10-25-2005, 07:48 AM
Caste war shows India's lowest class still faces struggle
By Kim Barker
Tribune foreign correspondent
Published September 21, 2005
BADHRAM, India -- The men say they have been forced to stay in their homes for weeks. No barber will cut their hair. They cannot buy food for their buffalo. And Bhim Singh, 65, was beaten up.
Their crime? They are Dalits, members of the bottom rung of India's caste system. They say they have been tormented for almost a month, since Rajneesh, a village Dalit, brushed his teeth and spat too close to the Hindu priest.
"God kill all of them," said Champa, Bhim Singh's wife, a Dalit who like many Indians uses one name. "Just see how painful this is for my man."
Village leaders, from higher castes, say they have done nothing wrong. They blame a few men on the other side of town for stirring up trouble.
But the conflict in Badhram shows what has happened to caste politics in India. Dalits, once known as "untouchables," are fighting back against oppression. They also are facing resentment.
Indian law guarantees equality for everyone, yet Dalits still are persecuted in many rural areas. In some villages they are not allowed to drink from the same well as others. They often are forced to perform menial jobs, cleaning toilets and watering fields.
In recent years, Dalits have won power in parts of India. A recent president was a Dalit, K.R. Narayanan, who was picked in 1997 for the ceremonial post. For the first time, Hindu scriptures are being attacked for insulting Dalits. And a law is being debated that would reserve jobs for Dalits in private industry--government jobs already are set aside.
But others are fighting any Dalit gains, on the street or in the courtroom. A recent Supreme Court ruling challenges quotas for Dalits in private universities.
2 factions fuming
In Badhram, the push-and-pull over Dalit rights culminated in a caste war that has lasted almost a month. Now the two factions sit fuming on opposite ends of the main road in town, about 50 yards apart.
A report last week by a Dalit activist group said the primary problem between the two groups in Badhram is "the assertiveness of Dalits to lead a life of dignity." The National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights said village Dalits were being oppressed because they refused to be beggars or forced laborers. The group is calling for the central government to intervene in the fight and for higher-caste villagers to be jailed and fined.
"A reign of terror prevails in the village," the report said.
Badhram, 60 miles southeast of Delhi, is a farming village of about 275 families--30 are Dalits, considered to be outside any caste. Just by looking, it is impossible to tell a Dalit from a member of one of the village's 11 higher castes. The Dalit wears a Ferrari T-shirt and works at a furniture store. The Brahmin, a member of India's highest caste, wears a Diesel T-shirt and runs a gym.
The Dalits here have a litany of allegations since Rajneesh and the Hindu priest fought July 24: Bhim Singh and two other elderly men were beat up. Four Dalit homes were set on fire. Half of one man's mustache was shaved off. Dalit phone lines were cut. A woman was stripped naked and threatened. The outdoor toilet area was closed down.
`They even have tractors'
Higher-caste members say the Dalits just want attention and set their own homes on fire, shaved their own mustaches and made everything else up. They say they are afraid and their lives are miserable because of Dalit oppression. They say the Dalits are treated equally in Badhram and live pretty well.
"They even have tractors and motorcycles," said Jagan Singh, a farmer and former village leader who belongs to the Zamindar land-owning caste. "They even have trucks."
"Mobile phones," one man shouted. "Color TVs," another pointed out.
"They eat butter chicken every day," Singh added.
He attributed the current trouble to a park on the other end of town, dedicated to Bhim Rao Ambedkar, considered the father of the Indian Constitution and a major proponent of Dalit rights. "I got them that park," Singh said. "Then they do this to us."
In a way, the village dispute can be traced to the park and Ambedkar, who with his thick, black-rimmed glasses resembled a 1950s-era accountant.
Five years ago, after reading many books about Ambedkar and Dalits, three Badhram Dalits decided to form a new activist group, the Youth Association of Bhim Rao Ambedkar. They tried to make sure Dalit children were educated. They said they persuaded two men, who had worked as servants for decades, to quit their jobs.
One of those men was Bhim Singh. Both he and his father had worked for Jagan Singh and his father.
Jagan Singh said Bhim Singh stopped working for his family because he was old and sick, not because he was empowered.
But after pressure, the village agreed to set up the new park and a small Ambedkar statue. Soon, someone allegedly broke the concrete glasses off the Ambedkar statue. Complaints were filed with the police.
Those complaints led to the current tension. And after Rajneesh and the Hindu priest got into their fight, allegations flew. The upper-caste villagers said the Dalits dragged the priest to the Ambedkar park, hung a necklace of shoes around him and beat him up. The Dalits said Rajneesh and his family members were beaten.
Now the priest has left town, and Rajneesh is hiding. The tension continues. Police officers sit and wait with the upper-caste villagers, theoretically to keep the peace.
"Everything is normal," said Shivram, the head constable of a nearby village and a Brahmin. "There are no complaints from either side."
The Dalits acknowledge that a few of them own trucks, tractors, mobile phones and television sets but they say no one eats chicken daily, let alone butter chicken, considered a fancy dish in Badhram. They say the police are ignoring any abuse.
It is telling that the police sit with the members from the higher castes, not with Dalits.
On the Dalit end of town, Bhim Singh lies in his bed, showing off purple bruises on his right elbow and left shoulder. He said he was beaten up Aug. 12 as he went to use the bathroom outside. He said he worked until he was 60 for no pay, only for what Jagan Singh would give him, food and clothes. Now, he said, he is afraid to go outside.
"It's like round-the-clock torture for all of us," he said.
By Kim Barker
Tribune foreign correspondent
Published September 21, 2005
BADHRAM, India -- The men say they have been forced to stay in their homes for weeks. No barber will cut their hair. They cannot buy food for their buffalo. And Bhim Singh, 65, was beaten up.
Their crime? They are Dalits, members of the bottom rung of India's caste system. They say they have been tormented for almost a month, since Rajneesh, a village Dalit, brushed his teeth and spat too close to the Hindu priest.
"God kill all of them," said Champa, Bhim Singh's wife, a Dalit who like many Indians uses one name. "Just see how painful this is for my man."
Village leaders, from higher castes, say they have done nothing wrong. They blame a few men on the other side of town for stirring up trouble.
But the conflict in Badhram shows what has happened to caste politics in India. Dalits, once known as "untouchables," are fighting back against oppression. They also are facing resentment.
Indian law guarantees equality for everyone, yet Dalits still are persecuted in many rural areas. In some villages they are not allowed to drink from the same well as others. They often are forced to perform menial jobs, cleaning toilets and watering fields.
In recent years, Dalits have won power in parts of India. A recent president was a Dalit, K.R. Narayanan, who was picked in 1997 for the ceremonial post. For the first time, Hindu scriptures are being attacked for insulting Dalits. And a law is being debated that would reserve jobs for Dalits in private industry--government jobs already are set aside.
But others are fighting any Dalit gains, on the street or in the courtroom. A recent Supreme Court ruling challenges quotas for Dalits in private universities.
2 factions fuming
In Badhram, the push-and-pull over Dalit rights culminated in a caste war that has lasted almost a month. Now the two factions sit fuming on opposite ends of the main road in town, about 50 yards apart.
A report last week by a Dalit activist group said the primary problem between the two groups in Badhram is "the assertiveness of Dalits to lead a life of dignity." The National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights said village Dalits were being oppressed because they refused to be beggars or forced laborers. The group is calling for the central government to intervene in the fight and for higher-caste villagers to be jailed and fined.
"A reign of terror prevails in the village," the report said.
Badhram, 60 miles southeast of Delhi, is a farming village of about 275 families--30 are Dalits, considered to be outside any caste. Just by looking, it is impossible to tell a Dalit from a member of one of the village's 11 higher castes. The Dalit wears a Ferrari T-shirt and works at a furniture store. The Brahmin, a member of India's highest caste, wears a Diesel T-shirt and runs a gym.
The Dalits here have a litany of allegations since Rajneesh and the Hindu priest fought July 24: Bhim Singh and two other elderly men were beat up. Four Dalit homes were set on fire. Half of one man's mustache was shaved off. Dalit phone lines were cut. A woman was stripped naked and threatened. The outdoor toilet area was closed down.
`They even have tractors'
Higher-caste members say the Dalits just want attention and set their own homes on fire, shaved their own mustaches and made everything else up. They say they are afraid and their lives are miserable because of Dalit oppression. They say the Dalits are treated equally in Badhram and live pretty well.
"They even have tractors and motorcycles," said Jagan Singh, a farmer and former village leader who belongs to the Zamindar land-owning caste. "They even have trucks."
"Mobile phones," one man shouted. "Color TVs," another pointed out.
"They eat butter chicken every day," Singh added.
He attributed the current trouble to a park on the other end of town, dedicated to Bhim Rao Ambedkar, considered the father of the Indian Constitution and a major proponent of Dalit rights. "I got them that park," Singh said. "Then they do this to us."
In a way, the village dispute can be traced to the park and Ambedkar, who with his thick, black-rimmed glasses resembled a 1950s-era accountant.
Five years ago, after reading many books about Ambedkar and Dalits, three Badhram Dalits decided to form a new activist group, the Youth Association of Bhim Rao Ambedkar. They tried to make sure Dalit children were educated. They said they persuaded two men, who had worked as servants for decades, to quit their jobs.
One of those men was Bhim Singh. Both he and his father had worked for Jagan Singh and his father.
Jagan Singh said Bhim Singh stopped working for his family because he was old and sick, not because he was empowered.
But after pressure, the village agreed to set up the new park and a small Ambedkar statue. Soon, someone allegedly broke the concrete glasses off the Ambedkar statue. Complaints were filed with the police.
Those complaints led to the current tension. And after Rajneesh and the Hindu priest got into their fight, allegations flew. The upper-caste villagers said the Dalits dragged the priest to the Ambedkar park, hung a necklace of shoes around him and beat him up. The Dalits said Rajneesh and his family members were beaten.
Now the priest has left town, and Rajneesh is hiding. The tension continues. Police officers sit and wait with the upper-caste villagers, theoretically to keep the peace.
"Everything is normal," said Shivram, the head constable of a nearby village and a Brahmin. "There are no complaints from either side."
The Dalits acknowledge that a few of them own trucks, tractors, mobile phones and television sets but they say no one eats chicken daily, let alone butter chicken, considered a fancy dish in Badhram. They say the police are ignoring any abuse.
It is telling that the police sit with the members from the higher castes, not with Dalits.
On the Dalit end of town, Bhim Singh lies in his bed, showing off purple bruises on his right elbow and left shoulder. He said he was beaten up Aug. 12 as he went to use the bathroom outside. He said he worked until he was 60 for no pay, only for what Jagan Singh would give him, food and clothes. Now, he said, he is afraid to go outside.
"It's like round-the-clock torture for all of us," he said.