For An Informed Ambedkar Age
Praveena Thaali The recent debate on Arundhati Roy’s introduction to Annihilation of Caste: Annotated Critical Edition, published by Navayana, is quiet fascinating to look at, if viewed in a slightly different manner than usual. So, in this article, I will try to place some of my own observations. First of all, I would like …
James Michael and Akshay Pathak “His statues—dressed in garish blue, holding a copy of the Constitution—have been put up in city after city” ~ Arun Shourie, Worshipping False Gods “All the same, Ambedkar’s followers have kept his legacy alive in creative ways. One of those ways is to turn him into a million mass-produced …
Nilesh Kumar My father was fortunate that there was a Government press just next to his work place. Once a presswala got to know that my father is an ardent reader of Ambedkarite literature. He started delivering Ambedkarite literature to him. When we had all this voluminous literature available at home, my father insisted …
Dalit Camera: Through Un-Touchable Eyes Dalit Camera talked recently to veteran human rights activist Bojja Tharakam on the new edition of ‘Ännihilation of Caste’ introduced by Arundhati Roy. The text below is a transcript of the interview. BojjaTharakam, senior advocate in the AP High Court, was the founding president of Andhra Pradesh Dalit Maha …
(This report was first published in People’s March in January 2007) Avanti MARX’S famous phrase, “people make history” was witnessed this past one month in Maharashtra when the Dalits rose as one to protest against the gruesome killings of four Dalits in Khairlanjhi village. It is a fact that people develop the tactics and …
Nidhin Shobhana For many days now, I have been grappling with a strong sense of unrest within me. I am thankful to the recent debates on Arundhati Roy and her mighty long introduction to ‘S. Anand’s critically annotated Annihilation of Caste’ which inspired me to finally ventilate this unrest. Oops! I forgot to mention …
Gee Imaan Semmalar “In my judgment, it is useless to make a distinction between the secular Brahmins and priestly Brahmins. Both are kith and kin. They are two arms of the same body, and one is bound to fight for the existence of the other.” ~ Babasaheb Ambedkar, Annihilation of Caste, 1936. Babasaheb Ambedkar, …
Asha Kowtal My recent association with campaigns resisting violence against Dalit women has brought me in contact with several individuals, groups and organisations that represent diverse perspectives and histories. Broadly it includes groups which have been advocating ‘gender justice’ and others who have been battling the cruelty of the caste system in India. The …
Surinder S. Jodhka The Jats, without doubt, have been the most important and powerful caste community in the rural landscapes of northwest India. The sources of their dominance have typically been their control over agricultural lands, their demographics and their networks beyond the village. However, unlike the other “dominant castes”, such as the Marathas …