Dalit minor girl raped: Police arrest and jail the accused
Fatehpur, Barabanki. In Fatehpur, Barabanki, Lallan Singh, son of Rajkishore Singh, has been arrested and sent to jail by the police on charges of raping a Dalit minor girl, threatening to viral a video, and using abusive language. A 16-year-old girl from a village in the Kotwali area had complained to the Superintendent of Police. The girl alleged that about a year ago, when she was returning home from her field, Lallan Singh and another unknown person from the village forcibly took her to the field after covering her mouth. There, Lallan Singh raped her and also made a video of the act. The accused threatened the girl that if she complained to anyone, he would make the video go viral. For a year after this incident, the accused continued to rape her by threatening to viral the video and promising to marry her. On December 23, Lallan Singh called the girl to his house late at night and raped her again. When the girl talked about marriage, the accused choked her and threatened to drive her out of the village. Kotwal Sanjeet Sonkar said that a case has been registered in this matter and the accused has been arrested and sent to jail. Sachin Kumar Courtesy: Hindi News
Dharamshala Dalit Student’s Death Case: College Claims Deceased Was Not Enrolled, Failed 3 First-Year Subjects
A 19-year-old woman allegedly subjected to ragging, sexual harassment and mental torture at a Dharamshala college died, sparking statewide outrage. Police booked four students and a professor, while the college denied her current enrollment, citing failed subjects. The family questioned the role of the college and police as investigations continue. Dharamshala: After the death of a 19-year-old female student, who was allegedly subjected to ragging and sexual harassment at her college, triggered widespread outrage across Himachal Pradesh, the college administration has come out in support of the accused professor and said that the woman was not enrolled as a student after she failed 3 subjects in the first year. About The Case The deeply disturbing case came to light on Friday from Dharamshala, where Pallavi, who was allegedly subjected to ragging and sexual harassment at her college, died while undergoing prolonged treatment. This case triggered widespread outrage and has raised questions over the role of the college and police administration. In connection with the case, police have registered an FIR against four female students and a college professor. However, the matter has taken a controversial turn as the college administration has refused to recognise the deceased as a student of the institution for the current academic year. This has led the victim’s family and guardians to question the conduct of both the college authorities and the police in handling the case. Following the death Pallavi, who was associated with Dharamshala Degree College, serious allegations of ragging, sexual harassment and mental torture have surfaced. Acting on a complaint filed by the victim’s father, Vikram Kumar, the Dharamshala police have registered a case under Sections 75, 115(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), which deal with sexual harassment, voluntarily causing hurt and common intention. The FIR also includes Section 3 of the Himachal Pradesh Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Ragging) Act, 2009. Confirming the development, Kangra ASP Veer Bahadur said the matter had earlier been taken up on the Chief Minister’s helpline. Addressing questions over police action, he said, “Questions are being raised about the police; the truth is that as soon as they received information about the case, they immediately contacted the victim’s family and learned that they were out of town for their daughter’s treatment.” He added that the family had been requested to inform the police after returning to Dharamshala. “The police are now investigating it, in which four female students and one professor have been named as parties,” the ASP said. Meanwhile, the deceased student’s father, Vikram Kumar, has raised strong objections to the conduct of the college administration, the police and what he described as the prevailing mindset of society. He alleged that the very institution where he had sent his daughter to pursue her studies failed to protect her. “Not only did the college students mistreat her, but even the professor did not leave any stone unturned in torturing her,” he alleged. Vikram further claimed that his daughter was subjected to casteist slurs and immense mental harassment. “My daughter was so mentally tormented that she ultimately left this world. This is a highly condemnable incident. If strict action is not taken today, then in the near future, other daughters will also continue to be tormented in the same way as my daughter, and there is no guarantee that they will get justice,” he told reporters. Expressing disappointment with the police, he said that the family was compelled to approach the CM’s helpline. “In this situation, they too had to take the matter to the CM’s helpline. If the police had been vigilant here, perhaps this wouldn’t have happened,” Vikram said. After the incident, the college administration has openly defended the accused professor. College Principal Rakesh Pathania said there was no dispute that the deceased had earlier been a student of the college, but claimed she was not enrolled during the current academic year. “Therefore, saying that she was studying in this college would not be fair to the college’s image,” Pathania said. He explained that the student had failed in three subjects in her first year and was repeatedly pressuring the department professor for admission to the second year, which was against university rules. “She left the college and was neither admitted to the first year nor the second year. However, she was seen in college again in July and then left again in September. Therefore, currently, the student has no connection with the college as a regular student,” he said. Pathania also asserted that the college follows a zero-tolerance policy on ragging. “Anti-ragging committee numbers are written in every block, yet we did not receive any complaint from anyone on which an enquiry could be conducted,” he said. Vikram Shri Vats, Associate Professor of Physics and Head of the Professors’ Unit at the college, also came out in support of the accused professor Ashok. While expressing sympathy for the bereaved family, he said, “The ground reality is that the allegations levelled against our college professor Ashok are completely baseless. I condemn them and stand with the professor in this matter.” Similarly, Monica Makkar, Professor of Psychology at the college, defended the accused faculty member. “We stand 100 per cent with Professor Ashok because he has been teaching children in this college since 2006, and to this day, he has not been seen misbehaving with anyone in this way or in any other way,” she said. The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has also stepped into the matter following the student’s death. Speaking to reporters, ABVP state secretary Nancy Atal said the organisation stands with the victim’s family and questioned the functioning of both the police and the college administration. “If they had taken timely action on this incident, perhaps this situation would not have arisen,” she said. Atal further accused the police of failing in their duty, alleging that they often delay action in criminal cases but act swiftly to suppress student movements. Meanwhile, an investigation is underway, and further details are awaited.
Dalit BJP Leader Rakesh Sahay Alleges City Chief’s Gunman Pointed Weapon at Him in Aligarh
A controversy has erupted within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Aligarh after the gunman of the party’s city president was accused of pointing a carbine at a Dalit leader during a party programme. The incident took place on Wednesday at the Atal Smriti Sammelan held at the Habitat Centre, which falls under the Civil Lines police station area in Aligarh. Rakesh Sahay, city general secretary of the BJP’s Scheduled Caste Morcha, alleged that the gunman of the BJP Aligarh city president, Engineer Rajiv Sharma, misbehaved with party workers and aimed his weapon at him during an argument. Speaking to the media, Sahay claimed the act reflected discrimination. “This happened because I am Dalit. Carbines will be pointed at us and cases will be filed against us. This gunman has been kept to intimidate party workers, not for security,” he alleged. According to eyewitnesses, the dispute began when BJP regional president Durvijay Singh Shakya arrived at the venue. As he moved from the fifth floor towards the auditorium, several party workers, including Sahay, tried to take selfies with him. During this, workers were allegedly pushed aside, leading to heated arguments between the city president’s entourage and BJP workers. Tensions rose again during the welcome ceremony on stage when Sahay, former mandal president Sanjay Sharma and Gorang Tiwari stepped forward to greet the regional president. They were reportedly stopped by the city president’s gunman, which led to another round of arguments. Senior party leaders intervened and managed to calm the situation for a while. However, after the programme ended and the regional president left the venue, another confrontation broke out. During this argument, the gunman allegedly pulled out his carbine and pointed it at Rakesh Sahay, creating panic among party workers. Other BJP leaders and security staff stepped in to defuse the situation. Metropolitan vice-president Sanjay Goyal confirmed that party workers were only trying to take photographs with the regional president. “There was pushing and arguments, but pointing a weapon at a worker is completely unacceptable,” he said, adding that the matter would be reported to the BJP’s state leadership. BJP Aligarh city president Engineer Rajiv Sharma denied the allegations. He claimed that some workers created chaos at the event and manhandled the gunman when he tried to manage the crowd. “This entire episode has damaged the image of the party,” Sharma said. Following the incident, the gunman, identified as Anoop Kumar, submitted a written complaint to Senior Superintendent of Police Neeraj Jadoun. Police officials said CCTV footage from the venue is being examined to establish the sequence of events. “An inquiry is underway, and all aspects of the incident are being verified,” a police officer said. The incident has caused unease within the BJP’s local unit in Aligarh, with several leaders demanding accountability and restraint at party programmes, especially when senior leaders and workers are present. Courtesy : TOP Note: This news is originally published on https:/theobserverpost.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
I too want to become CM: Karnataka Home Minister Dr G Parameshwara
After becoming an MLA and minister, aspiring for the CM’s seat is a natural progression, hinted Parameshwara. BENGALURU: Home Minister Dr G Parameshwara on Thursday expressed his interest in becoming chief minister. “A human being must have aspirations, otherwise he/she will not feel human. Like everyone else, I too have aspirations”, he told reporters. Senior officers in the state home department have been given promotions and the minister was asked would he too get a political promotion. “I have lived as an optimist till now. Everyone has a desire for something to happen in life. If the high command decides, it will happen. It is up to the elders (to make a decision).” After becoming an MLA and minister, aspiring for the CM’s seat is a natural progression, hinted Parameshwara. The 74-year-old politician is a six-time MLA and one-time MLC. He has served as KPCC president for a record eight years (2010-2018). On Thursday he displayed his credentials as a Dalit and follower of Dr BR Ambedkar by attending an event commemorating the Mahars’ victory in Bhima Koregaon battle on January 1, 1818, near Pune in Maharashtra, at Nagasena Grounds near his residence in Bengaluru. According to sources Parameshwara, who has been in the good books of Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) president Sonia Gandhi, has been silently lobbying for the top post. Some of his supporters, including former Hubballi Dharwad Corporation Mayor Anilkumar Patil, had met Sonia Gandhi in Delhi to submit a petition. Later some others had staged a demonstration outside Indira Bhavan while the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting was underway on December 27. Some of the sympathizers of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, especially AHINDA leaders, have issued a statement that if he has to step down anytime in future Parameshwara should be given the top post and not Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. Interestingly, a section of Dalit leaders led by Bilikere Raju in Mysuru, Siddaramaiah’s home turf, last Sunday urged that the latter should sacrifice the CM post to a Dalit leader, especially Parameshwara. “Only then we will take part in the AHINDA convention (slated to be held in Mysuru on January 25), otherwise we will skip it”, he warned. Devaraj B Hirehalli Courtesy : TNIE Note: This news is originally published on https:/thenewindianexpress.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Dalit dating in India is a choice between dignity and loneliness
Dating apps promised to disrupt the casteist marriage market. Instead, they’ve merely translated social biases into digital language. Let’s call her K. She is 34, single-child, and was ticking her Mr. Perfect checklist—has a larger goal or purpose, well-read, has to settle in her hometown, left-brained, must be a pothead, has high libido. And on top of it all, must be a neo-Buddhist. Oh, and bonus points for body count being in double digits (like her). She wanted all of this, no compromises at all, especially on the neo-Buddhist part. For educated Dalits, the harsh truth is: our dating pool is tiny. After decades of oppression, only a small fraction of Dalit youth have college degrees and job security like their Savarna peers. Even among Dalits, economic and educational uplift is uneven. My grandparents had arranged marriages within our extended clan, often prioritising family connections. Today, we discuss compatibility, but our pool is still largely comprised of members from our own community, and even that community is fracturing. As one essayist, Aashika Shivangi Singh, has noted, even marriage within first and third and fourth generation Dalits can provoke rejection from one’s own kin. In other words, this difference has left its scars even among “oppressed” castes. A shrinking dating pool Dalits carry intergenerational trauma, which can be hard to shake off, and it comes as an unavoidable baggage when it comes to finding a partner. They say, “The child of a broken home often seeks a perfect one, and in doing so, breaks the home they build.” For A, this reflects the anxiety of “getting it right” to avoid her parents’ fate. Her Dad left when she was 18. But her pursuit of ‘the perfect’ can stifle the natural, messy growth of a healthy relationship. And then there’s her checklist, the burden of expectation placed on a partner to be the permanent anchor that the parents failed to be. We often hear that modern love should transcend caste. After all, BR Ambedkar proclaimed, “the real remedy for breaking caste is inter-marriage. Nothing else will serve as the solvent of caste.” But in India, inter-caste unions remain rare; only about 5 per cent of marriages are between different castes. On dating apps, I see why. For every Dalit profile, there are dozens of profiles of young Savarna professionals. In swiping, I matched almost exclusively with Sharmas, Kumars and Chatterjees—upper-caste names that told me their caste before I even saw a picture. In a sense, the upper-caste majority on these apps makes us depend on each other: finding a socially aware partner often means dating within the Dalit/Bahujan community, not out of caste. This is not some romantic ideology of “dating within community” – it’s a quiet survival strategy. This isn’t about a lack of effort on apps. On the surface, dating technology promises openness, even anonymity. But caste filters itself in. As one Dalit writer wryly observed, even though apps don’t show your caste by default, “could it be that these apps are only casting a wider net to have access to people from different castes?” In practice, subtle markers, such as a surname, dialect, or even an English grammar test on a profile, serve as unofficial caste checks. “Many Savarna women,” an analyst notes, will declare themselves “grammar nazis” or post obscure cultural cues to signal they share Savarna upbringing. In short, technology is no match for what generations of social conditioning have normalised. The same caste boundaries that governed hometowns and schools quietly govern our swipes and likes. A big fault-line is generational. I’m a second-generation city dweller: my Dad earned a university degree and got a secure government job. For me, marriage is a choice about compatibility, love, and shared values. But for my parents’ generation (first-generation university-goers), marriage was often seen as proof that we’d escaped our caste past. They believe that if their daughter marries an Ambedkarite engineer, it will show their relatives that caste rules no longer bind us. In practice, this means they still mostly trust proposals within our sub-caste or those who look “respectable”. To them, each match is a statement: “See, our daughter is doing just fine.” This difference shows up in funny ways. I want to discuss relationship compatibility over coffee, but my mother quietly brings up the family’s job background. It’s a tension: elders see marriage as security and social proof, younger Dalits see it as an adventure of choices. Ideologies collide Another tension runs along ideological lines. In my family, we follow Ambedkarite neo-Buddhism, which means equality, rational thought, and rejecting caste rituals. We see ourselves as Buddhists first and caste-freed Dalits second. But many Dalit relatives I know (even if they outwardly call themselves “Buddhist”) still observe certain Hindu traditions: perhaps a puja, or an unshorn thread, or reverence for fasting on Thursdays. These differing worldviews can clash. For example, I’ve talked politics and social reform on dates, quoting Ambedkar or Buddha, only to find the match uncomfortable because I challenge even the smallest ritual they grew up with. Experiences like these remind us how deep caste memory runs, even in our own parents’ generation. The truth is, caste rules both the oppressor and the oppressed. As Dalit writer Suraj Yengde notes, even “in radical or progressive spaces, caste hierarchies continue to persist” in personal relationships. One painting of a Buddhist shrine on my wall might mean hope to me, and hostility to someone else. This ideological gap means our dating choices are often more constrained. I was assigned neo-Buddhist at birth, yet I can’t pretend all my kin left caste behind. In practice, many often screen potential Dalit partners by how seriously they take Ambedkar’s ideals versus caste heritage. And that difference matters: marrying outside one’s Dalit sub-caste can still upset even a Dalit community. Memory and trauma Intergenerational trauma casts a long shadow over Dalit dating. My parents lived through a lack of resources, an illiterate family, the barriers to education, and all that. They
Dalit organisations demand capital punishment to guilty in honor killing
Submitting a memorandum addressed to CM Siddaramaiah, the organisations described the incident as not only an attack on an individual but also an effort to destroy humanity in the name of honor based on caste discrimination. Members of Dalit organisations submitting a memorandum demandng capital punishment for the accused in the Inam Veerapur honour killing case in Yadgir on Tuesday. Members of Dalit organisations submitting a memorandum demandng capital punishment for the accused in the Inam Veerapur honour killing case in Yadgir on Tuesday. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT Karnataka State Dalit Sangharsh Samiti, Karnataka State Dalit Student Union, and the Karnataka State Dalit Women’s Union (Revolutionary) State Committee has strongly condemned the honor killing of a pregnant woman in Inam Veerapur village in Hubballi taluk and demanded that capital punishment be given to the accused involved in the barbaric incident. Submitting a memorandum addressed to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah through the district administration in Yadgir on Tuesday (December 30, 2025), the organisations described the incident that occurred as not only an attack on an individual but also an effort to destroy humanity in the name of honor based on caste discrimination. Deaths most dishonourable “The accused persons named as Prakash Gowda Patil, Preetam Gowda Patil, Arun Gowda Patil, Eerappa, and Mudakappa, who were responsible for this murder, should be sentenced to death. And the remaining accused should be arrested immediately,” Mallikarjun Kranthi, State Organizing Conveyor of Karnataka Rajya Dalit Sangharsh Samiti (Krantikari), who led the demonstrators, has said. “Killing a woman for marrying a Dalit man in the name of honor is an inhuman act and an attempt to disobey the principles of Basaveshwar. The state government should announce ₹50 lakh compensation to Vivekanand and also provide a government job and 4 acres of land,” Mr. Kranti urged the state government. “The government should curb honor killings by imposing the death penalty on the accused, and the remaining accused should be arrested immediately,” Mr. Kranthi added. The Hindu Bureau Courtesy : The Hindu Note: This news is originally published on https:/thehindu.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Best of South First videos 2025: From caste discrimination to federalism
Over the past year, the South First team helped people make their voices heard, capturing their emotions vividly. In modern journalism, video stories can convey what text often fails to capture — the emotions behind the voices. Over the past year, the South First team helped people make their voices heard, capturing their emotions vividly. Here are some of South First’s best video stories from 2025. How is caste practised in Christianity? Many people think that caste discrimination exists only among Hindus. But in reality, it also exists among Christians—and sometimes it’s even harsher. Aleena, who is a writer and a Dalit Christian, talks about the discrimination that Dalit Christians face, especially from other Christians who come from privileged backgrounds. This conversation is about the political aspects of this issue, the fight for reservation for Dalit Christians, and the attacks they face from right-wing groups in India. Bengaluru pothole crisis The Karnataka government had set a deadline of 31 October to make Bengaluru pothole-free. However, the city’s roads tell a different story. From Kengeri and JP Nagar to Whitefield, Yelahanka, and Anekal, potholes continue to trouble commuters despite ongoing repair works. Citizens and activists say that little has changed on the ground, pointing to poor-quality materials and unscientific repair methods as key reasons why Bengaluru’s pothole problem refuses to go away Kerala Speaker on democracy, federalism, and the literary power of KLIBF In a conversation with South First, Kerala Legislative Assembly Speaker AN Shamseer elaborates on the vision behind KLIBF, its remarkable growth, and its impact on the literary world, positioning it as a platform for resistance in the age of misinformation. The Speaker also offers insightful takes on the pressing issues of federalism, the controversial “One Nation, One Election” proposal, and the challenges of maintaining impartiality in a politically charged atmosphere. His reflections underscore the importance of strengthening constitutional literacy and engaging the younger generation in the democratic process. In this candid interview, the Speaker also emphasises the Assembly’s commitment to a paperless future. Caste, power and the price of asking for temple rights In Vadakadu village in Pudukkottai district of Tamil Nadu, a temple festival erupted into large-scale caste violence, leaving dozens of Dalit homes damaged. Members of the dominant Mutharaiyar community allegedly launched a violent attack on the Scheduled Caste area after a long-standing dispute over temple rights escalated. Eyewitnesses recount chilling scenes of mob violence, police inaction, and systemic bias. This ground report reveals the human toll of caste hatred and political apathy. Kerala freezes PM SHRI scheme amid Left alliance rift In a dramatic political twist, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has announced that Kerala will freeze the implementation of the PM SHRI scheme — for now. A seven-member Cabinet subcommittee led by Education Minister V Sivankutty, with CPI ministers K Rajan and P Prasad among its members, will study the matter and submit a report. The move signals more than just a policy rethink — it marks a clear ideological victory for the CPI within the ruling Left alliance. While the CPI(M) emphasised practicality, the CPI stood firm on principle, declaring that “if the Centre won’t fund education, the people will.” But the controversy is far from over. Several questions remain. As Kerala politics holds its breath, the battle between funds and ideology continues. Two lakh Tamil Nadu hill tribe members’ voting rights in danger Across the hill regions of Tamil Nadu, thousands of tribal voters are facing the danger of losing their voting rights due to documentation hurdles, lack of mobile connectivity, migration for work, and insufficient time for verification. In areas with hundreds of eligible voters, dozens remain unregistered or have had their forms rejected, even though many voted in previous elections. Several hill communities still lack basic facilities such as mobile phone towers, forcing residents to walk kilometres just to access information. If tribal voters lose their voting rights, they will also lose the right to contest in local body, block and district-level elections under the ST quota. The Tamil Nadu Tribal Association has urged authorities to extend the deadline and conduct door-to-door verification to ensure no eligible voter is excluded. Courtesy : TSF Note: This news is originally published on https:/thesouthfirst.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Dalits protest against Hubballi honour killing
Members of Karnataka Rajya Chalavadi Mahasabha and other organisations took to the streets in Hubballi on Monday against the recent honour killing in Inam Veerapur village in Dharwad district in which a pregnant woman passed away. Protestors condemned the murder of the pregnant woman by her family members who were upset that she married a Dalit. They demanded death penalty for the accused. They walked from Ambedkar Circle to the Tahsildar’s office to express their protest. They said that attacks against Dalits and cases of families killing their women who marry Dalits are increasing and demanded steps to stop such acts. They also demanded compensation to the families of victims. It is unfortunate that in the land of Basavanna, Dalits are not able to live peacefully. Mahasabha president Parameshwar Kale and others were present. The Hindu Bureau Courtesy : The Hindu Note: This news is originally published on https:/thehindu.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
G Ram G ‘anti-dalit’, restore MGNREGA: Punjab assembly passes resolution
Chandigarh: Punjab vidhan sabha on Tuesday “unanimously” passed a resolution accusing the BJP-led Centre of taking away the livelihood of dalit labourers and poor families by “scrapping” MGNREGA and replacing it with the VB-G RAM G Act. Dubbing the new Act “anti-Dalit”, and a “deliberate and dangerous conspiracy” that has effectively taken away the right to survival of Dalit labourers across the country, the House demanded that it be immediately withdrawn, and MGNREGA restored to its original rights-based form. The resolution also took sharp aim at Shiromani Akali Dal, accusing the party of maintaining “silence” on the issue. “This silence is because they hope to re-establish their alliance with the BJP in 2027, even if the dalits have to pay the price for it. Keeping silent on the verdicts against dalits is also a crime,” it said. The resolution further alleged that the Centre moved beyond merely dismantling a “govt scheme” to effectively destroying the “right to survival” for the country’s dalit labourers. According to the resolution, the BJP’s decisions repeatedly prove a desire to marginalise them and reflect a sentiment that “BJP hates Dalits”. The resolution said, “Attacking MGNREGA is actually an attack on the dignity and existence of Dalits.” Through the resolution, the House noted that the “abolition” of the programme—which previously allowed labourers to stay in their villages, educate their children, and live with dignity—is a direct attack on the “dignity and existence” of the community. According to the text, the “scrapping” of the scheme “extinguished the kitchen stoves” of families. The resolution, moved by the rural development and panchayats minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond, said, “A govt that extinguishes the kitchen stoves of the dalit forfeits its moral right to seek votes from the community. This House clearly states that the policies of the BJP-led Centre are anti-Dalit.” It stated that the decision to “abolish MGNREGA” is not merely an administrative choice but a “declaration of thought from an anti-dalit perspective”. “MNREGA was the last means of survival for millions of dalits and poor dalit families in the country. It was the system that allowed dalit labourers to stay in their villages, earn their livelihood through hard work, send their children to school, and live with dignity,” the resolution said. “This House therefore recommends that the state govt demand from the BJP-led Centre govt to immediately withdraw the decision to scrap MNREGA, that MNREGA be fully restored to its original right-based form, and ensure guaranteed work and wages for Dalit labourers and poor Dalit families across the country,” it said. The resolution concluded by reaffirming that the Punjab vidhan sabha stands firmly with labourers and demands that the “abolition” of these rights be reversed to protect the “original right-based form” of the employment guarantee. ‘Extra burden on states’ Concerns were raised over the shift in financial responsibility from a fully centrally sponsored model to a 60:40 Centre-state sharing model under the new Act. It was pointed out that the change will impose an additional financial burden on states like Punjab that are already facing financial difficulties. Furthermore, if central budget limits are reached, the state must bear the entire responsibility for unemployment allowances and 100% of the costs for work provided beyond the federal allocation. A Congress MLAs alleged that there was an attempt to scrap the scheme, as the states will not be able to bear the exorbitant financial burden. The opposition party also offered support to the AAP govt to take its fight against the scheme to Delhi. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
The Constitution’s emancipatory promises on caste remain elusive
Constructively criticising the Constitution is imperative at a time when its survival is threatened by the Hindutva project. For a series of 11 short treatises by leading scholars on the ideas of free India’s Constitution, we thought it fitting to invite India’s highly regarded scholar Anand Teltumbde – also one who recently served time as a prisoner of conscience – to write the closing book in the series. In this chain of books (that I am editing with Neera Chandoke for Speaking Tiger), we have looked at how the Constitution was imagined, debated and written; its understanding of secularism, socialism and democracy; and its foundational pledges of justice, liberty, equality, fraternity, federalism and the scientific temper. We requested Teltumbde to reflect on what the Constitution has meant for India’s most dispossessed peoples, and how much it has contributed to helping access their rights to a life of dignity and hope. His conclusions are sobering, scathing and unsparing. Teltumbde sees an immense gap between the vision laid out in the Preamble and the realities of India’s present. “Liberty is under attack. Economic inequality is worse now than it was even under colonial rule. Fraternity has been shredded by rising communal hatred and growing caste consciousness under the revivalist Hindutva movement. Justice – social, economic, and political – remains elusive. The very foundation of our democracy feels dangerously fragile”. Teltumbde argues that we should not be constrained from constructively critiquing the Constitution because at this moment its very survival is gravely threatened by the Hindutva project of dismantling and rewriting the constitution to establish a Hindu Rashtra. With BR Ambedkar, he is convinced that a Hindu Rashtra would be the greatest calamity for India. Unlike the critique of the Constitution of the reactionary far-right, he affirms the emancipatory promise of the Preamble – liberty, equality, fraternity, and justice. Yet, he sees these as values the Constitution pledged but has failed to deliver. “Yes”, he says boldly, “the Constitution is flawed…but dismantling it without first building a genuinely democratic and pro-people alternative would be to destroy the last remaining legal and moral structure within which the struggle for justice can still be waged”. The gravest betrayals of the Constitution are arguably of Dalits His treatise focuses specifically on Dalits, who have for millennia been oppressed by structures of caste, and barred from education and dignified work. But they apply more generally to all oppressed and marginalised communities who constitute the Indian republic. Teltumbde observes that on the one hand, perhaps Dalits feel the greatest emotional connection among all Indians to the Constitution. This is because its writing was led by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar who they venerate for leading the struggles for their liberation from the centuries-old bondages of caste. Yet, he believes that the Constitution has failed resoundingly in fulfilling its emancipatory promise for Dalits, arguably more than for any other community. It has contributed to the rise of a small Dalit middle-class. But this small class shares with the large mass of Dalits only “a history but not a present”. The overwhelming majority of Dalits continue to endure the caste stigma and oppression that has been their fate for millennia, living in “a vast, submerged reality of suffering and despair”. Dalits, he points out, form a quarter of India’s population, if we include Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims. Their population, exceeding 320 million, would make them the third-largest “nation” in the world, larger than the combined population of 150 of the least populous countries on the planet. However, their wide dispersal across the country has meant that – like Muslims – they rarely form a numerical majority. Teltumbde rejects the premise of some Hindutva intellectuals that the British rule created caste. But, he avers that colonial rule fundamentally transformed caste. Before the British, caste was a dynamic, localised system. The British began counting and documenting caste. This, quoting Arjun Appadurai, didn’t just describe caste – it produced it as a rigid, bureaucratised, institutionalised hierarchy, solidifying boundaries that were previously contextual and fluid. This colonial approach, Teltumbde states, continues to reverberate in India’s social and political life. He also observes that paradoxically, colonial rule also opened some emancipatory pathways for Dalits outside the rigid caste structures of Hindu kingdoms. They found non-caste employment for the first time in the military and railways, and were able to access education and stable employment. Babasaheb himself was the son of a British military soldier. Teltumbde importantly reminds us that until Mohandas Gandhi, the Indian National Congress – dominated as it was by English-educated elites, landlords, and emerging capitalists – tended to steer clear of calling for reforms in caste, untouchability and the status of women. It later made space for moderate reforms such as widow remarriage, child marriage, and even the abolition of untouchability, but never the annihilation of caste. It was Gandhi who brought fighting untouchability into the core of the Congress agenda from 1916 onward. Particularly impactful was his movement for Dalit temple entry. The limitation of Gandhi’s approach was that while he and the Congress looked at untouchability as a moral question and a social sin to be atoned for by caste Hindus, they did not frame it as a systemic injustice that required political solutions. This conflicted with Ambedkar’s demands for separate electorates. Gandhi went on a fast unto death against separate electorates because he feared this would break Hindu unity and also encourage the Muslim League to make a similar demand. The compromise in the Poona Pact of 1932 was for reserved seats for Dalits within the general electorate rather than separate electorates. Ambedkar was dissatisfied with this because he was convinced that Dalits formed a separate community from caste Hindus like the Muslims, and therefore only separate electorates would protect their political and social interests. Gandhi followed this with a temple entry movement which incensed the conservative Hindu, but this still was not a movement for political empowerment of the Dalits. The Constitution abolished untouchability but not caste Teltumbde