Explain the concepts of dominant caste’ and ‘vote’ bank giving examples from specific regions. (UPSC CSE Mains 2017 - Sociology, Paper 2)
Anthropologists and sociologists have long emphasised the notion of a ‘dominant’ caste to understand village life in India. M N Srinivas first defined the term ‘dominant caste’ to refer to the caste in the village which is numerically strong and also wields the greatest economic and political power.
The concept of ‘dominant caste’ was propounded by M.N. Srinivas. It was for the first time appeared in his essay on the social system of a Mysore village. While constructing the concept, perhaps Srinivas was unconsciously influenced by African studies on the dominant clan and dominant lineage. Srinivas developed the concept in his study of Rampura village which is a little away from Mysore city in Karnataka state. Srinivas, in fact, wanted to give a comprehensive study of Ram
It was in 1962 that M.N. Srinivas specified the following four characteristics of a dominant caste:
- A caste dominates when it wields economic and political power.
- It has a high rank in caste hierarchy.
- Numerical strength.
- A sizeable amount of the arable land
The caste system is no longer a clearly demarcated system of hierarchically-ordered caste groups. As a result of certain factors such as occupational diversification, migration to urban areas, mechanisation of agriculture, boundaries between caste groups are tending to blur or break down. There is an increasing degree of interpenetration between different groups, classes and categories. A gradual lessening of the congruence between caste, class and power is visible.
Examples
The Jats and the Patels are textbook examples of what the sociologist MN Srinivas termed “the dominant castes” in the late 1950s. The Reddys and Kammas in Andhra, the Bhumihars and Rajputs in Bihar and the Lingayats and Vokkaligas in Karnataka are other examples.
- Reddi, Kammas in AP
- Jats, Ahils, Rajputs, Yadavs etc.
The notions of democracy and adult franchise have affected the caste system in several ways. The new political system attacks the very roots of hierarchization. In the past politics was regarded as the sole preserve of the higher castes. But today people belonging to all castes are becoming conscious that they can play an important role in the political processes and can be benefitted from them. As far as caste system was concerned, each caste had a caste Panchayat. The caste Panchayat played the role of a judicial body. But today Jati Panchayats are on the decline. Law courts have taken over most of their roles.
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