Notes from a Conference: A Critical Appraisal on Tamil Nadu as Land of Social Justice

Speakers at the ‘Violence against Dalits: Interrogating social justice in Tamil Nadu’ conference organised by Dalit Intellectual Collective spoke extensively about the steps required to tackle rising caste atrocities in Tamil Nadu.

Lalitha M

CASTE

 “What makes ‘the other’ (the dominant and upper caste) think that whatever they do against Dalits, they can justify in the court of law, in the society I live in? They cannot withstand what we wear, eat, and, if we speak good English, they feel threatened,” said Professor N. Sukumar of the Delhi University while presenting at the event ‘Violence against Dalits: Interrogating the social justice in Tamil Nadu’ organised by Dalit Intellectual Collective (DIC) on January 6.

The one-day consultation brought together a diverse group of academic scholars, writers, legal practitioners, and activists to discuss and address the persistent issue of violence against Dalits and the lack of social justice in Tamil Nadu.

DIC has released a public statement expressing its anguish and anxiety at the increasing instances of violence against Dalits – recently in Krishnagiri, Perambalur, Tirunelveli, and Nanguneri. The statement clearly mentions that the atrocities against Dalits should not be considered merely as a law and order problem but as caste Hindu hate politics as well – since “the violence against Dalits have become normalised, forming a strong political culture in Tamilnadu”.

The concept note of the event cites the data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), in which crime against Dalits and tribals shows a persistent increase in Tamil Nadu compared to all-India data.

Between 2019 and 2021, the increase in crime against Dalits at the all-India level was 9.7%, but

it was 16.92% in Tamil Nadu.

DIC questions the “lukewarm response” by the government to these inhuman acts, which is alarming. Despite being propagated that the Dravidian land is a land of social justice, Tamil Nadu has a long way to go to ensure social justice for Dalits on the ground.

Political science Professor N. Sukumar expressed his anguish, mentioning the inhuman atrocity in Vengaivayal, where the human excreta was mixed in the drinking water tank of Dalit residents – the violation of a fundamental human right. He questions the silence of the ruling party on this issue in the land of Periyar. “If it [Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam] is committed to social justice, it should either do something to prevent such atrocities against Dalits or should not call it a social justice party.” He further pointed out that it would result in trauma and agony for victims when they see perpetrators walk freely, which he said, clearly shows that judicial mechanisms are not being used to deliver justice to the victims but to the perpetrators.

Dalit politics in the South is never complete without discussing the incidents of Karamchedu and Tsunduru, where Dalits were massacred by caste Hindus. Highlighting the same, Professor Srinivasulu Karli, a senior fellow of the Indian Council of Social Sciences Research (ICSSR), spoke about the nuances of Dalit questions in Andhra and Telangana. Referring to those incidents, he stated that caste dynamics across the region are not uniform and contextually vary. While discussing the violence on Dalits, he said it is crucial to stress the violence mounted on Dalit women in all forms on an everyday basis.

Shalin Maria Lawrence, a Dalit activist and writer, presented an intersectional approach to this issue, pointing out the violation of Dalit women’s bodies and minds, and the unending trauma of rapes affecting the Dalit psyche. She further highlighted the existing invisibility of caste in Tamil Nadu – “pseudo-rationalism in the Dravidian state which has invisibilised caste and that invisibility gives caste the monstrous power”.

A need for sensitisation on caste

“Insensitivity compels a person to maintain the status quo, and any change in this is considered as a threat to this power. In some places, this insensitivity triggers violence or sympathises with perpetrators,” said P. Sivakami, a former IAS officer and Dalit feminist writer, emphasising the necessity to sensitise the rulers and people.

She recalled her initiative ‘Sensitising the bureaucracy toward SC/ST welfare’, a one-day experimental programme during the former chief minister Jayalalitha’s tenure. She revisited the challenges of conducting the programme for IAS and IPS officers. She elaborated on them, starting from the hurdles in getting approval and the lack of assistance from her colleagues to organise, where she had to do everything alone.

When she first proposed this programme to the former chief minister, she questioned if it was possible to sensitise people who had not realised the plight of SC/ST even after 50 years of independence. She replied, “This exercise is very limited because the implementation of the Prevention of Atrocities Act and Civil Rights Act is very poor, and hardly 7% get convicted, and 93% escape from any punishment from these acts. So, our exercise is limited to that extent, how the government programmes could reach the Dalits.”

Moreover, observing the general discussion on the reservation policy, “Dalits always feel that the government has done very little for them and the non-Dalits think all the programmes are targeted at SC/STs. So, only through a dialogue between them can bridge the gap in understanding.” When she said this, the former chief minister agreed to the programme.

Caste pride among youngsters and an imbalance in implementing reservation

Professor Stalin Rajangam, a Tamil Scholar from south Tamil Nadu, presented his paper ‘Caste in the present times: Its breadth and depth’, expressing the shocking fact of increasing caste pride among students, especially from the ruling/dominant castes. He spoke about direct and indirect symbolic indications of caste identity in different ways. Caste-coloured ropes are the predominant indicator, while others are in the form of banners, posters, t-shirts, stickers, and even songs representing particular caste identities.

Witnessing caste practices among the students in south Tamil Nadu over the years, he strongly questioned why these practices did not change but are still retained in the land of social justice and how the state failed to prevent atrocities against Dalits. Further, the biggest problem is that it has been repeatedly narrated that these are Dalit issues for them to be concerned about. While questioning if the state has taken any kind of measures to engage with non-Dalits regarding caste issues, he underlined that these atrocities cannot/will not be changed without engaging with non-Dalits.

On the same panel, Professor Venkatanarayan from Christ University, Bangalore, discussed the 69% of reservation policy and violations in Tamil Nadu, supported by the data gathered from the Sattanathan and Ambasankar Backward Class Commission reports. He stated that regardless of DMK coming up with an order on strict implementation of reservation in 1999, there is a continuing imbalance in implementation. Further, he urged the government to release a White Paper on beneficiaries of government jobs. He concluded by emphasising the importance of reservation policy which enables the marginalised communities to fight for social justice and against caste-based violence.

Brahmanical form of violence and cinema of violence

Having a series of discussions above on the physical and structural violence exhibited on Dalits by the dominant caste groups and the state, Professor P. Thirumal from the University of Hyderabad brought a stark criticism of Brahmanism and highlighted the Brahmanical violence which is indirect, invisiblised and more subtly normalised. Thirumal, for the last several years, has worked on caste violence in elite educational institutes in India, based on which he put forth that Brahmins create discomfort and indirectly discriminate Dalit-Bahujan students, which is more symbolic and cultural, not so visible but is naturalised. The physical violence made by the dominant castes can be seen, but this kind of Brahmanical violence under the mask of civility has been normalised over the long history, and he highlighted how the latter cannot be different from the first.

Following that, Dickens Leonard, assistant professor from IIT Delhi, added how Dalits in Tamil cinema are portrayed as nullified and static figures who are subjected to repeated violation, rejection, and humiliation. In his paper reflecting on the Tamil politics of caste as an aesthetic in cinema, he explored the relationship between violence and cinema as two conundrums or puzzles.

Leonard also referred to an interesting concept proposed by S. Theodore Baskaran, one of the pioneers of cinema studies from Tamil Nadu, who states that Tamil cinema is a frontal cinema where an image or subject in front of you speaks, say the frontality in which the speech is offered in movies like Manohara and Parasakthi, replacing the God. Adding on to this discourse on frontality, highlighting aesthetic and political dimensions of Tamil cinema, he cited the character Rene from the movie Natchathiram Nagargiradhu, who, in one scene on a stage, says that she breaks like a mirror, yet she rebuilds herself as a theatre artist.

Neglected manhole murders and eradication

Deepthi Sukumar, a Safai Karmachari Andolan core member, expressed her concerns about the lack of efforts or programmes to eradicate manual scavenging and prevent the deaths of workers in septic tanks. She highlighted that the state or Union governments have not recognised manual scavenging as a caste issue and have failed to take adequate measures to prevent it.

Deepthi further pointed out the flaws in the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan Mission, which aims to rehabilitate

all manual scavengers; however, it builds more infrastructure ignoring the institutional caste violence which has been systematically done. She referred to the recent deaths of two manual scavengers in OCF (Ordnance Clothing Factory) staff quarters in Avadi and the immense pressure their families faced to withdraw the case. Despite the hopeless scenario, she expressed that the only thing we can do is keep fighting this kind of aggression we are living with.

The event kicked off with the inaugural address by Justice B. G. Kolse Patil, retired judge of Bombay high court. He, alongside Professor Laxmanan, convenor of DIC, then released the books – Caste Pride: Battle for Equality in Hindu India written by journalist Manoj Mitta, and Caste Discrimination and Exclusion in Indian Universities: A Critical Reflection written by Professor N. Sukumar. Following this, the books were reviewed by advocate A. B. Rajasekaran and Prof. Lourdunathan, respectively.

As a part of the consultation event, DIC presented the following demands:

1. The state government should release a White Paper on the Action Taken Report on atrocities against the Dalits in Tamil Nadu.
2. The government should conduct regular periodic meetings in accordance with the PoAct both at the district and state levels.
3. Wherever or whenever violence against Dalits is committed the chief minister/home minister and chief secretary should visit the place and console the victims.
4. The government should constitute a high-level standing committee with representatives from all parties to discuss the violence against Dalits to recommend suitable remedies.
5. As in the past, the Rejuvenation of Self Respect movement – Removal of Caste Surname as prefixes

and suffixes to individuals and institutions should be taken up.

6. Political parties should distance themselves from the criminals who are propagating caste pride/hatred.
7. The government should establish a centre in every school/college and introduce Iyothee Thaas, Periyar, and Ambedkar thoughts.
8. The government should restart the sensitisation programme for bureaucracy at all levels.
9. Every higher education institution should introduce sensitisation programme for the youth.
10. Every education institution should celebrate the Independence Day and the Constitution

Day in a grand manner.

11. Like Kerala, a law should be enacted to provide reservation to children of inter-caste couples.
12. The government (as promised) and civil society organisations should come forward for the total elimination of manual scavenging and manhole murders.
13. During calamities, sanitary workers should be paid an extra payment for their extra labour
14. Like the vigilance committee, an SC/ST development committee should be constituted to monitor Sub Plan execution and provide a template for overall Dalit development.
15. The government should construct elevated houses for Chennai slum dwellers instead of uprooting them to Semmancheri, Kannagi Nagar, etc.
16. Re-introduce the scheme of providing two acres to landless agriculture workers in rural Tamil Nadu.
17. 50% of women should be given in the ministerial berths and 50% at every decision-making

level of political parties.

18. The government of Tamil Nadu and political parties should encourage the people towards Buddhism and should have regular programme for the same.

Lalitha is a PhD scholar in Urban Studies from IIT Madras, and holds a Master’s degree in Sociology from the University of Hyderabad. 

Courtesy : The Wire

Note: This news piece was originally published in thewire.com and used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes exclusively for Human Righ