Murali Ramathoti Friends, experience shows us that social movements are necessary but not sufficient to bring about long-lasting change. It also requires a strong political will and commitment which the present dispensation lacks. I trust legislative bodies, to some extent, could provide a platform for a democratic articulation of the problems of the marginalized …
The Bharat Bandh on 5th March – A Report
Pavan S Khadse March 05, 2019 was a historical & revolutionary day for Bahujans because, for the first time in the country’s history a unity was noticed amongst Bahujans beyond political motives. When I am using the term ‘Bahujan’, it includes SC/ST/OBC and converted religious minorities. Bahujan have always revolted against the brahmanical ideology and …
Caste and Judiciary: Looking for Dalit and Adivasi Judges in Supreme Court of India
Adv C Ahamed Fayiz The role of the judiciary is to make decisions in accordance with the letter of the law. While the law formulates general regulations, legislations allow enough discretion to the judiciary to exercise their independent reasoning and provide justice to the unique factual circumstances in individual cases. It is in exercising …
Hindu festivals and dilemma of Ambedkarites
Pratik Tembhurne It’s the festival season. Time for celebrations, get-togethers, delicacies and wait – rituals. Here begins the confusion among some groups. What do rituals mean? When the term rituals get attached to all the fun, another word gets to be added. Yes, the rituals are Hindu rituals. In local dialect, the rituals are often …
Relevance of Manyawar Kanshi Ram’s Politics in Contemporary India
Amit Kumar In post-independence India, there are many names that have made a deep imprint on Indian politics. Kanshi Ram Saheb is one of the tallest figures who not only changed the political vocabulary but became the voice of that groups which have been neglected historically for a long time. In a true sense, he …
100 Years of the Mangaon Conference for the Rights of the Untouchables
Somnath Waghmare In 1920, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, aged 29, had just returned to India after completing his M.A and PhD at the University of Columbia in the USA. He began dialogues and meetings with the Dalit community for social rights. Mangaon is a village 20 kilometers away from Kolhapur city in Maharashtra, which was …
The Butcher Loves Me a Lot – Reading the poems of Loknath Yashwant
Chanchal Kumar The critic Walter Benjamin, talking about a piece of literature, says that the truth content of the work becomes more relevant only if it is bound up with its subject matter “inconspicuously and intimately”. If we go by this explanation then Loknath Yashwant’s volume places a mirror to us, in order that …
Pasmanda Community Asserts: Demands Lok Sabha Ticket for Ali Anwar from Madhubani
Abhijit Anand A wave of simmering anger can be felt among the Pasmanda community members. This anger is more prominently visible in Bihar where the social justice parties have completely ignored the community in Lok Sabha ticket distribution. A change.org petition started on 23rd March by sociologist Khalid Anis Ansari was being shared enthusiastically …
Caste: The System of Injustice and Lunacy
Aishwarya KS Caste is a sharpened weapon which has the power to destroy the identity and dignity of an individual in India. Caste is a socially constructed reality. Dr BR Ambedkar has defined caste as a state of mind. It can control an individual’s mind and can make him inhumane in nature. This is exactly …