Dalit Politics in Contemporary India

335 Pages·2015·1.738 MB·English

by  Sambaiah Gundimeda

DALIT POLITICS IN
CONTEMPORARY INDIA
This book is a ground breaking intervention on Dalit politics in India.
Challenging received ideas, it uses a comparative framework to under-
stand Dalit mobilisations for political power, social equality and justice.
The monograph traces the emergence of Dalit consciousness and its dif-
ferent strands in north and south India – from colonial to contemporary
times – and interrogates key notions and events. These include:
• the debate regarding core themes such as the Hindu–Muslim division
in the north and caste in the south;
• the extent to which Dalits and other backward castes (OBCs) base
their anti-Brahmanism on similar ideologies; and
• why Dalits in Uttar Pradesh (north India) succeeded in gaining power
while they did not do so in the region of erstwhile Andhra Pradesh
(south India), where Dalit consciousness is more evolved.
Drawing on archival material, fieldwork and case studies, this volume
puts forward an insightful and incisive analysis. It will be of great interest
to researchers and scholars of Dalit studies and social exclusion, Indian
politics and sociology.
Sambaiah Gundimeda is at the School of Policy and Governance, Azim
Premji University, Bengaluru, India.
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DALIT POLITICS IN
CONTEMPORARY
INDIA
Sambaiah Gundimeda
First published 2016
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2016 Sambaiah Gundimeda
The right of Sambaiah Gundimeda to be identified as author of this work
has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced
or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means,
now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording,
or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record has been requested for this book.
ISBN: 978-1-138-93934-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-67506-0 (ebk)
Typeset in Bembo
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
TO
ROCHANA BAJPAI AND MATTHEW NELSON
FOR THEIR EXTRAORDINARY PATIENCE
AND RESOLVE TO SEE THAT
I COMPLETE MY PHD
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CONTENTS
List of figures ix
List of maps x
List of tables xi
Preface xiii
Acknowledgements xviii
Abbreviations xxv
Glossary of terms xxvi
I ntroduction 1
PART I
Uttar Pradesh 33
1 Making claims for power: Dalit politics in Uttar
Pradesh, 1919–67 35
2 Mobilising for power: the emergence of the BSP and
Dalit politics in Uttar Pradesh, 1970–90 68
3 The Bahujan Samaj Party: social justice and political practices 104
PART II
Andhra Pradesh 145
4 Making claims for social equality and political representation:
Dalit activism in Telugu country, 1917–50 147
5 From demanding social equality to a quest for power:
Dalit politics in AP, 1950–90 187
vii
CONTENTS
6 Social justice and sub-classification of Dalit reservations:
the Dandora debate in AP in the 1990s 232
C onclusion 263
Bibliography 273
Index 293
viii
FIGURES
2.1 The Indian social system (a product of Brahmanism) 89
2.2 Manyawar Sahib Kanshiram’s bicycle march started on
15 March 1983, covering seven states and a distance of
4,200 kms in 40 days 91
3.1 Manyawar Sahib Kanshiram’s demonstration of the
Indian social structure 114
3.2 Elephant gallery in Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik
Parivartan Sthal, Lucknow 133
3.3 Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivarthan
Sthal, Lucknow 133
ix