It is amazing how much the forthcoming parliamentary elections revolve around the issue of caste. Almost every party in every state has had to grapple with the caste factor in selecting its candidates and in devising its campaign strategies. True,by no means is this happening for the first time. But in my own observation of Indias elections for the past three decades,caste has never figured so prominently in national polls as it is in 2009.
Every major party is looking at the caste composition of the constituencies where it will field candidates. What also figures in its calculation is how the selection of a candidate belonging to a particular caste in a particular constituency impacts,positively or negatively,on the partys prospects in neighbouring constituencies. Before selecting its own candidate in a constituency,a party often waits to see the caste identity of rival candidates,asking itself questions such as: will the votes of caste A or caste B split up or add up?
Two questions demand our attention. Why has caste become politically more important in national polls now? And is it necessarily a negative phenomenon? The answer to the first question has to do with the fact that the Congress,which was once an umbrella party under which almost all sections of society found shelter,has shrunk to a pale shadow of its original self. The BJP has no doubt emerged as a second pole in todays bi-polar national politics but it is yet to acquire a pan-India and pan-society presence. It has a very slim presence among religious minorities. The resultant fragmentation of the polity has given rise to two types of parties,one espousing regional aspirations and the other caste aspirations. Today all castes and communities feel they should have a fair representation in Parliament,legislatures,government and other structures of power.
The answer to the second question is much more complicated. The westernised intelligentsia in India has come to view caste in a negative light,forgetting that there is a fundamental difference between casteism and legitimate caste-based aspirations,especially among those who have been left behind. Casteism connotes a prejudiced mindset of high and low,and discrimination between one caste and another. This,of course,is condemnable. But those who believe that caste is inherently anti-democratic and hurtful to the nations interests are clearly barking up the wrong tree. This is because caste is a reality in Indian politics that no one can ignore. It is a reality in politics because it is a reality in society. What is a fact in society cannot be wished away in politics.
If regional aspirations are legitimate,as they indeed are so long as they do not conflict with national interests,what is wrong in caste-based aspirations so long as they do not rest on prejudices and do not cause social disharmony? Caste identity in India has a longer history than regional identity. Therefore,if people can have a legitimate attachment to their state or region,isnt it understandable that they also have a legitimate attachment to their caste? Why then is the former considered democratic and the latter anti-democratic?
A caste-based party catering solely to one caste rarely succeeds. If it has to grow in a multi-caste and multi-faith society like ours,it has to necessarily reach out to beyond its core support base. Such social alliances have been bedrock of stability and progress in Indias diversity-based democracy. The era of coalitions has further accentuated the need for politics based on regional and social alliances.
Having said this,it must be clarified that caste-based politics often carries the danger of degenerating into casteist politics. It also has the potential to promote political and social fragmentation. Political formations and governments that draw their support mainly from a particular caste are prone to discriminatory behavior,as is indeed happening in Uttar Pradesh today. What is the way out? In my view,it lies in strengthening a political movement that respects legitimate aspirations of all castes; believes in the motto sab jaati samaan; sab jaati mahaan (all castes are equal and all castes are great); builds social alliances that embrace all castes and religious communities; and insists that regional and caste identities should be secondary and subservient to our national identity. We cannot altogether dissolve peoples regional,caste and community identities. But we certainly can,and should,make these lesser identities harmonious with the larger and common identity of India. Let us therefore ensure that all castes,sub-castes,religious communities and their internal segments are fairly represented in our democratic self-rule and,additionally,also ensure that meritorious candidates are elected irrespective of their identities.
sudheenkulkarni@gmail.com
