By
Randeep
Wadehra
Our hoary traditions have bequeathed to us a number of gifts
and challenges in the form of traditions and institutions. Among these, the
stratified society and caste system are two most prominent challenges. However,
we have also inherited the institution of panchayat and inbuilt liberal-democratic
impulses to negotiate such challenges. Today, our democratic polity is the only
one that has flourished ever since its inception despite its poverty stricken,
Third World status, which is second most populous in the world, and arguably,
the most stratified among all democratic societies. On gaining independence,
democracy became our natural choice, as it jelled with our hoary traditions. Indeed,
our democratic system is an amalgamation of the traditional and the modern. Although
there have been doubts about India’s ability to negotiate the abovementioned
challenges, one needs to understand the utility or otherwise of castes today,
when most of our ancient institutions like joint families, clan support systems
etc are fast disappearing. Will the caste system survive this march of
civilization, or will it go the way of other social anachronisms?
Our society’s stratification – comprising vertical and
horizontal divisions – is so complex that we need a different terminology for
it. Every caste is essentially a community in itself, albeit subdivided into
sub-castes, with precise pecking orders. The plethora of sects, sub-sects,
castes and sub-castes indicates the extravagance of our pluralism; it has also
evolved into a bundle of curious contradictions, featuring assimilation and
exclusivity. This is probably because the original basis for this social
stratification has its genesis as much in economic disparity as in the esoteric
processes of history. Caste-consciousness envelops our psyche like an ancient
shroud, which we have been unable to shed owing to millennia of
socio-psychological conditioning.
Presently, the system has degenerated into an obnoxious
anachronism from its earlier role as a mechanism that helped the society cope
with the dynamics of ever-changing social and economic circumstances. Caste
system was not an 'ism', but a scientific tool for division of labor; one might
also argue that the very fact that it is the most enduring anachronism
testifies to its utility even in the contemporary India. It provides one with
an identity that is distinct and indelible. Further, if its study helps us
broaden our outlook rather than narrow it down, it can serve a useful social
purpose. For example, there is strong research based evidence that the
relationship between caste and ethnicity is essentially a presumption. One
would do well to remember that in the ancient texts the term 'Arya' did not
denote ethnicity but a certain lifestyle. Gradually, it came to be associated
with civilized people in the subcontinent. Thus, any ethnic group or sub-group
could be called Aryan if its lifestyle was identical to the one described in
the Vedas and other relevant texts. For millennia, Indian society has survived
as a coherent group society, which was able to accommodate the influx of waves
of outsiders into the Vedic religious system and, later on, into the group
structures of the society. Even those communities in India that claim that
caste based stratifications have no sanction in their religions implicitly
follow rules of the caste system. Muslims, Sikhs and Christians have adopted
something approaching caste distinctions when it comes to social relationships.
For a very long time, caste divisions remained splintered in
the sense that there were no deliberate groupings of upper, intermediate and
lower castes. The post-Mandal scenario introduced a new element – crystallization
of castes into three distinct groupings, viz., upper castes, intermediate
castes and scheduled castes or Dalits. This process of crystallization intensified
inter-caste rivalry for political power, economic advancement and social space.
It also confounded the intra-group equations, in the process. For instance, within
each upper caste segment there was a hierarchy, which is now being defied
almost regularly. This is true of the other two caste groupings too.
Various legislations to protect the vulnerable castes,
combined with exponential economic-industrial growth, have resulted in the
destabilization of the hitherto stable hierarchical order. Politicians have
added to the chaos by turning reservations into a contest for political gains
and economic gratification. In the process, the caste system has been re-legitimized,
but in a mutant form as a vote-garnering device. Neither education nor new
group identities based on new professions have resulted in enlightened
citizenship. Unrestrained individualism and familism are encouraging social
irresponsibility. What we are witnessing today is confusion, despair and
disorder among large sections of the society. However, this is not the only
operating trend in the society. True, there have been caste wars in our
hinterlands. It is equally true that inter-caste marriages still trigger off
violence in most parts of the country. But there are contra trends too, which
reassure us that orderliness may eventually emerge from the prevailing chaos.
Uttar Pradesh is a classic example of this phenomenon, which
has resulted in Mayawati’s experiment with “social engineering”, even though it
has only proved to be a rather thin veneer for attainment of political
ambitions. It may well prove to be a template for more successful experiments.
Actual social engineering is happening elsewhere, with the help of technology-induced
restructuring of society. Imperceptibly, inter-caste relations are undergoing a
metamorphosis, especially in India’s urban and semi-urban areas. Commonality of
interests and not caste affinity dictates social and economic relationships
among today’s educated urban middle classes. Today, caste is hardly playing any
role in the choice of one's profession or specialization in any field of
activity. Marriage alliances too are being forged based on economic status and
material self-interest. This post-modernist trend, despite being ill defined at
present, might yet break the traditional caste superstructure. But, this is
happening in those parts of urban India which are either newly developed or
where young population from across the country, and even abroad, has settled. Greater
mobility due to technology driven growth and development is taking our youth to
new frontiers. Such youth feel unshackled from traditional taboos. This is not
to say that this trend has picked up irreversible traction, but it shows all
the signs of doing so. If this happens, India may well be on the way to
becoming an epitome of genuinely liberal, democratic and pluralistic polity. Just
a thought though, if this obnoxious anachronism goes, what will happen to all
those caste based configurations and calibrations of our political parties?
Published in The Financial World dated 01 August 2013
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