What is caste politics? Substantiate your answer with examples of how identities are defined by caste dynamics. (UPSC CSE Mains 2019 - Sociology, Paper 2)
- Theoretically, caste and democratic political system stand for opposite value systems. Caste is hierarchical. On the other hand, democratic political system advocates freedom for an individual and equality of status. There is an alternative empirical view as well. Politics, notwithstanding, the ideals in any society, do not function in vacuum and political systems (and democracy) also do not function in an ideal typical manner. They operate within a social milieu. Hence, in practice, in a society like ours which has limited resources, caste and other concepts like kinship seek to establish new identities and strive for positions of power. In such a competitive scenario, politicians also find caste groupings readily available for political mobilisation.
- Caste and religion were often used as emotional tools for managing the masses. On the constructive side of it, there were also many groupings like Justice Party in South and leaders like Ambedkar who called for political empowerment of the depressed castes for an equitable society.
- Republican Party, formed in 1956 by Dalit leaders under Ambedkar, was perhaps the first formal political venture after independence to mobilise Dalits, Hence, political mobilisation was viewed as a source of social empowerment. Post-independence system of universal franchise, democracy and
- Panchayati raj system further fuelled these dynamics.
Rajni Kothari on Caste and Politics
Kothari, while analysing the intrusions of caste into politics and politics into caste, distinguishes three stages in the progression of political Modernisation after Independence-
- In the first stage, he· says, the struggle for political power was limited to the entrenched and the ascendant castes.
- In the second phase, competitions with in these castes for power, led to factionalism.
- In the third stage, lower castes were mobilised and are now asserting themselves in the political domain.
In his words- ‘It is not politics that gets caste-ridden; it is the caste that gets politicised.’ He has a relatively positive outlook towards caste in politics.
According to him, politics has been able to give voice to the Powerless and has uplifted them from oblivion
The study of Nadar’s of Tamil Nadu is a case in point about the positive role played by politics vis-a-vis caste. Defining the importance of caste in Indian politics, Rudolph and Rudolph, in their The Modernity of Tradition: Political Development in India, 1967, revealed that political clout can also be used to change the status in the caste hierarchy and many rights can be acquired which were once denied to a caste. They took the case of an untouchable community, i.e., Shanan’s of Tamil Nadu and explained how it could change the social status with the help of political mobilisation and association, and ultimately is now known as Nadar’s.
Caste associations have provided a new vitality to the depressed groups. Similar conclusions were also drawn by Beteille. Andre Beteille holds that while westernisation is taking individuals away from caste identity, the role of caste in politics is taking people towards the caste identity and thereby strengthening it. Thus, political process has a dual effect on caste system.
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