BackI don’t see a powerful Dalit movement: Martin Macwan
Rights activist Martin Macwan believes the annihilation of caste, as envisioned by B.R. Ambedkar, should be the aim of the Dalit movement
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Martin Macwan, a noted rights activist and founder of the Navsarjan Trust, a Dalit human rights group, believes the annihilation of caste, as envisioned by B.R. Ambedkar, should be the aim of the Dalit movement, and that reactionary impulses after specific events aren’t enough. Edited excerpts from an interview:
What do you think of the various Dalit protests after the Una flogging incident on 11 July?
Dalit is an identity perceived differently by different people. While for many it is used to describe the scheduled castes, for people like me, it is a moral position of people who believe in equality of all. Identity ultimately has to help lead us to positive path whereby we are energized to preserve and protect our humanity. For Dr Ambedkar, the mission of the Dalit movement as I have understood was ‘annihilation of caste’ (the title of a speech written by Ambedkar) and, therefore, to me, it has to be the non-negotiable goal of the Dalit movement. It is important, therefore, that the Dalit movement has the active participation of members across social and religious identities.
Caste adversely affects not only a section of society or Dalits, to be specific, it affects every citizen of India since everyone is stratified in a hierarchical order of ‘high’ and ‘low’ against the spirit of the Constitution. Secondly, scheduled castes, too, like other social groups, do not have equal conditions for all. In all, there are 751 sub-castes within the scheduled castes, where some have had the opportunity to progress while others languish in sub-human conditions, including dire poverty. I assume we call a movement a well-organized social journey involving masses that is based on the articulation of the suffering and injustice of the most marginalized within the concerned social or concerned group. To that extent, I do not see a powerful Dalit movement in India, although one can witness a significant amount of unrest and expression of anger. A movement is a perception and its strength requires to be perceived by all in a larger society.
A strong movement requires years of hard work and direct action and cannot be based solely on reactionary impulses. The movement requires to have its own long-term agenda based on its own experiences and history. After the Una incident, the participation of people has increased in protests across the nation but the quality of protest will be determined by the education of the systemic challenges facing the Dalit movement. Political parties without distinction have the agenda of not disturbing the fabric of the caste system as it will harm their own political interests. This can be seen from the frustrating non-participation of the elected scheduled caste representatives both in Parliament and the Gujarat assembly, post-Una. Many have gone to the extent of protecting the errant state.
What is your take on the Una Dalit Andolan Samiti led by Jignesh Mevani? Do you support their action and cause?
I do not want to comment on the Una Dalit Andolan Samiti or Jignesh. I support all actions and individuals whose objective is the annihilation of caste but, as I have mentioned earlier, any attempt or programmatic call we give requires deep study, a well-thought-out strategy, education of the masses and a constructive programme which may not be entirely based on reactionary impulses. Reactions to an immediate situation are important and are different from being reactionary.
What is your take on the Dalit meeting at Delhi on 16 September led by Prakash Ambedkar?
I am not personally involved in the Delhi programme.
Who is the face of the Dalit mass movement that has reached various parts of the country? Which organization/organizations are leading the movement?
No social movement can have one leader. The organizations have a very important role to play in strengthening the social movement. This can be seen from the history of the civil rights movement in the US where organizations like the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) or the African-American Legal Defense Fund have played a crucial role among many other organizations for decades.
The RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) is on the verge of completing 91 years before reaching its present strength. To me, the Dalit movement has suffered a loss because of the ineffective political leadership under the caste-based reservation system that ensures election of people who will never have the primary agenda of annihilation of caste.
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