Gujarat National Law University

PROJECT OF POLITICAL SCIENCES On CASTE SYSTEM IN INDIA

Guided by: - Submitted by:-Prof. Manan Dwivedi KEERTAN SREEKUMARRoll No. 09A063HARSHAL THOLIA Roll No. 09A057 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Every work is the outcome of efforts of many people and this work is no exception to it. We would like to sincerely thank our respected Political Sciences teacher, Professor Manan Dwivedi who has helped us in developing the necessary understanding of the topic, for his able guidance and for his patience without which this project couldnt have been completed.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

S No. TitlePage No.1. Introduction42. Varna and Caste53. Definition54. The Four Varna6 5. Important features86. Functions or Significance97. Demerits108. Disintegration119. Changes in modern age1310. Caste and Politics1511. Bibliography17

INTRODUCTION

A caste system is a type of social structure which divides people on the basis of inherited social status. Although many societies could be described in this way, within a caste system, people are rigidly expected to marry and interact with people of the same social class. India has a well known example of a caste system, although various forms of caste systems can be found in many other cultures as well.Although people associate the caste system with India, the word is actually borrowed from the Portuguese language. By 1555, English speakers were using the word to refer to a race of men, adopting the Portuguese word casta. Although the word was used in English to describe race or breeding, in Portuguese it was more widely used in reference to the stratified society of Portugal. When the Indian social system was encountered in 1563, it came to be described as a caste system in the Portuguese sense, first time by Garcia de Orta.Caste system in India was called Jati Pratha. It was the basic, essential, central, ancient institution of the Hindu society. Every Indian certainly belongs to some caste or the other that is the caste of his fathers. In traditional Indian society, ones social and cultural standing was based on his caste. There were four main castes which were further subdivided into sub-castes known as the Jatis. They are estimated to be approximately 3000 in number.The notion of the caste system first appears to have been established in 1000 BC, in the hymn of the Rig-Veda(in Pususha sukta). In this hymn, four Varnas were presented: Brahmana, Rajanya (later referred to as Kshatriya), Vaishya and Sudra. Each of these had emanated from the lord of the beings Purusha, who was sacrificed at the beginning of time, from his mouth came the Brahman;from his arms, the Rajanya; from his thighs the Vaishya; and from his feet the Shudras. In the code of Manu, a later Hindu law book, each Varna is represented as fundamentally different in function, and each is required to perform a particular function as its divinely ordained duty.This was known as the DIVINE THEORY. The Varna System when became rigid took the form of caste system. VARNA AND CASTEVarna which literally means colour, originally referred to the distinction between the distinction between the Arya and Dasa(Anarya). The Aryas were the people who came from Iran as invaders and the Dasa were the original inhabitants of India. Thus, the term which was originally referred to the distinction in colour and appearance between between the conquerors i.e. Aryas and the conquered aborigines i.e. Dasas was used later to refer to the hierarchical division of the society.Before coming into India, the Aryans were divided into four groups namely Athravans, Rathaestas, Vastria and Hiuti which later took the form of Brahmins, Kshatriya, Vaisyas and Shudras. This division i.e. the Varna system was called the Four Fold Theory of Social Structure.Varna system was a functional division of the society whereas when the Varna system was made rigid and Sanskritization (explained later in this project) was not allowed, it came to be known as the Caste system. DEFINITION1. Caste is a Brahmanic child of the Indo-Aryan culture cradled in the land of Ganga and Yamuna and hence transferred to the other parts of the country.-G.S Ghurye2. Caste is a hereditary, endogamous group which decides the individuals status in the social stratification and his profession etc.-R.N.Sharma

3. A caste is a social group having two characteristics (1) Membership is confined to those born of members and includes all persons so born. (2)The members are forbidden by an inexorable social law to marry outside the group. - Kelkar4. A caste is a closed group whose membership is determined by ones birth in it, one dies in the same caste.

THE FOUR VARNA

It is disputed that whether Aryans brought caste system with them or was it prevalent in the Indian society before them and they merely recorded the caste system in the Vedas. Caste system was a unique feature of the Aryan society. There were four castes existing in their time:

1. BRAHMINS: These were the people who had the aptitude and inclination towards necessary skills in religious and spiritual matters, knowledge and teaching. They had a very high moral character and pious way of living. They were considered next to God since they were so close to God in their thoughts and action, had Godly knowledge and performed Yagyas, worship of God and pious acts.The Brahmins were further subdivided into two categories:I. Great Tradtition:These consisted of those Brahmins who had royal patronage, who had vast knowledge of Vedas and other Upanishads, Shrutis and Smritis. That is why they were accorded were highest respect.II. Little tradition: These consisted of those Brahmins who did Bhajans, Kirtans, story-telling in villages and spent time while doing acts like fortune-telling etc. Some example of these were Purohits, Hotris, Udgatris etc.2. KHATRIYAS (Rajanyas):These were the people who had inclination, bodily strength, abilities and skills to fight with enemies and defend the territories of Aryans.They were expected to follow the Kshatra Dharma (proper code of conduct) as warriors, defenders and administrators and were accorded with highest respect.They were ranked second, after Brahmins, so were supposed to act according to spiritual, religious, and moral advice of the Brahmins.

3. Vaishyas:These were the people who had the inclination and necessary skills for doing agricultural and business activities. These were basically the traders of that time. All the above three varnas were called SAVARN, higher or clean varnas. These were also called the twice born as the men from them were entitled to don the sacred thread at the Vedic rite of Upnayana which was considered as the beginning of their second birth.

4. Shudras:These were the people who did not have property, wealth, higher capabilities and skills to perform the duties and occupational roles of the above three varnas and had to be content with serving the Aryan society by rendering public utility services or inferior occupations like washing, training animals, hers, looking after cattle etc.They were supposed to serve the other three varnas with respect, dedication and sincerity.Besides poor, unskilled, uneducated members of the Aryan society, these also contained prisoners of wars and inhabitants of India.The members of the Savarn did not marry, lend, and share relations with the Shudras which made them socially and culturally alienated and helpless, backward and sufferers in all respects.

Untouchables:These were placed even below the Shudras and were considered as achoots or untouchables or Pancham or outcaste. These were not allowed to enter into the village in the day time as it was believed that they will pollute the people of the upper castes, this was known as the Pollution and Purity concept. Their job was to support and serve all the upper layers of the society even the Shudras. IMPORTANT FEATURES

1. It was based on the criterion of ones birth.2. It was based on socio-cultural style of life and occupation adopted by one in his life.3. Principally, one could change his Varna and go up into any higher Varna or even lower Varna in some cases if he desired so, worked for it and deserved it at any time in his life. This could be achieved by a person on basis of his possessing strong inclination, superior knowledge, skills and capacities to perform the roles and act according to the varna dharma of any varna higher than its own. Mostly it was upward mobility, and rarely was it downward. This whole practice was discontinued in Caste system and was a feature of the Varna system(with some exceptions)The upward mobility was called SANSKRITIZATIONFor example, Indra and Guru Dronacharya were Brahmins but later on, they switched to being Kshatriyas.Ved Vyas sanskritized from a Shudra to a Brahmin.4. It was an endogamous structure and girls could marry boys their caste only.5. Each caste had its own Jati Panchayat to decide case of its members.6. Each caste people invariably pursued the specific traditional occupation of their caste.7. Religious equality was not allowed. Religious rituals could be performed by Brahmins only. Low castes could not participate in the pujas, community dinner of higher castes etc.8. The belief was that one became impure by touching or coming in contact or even by coming under the shadow of the untouchable or Shudra caste person.9. There were several food and driking restrictions that a higher caste person wont eat food cooked by a lower caste person.However, there were certain exceptions made. A ruler of a state could declare a low caste to be having higher caste status henceforth. For example, a ruler of Manipur declared that the low Lohi caste be treated as Kshatriya caste. SIGNIFICANCE OR FUNCTIONS OF CASTE SYSTEM

1. Social Division:It was meant to ensure proper social division of the Hindu society.2. Security:The caste provided emotional, cultural, social and also economic security to its members.3. Educational Development:The castes ensured the educational development of its members by opening their own separate caste schools, caste hotels, etc. for their own boys and girls.Caste schools like Brahmin school, Kayastha school, Yadav school, Rajput schools, Agarwal Vaish school etc. provided education to millions of boys and girls during the last 200 years when the government had not started its schools.

4. Safety and welfare:The caste provided security and safety and ensured the welfare of orphans, poor helpless children, divorced women of their caste by running anathalaya, vidhwa ashram, bal kalyan sanstha, etc. The lives of countless children, girls and women have been saved by such caste welfare institutions.5. Safeguarded and transmitted culture:Each caste had its own way of life, norms, beliefs, values, customs etc which it wanted to preserve and transmit to the coming generations. This was done by members of the caste.

DEMERITS OF CASTE SYSTEM:

1. Created the problem of untouchability :A number of lowest castes were given the status of achoots and were made to do the dirtiest occupations like carrying human excreta in baskets on their heads. They had to lead a life full of humiliation, indignity, poverty and social isolation till this practice was declared a crime by the government of independent India.

2. Prevented growth of nationality and development of democratic state:As each caste used of think only of the betterment of its caste and not the other castes, it hindered the growth of nationality.Also, the opinion and demands of the lower castes were not given importance, therefore preventing the development of a democratic state.

3. Held back initiative, self-confidence, and the spirit of enterprise:People of lower castes who had the talent in any field be it sports, business, studies, religious preaching etc were ignored by the higher castes and never gave them a chance to pursue their field of interest, thereby holding back their initiative, hurting their self-confidence and the spirit of enterprise.

4. Created feelings of difference, mutual jealousness and mutual hatred:As every higher caste held supremacy in some form or the other and never allowed people of the lower castes to come forward and make progress, this created a feeling of difference, mutual jealousness and mutual hatred among people.5. Rendered the individual talent and capacity of people for which they are best fitted and best suited impossible:As one had to take up the job which was assigned to the caste in which he was born, he was never given a chance to pursue the career for which he had the talent and for which he was best suited and best fitted.

6. It has given the aristocracy of birth, not of merit:Meritorious people were derived of titles as the titles were only given to people of highest caste.

7. Since caste system was hierarchically graded, it was based on social and legal inequalities. DISINTEGRATION OF CASTE SYSTEM:

However, with passage of time, the concept of caste system diminished. This can be attributed to several causes:1. Industrialization crated new vocations :The employer employed people irrespective of their caste, so people of all castes worked together, ate together and thus it was inevitable to come in contact with people of other castes which thus the helped in diminishing the concept of caste system.

2. Spread of network of railways and buses :Spread of network of railways and buses resulted in mass travelling, thus coming in contact with people of other castes was inevitable for the higher castes.

3. Political and economic conferences with the British :As people of all castes were to take part in political and economic conferences with the British, they had to come in touch with each other, and thus the concept of caste system took a backseat.

4. Travelling in public transport :This often caused rubbing of ones shoulders with those of the lower caste people (due to overcrowding), sometimes even with an untouchable.

5. The uniform law system :The uniform law system introduced by the British government dealt a severe blow to the social and legal inequalities. 6. The new economic system: The new economic system brought about new grouping of population based on the profession like lawyers, engineers, doctors etc which consisted of people of different castes. The new professions like doctors etc had to remain in touch with each other perform operations together etc thus diminishing the concept of caste system.

7. Strikes:In strike struggles, workers belonging to not only upper castes, but even those of lower castes united for the common purpose of increasing wages, improving work conditions etc.8. Modern education : British government secularized education and made it accessible to everyone who could pay for it. It propagated the principles of equality of men before law, equal rights for all citizens of the state, thus further minimizing the concept of caste.

9. Nationalist movement :Nationalist movement played a huge role in uniting people of every caste and religion. People were united in their cause as the British committed atrocities on Indians irrespective of their caste. So people of all castes united for the common cause and thus this minimized the concept of caste.

10. Social reforms :Social reformers like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Keshub Chandra Sen, Swami Dayanand Saraswati etc attacked inequality and separatism and stood for equality and co-operation which played a big role in diminishing the concept of caste system in the Indian society.

11. Legislations:Various legislations were adopted by the government of India after independence to ensure that inequality among people on basis of castes is abolished.

CASTE IN MODERN AGE

The political independence of the country besides the process of urbanization, industrialization and secularization etc brought in a series of changes in the caste system. These changes have been in the traditional features of caste and in the functioning or the role of the caste. Some of the features of the caste system have been radically altered in the modern age.1) Its religious basis has been attacked:Caste is no longer believed to be divinely ordained. It is being given more social and secular meaning than a religious interpretation.2) Restrictions on food habits have been relaxed:Food habits have now become a matter of personal choice rather than a caste rule.3) Caste is not very much related to hereditary occupations:Caste no longer determines the career of an individual. Today even Brahmins are driving taxis and running non-vegetarian hotels, bars etc.4) Brahmins no longer enjoy special privileges:The constitution of Indian has removed all the special and religious privileges which the Brahmins enjoyed and made all castes equal.5) No Caste Panchayats:Caste Panchayats which used to control the behavior of caste members have either become very weak, or non-existent.6) Relaxed restrictions on social intercourse:Distinction between touchable and untouchable is not much felt especially among educated people.

7) Caste does not dictate individuals life:Caste no longer dictates an individuals life nor does it restrict newly valued individual freedom; hence it no longer acts as a barrier to individuals progress.8) Untouchability has been declared as an offence :The practice of untouchability which has been called as the most hateful expression of caste has been declared as a punishable offence9) Increased political role of cast:Caste has now become an inseparable effect of politics. Elections are contested more often on the basis of caste. Selection of candidates, selection of legislative party leaders, distribution of ministerial portfolios etc are very much based in caste which was not the case a couple of millenniums ago.10) Protection for backward classes:The constitution of India has made many provisions to protect the interests of scheduled castes and tribes. They are offered more political, educational, and service opportunities through the reservation policy unlike what was being practiced in the earlier times.

CASTE AND POLITICSOne irony of Indian politics is that its modern secular democracy has enhanced rather than reduced the political salience of traditional forms of social identity such as caste. Part of the explanation for this development is that India's political parties have found the caste-based selection of candidates and appeals to the caste-based interests of the Indian electorate to be an effective way to win popular support. More fundamental has been the economic development and social mobility of those groups officially designated as Backward Classes and Scheduled Castes.The Justice Party was established in 1917 as a result of a series of non-Brahmin conferences and meetings inTamil Nadu. The Justice Party's period in power is remembered for the introduction of caste-based affirmative action.In 1925, E.V Ramaswamy Naicker started the non-Brahmin Self-Respect Movement wherein people refused to take the services of the Brahmins in day to day life activities,in marriages, pujas etc. A number of political parties in Tamil Nadu, such as DMK and AIADMK owe their origins to the Self-respect movement, the latter a 1972 breakaway from the DMK.B.R. Ambedkar formed the SC Federation in 1942 and also the Republican party to mobilize the backward caste people.The 1990s Janata Dal formed the government in Bihar and Karnataka relying primarily on Backward Classes' support, in alliance with Dalits and Muslims. An especially important example of the role ofcaste in politics is the success of the Samajwadi Party, which under the leadership of Mulayam Singh Yadav won the 1993 assembly elections in India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, relying almost exclusively on Backward Classes and Muslim support in a coalition with the Dalit-supported BSP.The growing support of the BSP also reflects the importance of caste-based politics and the assertiveness of the Dalits in particular. The BSP was founded by Kanshi Ram who was born as a Dalit in Punjab. In the November 1993 Uttar Pradesh state elections, Ram's BSP achieved the best showing of any Dalit-based party by winning sixty-seven seats and also increased its share im the MP legislative assembly from two to twelve. In 1995, the BSP withdrew from the state government of Uttar Pradesh and, with the support of the BJP, formed a new government, making its leader, Mayawati, the first Dalit ever to become a chief minister of Uttar Pradesh.Dalit Panthers of India (DPI) is a people's movement and political party mainly based in Tamil Nadu. It advocates for the rights and welfare of Dalits.Also,various castes joined together to form a pressure group the field of politics to fulfill their interests like:AJGAR : was an association of the Ahirs, Jats, Gujjars and RajputsMJGAR : was an association of the Muslims, Jats, Gujjars and RajputsKHAM : was an association of the Kshatriyas, Harijans and Muslims.The Constitution of India also prohibits the practice of Untouchability in any form and has made Untouchability a crime and provided safeguards against it. Article 17 of the Constitution abolished Untouchability and its practice in any form is forbidden. Article 25(2b) of the Constitution provides that Hindu religious institutions of a public character shall be open to all classes and sections of Hindus. Two important legislations were enacted to give effect to these articles. The Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 punishes the preaching and practice of Untouchability.

Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 criminalizes certain acts against members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes such as traffic in human beings, 'begar (free labor)' and forced labor in any form.The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 provides for a special program for identifying bonded laborers, and for their liberation and rehabilitation. While this law does not specifically mention Scheduled Castes, it is especially significant to them because the majority of bonded laborers belong to the Scheduled Castes.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Encyclopedia on Indian sociology S.P RUHELA

1. Social background of Indian nationalism A.R DESAI

1. Sociology of Indian Society C N Shankar Rau

1. Course Material for Sociology II Assistant Professor Bir Pal Singh

1. http://www.csuchico.edu/~cheinz/syllabi/asst001/spring99/cox/COX1.html

1. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-caste-system.htm

1. http://www.hurights.or.jp/asia-pacific/048/02.html

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