Chandra Bhan Prasad

Some 165 million Indians still preserve the ancient status of "dalits" or untouchables, outside the rigid and hierarchical Hindu system of caste . For centuries, have taken on tasks that nobody else wants and have suffered a barbarous discrimination by the rest of society. Even today, are prohibited from entering certain rural temples, can not draw water from the same well used by the rest of the population and, in some remote areas, have to advertise their presence so that your shadow does not touch unclean to the Brahmins. One of his most significant voices is that of Chandra Bhan Prasad, the first "Dalit" with a column in a newspaper. Prasad has carried out a study, supported by the University of Pennsylvania, to detect if it is a change in patterns of behavior of "dalits" in recent decades. And, she says, that change comes by way least expected: economic liberalism, capitalism.

- You say there are signs of a change in the situation of "dalits". Why has it taken so long to arrive? The India gained independence six decades ago ...

We wanted to study the changes following the economic reforms of 1991. So the 90 is our reference, starting and ending 91 years or so, in 2007. I think the cause of change is the massive economic expansion. Dalits began to occupy the lower rungs of the industrial jobs: mechanics, technicians ... But they began to send money home in the village, and also the messages: "Please Dad, mom, sister, stop work on the lands of the landowner. And do something else because I send money. " Say, 1,000 rupees a month (about 20 euros). That created a kind job crisis in the country, because each town is losing positions arms to non-agricultural work.

When a food crisis, there are those who blames the Dalits. Say they do not cultivate the land as before, and therefore there is less grain. And the Dalits say yes, what happens: we do not cultivate the land or discrimination.

- At this point, the fact that the lands do not have dalits influences the process.

People with land has no reason to go into town unless you have a more lucrative opportunity. In India, in Europe too long ago, every family looking to have livestock, and livestock requires work of each member of the family, particularly children, caring for small animals such as pigs, goats, chickens, sheep, and this prevents them from advancing their education. Many Dalits have no land and no longer have animals. There is nothing to tie them to the field. So if you get a ticket to Delhi or Bombay, they leave.

With the floods in Bihar [a region in the north], where aid teams arrived to rescue people from roofs, half said first and then we won, then they were told that was not possible. And what they replied they wanted was a home service, "because then we do not want to leave here, we're fine. Bring us water and food, "he said. They were afraid of losing their livestock.

The upper castes have land, cattle, buffalo ... So do not face any trouble. There is no reason that impels them to come to a shantytown and working in a factory, unless they appoint managers or white collar workers.

Some Dalits are starting to buy land, and that is very dangerous. Because when you buy land, you'll be stuck with them.

- But the anxiety of speaking ... what is the exact situation of Dalits in a village today? What is now suffering discrimination?

The rural structure is such that at any point of Dalit village this country is in the city center. It will away, outside. Any communication infrastructure reaches the city center where there are no Dalits, and stops there. So Dalits can not go to your local bike directly but must go through the village. Matter of tradition. In addition, water sources are different for the Dalits. Another example: in Haryana [a region of northwest], when Dalit wedding and groom goes with his band, on horseback, others attack them.

My own family has in the memory of a landowner, riding a black horse. We were building the house and came to say that the roof of our house (partly clay, partly of brick), should not be taller than his house. This was a subtle threat. And they could not act to smite the pride of the landowner. So they were ready: put a platform of mud on the ground and built the house on it, so that the height of the houses was less than the landowner. But the appearance in the distance, remained was that of a huge house. Dalits and other towns came to see the house.

- But these situations of discrimination do not occur in the cities ...

The caste system began in a rural environment. You can not operate in a city with the same level of authority. Because here in the city no one knows. In a restaurant, is a stranger who serves you food. So greatly, caste becomes ineffective in the context of the city.

- And is there any brand, any sign of distinction for Dalits?

In northern India, that mark is the name and last name. For example, if you just call me Chandra Bhan, then I have no name and that causes doubt. And there mark on the surname: Sharma, Singh, Pandey, are names that denote a higher caste than, say, Ram, or those without a name. In India, if you are not Dalits, have a last name.

- In addition there own jobs, as cleaners ...

Yes, they can see them and say they are Dalits. No need to ask. But there are Dalits who try to escape from their condition and hide their caste [the progress of vegetarian food in India partly hides the desire of castibajos to resemble the 'Brahmins']. Sometimes, there are Dalits in their offices trying not to go through such. But in India, people have the habit of asking your parents, your ancestors, who they were, what they did. Dalits have no memory of that lineage, because they were always workers. So the occupation of parents, also know.

As for work in the field Dalits were engaged in farm work, the toughest jobs. An example: In the past, there was no machinery and Dalits must separate the wheat from the chaff from the wheat, so when they brought the harvest to the landlord's house, two oxen walking on the crop for two or three days, and ate the straw. As also fed on grain, Dalits should be home droppings. There, washed and separated the grain, the landowner is left with the grain and they stayed with the droppings for use as fuel. Up to that point came their poverty. In the culture of the peasants was the concept of "eat" before going to work. It pulled all day without food in the fields, while the landlord began the day with tea or milk.

- Are Dalits now better access to education?

In general, people have begun to invest in education. Take the example of a people traditionally regarded as "long overdue" called Bara Kotta: there are 47 Dalit children who have chosen private education, and only 13 or 14 studying in public schools, where they are given free food, among other things. In private, must pay about 25 rupees a month [only half a euro], but most prefer.

In my own case, my family wanted me to have the highest education possible. As my brother, who worked with a reserved job: to withdraw had no home, no TV or fridge, but managed to educate their four sons. Now in my family did not seek state aid, because we can stand on our own.

- What role have quotas and reservations in public employment in the advancement of Dalits? It seems that there are many positions that are not occupied.

No, no. Most other positions are occupied by Dalits, except for certain areas of the scientific field. And most importantly, has created a middle class Dalits. So quotas have worked. But it is true that the fees can not reach all Dalits. Reach only a 6 or 7 percent of the Dalits. For state jobs were less than 20 million. And they have your share: 16 percent for Dalits and 8 to tribes. That leaves five million jobs, so even if all stay busy, only a few million Dalits have those jobs.

-In any case, what is the reason there are unfilled seats?

Is that the majority of Dalits are in a state of backwardness. They were warned and did not receive enough information. Now at least when there is a vacancy in office, is covered, except in the academic, justice, army and some scientific areas.

- This educational benefit, do you see a future in which Dalits caste to not be of concern?

So far, in the order of caste, your position is fixed. I refer to the ritual hierarchy. That is not negotiable or subject to purchase. There have been major historical moments in which important people tried to overcome it and failed. For example Shivaji, Emperor of Maharashtra, who came from the Sudra caste status but claimed kshatriya [warrior], he took the throne by force, but needed a Brahmin who ritualizara. So he turned to a beggar Brahmin of Benares. And yet there are doubts about their status.

Some say that the Dalits were in India before the others arrived, but no evidence. And in any case, the claim to a noble past of course, what good is it? What good is to say, we were kings? Dalits have no nostalgia for the past. They are nostalgic: precisely what they want is to forget his past.

The ritual is still the benchmark brand in the social: the Dalits can not move. What I argue is that if consumer goods replaced the ritual as a mark of status, then we have broken with the past. Because consumer goods are negotiable and subject to purchase. A Dalit can buy a TV. Before a poor Brahmin may have nothing to put in their mouth, but walked as a Brahmin and people would have to bend over. But now, what happens on the field, is that if you are Brahman but have no food, no motorcycle or a TV antenna sticking out of your house, no phone, no fridge, then who are you? ¿Brahman? So what? Get lost!

- So what you maintain is that capitalism is bringing a change for Dalits.

Yes, because the caste system was born in a rural system. People who survived with minimal needs. The breed was her solace. A rich dalit salute was subjugated to a kshatriya. But now the marks are changing. So with this system, long term, the breed will become irrelevant. But still there, as happens in the U.S.: when a white friend, and with confidence, says that its origin is Irish or British, or that their ancestors came from France. So that aspect continues to exist, but has no role in public life.

- And in this progress, I guess that urban India is having a major role. The Dalits are, as I understand, because they have important possessions in the field.

Come more easily. But this is not mainstream thinking. Dalit intellectuals do not believe that capitalism will inevitably lead to no relief.

- That's what you thought before. I saw that he played in the Naxalite guerrillas [the name given to the Maoists in India]! You changed your mind?

Yes [laughs]. Actually, I was young. I came to study at JNU, with a past in which he had seen the suffering and humiliation. So I thought if Naxalism is a change, let me be part of it. And I spent three years devoted to full-time pacing with a gun. But then I realized that this would not work. I felt that what combat Naxalism is modernity. And they are against the rich. Imagine that I have no money to buy ice cream for my children. And I see other children eating ice cream. Why should I go against them? At least one ice cream vendor has a job. In my town there are 36 ice cream vendors. Your children may not be paid ice cream, but as the rich kids eat ice cream, their parents bring home 200 rupees a day. So have food. Best clothes, and can go to school. How to analyze the change of some Dalits and Naxalites is to think that there is an increasing gap between rich and poor.

He criticizes capitalism will increase inequality.

I have to discuss it with my opponents. The Dalits had no elephants, or horses. Started having bicycle 20 or 30 years. I had nothing, I bought a bicycle. He had seen bicycles, or people riding bicycles. I bought one, but it turns out my landlord bought a motorcycle and a car. When I had nothing, my landlord had an elephant. Inequality increased, yes. But now at least I had a bicycle.

The point is that if Bill Gates has 1,000 million dollars in your account, it will not impact much on your lifestyle. It has it all! But for a black driver of a cab in Harlem, $ 10 extra a day will involve a change in diet. Would go from red meat to white meat. And a Dalit buy a "Maruti" and the reaction is "Wow, a Dalit by car."

- But if the Dalits remain isolated and without access infrastructure, how do you get supplies?

There is a traditional boundary to be changed. Because when a Dalit comes to town, nobody can control it. This has seen things, has opened his mind. And start thinking, "Who the hell is the landlord?". There are many instances of Dalits who came to the city and then returned a year later, wearing jeans, shirts or sunglasses. It turns out that the son of the landowner concerned. "Hey," he says, "I'm standing here and I say 'hello'. And the Dalit says, "Who do you think you are? Why it is I who must say 'hello' and not vice versa? You're younger than me. " So there are riots and clashes. In most cases, because the Dalits can look at society in the eye. Before it was a "yes sir", "namaste, sir." Now look straight ahead. And there are riots. Why would anyone kill your opponent, if not because you feel threatened? As before there were no murders, many tell me that the reforms have brought massacres. That when there was capitalism, not kill them. But those deaths come from a perceived threat to culture, tradition or domain. Still, I say do not kill us before and now, with capitalism. It is a fact. But reason is not capitalism, but the attempt to break free from the domination and slavery.

- Have you seen concrete changes in the attempt to escape the domination? The villages are cut off.

That is why stress! The tension comes because Dalits are accessing the market. Before there was tension because the domain was absolute. Those who continue in the fields continue to suffer this domination. But those who have gone out and enjoy some freedom.

Capitalism is serving to mark the passage of a system based on caste, to another system that is not based on caste. Now, go to my village, and two beauty centers in Dalit areas. Who could imagine this 20 years ago?

- And in his report, is there any investigation of which you feel surprised?

Not exactly. Look, my grandfather worked as a guard and my brother got a job reserved. I grew up in a town to get to college, at age 20. I came to JNU, I studied three years and then joined the Naxalites three years in the field. I returned to college to continue studying a PhD in Chinese science. But then I quit because I was not interested. And I went to my village where I spent four or five years with the message of B. Ambedkar, organizing people, promoting education. So I was in touch with society, and when I proposed this study to the University of Pennsylvania, accepted immediately.

- Then there is the question of symbols. When I arrived in India, one of the first news was the destruction of a statue of Ambedkar. Why keep alive the opposition against him?

For Ambedkar is an icon. If you want to attack a particular individual, you and hit you. But if you want to attack the entire Dalit community, what you do is hit your symbol. What the Bible is to Christians or the Koran for Muslims, it is Ambedkar for Dalits. Ambedkar's statues often have raised the index finger of the hand, and often is that finger so they attack. Because society understands that what Ambedkar is point to it with your finger. Dalits feel damaged to an attack on Ambedkar. Do not tolerate: for Ambedkar attack is to attack the Dalits.

- Who is leading these attacks?

You do not need an organized attack. Anyone can do it. Sometimes they can be organized, perhaps the RSS.

- The Dalits are now in power in Uttar Pradesh [in the north, the region's most populous country]. Are you bringing this real change or is merely lip service?

Discussions are on-line if Mayawati who has spurred the Dalits in Uttar Pradesh or are Dalits who have spurred Mayawati.

- What do you mean?

As the head of government, that has triggered the self-esteem of Dalits, the company is receiving a "daliterapia" oh, we are governed by Dalits. So the hatred of the Dalits is partly relieved, because she has been democratically elected. And Dalits can no longer be the scapegoat for everything.

- What Mayawati already has a status comparable to that of Ambedkar in the movement "Dalit"?

As a policy, it's like any politician. Every politician in India has open cases and allegations of corruption. Politicians make money and that's your only reason to enter politics. There are only a few exceptions of politicians who have failed to profit, as Manmohan Singh. Apart from this, Mayawati is a symbol of Dalit pride today.

Caste

The caste system in India, describes the social stratification and social restrictions present in the Indian subcontinent, where social classes are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups, often called "jatis" or "caste". Within a "jati" there are hereditary groups called "gotras", lineage or clan of an individual.

Although the caste system has been generally associated with Hinduism , the caste system is also present in other religions of the subcontinent, such as Islam or Christianity. The Indian Constitution has outlawed discrimination on the basis of caste, in line with the principles of secularism, socialism or democracy in which the nation was founded. The barriers of caste are very weak in the big cities, though persist in rural areas of the country. Even so, the system continues to survive in a changing in modern India strengthened by a combination of social and political perceptions sectarian.

History. There is no universally accepted theory about the origin of Indian caste system. Indian classes are similar to "pistras" of ancient Iran, where the priests are Athravans, warriors are Rathaestha, merchants and craftsmen are Vastriya are Huiti.

A study prepared in 2002-2003 by T. Kivisild concluded that tribal and caste populations derive Indian "greatly" in the same genetic heritage of South Asian and West who lived in the Pleistocene, and that gene flow from other regions was very limited since the Holocene. Several studies claim that the different caste groups have a similar genetic heritage. However, a genetic study of 2001 conducted by Professor Michael Bamshad of the University of Utah, found that the affinity of Indians to Europeans is proportionate to the position of breed: the upper castes are more similar to the Europeans. Researchers believe that the Indo-Aryans entered India from the northwest and may have established a caste system in which they themselves were at preferred sites. Still, the Indian samples for this study were taken in one area, so we still have to investigate whether results are generalizable.

Varna and Jati. According to the oldest Hindu scriptures, there are four "varnas": the Brahmins (teachers, scholars and priests), the "shatrias" (kings and warriors), vaishas (farmers and merchants) and Sudras ( service providers and craftsmen). This theoretical system postulated Varna categories as ideals of just explaining the reality of thousands of "jatis" endogamous, that was what really prevailed in the country. Foreign, tribal or nomadic peoples who did not subscribe to the norms of Indian society were described as "mlechhas" and treated as contagious and untouchables. They were, along with a group known as "Parjanya", the origin of the current "dalits", although at that time the varna system was not yet hereditary.

Some critics of Hinduism claim that the caste system is rooted in the varnas mentioned in ancient scriptures. However, many groups such as ISKCON, consider that the modern Indian caste system is an entity other than the varnas. Many European scholars of the colonial era watching the "Manusmriti" as the book of Hindu law, and concluded that the caste system was part of Hinduism, that view is opposed by some Indian experts, for whom the breed is more a anachronistic social practice than a religious issue.

Caste and social status. Traditionally, although the power was in the hands of "shatrias", historians have portrayed the Brahmins as the bearers of the most prestigious. Fa Hien, a Buddhist pilgrim from China, visited India around 400 AD "Just found degrading the position of the 'track suits'; outcasts because of their work, responsible for the disposal of the dead. But no other section of the population suffered a significant disadvantage, no distinction of caste attracted comments on this pilgrimage, and no earned his oppressive censorship system. " And the words of another Chinese pilgrim, Hsuan Tsang (600 AD) indicate that the king of the region of Sind was a Sudra.

The castes did not constitute a rigid description of the occupation or social status of a group. As British society was divided into classes, the British tried to equate the Indian caste system to their own social system. And they saw the caste as an indicator of occupation, social status and intellectual ability. Intentionally or not, the caste system became more rigid during the British Raj, when the invaders began to enumerate castes during the census and coded the system under his control.

The " Dalits "or people outside the varna system, had the lowest social status. Formerly called "untouchables", worked in the work seen as unhealthy, unpleasant or polluting. In the past, "Dalit" suffered social segregation and restrictions in addition to extreme poverty. They were not allowed to pray in the temples with the rest, or take water from the same sources. People of higher castes were not related to them. If somehow a member of a higher caste took physical or social contact with an untouchable, must be purged of impurity newly acquired. Social discrimination also developed among Dalits. The higher castes among them (dhobis, nais ...) not related to the low (Bhangi, for example), described as "outcasts even among outcastes".

Sociologists have also discussed the historical advantages offered by a rigid social structure as the caste system, but also the loss of utility in a modern world. Historically, the system offered several advantages to the population of the subcontinent, for resulting anachronistic today. Originally, it was an instrument of order in a society governed only consent required, and where ritual rights and financial obligations of the members were strictly regulated with respect to other castes. One born within a breed and retained that status for life. The credit was hereditary and equality existed only within the caste, but not for others.

A well-defined system of mutual interdependence through a division of labor created security within a community. In addition, the division of labor based on ethnicity allowed immigrants and foreigners to integrate rapidly in their own niches of caste. The system had an influential role in determining economic activity. It worked like medieval European guilds, ensuring the division of labor, providing training to apprentices and in some cases, encouraging industrial specialization: in some regions, producing each variety of cloth was the specialty of a subcaste. In addition, philosophers added that most people felt comfortable in stratified endogamous groups. The membership of a particular breed, with its narrative, history and genealogy related, gave members a sense of group and cultural pride, as with the "Marathas", the "Rajput" or "Iyers".

Caste mobility. Some scholars believe that the ranking of caste was fluid and could come to differ from place to place before the arrival of the British. Some sociologists argue that castibajos groups trying to raise the status of their caste trying to emulate the practices of higher castes.

Flexibility in caste laws permitted very low caste priests, as Valmiki to compose the Ramayana, which became a central work of the Hindu scriptures. According to some psychologists, however, mobility was broad caste lines rather "minimal", but the jatis could change their social status for generations to relocation or adoption of new rituals.

For MN Srinivas, the movement was always possible, especially in the middle regions of the hierarchy. It was always possible for groups born in lower castes "rise to a higher position by adopting vegetarianism, for example, and other customs of the upper castes. While theoretically prohibited, the process was common. The concept of sanskritización, or the adoption of the rules of the higher castes by low, demonstrates the real complexity and fluidity of caste relations.

Distinctions, particularly between the Brahmins and other castes, were highly visible in theory but in practice it appears that social restrictions were not so rigid. There are Brahmins who came to base their work on earth, many groups say shatrias not acquire their status until recently. The fact that many dynasties have obscure origins suggests a certain social mobility. And certain breeds, according to Brahman, born of marriages between different jatis. It is noteworthy that the caste hierarchy was never a uniform distribution in the subcontinent.

Reform movements. From the time of Buddha and Mahavira (the last founder of Jainism), other leaders challenged the caste system. Tantrism, Yoga Upanishads, the system Natha part of the plethora of movements opposed or critical of the varnas. Many devout saints rejected the caste discriminations. And during the British Raj, this sentiment gained momentum, and many reform movements like the Brahmo Samaj and the Arya abjured discrimination. Social reformers advocated the inclusion of the untouchables in society, including the "Mahatma" Gandhi, who called them Harijans ("children of God"), although the term was rejected by the main leaders untouchables, who considered it patronizing. Has settled better word "Dalit" (oppressed). Gandhi's contribution to the emancipation of the untouchables is still under discussion, especially after comments by his contemporary, BR Ambedkar, an untouchable important activities Gandhi believed to be harmful to the elevation of his people.

Discrimination of untouchability was formally abolished by the Constitution of India, in which Ambedkar was instrumental, in 1950, and has been a decline since then, but has not achieved eradication. Former President KR Narayanan and the Indian chief justice, KG Balakrishnan, come from castes considered untouchable.

British rule. The fluidity of the caste system was altered with the arrival of the British invaders subcontinent. Previously, caste classifications differed from one place to another. The castes did not constitute a rigid description of the occupation or social status of a group. But British society was divided into classes, and the British tried to develop a classification policy as an element of social organization. They saw caste as an indicator of occupation, social status and intellectual ability.

During the first years of domination by the British company of the East Indies, were fostered caste privileges and customs, although British law put an end to discrimination against lower castes. However, caste identity was reinforced by the policies of "divide and rule" and taxonomy of the population into rigid categories in the census, conducted every ten years. Until 1910, the subcontinent witnessed at least thirteen castibajos rebellions.

The modern status of the breed. The caste system is still very rigid in some rural areas and small towns. The breed also remains an important weight in Indian politics. The Government of India has been officially scheduled castes and subcastes, with the purpose of determining who is entitled to the famous "quotas" or reservations, ie affirmative action in education and public works. The government lists include Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Other Backward Castes (OBC).

The Scheduled Castes (SC) are generally former untouchable caste ("Dalits"). Currently, the "Dalits" account for 16 percent of the total population of India (ie, about 160 million people. Only in the territory of Delhi there are 49 castes listed as SC.

The Scheduled Tribes (ST). The tribes are tribal groups. Currently comprises 7 percent of the total population of India, ie some 70 million people.

Other Backward Castes (OBC). The Mandal Commission covered more than 3,000 OBC castes under the label and found that 52 percent were of the population of India. However, the National Survey puts the percentage at 32 percent. There is an unresolved debate about the exact number of OBCs in India.

The Caste reservations have generated violent reactions from non-eligible breeds, ie, the traditionally privileged. Many Indian experts conceive the negative treatment of advanced castes as socially divisive and simply unfair.

Outside the caste system of Hinduism. In some parts of India, Christians are stratified by sect, and caste of his predecessors, especially with regard to the Catholic Church. At present, over 70 percent of Indian Christians are "Dalits", but Christians from chaste advanced control 90 percent of administrative ecclesiastical works. Of the 156 Catholic bishops, only 6 are from lower castes. Many Catholics have complained Dalit caste discrimination within the Catholic Church. In the region of Goa, the classified ads mentioning caste marriages are in the case of Christians.

Also in the fold of Islam in South Asia have developed units of social stratification, called "castes" by many. Apparently, the castes among Muslims developed as a result of close contact with Hindu culture and the converts from Hinduism. The Sachar Committee report, published in 2006, documents the continued stratification in Muslim society. Muslims have sections of washermen, tailors, blacksmiths and other backward castes. In modern India there have been brutal clashes between Muslims belonging to different castes.

Among Muslims, Ashraf have a superior status derived from their Arab ancestors, while Ajlaf have allegedly originated from converts from Hinduism and, therefore, a lower origin. Moreover, among Muslims is Arzal caste, considered by Ambedkar as the equivalent to the Hindu untouchables. Although many scholars believed that stratification among Muslims was not as sharp, Ambedkar argued that "social evils" of Muslim society were "worse than those present in Indian society."

The caste system is not alien to Buddhists. The Rodi of Sri Lanka have always been neglected and even considered untouchable by Sri Lankan Buddhists due to the absence of "ahimsa" (nonviolence), which relies heavily on Buddhism. When the traveler Ywan Chwang traveled to the south of India at the end of Chalukya, said that the caste system had existed between the Buddhists and the Jains. There is evidence of caste in Bihar Jainism: in the village of Bundela, several jaats (groups) among the Jains. A person of a group can not mix or eat in company with another.

Regarding the Sikhs, their Gurus criticized the hierarchy of the caste system. Where some castes were perceived as better or higher, preached that all social groups were valuable, and argued that the merit and hard work were essential aspects of life. The quota system also promoted by them has been criticized precisely because it despises the merit as the primary measure to win a seat.

Caste violence. Independent India has undergone a considerable amount of violence and hate crimes motivated by caste. The Ranvir Sena, a supremacist paramilitary group in Bihar (north) has committed acts of violence against Dalits and other caste groups registered. Another example is the case of Phoolan Devi, who belonged to the caste Mallah, was raped as a young man by a group of Thakurs ... then became a bandit and violent robberies committed against members of higher castes. In 1981, his band killed 22 Thakurs, most of them unrelated to the abduction or rape. Phoolan Devi went on and became deputy. Dalits continue anyway the main victims of violence in many parts of India.

Policy caste. The "Mahatma" Gandhi, Bhimrao Ambedkar and Jawaharlal Nehru had different conceptions of the breed, especially with regard to constitutional politics and the situation of the untouchables. Until the mid-70's, the politics of independent India was mostly dominated by economic issues and controversies of corruption. But in the 80 breeds emerged as a key issue in Indian politics. The Mandal Commission was established in 1979 to identify the "social and educational backward" and to study the contributions or reserves as a way to end caste discrimination. In 1980, the report supported the affirmative action under Indian law, which was given exclusive access to castibajos to a defined portion of government jobs and places for study at universities.

The government headed by VP Singh tried to develop the recommendations of the Commission in 1989, which led to mass protests. Many understand that politicians trying to develop reserves to secure the vote of the lower castes, ie a purely pragmatic purpose of elections. Many political parties openly resort to banks in voting based on caste. Formations like the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Samajwadi Party and the Janata Dal are said representatives of the backward castes, and seek to secure the support of the OBC, Dalits or Muslims to win elections.

Reviews. The caste system has been widely criticized both within and outside India. From the historical point of view, Buddha and Mahavira, founders respective Buddhism and Jainism, were against the caste structure. Many saints of the devotional period, as Nanak, Kabir, Caitanya, Dnyaneshwar, Eknath, Ramanuja or Tukaram rejected discrimination and accepted disciples from all castes. Many reformers like Swami Vivekananda and Sathya Sai Baba in Hinduism believed that there was no place for the caste system.

Some movements have accepted Hindu lower castes within it, starting with the devotional movements of the medieval period. The first Dalit policies led by the hand Hindu reform movements that came to be a response to Christian missionaries in their attempts to convert the untouchables to Christianity. Untouchables attracted by the prospect of escaping the caste system.

In the nineteenth century, the Brahmo Samaj of Ram Mohan Roy conducted an active campaign to end casteism. The Arya Samaj founded by Swami Dayanand also renounced discrimination against untouchables. An opinion shared by Swami Vivekananda, who founded the Ramakrishna Mission and also contributed to the emancipation of the castibajos.

The first temple restricted to upper castes, which opened its doors to Dalits was the Laxminarayan, in the city of Wardha in 1928. In 1936, the Sultan of Travancore, Kerala region today, decreed that the "untouchables should not be banned from the comfort and solace of the Hindu faith." Even today, the temple Sri Padmanabhaswamy, who first opened its doors to the untouchables in Kerala, is still revered. But there are still temples in India where untouchability has been banned.

Another view of criticism of the caste system is the intellectual line argues that the untouchables and castibajos were the indigenous population of India, and were subjugated by the "invaders Brahmins." But undoubtedly the most important thinker for the lower castes was BR Ambedkar, a pioneer of conversions to Buddhism. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru also disseminated information on the need to eradicate the system.

Contemporary Reviews. Among the Dalits, there remain political leaders and intellectuals like Kancha Ilaiah Udit Raj or that are considered anti-Hindu by critics and maintain a basically rhetoric directed against the Brahmins. On the other hand, there are Hindus who try to separate from their religion the caste system, and offer as evidence the presence of caste in Christianity or Islam in the subcontinent.

There are activists for whom the caste system is a form of racial discrimination. In March 2001, participants in the UN Conference against Racism in Durban (South Africa) condemned caste discrimination and attempted to pass a resolution declaring that caste as a basis for the segregation and oppression of people by occupation and affiliation was a form of apartheid. Finally, there was no formal resolution, however.

The treatment you receive Dalits in India is described by some authors as the "apartheid" hidden from India. Critics of these charges affect the substantial improvements experienced by the Dalits and the legal cover provided by the Constitution of India (primarily written by Ambedkar Dalit). Other tests include the arrival of a Dalit president (KR Narayanan in 1997) and the loss of influence of caste in urban environments.

That benevolent view is contradicted by other scholars, who maintain that the caste system still well rooted in Indian culture and is still present in all of South Asia, especially in rural India. In what is known as "hidden apartheid" entire villages in many Indian regions continue to be completely segregated caste. With about 160 million people, Dalits face almost complete social isolation, humiliation and discrimination based solely on his birth (Haviland). Playing in the shadow of a Dalit can contaminate a member of the upper castes. Dalits can not cross the line dividing their part of town, drink from public wells, or visit the same temples upper castes. Dalit children must sit on the desks of the last class.

Allegations of apartheid are denied by academic sociologists as a political epithet, since apartheid implies state sponsored discrimination, something that does not exist in India. The Indian Constitution places special emphasis on outlawing caste discrimination, and especially calls for an end to the condition of the untouchables. In addition, the Indian penal code punishes severely those who commit discrimination based on caste. Prejudice against Dalits and discrimination is a social malaise that exists primarily in rural areas, where small companies can trace the lineages of individuals and discriminate. So the casteism is not exactly an "apartheid". In fact, the untouchables, the Indian tribal and lower castes benefit from affirmative action programs and have a growing political power.

The claim that caste amounts to race and was rejected by BR Ambedkar: "The Brahmin of Punjab is racially of the same nursery that the Chamar (Dalit) of Punjab. The caste system does not make a racial divide. The caste system is a social division of people with the same race. " Sociologist Andre Beteille also rejects treating caste as a "racist", "politically malicious" and "scientifically nonsensical" because there are no racial differences between them. "We can not see, he writes, every social group as a race simply because we want to protect it against prejudice and discrimination."

The Indian government goes further and rejects any equivalence between caste discrimination and racial discrimination, arguing that the issues are essentially intra-racial caste and intracultural. And, sociologists have described how the vision of the caste system as a static, stratified has given way to another view with a more procedural stratification. And there are observers to whom the caste system covers a system of exploitation by the wealthy of the depressed. In many parts of India, the land is owned by landlords of the dominant castes, who exploit the landless laborers and poor artisans, while the degraded ritual emphasis to demonstrate their inferior status. Caste determines the position of an individual in society, work can play, who can marry whom you can talk. Hindus believe that karma from previous lives determine the caste in which an individual (re) born.

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The Indian untouchable leader ordered to change his statue to be "small"

New Delhi, July 1, 2008. - The always controversial Mayawati, the most powerful untouchable leader of India, has revived talk with your order to erect a statue erected in his honor, just inaugurate, order the differ even bigger bust.
The operators took advantage of a Sunday morning to remove a park of Lucknow (North India) the statue of their leader, who had been installed just six weeks ago along with other leaders untouchable, as Kanshi Ram.
"Kanshi Ram always said he would be happy to install my statue next to his. So I decided to build it to meet their wishes, "Mayawati is justified then.
But the final design of the statue, nearly four feet, should not have to convince the untouchable leader, ordered a retreat for a few hours after the opening ceremony.
"He saw that his statue was smaller than that of Kanshi Ram and ordered change. This is the first time a living person and the power used government money to build a statue of their own. This is not appropriate or ethical, and lawful, "he told Efe a training opposition leader Om Prakash Singh BJP.
Mayawati, 1.52 meters high, ruling the region of Uttar Pradesh (north), which has about 166 million inhabitants, both as the union of Spain, France, Italy and Portugal, and is among the poorest and most underdeveloped country.
Upon arrival at the regional government in the mid-nineties, Mayawati spent 5,000 million rupees (73 million euros or 115 million dollars) to build the regional capital, Lucknow, a park dedicated to the father of the Constitution India, Bhimrao Ambedkar on untouchability.
The Ambedkar memorial has structures "to last 1,000 years" and is home to statues of the leaders of the untouchable community (about 160 million Indians), prone to cult leader and preaching "equality" of his flagship, Mayawati.
The "Dalits" or untouchables are still the most discriminated community in the rigid Hindu social scale, although the caste system was abolished by the Constitution of Ambedkar in 1951.
Although still subject to discrimination, the "Dalits" were traditionally denied access to holy places and had to engage in tasks considered "impure" by the other castes, who avoided contact with even his shadow "spotted".
Their leader Mayawati truffle speeches with mentions of "social justice" and the defense of the quota system that favors the social integration of the untouchables, it does not prevent a propensity to luxury and splendor in his personal honor.
In his last birthday, Mayawati (52 years) received ten tons of flowers, a plane, a million cupcakes and diamonds courtesy of its officials, government buildings were illuminated and entertained until the officer with a helicopter.
"People show respect, affection and love. Everyone should be happy, "he said last January, before the television cameras the flirtatious Mayawati.
And besides, he added: "I decided to celebrate my birthday with simplicity."
The untouchable began his fourth term in Uttar Pradesh last year, despite allegations of corruption brought against them and their growing wealth-some $ 13 million, 8.2 million euros, which gives grants to his followers .
In five years, the untouchable leader has increased 4,600 percent a fortune declared, has regularly shown his passion for jewelry and has not hesitated to pay public money events held in his honor and to statues like that again , looks at Lucknow.
Those who walk around the Ambedkar Memorial, Lucknow, and can see the legacy bronze with which Mayawati wants to be remembered: a mass of 18 tons, 4.5 meters tall and almost 635,000 public cost of euros (more than one million).
The statue in the park is now larger, has slightly different facial features and a shoulder bag.

Untouchable leader receives millions of rupees on gifts for his birthday

New Delhi, 15 Jan 2008. - The leading advocates of "Dalit" (untouchable) Mayawati, who governs the most populous region of India, Uttar Pradesh, today celebrated his birthday with a barrage of gifts ranging from ten tons of flowers to an official aircraft, a new twist on the cult of leadership.
Although the leader had asked contention this year, some estimates speak of gifts and expenditure-official and non-worth nearly $ 20 million in the northern Uttar Pradesh, where the streets are plastered with posters awoke with a smile of the leader.
Gifts of Mayawati, who turned 52 years today include, besides the flowers and the airplane, a helicopter officer, a million cupcakes, diamonds courtesy of its officials and government buildings lighting for 48 hours.
"People show respect, affection and love. Everyone should be happy, "he told the television cameras Mayawati, who added:" I have decided to celebrate my birthday with simplicity. "
The leader "Dalit", or jeweled, publicly cut a cake of 52 kilos, presented his autobiography and kicked out the highway project of the Ganges, while meditating give his final leap to national politics.
Until now, Mayawati has complied with Uttar Pradesh, a region with some 166 million-as much as the union of Spain, France, Italy and Portugal, which is among the poorest in India and succumbed for the fourth time its charms in the recent elections of 2007.
“Es muy autoritaria y dirige su partido (el Bahujan Samaj Party, BSP) con la mano férrea de un dictador”, comentó sobre ella la analista política Sudha Pai.
Mayawati, que centra sus discursos en la “justicia social”, ha logrado últimamente trascender a la división por castas presente todavía en la política india y ha atraído a los brahmanes de la región para su causa, con buenos resultados electorales.
Pero el eje de su ideología sigue siendo los “dalit”, que suponen un 16 por ciento de la población y es la comunidad más discriminada en la rígida escala social hindú, pese a que el sistema de castas fue abolido por la Constitución en el año 1951.
Todavía objeto de discriminaciones, los “dalit” tenían tradicionalmente prohibido el acceso a lugares sagrados y debían dedicarse a tareas consideradas “impuras” por las otras castas, que evitaban incluso el contacto con su sombra “manchada”.
En el caso de Uttar Pradesh, los intocables han hecho suyo el mensaje del BSP y lo adornan con una proverbial adoración hacia Mayawati, en quien ven la guardiana del sistema de cuotas que favorece la inserción social de las castas bajas.
“Nuestros cultivos quedaron destruidos por el pasado monzón y el Gobierno regional nos compensó. Así que creemos que Mayawati estará contenta de recibir nuestro regalo”, declaró el agricultor Santosh Kumar con un cheque de 40 rupias (1 dólar) para su líder.
Pero Mayawati compagina el culto al líder y la adoración de los intocables como Santosh con otros dos fenómenos no menos importantes y generalizados en la política india: el “sicofantismo” y la corrupción.
Con “sicofantismo”, los analistas indios definen a la cohorte de aduladores que rodea a los principales líderes políticos a la espera de réditos en forma de puesto público, un contrato de obras o simplemente un favor.
Eso es lo que explica, por ejemplo, la iniciativa de doce funcionarios que han decidido reunir unas cuantas rupias para comprar diamantes a Mayawati (por un valor de 50.000 dólares), o el apresuramiento de sus ministros en pintar de azul -el color de los intocables- las calles de la capital regional, Lucknow.
Además, Mayawati, imputada por la desaparición de 44 millones de dólares en un proyecto de infraestructuras, ilustra la corrupción y el delito que impregnan a la clase política de las regiones más pobres del país, como la propia Uttar Pradesh.
En las elecciones de 2002, nada menos que 206 de los 403 diputados electos de la región tenían antecedentes penales, la mayoría absoluta de la Cámara Regional.
En 2007, ese porcentaje quedó reducido al 25 por ciento de la Cámara, aunque los comicios arrojaron anécdotas como la de seis candidatos que hicieron campaña desde la cárcel y dieron discursos en directo a través de teléfonos móviles de estraperlo.
Aunque Mayawati ha negado siempre los cargos de corrupción, los datos desvelados por la prensa india muestran el negocio que supone el ser político en la India: en cinco años, la líder intocable ha multiplicado un 4.600 por ciento su fortuna declarada.
La enjoyada reina de los intocables tiene, Santosh a Santosh, trece millones de dólares.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Su mirada preside las calles de las ciudades indias, en pósters colocados por una cohorte de fieles seguidores dispuestos a cumplir al pie de la letra cualquiera de sus órdenes. Dirige la fundación “ Art of Living “: “una organización que ayuda a la gente a vivir mejor ya acabar con el estrés, a terminar con la violencia y traer de vuelta los valores humanos”, la define. Los dignatarios y los dirigentes religiosos mantienen para él las puertas abiertas y él, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar , es posiblemente el líder religioso más reverenciado de la India décadas después de “inventar” el ejercicio de yoga “ Sadan Sankirua “. O eso vende su curtido gabinete de prensa.

¿Qué hace diferente al Sadan Sankirua?

Es una técnica de yoga que vino a mí como un poema, como un regalo. Es una técnica respiratoria que ayuda a eliminar los sentimientos negativos y ayuda a la gente a rehabilitarse. De hecho, fue la técnica que utizamos tras los atentados de los trenes… Me refiero a los de 2004 en Madrid, claro. Tenemos un centro en Madrid y otro en Las Palmas, además de varios en Latinoamérica, en los que nuestros profesores desarrollan el programa de la organización.

Parece que la gente en Occidente está cada vez más dispuesta a incorporar conocimientos como el yoga. ¿Cuáles son a su entender las razones?

Porque el yoga es un compendio de saberes prácticos, que dan resultados inmediatos y mejoran la vida . Los occidentales son inteligentes, y están dispuestos a adoptar todo aquello que mejore sus vidas.

¿Y cómo podría mejorar la vida de los occidentales?

La gente de aquellos países está dándose cuenta de los peligros de una dieta poco saludable y la preponderancia de los alimentos fritos. Hay cada vez una mayor concienciación sobre la salud física y psíquica. La gente ha descubierto que no es bueno tomar tanta cafeína, fritangas y productos procesados, y está incorporando al menú comidas naturales y orgánicas. No es casualidad que haya cada vez más vegetarianos.

¿De ahí que vuelvan sus ojos a la India…?

Clear. Hay algo de lo que todos queremos ser parte: la experiencia y el conocimiento de lo más elevado. Y el yoga o la meditación son saberes prácticos que les dan resultados inmediatos, una característica muy apreciada por las personas en occidente .

No como en India .

No. En occidente , la gente quiere que las cosas ocurran rápido.

Aquí en la India hay muchas personas que le admiran, pero hay también quienes critican el cobro de tarifas excesivas por enseñar el “Sadan Sankirua”.

Sí, hay quien lo dice. Pero mantenemos programas de cooperación en los pueblos pobres, donde la gente recibe gratis nuestra enseñanza. Y cuando lo enseñamos gratis a la gente sin recursos, el saber adquiere más valor.

Otro asunto que llama la atención respecto a su figura es el culto a la personalidad. La gente viene y le contempla, se sienta junto a usted y pide bendiciones. ¿Cómo le afecta todo esto?

Es que tengo un doble papel. Por una parte, desarrollo la espiritualidad religiosa hindú . Y, por otra parte, llevo esa espiritualidad a todos los seres humanos. Es una cuestión de valores religiosos con dos vertientes. Y el culto a la personalidad es un hecho cultural en la India : no hay nada malo en que la gente venga y se siente en el suelo para verme.

Pero esto, ¿no le incomoda?

Siempre me siento cómodo. Es algo muy habitual en la India , y no hay razón para sentirse incómodo con ello. Mi interacción con mis seguidores se basa en un hecho cultural que no tiene nada que ver con el culto a la personalidad. En la India tocamos los pies a las personas de más edad. Todo el mundo lo hace, incluidos los niños con sus madres. Es nuestro modo de mostrar respeto. Aquí para saludar nos inclinamos hasta el suelo.

Usted ha emprendido iniciativas para acercar a los intocables (descastados) y los brahmanes. ¿Con esto reconoce que existe un problema de castas?

Todo el mundo acudió al encuentro, tanto los intocables como las castas hindúes . Claro que hay un problema: los dalits disfrutan de ciertos privilegios oficiales. Las castas hindúes están listas para terminar con ese sistema, pero no los dalits , que se aferran a esos ascensos por decreto oa sus cuotas de reserva de empleo. Los políticos, en lugar de eliminar el sistema de castas , lo han hecho más fuerte con estas medidas. Así que de lo que se trata es de juntar a las dos partes. Nosotros hemos sido los primeros en lograr esa aproximación. Nuestros actos han sido históricos.

Usted comparó las religiones con la cáscara de un plátano. ¿Qué quiso decir?

Quise decir que las religiones son algo necesario. Pero para comprender su esencia, que es la espiritualidad, hay que deshacerse de la cáscara.

¿Qué deberían hacer las religiones para unir a la gente?

Deberían volverse menos fanáticas y temerosas de las demás. Sí: menos fanáticas y menos temerosas. Debería existir una interacción entre todos. Acabar con este mensaje de que la religión propia es el único camino hacia el cielo, o de que todos aquellos con una opinión distinta irán al infierno. Hay que eliminar estos conceptos.

Y esto que dice de las religiones, ¿es aplicable a los conflictos, las culturas, los pueblos?

Sirve para todo.

¿El yoga puede ayudar?

Clear. Mucha gente ya se ha dado cuenta.