated as a Dalit
04 May, 2004
A History Of Racial Tension
By Pius Kamau
"In Aurora, we run into each other in corridors and the past is unfurled before us. But there's no bitterness in me, only a wish they would open their minds to a world that's fluid and not always divided into rigid castes." The personal account of an African American doctor, how uppercaste Indian Hindu's treat Africans
28 April, 2004
Ambedkar, The Nation-builder
By Vivek Kumar
It is beyond doubt that Ambedkar has been a victim of the process of "reductionism". He has either been reduced to the status of a Dalit leader or, at the most, as the chief architect of the Constitution
03 April, 2004
Politics Of Conversion
By Rashid Salim Adil and Yoginder Sikand
'Islam Gave Me Self Respect' Rashid Salim Adil, a Delhi-based advocate, social activist and politician, is a Dalit convert to Islam. Here he talks to Yoginder Sikand on Dalits, social liberation and Islam
06 March, 2004
Plight Of Dalits In Pakistan
By Yoginder Sikand
Dalits in Pakistan continue to be subjected to considerable discrimination by 'upper' caste Hindus as well as 'high' caste Muslim converts
05 March, 2004
Challenging Brahminical Fascism
By Kancha Ilaiah and Yoginder Sikand
Interview with Kancha Ilaiah
03 March, 2004
No Justice For Muthanga Victims -
They Fall Down And Die
By B F Firos
A year has passed since the tragic turn of events in Muthanga when the Kerala government brutally suppressed the rightful protest of Adivasis for their right to land. Many have died after the torture in police custody, and many others are as good as dead. Justice and land still elude them
23 February, 2004
Get Converted & Damned Too
By Dr M P Raju
Till now Conversion to Christianity or Islam was to cost you only the Scheduled Caste status; now by the grace of the Judiciary it may cost even the Scheduled Tribe Status
21 February, 2004
If Gods Become Silent The
Speechless Must Speak
By Udit Raj
Dalits are rejecting Hinduism. Why make a song and dance
about it?
19 February, 2004
Globalisation, Fascism And Dalits
By Goldy M. George
An alliance of Dalits, Adivasis, women and working class should emerge to challenge the existing citadels of power headed by a bunch of upper caste elite
15 February, 2004
Islam And Caste Inequality Among Indian Muslims
By Yoginder Sikand
Although the Qur'an insists on the radical equality of all Muslims, caste (zat, jati, biraderi) remains a defining feature of Indian Muslim society, with significant regional variations
14 January, 2004
Dalits Barred Entry Into Temple
By Mohammed Iqbal
Activists participating in a national Dalit Swadhikar rally that crossed Rajasthan the other day were denied entry into the famous Shrinath temple in Nathdwara, despite a 15-year-old judgment of the Rajasthan High Court directing the State Government to ensure unhindered access for Dalits to the temple
07 January, 2004
Casting Out Caste
By Chandana Mathur and Sujani Reddy
An Interview with Henri Tiphagne
30 December, 2003
Liberating Womanhood
By Kunda. Pramilani
Manusmriti Dahan Day celebrated as Indian womens Liberation Day on 25th December 2003 at Chaitya Bhoomi , Mumbai- A Report
06 December, 2003
What Went Wrong?
By Gail Omvedt
All of secular India has to make soul searchings about the BJP victory in the recently concluded assembly elections in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chattisgarh. People like Medha Patkar and Arundhati Roy might have had some influence in these states,but they have been silent, silent silent
30 November, 2003
The Indigenous People Of Kerala
Are Forcefully Sterilised
By The Moderator, India Thinkersnet
The news channel 'India Vision' has reported the forceful sterilisation of the indigenous people (adivasis) of Kerala in the Waynad district in an effort to ethnically cleanse them
Unwed Mothers Of Wayanad
By M P Basheer
In the Wayanad district of Kerala hundreds of tribal women are lured by the local settlers, leaving them with fatherless children after exploiting them sexually
29 November, 2003
Caste And Hinduism
By Gail Omvedt
M V Nadkarni's recent articles show the fundamental stamp of Hindutva ideology, primary of which is shoddy methodology, selective quotation and illogic
17 November, 2003
Alternate Politics - The Search & Need
By Goldy M. George
Rustic revolt particularly of the poor and working sector will definitely storm the existing citadels of power, thus emerging the new era of power, a cohesive outburst of people's struggles
02 November, 2003
Hindu Or Sindhu
By Bharat Patankar
Exposure of the Bloodthirsty Hindutva of the Sangh Parivar
09 October, 2003
Dalit Killed For Attempting Puja
By Alok Chamaria
A Dalit of Bahera village under the Karam Chat police
station of Kaimur district was killed on Saturday evening when Dalits of the village tried to offer prayers and prasad to Goddess Durga, defying the long-standing ban imposed on them by upper caste villagers
07 October, 2003
Action Alert
Maharashtra Government Destroys Tribal Homes
Hunger strike of adivasis at Rahata Tahasil office, Maharashtra
06 October, 2003
The South Indian Adivasi Experience
By CK Janu
Speech delivered at the fifth World Parks Congress, Durban
02 October, 2003
Fascism - The Emerging Threat To Indigenous People
By Goldy M. George
Expansion of fascism is disintegrating the Dalit-Adivasi ideology, theology, and identity and intimidated their very existence. This ruptures the community, deteriorates the noble notions of sharing, caring and co-operation
25 September, 2003
Legacy of Dr. BR Ambedkar stands
irreconcilably opposed to Hindutva
By B.Sivaraman
It is an irony that BJP and other Sangh Parivar outfits are trying to appropriate such a historic personality as Dr. BR Ambedkar
20 September, 2003
The Dalit Muslims And The All-India
Backward Muslim Morcha
By Yoginder Sikand
There is a growing consciousness and assertiveness of a large conglomerate of Muslim castes, some of whose leaders are now seeking to advance for them a new identity as 'Dalit Muslims'. This article examines the politics, programmes and broader agendas that advocates of this new identity seek to put forward
04 September, 2003
Ambedkar's orphans
BySagarika Ghose
Instead of being champions only for their own caste, dalit leaders should become champions of general democratisation
29 August, 2003
Mythologies of Merit
By Gail Omvedt
Indian business as a whole has maintained a deafening silence on the issue of combating caste discrimination
Shiv Sena Dangles Carrot For Dalits
By Ram Puniyani
The Ambedkar baiter Shiv Sena turns 180 degrees and
offeres to ally with dalits
28 August, 2003
Moksha In Modern Times
By Pankaj Pachauri
Modern India is always wrestling with its ancient culture and beliefs.Faith is supreme. It rules by ignoring rules. A reflection on the Kumbh mela
Violence Against Dalits- The Unused Ammunition
One principal source of continued caste violence is the lack of
implementation of existing laws in India designed to protect the lower castes
26 August, 2003
Want A Cow Bill? Go Tell It To This Child
By Nirmala Ganapathy
Five dalits were beaten, set ablaze on false charges of cow slaughter in Jhajjar. All 32 accused are out on bail threatening to do it again
24 July, 2003
Caste Tensions in Punjab - Talhan and Beyond
By Surinder S Jodhka, Prakash Louis
The recent incidence of conflict involving members of the landowning caste of jats and the scheduled caste of 'ad-dharmis' in the Talhan village of Punjab ought to be viewed as a case of 'dalit assertion'
08 July, 2003
The Return To Muthanga -An Affidavit
By C.K Janu and M. Geethanandan
An affidavit released by the tribal leaders on the violent incidents at Muthanga in February in which a tribal and a police man lost lives, and which was followed by violent reprisal of the tribal community by the government of Kerala
05 July, 2003
Broken Men, The Pre-Untouchables
By B.R. Ambedkar
Excerps from f B.R. Ambedkars 1948 work "The Untouchables: Who Were They and Why They Became Untouchables? "
Untouchability, The Dead Cow And The Brahmin
By B.R. Ambedkar
Excerps from f B.R. Ambedkars 1948 work "The Untouchables: Who Were They and Why They Became Untouchables? "
Contempt For Budhists As The Root Of Untouchability
By B.R. Ambedkar
Excerps from f B.R. Ambedkars 1948 work "The Untouchables: Who Were They and Why They Became Untouchables? "
03 July, 2003
The Constitution And Reservation
By P. B. Sawant
The Supreme Court of India in all its decisions on reservation has interpreted the expression `backward classes' in Article 16 (4) to mean the "socially and educationally" backward. It also emphatically rejected "economic backwardness" as the only or the primary criterion for reservation under article 16 (4) and observed that economic backwardness has to be on account of social and educational backwardness.
02 July, 2003
Blacks, Science And National Pride
By Kancha Ilaiah
Positive capitalist ethics evolves in a civil societal environment where the basic consciousness of spiritual democracy expands. Indian capitalism functions in an environment of spiritual fascism
28 June, 2003
Dalit Sahibs And Masses
By Manohar Yadav
Class divide among the dalits deprives the poorest of them of benefits of reservation while the rich dalits become richer. Will the dalit elite save its community from disunity or will it continue to stoke sub-caste communalism?
Beyond The Symbolic Ambedkar
K Satyanarayana
Book review of "The Essential Writings of B R Ambedkar". Through a biographical sketch and introduction to Ambedkars varied writings, the book accounts for the growing relevance of Ambedkar in contemporary India
Periyar's Movement
An introduction to the life and work of Periyar E. V. Ramaswamy
27 June, 2003
Polls And That Looming Dalit Factor
By Neerja Chowdhury
With polls just months away, the Dalit factor gets back to the
limelight in Madhya Pradesh
Michigan Prof Caste Off By Fellow Desi
By Chidanand Rajghatta
India's caste custom has reared its head in the groves of American academe.An Indian professor at a US university has sued a fellow Indian don, citing personal caste discrimination among reasons for a stifled career
17 June, 2003
Political Game Against Dalits
By Dr. Bizay Sonkar Shastri And Suresh Varghese
An interview with Dr. Bizay Sonkar Shastri, Chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
16 June, 2003
Sikh Civil Wars
By S P Singh
Casteism claims Sikhism. The long and invisible battle between Punjabs Dalits and Jats is out on the streets
12 June, 2003
Congress, Dalits And Elections
By Gail Omvedt
Unless Congress overcomes the forward caste domination in the leadership, an unwillingness to admit the horrors of caste hierarchy and atrocities, and become also the party of Ambedkar and Phule, it will never succeed in winning back its hold among the Dalits of the country
08 June, 2003
KR to Kalam Caste, Religion AndThe Indian Presidency
By Siriyavan Anand
Kalams elevation represents the collective failure of Indian polity and society. It is another phase of brahminic revivalism in India brahminism parading with a Muslim name
Embracing Budhism
By Darshan Desai
Dalits who bloodied their hands for Hindutva last year in Gujarat are turning to the Buddha
01 June, 2003
Who Are The Criminals?
By Dilip D'souza
Phase Pardhis are one of India's denotified tribes but the authorities and society in general continue to think of them as criminals. So who are the criminals?
28 May, 2003
This Witch Couldnt Save Herself
A woman is branded a tonahi (village witch), dragged out of her house by her hair, beaten up in public, tortured and even forced to consume human faeces in Junwani village, Chhattisgarh
27 May, 2003
Dalits mobilising
By Gail Omvedt
In India, and the world as a whole... Dalits themselves are calling for action on all fronts, a cultural-economic and political revolution
24 May, 2003
Dalit Diaspora Joins The Fight
By Vivek Kumar
The Dalit diaspora has all of a sudden become visible. Yet another Dalit international conference was successfully concluded earlier this month in Vancouver, Canada, with the help of the Dalit diaspora in different parts of the world
16 May, 2003
Trishuls, Lathis And Books
By Kancha Ilaiah
How liberating is a spiritual and social tradition that hands down weapons but not books to its adherents?
24 April, 2003
Do Brahminical Ideologies Permeate
Indian Psychological Theory?
By Siriyavan Anand
Report of a seminar in Pune on `Caste and Discourses of the Mind'.
17 April, 2003
"We Will Continue The Struggle"
Statement by Kerala adivasi struggle leader CK Janu immediately after her release from jail
16 April, 2003
Dalit threat to Gujarat conversion law
A Dalit organisation is threatening mass conversion as a mark of protest against Gujarat anticonversion law
15 April, 2003
Ambedkar As Hindu
By Shamsul Islam
The RSS lie machinery does not leave even Dr. B.R. Ambedkar alone. They present him as a leader in league with Hedgewar and Golwalkar and as a defender for the cause of the Hindu Rashtra.
Betrayed In Gods Country: The adivasi
uprising in Kerala
By C.R. Bijoy
The occupation of forest land in Muthanga and the subsequent police brutality was the result of the continuous betrayal by the successive governments of the legitimate rights of the Adivasis to own their own land
Displaced by deceit
By R Madhavan Nair
The tale of Wayanad's tribals is one of betrayal and exploitation by "settlers" and successive Governments, writes R. Madhavan Nair.
Damning the Dalits for the Bania-Brahmin
Crimes in Gujarat
by Anand Teltumbde
In the pogrom in Gujarat it will largely be Dalits and Tribals who would be made sacrificial goats. It is certain that the real culprits who conceived and carried out this heinous carnage will never be touched.
Politics of cow protection
by Nonica Datta
Dalits, including family members of those lynched in Jhajjar, have converted to Buddhism, Islam and Christianity in Gurgaon. One of the Balmiki converts, after the Jhajjar killings, confessed: "I challenge the VHP, Bajrang Dal and RSS to reconvert me. I will give up my life but never be a Hindu again."
Killing of Five Dalits In Jhajjar
Report Of The Left Parties Delegation To Duleena, Jhajjar District Haryana On October 17 In Protest Against Dalit Lynching Atrocity.
Is the Life of a Cow More Important than
the Life of Five Dalits?
Murder of five Dalits in a Haryana village for skinning a cow and the justification of VHP leader Giriraj Kishorethat the life of a cow is very important, according to the shastras
Denial of land drives Dalits to Islam
by R. Ilangovan
Denial of land drives Dalits to Islam in Madurai district of Tamil Nadu
Developmental Perspective for the Dalit Literature in the Era of Globalization
by Dr. Anand Teltumbde
Transcription of a speech delivered at the South India Dalit Literary Workshop at Thiruvananthpuram, Kerala, 27-29 May, 2002
A Dalit Beaten Up in Tamil Nadu
The upper class hindus have struck again in Tamil nadu. This time it is in the Satharasankottai village in Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu against a Dalit agricultural worker.
The Adivasis of India - A History of Discrimination,
Conflict and Resistance
By C.R. Bijoy
Infosys and Microsoft
By Gail Omvedt
Gail Omvedt asks Infosys chairman Narayanamoorthy to develop Infosys as a company concerned with social justice, making its employees represent all groups in society and not simply minority upper- caste elite sections.
Reservation in the corporate sector
By Gail Omvedt
Targeting tribal people
By Naunidhi Kaur
The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests seeks to clear 12.5 lakh hectares of forest land by evicting its 10-million strong tribal population.
Preying on Dalits
By S. Viswanathan
Two more alleged incidents of atrocities on Dalits in Tamil Nadu come to the foreground. One Dalit is made to drink his own urine and two others in Tiruchi district are made to eat each others excrement
Hindutva and caste
By Kancha Ilaiah
There are no indications that Hinduism will allow spiritual democracy within its structure. The Hindutva forces may pretend that the agenda is being Sudraised but Hinduism shall remain Brahminical
Broken People: Caste Violence Against Indias
Untouchables
Human Rights Watch Report