Pardeep Attri While growing up in Punjab, I was reminded by many not to listen to ‘Chamkila’. I could never understand the reasons behind those advices at that time and never cared to ask anyone as I was not a song loving person. Hence, those advices didn’t matter to me. After moving to England …
Massacre of Ambedkarites at Ramabai Nagar by State Machinery!
Amar Khade On 11 July 1997, the Maharashtra State Reserve Police Force under Sub-Inspector Manohar Kadam, started firing on unarmed Ambedkarite protesters in Ramabai Nagar. In the police firing, 10 Ambedkarite were massacred. Their names are as follows: (1) Sukhdev Kapadne (2) Sanjay Nikam (3) Bablu Verma (4) Anil Garud (5) Kishore Kataranwar (6) …
Can we bring up kids telling them not to fall in love with someone from another caste?
Radhika Sudhakar In the Swathi murder case, as mainstream media increasingly plays the role of judge and jury, while evidence gathering, judgement based on facts and adherence to the rule of law takes a back seat, it does immense disservice to the victim’s rights as well as the accused’s rights. In the process, it also …
A Dalit’s Letter to Amit Shah
Dr. Om Sudha Approximately one kilometre away from my village Ghorghat is Murla Musahari, which is primarily a Dalit basti. There is a caste Musahar, yes Musahar, you must be knowing about them? I’m just asking because nowadays you are seen feasting in Dalits’ homes, so I thought I would ask. There are 50-60 …
Why are Folks So Inclined to Speak for and Erase Dalit People’s Wisdom?
Noel Didla There has been a recent spate of speculative publications on Dalit women by anyone and everyone to validate themselves as academics, journalists, editorial writers, policy experts, global anti caste consultants, subaltern studies space makers and global solidarity town criers etc. Majority of these folk creep on the walls of Dalit women, breeze through Savari, RTI …
Chintu Kumari’s flawed defense of the Left
Murali Ramathoti The essence of Chintu Kumari’s response, that “The left and the Ambedkarite movements need Debate and Unity”, is to say that CPIML Liberation’s (henceforth Liberation) struggle focuses not only on economic lines but on social lines too, i.e. on caste, feudal pride, women’s degradation etc. To justify her argument she narrated the …
Is it ‘Marx’s agency’ or ‘Manu’s Agency’ that works in CPI-Ml (Liberation)?
Chinmaya Mahanand (His reply to Chintu Kumari’s (AISA) response to his Facebook comment on the hunger strike in JNU) Dear Chintu Kumari, Like you, I too felt the necessity to reply. I hope this assertion of your identity as a Dalit woman is not being considered as your ‘immediate identity’ by AISA/Liberation and by …
Caste, Friendship & Solidarity
Christina Thomas Dhanaraj The practice of caste in India and the rest of South Asia is indisputable. The 3000-year old oppressive structure has its footprint in pretty much everything that is remotely Indian or South Asian. And no, 60 years of being a Republic, or the Mandal commission couldn’t do much to erase it. …
Afterlife of a Dalit film star
K K Baburaj When a great personality dies, people feel helpless and the country ceases to function. But, after one week, if this great personality returns, he won’t find the job of a city porter. The famous German poet Bertolt Brecht wrote such a poem. Kalabhavan Mani, a Dalit film star and popular singer …