Sunday, October 3, 2010

[ZESTCaste] A PIL: Mahabali vs. Indian State

 



A PIL: Mahabali vs. Indian State

By Karthick RM

03 October, 2010
Countercurrents.org

Honorable your Honour

I recently read the judgment of your colleagues on the Babri Masjid… ooops… the Ramjanmabhoomi issue. I should say that I was thrilled. Since legal bodies of our great modern country have extended their jurisdiction to the unknown past to settle real or imagined religious disputes, I make an appeal for my client with great confidence in your rational-legal authority.

Since in the RJB judgment, 'Lord' Rama is accepted as a historical character, I would like you to the consider the case of my client, King Mahabali. Since you have managed to map out Ram lalla's birth to a specific geographic region, we hope you would pay due regard to our argument of the Kerala origins of Mahabali. Sir, we want to bring to light the historical and religious injustice done to Mahabali and his followers.

Mahabali was a righteous king who hailed from that section whom you call in legal terms as 'backward castes'. He was to the oppressed sections what 'Lord' Rama was to the upper castes. In case you need more information on his historical significance, I would suggest that you read Mahatma Phule's works, in case thy most knowledgeable self has not already. His rule was considered to be one where there was a just treatment of all sections of the population. However, jealous with the virtuous rule of this backward caste king, Vishnu, in the guise of a brahmin dwarf (Vamana), duped Mahabali and pushed him into the underworld. (I think a case of impersonation can also be filed against Vishnu).

Anyway, what happened over the years was that my client was denied his place in history by the brahminical ruling classes and they also crafted stories to justify his predicament, thereby legitimizing their own rule. Result was disastrous for his people, the backward castes, who comprise the majority of the population. Not only did they lose a politico-spiritual symbol, it also meant material losses. Thanks to Mr. Vishnu, they lost their wealth, their lands and above all, their self-worth, being stigmatized and dehumanized for well over a millennium. I am sure your honour understands the social and historical significance of all this.

Thus, keeping the Allahabad verdict on RJB in mind, we would like you to consider the following

1. That Kerala was the kingdom of Mahabali (if you go by Mahatma Phule, it was much larger. But we are content with Kerala as of now) which was unjustly usurped by the brahmins with the help of Mr. Vamana, an alias of Mr. Vishnu.

2. That since Kerala is the birthplace of Mahabali lalla, we want 2/3rd of the land to go to his descendants, that is, the backward castes - yes, even after Namboodripad's much talked of land reforms, the brahmins still have enormous land-holdings in the state.

3. That an Archaeological Survey of India research team must constituted to do a study of all brahminical temples in Kerala. If evidence showing that they have been built over backward caste temples is arrived at, steps for their demolition and the rebuilding of the original temples should begin in earnest.

Regards

To be filed in any high court in Indian Territory

Karthick RM is a student-activist based in JNU, pursuing his Masters in History.He is associated with the Delhi Tamil Students Union, a Periyarite-Marxist group

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[ZESTCaste] Buddha Dhamma Conference will be held at Alapalli Dist Gadchiroli (India) on October 30-31, 2010

 

Buddha Dhamma Conference will be held at Alapalli, Dist Gadchiroli M.S.
(India) on 30-31 October 2010.
Dr Ambedkar Memorial Committee, Mahamaya Women's Committee, Nagsen
Buddha Vihar, Ramai Women's Committee, Sidharth Women's Committee jointly
will going to organize " Buddha Dhamma Conference" at Community Hall,
Alapalli, Tah. Aheri Dist Gadchiroli on 30-31 October 2010. The
inauguration function will start from11.30 AM and following dignitaries
will be the Chief Guests.
* Panchsheel Flag Hosting : Ven. H. Satyanand Thero
* Chairperson : Ven. Shantarakshit Mahathero
* Blessing : Ven. Rakhita Dhammo (Myanmar)
Ven. Payya Tissa ( Srilanka)
Ven. Sanghratna Manke (Japan)
Ven. H. Kashyapayan (England, UK)
* Inauguration : Hon. E.Z. Khobragade,IAS
* Chief Guests : Dr. Milind Jiwane (Ashwaghosh Bddhists Foundation
Hon. Amar Ramteke ( Ambedkarite Drama Writer )
Hon. Keshav Somkuwar ( Dy. Income Tax Commissioner)
Hon. Waman Somkuwar(Chief Officer, Municipal Council)
Hon. Rajabhau Taksande ( Ambedkarite Social leader)
Hon. Sanjiv Gade (div. Social Welfare Officer)
You are invited to the said Function.
Yours in the Dhamma,
Ven. Rajratna

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[ZESTCaste] Atrocities against dalits going down, says study

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/atrocities-against-dalits-going-down-says-study-308

Atrocities against dalits going down, says study

October 3rd, 2010
DC Correspondent

Oct. 2: Incidents of communal atrocities against dalits by individual,
dominant communities in the southern districts of Tirunelveli and
Thoothukudi have come down drastically, according to a study by a
dalit organisation. However, the study alleges that the state
machinery is oppressive against dalits. According to the study carried
out by Meetchi Makkal Iyakkam, in some communally-sensitive pockets in
Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli districts, a positive trend towards a
social alliance between the dalits and backward castes is tangible.

"Though we received some complaints against the dominant castes from
the dalits, we see a positive note that the dalits themselves are
confident of solving them amicably without hurting the self-respect of
both sections," says Sudhakar of Meetchi Makkal Iyakkam. The study
observes that the working section of backward class and dalits in
these districts had the general opinion that they have been made to
fight all these years for political reasons, "especially after the
state politics went into the hands of Dravidian parties".

Issues like the Sri Lankan Tamils plight are uniting factors, said TN
BSP general secretary B. Jeevan Kumar, founder of the Meetchi Makkal
Iyakkam. As the wealth of backward communities grows, they do not want
to antagonise the dalits to safeguard that wealth, the study finds.

According to Tirunelveli SP Asra Garg, communal murders and atrocities
against dalits have come down and claims to be allowed to worship at
temples have been settled amicably with equal worshipping rights for
all communities. However, the state machinery is becoming more
oppressive towards dalits, says the study. Citing the cases of IAS
officer C. Umashankar, former vice-chancellor of Tirunelveli Anna
University Kaliappan and the recent death of civil supplies quality
control officer Murugan, the study blames the government machinery for
being unfair in its treatment of dalits. Mr Kumar also alleges SC/ST
funds are being diverted by the DMK government.


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[ZESTCaste] HBA demands to make Hyderabad second capital of country

 

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/101426/hba-demands-make-hyderabad-second.html

HBA demands to make Hyderabad second capital of country
Hyderabad, Oct 2 (PTI)

Hyderabad Bachao Andolan (HBA), a movement to make Hyderabad the
second capital of India was formally launched today.

The movement will appeal to Central and State Government to make
Hyderabad a second capital of India as desired by Dr B R Ambedkar, the
patriarch of the Indian Constitution.
HBA has been formed on lines of Narmada Bachao Andolan headed by Medha
Patkar, Convener of the HBA, Thallapalli Prashant Kumar said.

Kumar said the demand was being made in the wake of issue of
bifurcating Andhra Pradesh, which will demote Hyderabad from being a
capital of 23 districts to just ten districts.

He said a two-month campaign would also be launched to educate people
about the importance of the city and need to make it the second
capital of the country. The campaign would end on December, 6, the
death anniversary of Ambedkar, he added.

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[ZESTCaste] Dalit girl gangrape case: Deputy Collector’s son held

http://www.dailypioneer.com/286941/Dalit-girl-gangrape-case-Deputy-Collector%E2%80%99s-son-held.html

Dalit girl gangrape case: Deputy Collector's son held
October 03, 2010 5:24:09 PM

Staff Reporter | Bhopal

The police on Thursday nabbed Omprakash Pradhan, son of a Deputy
Collector in connection with the gangrape of a minor dalit girl.

This is the fourth arrest in the case after three other accused
Sandeep Ahirwar, 21 year-old sons of a head constable, Satyendra
Jharia, 19 and Surendra Nanda, 19 were arrested on Wednesday. The
other two accused, Abhishek Tiwari and Gopal Sarthi, are at large.

Pradhan's father is posted as the Deputy Collector in Mandla. A minor
dalit girl was allegedly gangraped and the incident was filmed on a
cellphone by six youths, including the sons of a Deputy Collector and
a head constable in Mandla. The incident came to light after the MMS,
"local wali", was circulated in the tribal-dominated town of the
State.

The victim, a resident of a village 20 km from the town, often visited
Mandla with her uncle. She had become friendly with one of the youths.
On one such trip to Mandla, two of the accused offered her a ride on a
motorcycle. The girl was taken to Abhishek Tiwari's house where she
was raped.

The next morning, she was taken to Mohantola jungle about two
kilometres from the Mandla police station where Ahirwar's father is
posted where the others raped her and filmed the incident. One of the
accused owns a mobile phone shop.

Sub-Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) Santosh Mahto said, "The
rapists were very cruel and committed all sorts of indecent acts."
Mahto said the police identified the victim from the MMS clip. When
they reached the victim's home they found that her parents, who work
as labourers, were aware of the crime. Their neighbours had reportedly
advised them to keep quiet as the accused included sons of a
Government officer and a policeman.

The police have booked the six under various Sections of the IPC, the
SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the Information Technology Act.


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[ZESTCaste] US lawmaker presses China, India over human trafficking

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jWsvXf3YBeS8dc8PKIOVbzefU0OQ?docId=CNG.f7300ef74beeac43ac28cc1528e9eb16.7d1

US lawmaker presses China, India over human trafficking
By Alex Ogle (AFP) – 2 days ago

WASHINGTON — A leading US lawmaker on Thursday urged President Barack
Obama's administration to ratchet up pressure on China and India over
sex-trafficking and modern day slavery that flourishes in both
countries.

Congressman Christopher Smith, who led the charge for the landmark
2000 law Trafficking Victims Protection Act, said the two Asian giants
were among the world's worst offenders in their disregard for forced
bondage and sexual exploitation.

At a hearing of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Smith urged
the State Department's office dedicated to combating human trafficking
to undertake a "comprehensive reassessment" of China and India.

He cited in particular Beijing's failure to prevent rampant
trafficking of North Korean refugees.

The countries risk being downgraded in the State Department's annual
"Trafficking in Persons" blacklist, and could face sanctions including
withholding non-humanitarian, non-trade related US aid, he said.

Smith said the problem with trafficking in China has become
particularly acute because of the country's "one child" law that has
led to a shortage of marriageable women and created "a colossal market
for bride selling."

Chinese demographers forecast that by 2020 some 40 million Chinese men
will not be able to find women to marry, Smith said, calling the one
child policy "barbaric."

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has made women's and
children's rights a signature issue, in June called human trafficking
a "terrible crime" as she unveiled a US report on the subject.

China and India were listed on the report's "tier two watch list," for
countries making "significant efforts to bring themselves into
compliance with minimum standards" on trafficking.

Lawmakers said however that they risk being regulated to the report's
bottom rung, alongside long-time violators North Korea and Burma.

As Congress prepares to take up a reauthorization bill to update the
2000 law for the next decade, the committee's chair Howard Berman said
huge challenges remain to combat the 32-billion-dollar-a-year industry
that sees humans "reduced to machines for production or pleasure."

Of the world's estimated 27 million modern day slaves, two thirds are
in India chiefly in bonded labor, the committee heard in testimony.
Smith slammed New Dehli's action on the issue as "not even remotely
commensurate with the size of its current problem."

The number of prosecutions for sex industry traffickers have risen
nominally in some Indian states, said advocate Beryl Ann D'Souza, who
heads anti-human trafficking efforts in India for the Dalit Freedom
Network.

Even with laws on the books, D'Souza said the sub-continent's approach
needs comprehensive overhaul, as only seven percent of India's police
force have received any type of anti-trafficking training.


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[ZESTCaste] Satire to savour

http://www.hindu.com/lr/2010/10/03/stories/2010100350240300.htm

ON THE HINDU BEST FICTION AWARD SHORTLIST

Satire to savour

BHAVANA SHARMA

Humorous, subtle, wicked… a combination that makes the book a good read.


Serious Men; Manu Joseph; Fourth Estate; Rs.499

After Aravind Adiga's The White Tiger we have yet another novel on
Indian satire, Manu Joseph's debut 'Serious Men'. With its provocative
wit, realistic portrayal of characters and humour , the book is a sure
winner. Manu Joseph's novel hammers in the hopelessness, boredom and
desperate ambitions of suburban Dalit community in Bombay, and he
weaves an interesting and funny satire on the academia of science,
love and revenge. Relationships form an important part of the novel
and Manu provides a stark insight into the workings of the human mind.
He strings together the powerful, comic and pungency of eccentric
people who are blind instruments of a dominant passion for quick
money, fame and social aggrandizement.

Storyline


The devious Ayyan Mani is stuck in a boring job as personal assistant
to the head astronomer named Arvind Acharya, at the Institute of
Theory and Research, Bombay. Acharya is powerful , conceited and
intelligent but too engrossed in his own scientific world. Although
Mani belongs to the Dalit community, he is not subdued but one who
stands out in a world moved by self interest and political design.
Wanting to associate himself with the heightened sense of life and
fulfillment he draws up a concoction of events and surreptitiously
achieves his goals. Mani spins an outrageous fiction around his
partially deaf, ten- year- old son Adi, forcing him to say things
like, "Prime numbers are unpredictable, D-e-c-i-m-a-l s-y-s-t-e-m and
Fee bon a chi" Into this kind of plot, however another dubious
character Oparna , the attractive young astrobiologer is introduced.
Acharya is enamoured by her and soon his fiefdom and Mani's politics
begin to surface. Acharya's career is shattered by an office scandal
and he is accused of forging scientific data. It is here that the
suspense builds up and one marvels at the author's treatment and
superb flexibility in the psychological development of the dramatic
situation.

There are indeed many moments where Joseph exposes the hypocrisy of
his characters by dropping in similes and witty remarks alike. As when
Manu aptly describes Mani, "Ayyan Mani's thick black hair was combed
sideways and parted by a careless broken line, like the borders the
British used to draw between two hostile neighbours ". Equally
noteworthy is when Ayyan Mani blurts out, "Wives of an age are like
evicted hawkers. They return in time". Quite apparent that people like
Mani who are down on the social scale,get along only by their wits.
Again the hilarious aspect is put in true prospective as we observe
Manu's description of Acharya: "Acharya did not realize that he had
been holding a half-eaten banana near his mouth for over five
minutes".

Brilliance

Serious Men is otherwise a remarkable and brilliant novel and if you
can dip into it , and it's dip worthy, you will definitely find
several moments to savour. The author's powerful mix of all the
ingredients of satire as also tactful juxtaposition makes his debut
novel a powerful and unique work. Joseph does this by making his
criticisms apparent in an entertaining format so that readers are
compelled to engage with the story and hopefully are taking away
something in the end to make them understand societal issues better.

In Adiga's novel the idea of a resentful , oppressed protagonist
Balram Halwai murdering his employer and getting away with it in
pursuit of his ideal of social mobility was not much of a novelty. I
found Balram, the main character unlikable, he seemed unable to feel
any sort of remorse for the terrible things he did. But in Joseph's
novel , the protagonist, Ayyan Mani , also a conman overshadowed by
his boss , is intelligent and appealing and someone we can empathise
with.

The book has one shortcoming. Descriptions of women - a bit of a let
down. However, it is a good read if one can let all that pass. As a
satirist, he has done a remarkable job, truly a book you should not
miss.The author was listed among the top new novelists of 2010 by the
British newspaper, The Daily Telegraph.


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[ZESTCaste] A PIL: Mahabali vs. Indian (Brahmin-Bania) State

http://www.countercurrents.org/karthik031010.htm

A PIL: Mahabali vs. Indian (Brahmin-Bania) State

By Karthick RM

03 October, 2010
Countercurrents.org

Honorable your Honour

I recently read the judgment of your colleagues on the Babri Masjid…
ooops… the Ramjanmabhoomi issue. I should say that I was thrilled.
Since legal bodies of our great modern country have extended their
jurisdiction to the unknown past to settle real or imagined religious
disputes, I make an appeal for my client with great confidence in your
rational-legal authority.

Since in the RJB judgment, 'Lord' Rama is accepted as a historical
character, I would like you to the consider the case of my client,
King Mahabali. Since you have managed to map out Ram lalla's birth to
a specific geographic region, we hope you would pay due regard to our
argument of the Kerala origins of Mahabali. Sir, we want to bring to
light the historical and religious injustice done to Mahabali and his
followers.

Mahabali was a righteous king who hailed from that section whom you
call in legal terms as 'backward castes'. He was to the oppressed
sections what 'Lord' Rama was to the upper castes. In case you need
more information on his historical significance, I would suggest that
you read Mahatma Phule's works, in case thy most knowledgeable self
has not already. His rule was considered to be one where there was a
just treatment of all sections of the population. However, jealous
with the virtuous rule of this backward caste king, Vishnu, in the
guise of a brahmin dwarf (Vamana), duped Mahabali and pushed him into
the underworld. (I think a case of impersonation can also be filed
against Vishnu).

Anyway, what happened over the years was that my client was denied his
place in history by the brahminical ruling classes and they also
crafted stories to justify his predicament, thereby legitimizing their
own rule. Result was disastrous for his people, the backward castes,
who comprise the majority of the population. Not only did they lose a
politico-spiritual symbol, it also meant material losses. Thanks to
Mr. Vishnu, they lost their wealth, their lands and above all, their
self-worth, being stigmatized and dehumanized for well over a
millennium. I am sure your honour understands the social and
historical significance of all this.

Thus, keeping the Allahabad verdict on RJB in mind, we would like you
to consider the following

1. That Kerala was the kingdom of Mahabali (if you go by Mahatma
Phule, it was much larger. But we are content with Kerala as of now)
which was unjustly usurped by the brahmins with the help of Mr.
Vamana, an alias of Mr. Vishnu.

2. That since Kerala is the birthplace of Mahabali lalla, we want
2/3rd of the land to go to his descendants, that is, the backward
castes - yes, even after Namboodripad's much talked of land reforms,
the brahmins still have enormous land-holdings in the state.

3. That an Archaeological Survey of India research team must
constituted to do a study of all brahminical temples in Kerala. If
evidence showing that they have been built over backward caste temples
is arrived at, steps for their demolition and the rebuilding of the
original temples should begin in earnest.

Regards

To be filed in any high court in Indian Territory

Karthick RM is a student-activist based in JNU, pursuing his Masters
in History.He is associated with the Delhi Tamil Students Union, a
Periyarite-Marxist group


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[ZESTCaste] Maya's U-turn on Mahatma Gandhi

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Maya-s-U-turn-on-Mahatma-Gandhi/Article1-607473.aspx

Maya's U-turn on Mahatma Gandhi

Vikas Pathak, Hindustan Times

New Delhi, October 02, 2010First Published: 23:08 IST(2/10/2010)

It may be, ironically, Mayawati's tribute to the Mahatma. Known for
its criticism of Mahatma Gandhi in relation to his policies vis-à-vis
Dalits, Mayawati's BSP has suddenly taken a U-turn. Advertisements
placed in newspapers by the Department of U.P. Information and Public
Relations on Gandhi Jayanti say: "Gandhiji's fundamental philosophy is
embodied in 'Sarvajan Hitay and Sarvajan Sukhay', which is the policy
of the Uttar Pradesh government."

Thus, the Uttar Pradesh government has accepted that the BSP's
Sarvajan (conveying that the party represents all, and not just
Dalits) discourse — which brought it to power in the state in 2007 —
is the same as Gandhi's policy of reaching out to all.

The Dalit movement from the days of Ambedkar has, however, maintained
that Gandhi was primarily a "caste Hindu leader" who was just
patronising Dalits through his Harijan — a term meaning children of
God, that Gandhi coined for Dalits — campaigns so as to prevent them
from taking up the Ambedkarite line of an autonomous Dalit movement
against the Brahmanical social system.

Till now, Mayawati had followed this line.

Last year, while attacking Rahul Gandhi over his visits to Dalit
homes, she had extended her criticism to the Mahatma, dubbing him a
"natakbaaz" (one who puts up an act). This had earned her criticism
from the Congress, BJP and the Samajwadi Party in the state.

In 1997, Mayawati had attacked the coinage of the term 'Harijan' by
the Mahatma. "If Dalits are children of God, was he the son of Shaitan
(the devil)?" she had asked.

Her attacks drew from the belief of Dalit icon B.R. Ambedkar and BSP
mentor Kanshi Ram that the Gandhian approach to Dalits was patronising
and in fact reinforced their social subordination.

Through the 1980s, too, both Mayawati and Kanshi Ram attacked Gandhi.

"Gandhism, Kanshi Ram felt, was the modern version of Brahmanism,"
political scientist Sudha Pai has written in her book Dalit Assertion
and the Unfinished Democratic Revolution.


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[ZESTCaste] Dalit man's custodial death leads to protests in Vizag

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Dalit-mans-custodial-death-leads-to-protests-in-Vizag/articleshow/6674080.cms

Dalit man's custodial death leads to protests in Vizag

TNN, Oct 3, 2010, 02.07am IST

VISAKHAPATNAM: A dalit man's custodial death led to strong protests
outside the Kancharapalem police station here on Saturday. While the
cops claimed that 30-year-old Nakka Suresh died of a heart attack in
King George Hospital (KGH) late on Friday night, his family members
alleged Suresh was beaten up black and blue by the cops, which
resulted in his death.

Suresh's father, Nakka Satyam, a retired head constable, alleged that
his son was taken into custody by the police on September 30 for
allegedly cheating unemployed youth by promising them jobs in the
revenue department.

A native of Achyutapuram village in the district, Suresh was
physically challenged. He posed as a special tehsiladar and allegedly
set up an office and plied five 'government' vehicles at Muralinagar
in the city. He allegedly collected Rs 80 lakh from the youth on the
promise of providing them jobs. As Suresh did not deliver the jobs,
some of the youth who had paid huge amounts to him, reported the
matter to the police. Police later took possession of his office and
seized all the vehicles, besides taking him into custody. They
reportedly recovered an amount of Rs 20 lakh and 15 tolas of gold.

Kancharapalem circle inspector Kinjarapu Prabhakar said the accused
reported pain around 10.30 pm while at the police station on Friday
night and was immediately shifted to KGH at 10.50 pm. He died at 11.15
pm while receiving treatment. Kancharapalem police said they informed
his family members about the death through Achyutapuram SI.

The matter came to light on Saturday morning. The victim's father
threatened to commit suicide outside the police station. Family
members and members of dalit organizations staged a demonstration in
front of the police station demanding the suspension of station CI
Kinjarapu Prabhakar, brother of former MP Kinjarapu Yerrannaidu and SI
Paidapu Naidu.

The dalith organizations charged that Suresh was taken into custody on
September 30 and that the police delayed showing his arrest. The body
was kept in the KGH mortuary for autopsy and the RDO was told to
submit a report on the cause of the death to the collector after which
a magisterial enquiry may be ordered and action initiated against the
cops, if found guilty.

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[ZESTCaste] The social revolution in Uttar Pradesh

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Swaminomics/entry/the-social-revolution-in-uttar-pradesh

The social revolution in Uttar Pradesh

S A Aiyar

03 October 2010, 10:45 AM IST

Last week, this column highlighted major economic improvements for
dalits in Uttar Pradesh, based on a research paper by Devesh Kapur and
others (Rethinking inequality : Dalits in UP in the market reform
era). But the real dalit revolution has been in social status, far
more than economic.

In material terms, inequality (technically measured by the Gini
coefficient) in UP has always been low — less than in Kerala or the
national average. UP's problem has always been social inequality, not
consumption inequality. The good news is that social inequality is
being transformed. The practice of seating dalits separately in upper
caste weddings is down from 77.3% to 8.9% in eastern UP, and from
73.1% to 17.9% in western UP. The proportion of non-dalits accepting
food and water at dalit households is up from 1.7% to 72.5% in the
east and from 3.6% to 47.8% in the west.

Many dalits in eastern UP were locked into thehalwaha (bonded labour)
system, which Jagjivan Ram once called "a remnant of slavery" . This
has virtually disappeared : the proportion is down from 32.1% to 1.1%.
The proportion of dalit households doing any farm labour has plummeted
from 76% to 45.6% in the east, and from 46.1% to just 20.5% in the
west. Encouragingly , the proportion depending on their own land is up
from 16.6% to 28.4% in the east, and from 50.5% to 67.6% in the west.
Tubewell ownership is up substantially , but remains modest.

Dalits are leasing land from upper castes. Those who were once
labourers on upper caste land now insist on a share of the crop. The
proportion in sharecropping is up from 16.7% to 31.4% in the east and
from 4.9% to 11.4% in the west. In western UP, cases of dalits alone
lifting dead animals are down from 72.6% to 5.3%. Once dalits ploughed
the land of upper castes with bullocks . Today, they are getting their
own land ploughed by upper caste tractor drivers. Economic reforms
have created major new opportunities in urban areas, facilitating
dalit migration to towns and back. This has broken their dependence on
rural landlords and moneylenders. The resulting labour shortage has
raised the bargaining power of dalits.

The proportion of dalit families working locally as masons, tailors or
drivers — all non-traditional occupations — is up from 14% to 37% in
the east and from 9.3% to 42.1% in the west. Even more revolutionary
is the rise of dalit business families, from 4.2% to 11% in the east
and from 6% to 36.7% in the west.

Political parties shout themselves hoarse over job reservations. Yet,
the dalit family proportion in government jobs has actually fallen
from 7.2% to 6.8% in the east, and risen marginally from 5% to 7.3% in
the west. Clearly, job reservation has not been a key factor in UP's
social revolution.

Once, dalit babies were not midwifed equally by dalits and non-dalits
. The proportion equally delivered has shot up from 1.1% to 89.9% in
the east. Earlier non-dalit and government midwives rarely came to
dalit homes for deliveries, but the proportion is now up from 3.4% to
53.4% in the east, and from zero to 3.6% — still very low — in the
west.

Dalit households where most or all kids go to school are up from 28.8%
to 63.4% in the east and from 21.7% to 65.7% in the west. Girls'
schooling is up from 10% to 58.7% in the east and from 6.8% to 56.9%
in the west. As a form of social assertion, dalits are adopting elite
consumption patterns. Their use of toothpaste , shampoo and bottled
hair oil has soared. Earlier, only one-third of dalits in the east and
virtually none in the west used cars or jeeps for wedding baraats, but
today virtually all do. The proportion serving laddoos to baraatis is
up from 33.6% in the east and 2.7% in the west, to almost 100% in both
cases.

The data shows that despite major improvements , dalits are still far
from achieving equality in status or income. Caste oppression and
inequalities remain. Nevertheless, the changes constitute a social
revolution, sparked by both economic reform and the rise of the BSP.

In the survey, dalits themselves emphasized that their social
well-being had advanced even faster than their material wellbeing .
Self-respect and dignity are vital for the downtrodden. Mayawati's
statue-building spree is a form of status building.

Amartya Sen has talked of freedom as development . This means not just
more consumption but more voice, access to accountability , access to
influential networks and livelihood choice, access to good governance,
and physical security. The traditional castebound village in UP denied
all these to dalits. Those shackles are breaking apart.


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[ZESTCaste] Sathyambabu Mother Mariyamma Admitted in Hospital, this family needs our support, Please assemble at PMS on 6th Evening

 

Dear Friends


I am writing this mail to inform about the health condition of Mariyamma, she was upset with the judgement and fell down in the court hall on the day of judgement

Now her health became worst and is admitted in the Nandigama Government Hospital, Sathyambabu's father died in 2006, she is alone feeding her two children Sathyambabu and Sathyavathi , 

Now Sathyambabu in the  jail, and sathyavathi discontinued her education due to financial problems, this family needs support from all of us 

Also i remind all of you, we are meeting on 6th Evening in the Progressive Media Services in Hyderguda to plan our future activities, inside and out side the court for the protection of "Sathyam" Babu, please be present in this meeting

I would like to  propose 
1) Public hearing in the Hyderabad by inviting a retired Justice of Supreme court / High court
2) A representation to the Governor to hand over the case  to Central bureau of Investigation for Re Investigation of the case and also requesting him to order to admit Sathyambabu in the NIMs Hospital immediately
3) Investigation in to the case of Ayeshameera Murder case by a private investigation team consisting Lawyers of Supreme court and High Court (George Goldy - Dalit Mukthi Morcha) from MP is ready to give his time for this 

Tharakam Sir will explain us what are the possibilities in the court to protect sathymababu in the meeting

Please share your ideas, spread this message among your friends and colleagues

Also i request all of you to please put your signature on the online petition to protect the human rights of sathymababu here is the link please click - http://www.petitiononline.com/sathyam/petition.html

Regards

Karthik Navayan
Coordinator
Sathyambabu Ayeshameera Nyaya Porata Committee


--
B.Karthik Navayan, Advocate
H.No. 21-7-761,
Opp.High Court Post Office,
Gansi Bazar, Hyderabad,
PIN-500002, AP.
Cell:09346677007,
email:navayan@gmail.com
http://karthiknavayan.wordpress.com/
http://www.petitiononline.com/93466770/petition.html
http://www.orkut.co.in/Main#Profile.aspx?uid=10379805095932756525

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[ZESTCaste] Sathyambabu Mother Mariyamma Admitted in Hospital, this family needs our support, Please assemble at PMS on 6th Evening

 

Dear Friends


I am writing this mail to inform about the health condition of Mariyamma, she was upset with the judgement and fell down in the court hall on the day of judgement

Now her health became worst and is admitted in the Nandigama Government Hospital, Sathyambabu's father died in 2006, she is alone feeding her two children Sathyambabu and Sathyavathi , 

Now Sathyambabu in the  jail, and sathyavathi discontinued her education due to financial problems, this family needs support from all of us 

Also i remind all of you, we are meeting on 6th Evening in the Progressive Media Services in Hyderguda to plan our future activities, inside and out side the court for the protection of "Sathyam" Babu, please be present in this meeting

I would like to  propose 
1) Public hearing in the Hyderabad by inviting a retired Justice of Supreme court / High court
2) A representation to the Governor to hand over the case  to Central bureau of Investigation for Re Investigation of the case and also requesting him to order to admit Sathyambabu in the NIMs Hospital immediately
3) Investigation in to the case of Ayeshameera Murder case by a private investigation team consisting Lawyers of Supreme court and High Court (George Goldy - Dalit Mukthi Morcha) from MP is ready to give his time for this 

Tharakam Sir will explain us what are the possibilities in the court to protect sathymababu in the meeting

Please share your ideas, spread this message among your friends and colleagues

Also i request all of you to please put your signature on the online petition to protect the human rights of sathymababu here is the link please click - http://www.petitiononline.com/sathyam/petition.html

Regards

Karthik Navayan
Coordinator
Sathyambabu Ayeshameera Nyaya Porata Committee

--
B.Karthik Navayan, Advocate
H.No. 21-7-761,
Opp.High Court Post Office,
Gansi Bazar, Hyderabad,
PIN-500002, AP.
Cell:09346677007,
email:navayan@gmail.com
http://karthiknavayan.wordpress.com/
http://www.petitiononline.com/93466770/petition.html
http://www.orkut.co.in/Main#Profile.aspx?uid=10379805095932756525

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