Caste, Migration and Identity (original) (raw)
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International Journal of Research and Analytical Review, 2023
This paper offers an in-depth examination of the historiography and repercussions of the partition of the Indian subcontinent, with a particular focus on the often-overlooked experiences of Dalit refugees in Bengal. It delves deep into various aspects of partition, such as its impact on various communities, the influence of caste and class in refugee experiences, and how these narratives are represented in literature and cinema. The paper underscores the complexity of partition's effects on diverse communities and the necessity of acknowledging the struggles faced by marginalized groups, like Namasudras, amid this significant historical event. It emphasizes the need to incorporate a variety of voices and perspectives in the study of partition and its aftermath, shedding light on the multifaceted nature of this traumatic event. Additionally, this paper highlights the enduring challenges and obstacles faced by Dalit refugees, even long after partition, emphasizing the ongoing struggle for recognition, rights, and social justice. Overall, it offers a compelling exploration of the partition's profound and lasting impact on the subcontinent and the importance of understanding its consequences for all segments of society.
L'Histoire, 2022
The Partition of India, irrespective of its multidimensional connotations, asserts possibly the most dubious terrain of South Asian historiography, today. Though Indian National Congress, with its penchant for a centralized unitary state, accepted Partition as a necessary price; Bengal has shown us how the Hindu Bhadralok elite spearheaded the formation of a Hindu-majority province. The question remains, can the movement for Partition then be claimed as an elite affair? Ranging from the Tehbhaga sharecropper’s movement in 1940s to the Naxalite movement of the 1970s, each of these movements have engraved their marks on the life of Bengal’s citizens.
Partition in Bengal: Re-visiting the Caste Question, 1946-47
The essay introduces caste as a category for discussing the history of Partition of India, which until now has focused almost exclusively on the Hindus, Sikhs and the Muslims. The Dalit or the 'untouchables' of India are usually left out of this discussion, and whenever they are brought in, they are portrayed as either disinterested onlookers or accidental victims. On the contrary, as this essay will argue, the Dalit were deeply entangled in Partition politics, which threatened their natural habitat in eastern Bengal, where they had reclaimed land from marshes and forests, extended cultivation and set up human settlement. Their regional movement was gradually drawn into the broader subcontinental politics that led to Partition, and the movement as a result lost unity, autonomy and purpose. While one group of the Bengali Dalit leaders were opposed to Partition and believed that a Dalit–Muslim alliance was in the best interest of the Dalit, others got closer to Hindu nationalism and demanded Partition of Bengal. Many Dalit peasants were caught in this politics and became both victims and perpetrators of violence. The essay concludes that while the Dalit lacked power to influence the decision to partition, they nevertheless were forced to take positions within the political divide, which they did according to their own perceptions of caste interests and preferred political future of their physical space.
Matua Development Board: A Historical Review of the United Movement of the Namasudras in Bengal
Journal of People's History and Culture, Volume 6 Number 2, , 2020
During almost every election, the political parties look at the various 'vote banks' and talk about giving different facilities to different castes and communities. In West Bengal, Namasudra, Rajbangshi and Paundra accept or assure their old claims to attract the Scheduled Castes. Based on that, the government of West Bengal has formed 'Namasudra Development Board', 'Matua Development Board', 'Rajbangshi Development Board' etc. in 2018. But whatever the politics of the vote bank behind this initiative of the government, the Namasudras have a history of forming a united organization. From the beginning of the twentieth century, the influence of the Matua movement, in particular, the efforts of Guruchand Thakur (1846-1937), led to the urge to form a central assembly of the Namasudras. As a result, in the pre-independence period, they played an important role in the politics of Bengal. This article will show that due to the organizational consciousness of the Matua and Namasudras and the large number of them, reverence for all political parties in West Bengal has recently increased.
REVISITING PARTITION OF INDIA 1947 - THE VOICE OF DALIT REFUGEES
International Journal of Social Science and Economic research, 2019
Caste is an integral part of Indian society, this understanding cannot be overlooked when dealing with discourses on the oppressed, marginalised and excluded. Historians and scholars have engaged with the socio-political and economic impact of partition on the sub-continent ever since the sub-continent was divided. Refugees, especially those from the marginalised sections of society namely dalits, have recently been a topic of discussion and exploration when interrogating partition of India, 1947 and its aftermath. Menon, Bhasin, Butalia and Karuna Chanana have exactly done that on the gendered naratives of partiton refugees through personal interviews and so have traced the histories of woman refugees from Punjab. However, the present paper intends to tell a different story while archival records have been used in the paper to weave the story of how, when and if all Dalit refugees migrated to the East, post Partition, oral history has been used a tool to explore the experiences of the hitherto ignored history of the Dalit refugee with reference to the Partition of India, 1947 ( in this case Punjab and Delhi). The paper studies a Dalit refugee colony of Jalandhar Punjab where a large number dalit refugees belonging to Megh community, evacuated from Sialkot by the Indian government were resettled at this colony (Bhargava Camp Jalandhar). The paper will study the experiences of surviving dalit refugees of this colony, through oral history. Lastly, the paper is therefore an attempt to include the history of these refugees who have till now largely been outside the paradigm of the largest migration of history.
CASTE POLITICS IN INDIA: A STUDY OF IDENTITY QUESTIONS OF THE RAJBANSHIS IN NORTH BENGAL
The Caste politics is a common practice in India since the earlier time. This caste politics ultimately led to grow a form of Identity question in contemporary Indian Society which cannot be appreciably understood in isolation from the initial social condition of the society. The hierarchy of the existing caste system divided people in different groups which led to grow bitterness among them. And later on the adopted planning process changes of modern India provides to the emergence of people from among them who are self conscious of their privileges, backwardness, and deprivation, could assume leadership role to their community and mobilize them for organization and protest. It was the outcome of this protest that facilities to grow different movement in the proposed area like UKD, KPP, UTJAS, GCPA. Etc. It also created the feeling of detestation between the indigenous and the immigrated groups and tension have been grown from time to time .