Bonar Thesis April 29 appendices - University of Victoria

174 Pages·2010·3.43 MB·English

by  Thane Bonar

Hanuman’s Army: Adivasi and Hindutva in Gujarat

by

Thane Bonar
B.A., University of Victoria, 2004

A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of

MASTER OF ARTS

in the Department of Political Science

 Thane Bonar, 2010
University of Victoria

All rights reserved. This thesis may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy
or other means, without the permission of the author.
ii
Supervisory Committee

Hanuman’s Army: Adivasi and Hindutva in Gujarat

by

Thane Bonar
B.A., University of Victoria, 2004

Supervisory Committee

Dr. Radhika Desai (Department of Political Science)
Supervisor

Dr. Matt James (Department of Political Science)
Departmental Member
iii
Abstract

Supervisory Committee
Dr. Radhika Desai (Department of Political Science)
Supervisor
Dr. Matt James (Department of Political Science)
Departmental Member

Scholars writing on the rise of Hindutva, particularly in Gujarat state, have attributed its
success to its ability to serve middle and upper caste and class interests. In recent state
and Lok Sabha elections, though, Hindutva, through the Bharatiya Janata Party, has also
made significant inroads outside of this elite, particularly in Adivasi (Aboriginal)
communities. This electoral support has emerged alongside Adivasi participation in anti-
minority violence in the Dangs District in 1999 and the 2002 post-Godhra carnage.

This thesis seeks to understand these developments and in doing so rejects predominant
explanations which rely on a paternalistic false-consciousness approach that strips the
Adivasi of independent political agency. It shows that the economic development of
Adivasi communities has led to stratification and the emergence of an Adivasi elite.
Bourdieu’s notion of symbolic capital is used to show that the psychological rewards that
Hindutva is able to offer this elite have material consequences and thus this hegemony
can serve the interests of these elements of Adivasi society.
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Table of Contents

Supervisory Committee......................................................................................................ii
Abstract..............................................................................................................................iii
Table of Contents...............................................................................................................iv
List of Figures....................................................................................................................vi
Acronyms..........................................................................................................................vii
Glossary...........................................................................................................................viii
Acknowledgments..............................................................................................................xi
Chapter 1: Introduction.......................................................................................................1
Methodology...................................................................................................................8
Structure........................................................................................................................10
Chapter 2: The Mental and the Material Elements of Hegemony....................................13
Conventional Explanations...........................................................................................15
Hindutva and the Subalternists.....................................................................................17
Dalits and Hindutva......................................................................................................23
Ideology........................................................................................................................27
Ideology and Hegemony...............................................................................................29
Beyond Ideology?.........................................................................................................35
Cultural Capital.............................................................................................................40
Social Capital................................................................................................................41
Chapter 3: The Adivasi: Origins to Independence............................................................43
To Be Adivasi...............................................................................................................44
Early Interactions..........................................................................................................47
India’s Tribes as Indigenous Peoples............................................................................52
Adivasi and Colonialism...............................................................................................58
Isolation and Protection................................................................................................66
Adivasi and the Nationalists.........................................................................................69
Chapter 4: Adivasi and Independent India........................................................................76
Nehru and India’s Tribal Policy....................................................................................78
Adivasi and the Politics of Gujarat...............................................................................83
The Stratification of Adivasi Society............................................................................88
Chapter 5: The Adivasi as the Foot Soldiers of Lord Ram...............................................97
Dangs............................................................................................................................99
2002 Post-Godhra Violence........................................................................................101
Fatehpura, Dahod....................................................................................................107
Panvad and Kawant, Vadodara...............................................................................108
Sanjeli, Dahod.........................................................................................................109
The BJP’s Electoral Success.......................................................................................110
Electioneering in the Tribal Belt: the Strategies of the BJP.......................................116
Chapter 6: Hindutva as Symbolic Capital.......................................................................127
Cultural Capital...........................................................................................................130
Social Capital in the Hindu Fold.................................................................................133
The Symbolic Capital of Hindutva.............................................................................134
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Hindutva as Hinduism.................................................................................................135
Hindutva and the Adivasi Elite...................................................................................137
Sanskritization.............................................................................................................140
Chapter 7: Conclusion.....................................................................................................145
Bibliography...................................................................................................................150
Appendix A: Selected Sangh Parivar Organizations......................................................161
Appendix B: Detailed Lok Sabha Election Results........................................................162
Appendix C: Detailed Vidhan Sabha Election Results...................................................163
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List of Figures

Figure 1: Map of Gujarat State by District.........................................................................7 
Figure 2: Vidhan Sabha Scheduled Tribe Reserved Constituencies (in grey)................111 
Figure 3: Lok Sabha Scheduled Tribe Reserved Constituencies (in grey).....................112 
Figure 4: BJP Percentage of Votes (1980-2009)............................................................114
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Acronyms

ABVP Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad

BJS Bharatiya Jan Sangh

CNI Church of North India

HJM Hindu Jagran Manch

ILO International Labour Organization

INC Indian National Congress

ITDP Integrated Tribal Development Program

KHAM Kshatriya, Hindu, Adivasi, Muslim

NEFA North East Frontier Agency

RSS Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh

ST Scheduled Tribe

TSP Tribal Sub Plan

VHP Vishva Hindu Parishad
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Glossary

Adivasi (also Abibasi) Literally original inhabitant, aboriginal

Babri Masjid The mosque at Ayodhya constructed in the 1500s that was
destroyed by Hindutva mobs in 1992. The site of the mosque is
alleged to be Ram’s birthplace and its construction is said to have
required the demolition of a Hindu temple (Ram Mandir).

Bandh Protest in the form of a general strike, typically lasting one day, in
which shops are closed and cities generally come to a standstill

Bharat Mata Mother India

Bharatiya Jan Sangh Political party representing Hindutva from 1951-1980

Bhauband Bhil nobility

Bhil An Adivasi people of central India (including Gujarat)

Bhil Seva Mandal Congress organization for working with Bhil communities

Brahmin Uppermost caste in the Hindu caste hierarchy

Crore Ten million

Dalit Untouchable

Deeksha Religious initiation

Ganga Mata Goddess of the river Ganges

Gavit Villager

Gujarat Kshatriya A caste federation of the Kshatriya in Gujarat
Sabha

Hanuman Hindu monkey deity

Harijan Untouchables (coined by Gandhi, translates as children of God)

Harijan Sevak Sangh Congress organization for work among untouchables.

Hindu Rashtra Hindu Nation

Hindutva Conservative Hindu nationalist ideology
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Hindutvawadi A proponent of Hindutva

Indian National Congress Leader of the Indian independence movement and one of the
leading political parties in India

Jana Tribe

Jangli Wild

Jati Caste group

Kar Sevak Volunteers for a religious cause, in this case temple construction
at Ayodhya

Kshatriya Warrior caste in the Hindu varna system

Kumb Mela A mass hindu pilgrimage

Lakh One-hundred-thousand

Lathi Stick or cane used for crowd control by the Indian police

Lok Sabha Indian parliament (lower house)

Mandir Temple

Manusmrti Ancient Hindu law book

Mughals Islamic dynasty that ruled the subcontinent. Emerged in the 16th
century and reached the height of its dominance around 1700

Panchayat Local governing council

Patidar A middle caste in the varna system.

Raj Kingdom/ruler, here referring to the British

Ram/Rama An incarnation of the god Vishnu and the central figure of the
Ramayana epic

Ramayana One of two ancient Hindu epics

Ramjanmabhoomi Movement to build a temple to Ram a the site of the destroyed
mosque at Ayodhya (purported to be the birthplace of Ram)

Sadhu Holy man

Sangh Parivar or Sangh Family of Hindutva (RSS) organizations

Scheduled castes and Members of lower or untouchable castes that are recognized by
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tribes the Indian constitution for the purposes of reservations in
education, public office, and the civil service

Shahukar Moneylender

Shankaracharyas Title of the heads of Hindu monasteries in the Advainta tradition

Taluka An Indian administrative unit. Each district contains a number of
talukas

Vania Merchants, traders or moneylender. Also an upper caste

Vanvasi Forest people (Hindutva term for Adivasi)

Vanyajati Forest peoples (Hindutva term)

Varna Vedic social ranking (fourfold classification based on birth and
traditional occupation)

Vidhan Sabha Gujarat State Assembly

Yatra Pilgrimage or religious procession