Social Justice in India
A few days back some people of Odisha chose to boycott
an Anganwadi (a preschool for children from less privileged classes) because a
Dalit woman was appointed cook there. Even the fact that the Dalit woman was a
graduate didn’t help to assuage the opposition. Inequality is part of India’s
DNA. Social injustice is a God-given reality here.
Seventy-six years ago, India’s
Constitution sought to abolish that God-given injustice called the caste
system. Yet India’s social system remains a deeply contested terrain, shaped by
caste primarily, and then by gender, class, religion, language, and region.
More than a decade has passed after a
“strong” right-wing government took over political power in Delhi. Development
for all – Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas – was its motto. But nothing has
changed for the better vis-à-vis social justice. On the contrary, a lot of
things became worse.
Caste still reigns supreme and
it remains the most persistent axis of injustice. It structures access to land,
education, employment, marriage, and dignity. Rig Veda, composed orally some
3500 years ago, sanctified the brutally unjust caste system which is too deeply
entrenched in the country’s collective psyche to be erased by any reform
movements.
Who wants reforms anyway? Hindutva,
the ideological framework that sustains the ruling party in India now, has
always disapproved of the country’s secular Constitution and demanded to make
the Manusmriti the final lawgiving authority. This legal code was
written between the 2nd century BCE and 3rd century CE.
Too antique for today’s world driven by information technology and other
technologies. Yet India’s present leaders insist on making that the foundation
of the country’s social system. And that text fanatically upholds the injustice
of the caste system.
Social injustice is God-given in
India, I repeat. And the right-wing government is too religious to question
what God has given.
Economic
inequality is another glaring horror in the country. More and more wealth just flows
into the hands of less and less people. Rapidly too. You know the stats, don’t
you. About top 1% controlling over 40% of the total national wealth. The
richest 10% owning 65% of all wealth. The bottom 50% hold just 3% of the
country’s wealth. Whose country is it? The figures tell us the answer clearly
enough. This injustice promises to loom larger as we move on, with economic
disparity reinforcing the ancient God-given hierarchies more brutally than
ever.
Religion is the third most powerful
marker of social injustice in India now. Soon after Narendra Modi became the
Prime Minister of India, a godman named Baba Ramdev declared that he would behead anyone who doesn’t chant Bharat
Mata ki Jai provided the law let him do it. Now that chant has changed into
Jai Sri Ram, more explicitly religious. Godmen and godwomen are just too
eager to behead people who don’t chant that.
Another man in saffron robes was
enthroned as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh when Ramdev was tickling
himself with the vision of the beheaded enemies of Bharat Mata. This man, Ajay
Bisht aka Yogi Adityanath, entertained himself by bulldozing the houses of
Muslims in his state.
How many Muslims and Christians in
the land of yogis and babas can place their palm on their heart and say that
they feel secure in Modi’s India?
There you have the answer for any
question related to social justice in India.
PS. This post is a part
of ‘Echoes of Equality Blog Hop’ hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed under #EveryConversationMatters
blog hop series. Feb 20 is World Day of Social Justice.
As the Dalit cook is a graduate or otherwise, she should file a SC/ST Atrocities Act Case against those parents who boycotted her.
ReplyDeleteDo you think they will let her live in that place after that?
DeleteHari Om
ReplyDeleteThe greatest injustice of all is that the scripture from which this all arose has, yet again, been manipulated by those who sought power and position - here is not the place to go into a treatise, but essentially it teaches that we, all of us, are made up of a balance of different talents and we all have to find our best fitting path. Within each family can be seen those who are academic, those who are better with their hands, those who have business heads and those who struggle to be in the world. It stresses that all the variances are an essential part of the whole - that to treat any as lesser than another is equivalent to cutting off a limb. It is heart-breaking to see India tear itself apart with such behaviour as described here... YAM xx
Such magnanimous interpretations of the scriptures go above the heads of 'bhakts.' These people who claim to be religious are in truth criminals in disguise. They couldn't give two hoots what the scriptures mean. They just want to boss over.
DeleteCaste is something we just do not grok here in the west. Although, we have similar when it comes to class. But not the same.
ReplyDeletePeople can move from one class to a better one provided they work for it. But caste, there's no escape, you're born into it.
DeleteCaste is the bane of our society. High time we abolished caste system.
ReplyDeleteInstead of trying to abolish it, the present regime is reinforcing it!
DeleteThis saddens me, as does the blatant racism/sexism here in the United States. And what I read about is not what one would expect.
ReplyDeleteVarious sources report public school teachers proudly (!) deriding white male students as being privileged and unworthy. They're kids! What have they done wrong?
And as a species, what type of productive and protective fathers could these poor youths possibly become? I suppose certain factions deem them superfluous.
I wish us all well in these dark days. Take care!
Teachers being racist or sexist is very unfortunate wherever it is. Just as you say, the kids are at no fault in this regard.
DeleteDark days indeed. Most of the leaders in the world are such subhuman creatures that there's no sign of light at the end of the tunnel yet.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe article raises important questions about equality that we often choose not to face!
ReplyDeleteThe hypocritical government in place, will do the best from the West for their children. Then, discrimination isn't there. But when it comes to retaining power, they will regress an entire nation. All those who fall prey to this ancient practice are lost in the path of progress. Ideally, we should write a new code of civil society based on the way the era is shaping up, more globalised and practical.
ReplyDeleteCaste is something we don’t really understand in the West. We do have class differences, which may seem similar in some ways, but they’re not the same.
ReplyDeletehttps://omaggarwal2003.blogspot.com/2025/10/ai-development-in-india.html
Being divided on caste is something I can't stand by and preaching the same to my now 10 yea old. However as far as authorities are concerned, I guess, all the political parties have taken advantage of the fact that people aren't united. And people still continue to to divide themselves based on caste. I think, it's awareness that is lacking.
ReplyDeleteWe all know the numbers and statistics, but what is the use? We can write pages about social injustice in the country we see playing out in front of our eyes in some way every day, but what's the use? With no effective opposition, Modiji is able to do what he wants. It is very unfortunate that despite 75 years of gaining independence, we are still very much under the clutches of the caste system that doesn't allow us to progress in the right sense of the word.
ReplyDeleteThis was a thoughtful and grounded read. I appreciated how you tackled social justice with clarity and heart. It didn’t feel like an abstract theory but something that affects real lives every day. Made me reflect on my own perspective too.
ReplyDeleteSir, so glad you have echoed the same cause as mine this time too. The only difference is your voice is walking away with the first prize, every time, and mine has to be content with the consolation for consistency. 😁😅. Jokes apart, the more we spread awareness the better.
ReplyDeleteThe good part is that the anganwadi has resumed and everyone is eating the food made by the cook. The bias in ingrained in the country's DNA but there are some who are fighting against it and one day we will see a change.
ReplyDeleteThe caste system in our country has always been a divisive issue. As long as social acceptance doesn't happen there can be no social equality.
ReplyDeleteHow else are the idle young minds and even sections of the older generation meant to stay occupied? Religion, caste and identity politics seem to become convenient tools to keep people engaged while deeper structural issues remain unaddressed.
ReplyDeleteIronically, when we look at early civilizations (Indus valley civilization) their urban planning and social organization appear remarkably advanced. Thereafter we seem to be moving in circles rather than forward specially regarding social hierarchy and women safety.
Economical disparity, social differences, gender bias and apathy are major areas of concern. However, Yamini MacLean here, has correctly explained the basis of the caste classification, and I hope it shall not be required in the future. Hope the younger generations rise above superficial differences and work together for a stronger nation.
ReplyDeleteHow many Muslims and Christians in the land of yogis and babas can place their palm on their heart and say that they feel secure? A question all of us either afraid to ask or answer at this moment I feel. Such a hard-hitting piece sir.
ReplyDeleteActually, the sad truth is Hinduism is totally not caste-biased or religion-biased but because of some it is shown to be what it is not. Three main factors have to be unbiased and equal to everyone.
ReplyDeletecaste politics is being played infront of the voters and they are playing into their hands. Sometimes I feel they want the divide and rule to exist. and have no changes because this is just another newspaper clipping for them.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I really enjoyed reading this article and found the information very useful and well explained. You did a great job breaking down the topic in a simple and clear way. Content like this is very helpful for readers who want to learn something new. Thanks for sharing such valuable insights, and I’m looking forward to reading more of your posts.https://smartdiariesguide.blogspot.com/2026/03/what-is-number-1-healthiest-food-in.html
ReplyDelete