Democracy underrated
By: Aruna Pednekar
Tags: Caste Discrimination, Caste, India, Gender, Democracy

News on 16th August 2020, stated: 13-year-old girl raped, brutally murdered in Lakhimpur Kheri. 16th August… just a day after we celebrated our independence. It is disheartening to realize the fact that independence is still a myth for a large section of the population in our country. What is even more disheartening is the thought that not all of us realize this. Even if we realise this, there is nothing much we can do about it rather than cribbing and complaining about the situation.

When our freedom fighters fought for our nation’s independence, it was for ALL people and not for certain sections of society. Despite this, there has been unequal enjoyment of independence. Unfortunately, who deserves how much independence is sourced from one’s gender, caste, and many things we do not choose for ourselves.

Photo by Micheile Henderson on Unsplash

It is easy to believe that discrimination existed back in ancient times but what is difficult is to believe that it is prevalent even today. If we do not see it existing, then perhaps, we are only blinding ourselves to reality. The incident that I mentioned at the start says a lot about our mindset and perhaps, even ignorance. Let me write the headline one more time: a 13-year-old girl raped, brutally murdered in Lakhimpur Kheri.

If we deep dive into this incident, it is a crime that took place against one gender by another gender. Dive deeper, you will see, it is a crime that took place against a human belonging to a particular caste by a human belonging to another caste. The girl who got raped belonged to the Dalit community. What comes across to me through this is some gender still considers itself superior to another gender, and some caste is still regarded as inferior to another caste. And we say we all are equal!

I am absolutely not oblivious or insensitive towards the reality where even women not belonging to a lower caste get brutally raped and killed. Many crimes do take place against people irrespective of the caste they belong to. This happens every second day in our country, but what disturbs me in this particular case is the very attitude of the perpetrator who thinks it is justified to kill a girl because she is Dalit.

It is easier to fight against crimes, but what is not easy is to fight against such irrational attitudes of people who think it is reasonable to deny basic rights of human existence to individuals on the grounds of the caste they belong to. It is quite underwhelming to realize, some people still believe in the concept of purity, pollution & punishment. How shallow could you be to punish an individual just because one belongs to a certain gender or caste? Undeniably, fruits of independence are not enjoyed by all sections of society equally.

Photo by Markus Spiske from Pexels

Casteism is multi-dimensional. It has faces and dimensions, many of which we have not even explored yet. It is not just about the denial of access to fundamental rights but also about the basic necessities of human existence. My biggest concern is our ignorance towards caste issues. We all believe that it is reduced in rural areas while it does not exist, at all, in urban areas, at least many of us do. In reality, it has neither reduced nor omitted. It has just got modernized in a way that it still prevails in the most disguised manner. We do not recognize it unless and until incidents as such come to the surface.

I understand, it is not appropriate to blame a person for being ignorant towards casteism when, in reality, that person does not witness it at all. That is the thing- we believe it does not exist because we do not see it existing in our immediate surroundings. Also, every day, we do not need rape or murder cases against Dalits to believe casteism exists. What we need is some introspection. If we could look entirely into our own minds to understand that it is deeply ingrained into our minds, then maybe, it would be easier to accept this harsh reality.

While trying to uphold social & traditional morality, people have almost overlooked “Constitutional Morality”. Discrimination prevails in the name of traditions, and we blindly follow it and often even perpetuate and celebrate it without questioning. The problem is, we do not see a problem in doing this. “Constitutional morality” stands for the right to equality, freedom of expression, social justice, individual autonomy, liberty, and adherence to the core principles of democracy.

Discrimination & constitutional morality cannot go hand in hand. All his life, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar fought to spread “constitutional morality” among the people of our nation. In the Constituent Assembly, which took place on 4th November 1948, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar said, “Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated. We must realize that our people have yet to learn it. Democracy in India is only top-dressing on an Indian soil which is essentially undemocratic.” It is only hopeless to realize his words stand true even today.

In order to attain the success of democracy, ALL members of society should have a stake in society, and no one should feel or get excluded from mainstream society. Certain age-old traditions and mindset have led to social and even economic inequalities, which ultimately has resulted in the marginalization of certain sections of society. Such discriminations & exclusions tend to sustain in the name of rituals and traditions and continue being an integral part of our society.

The true success of democracy lies in its capacity to alter such practices and mindset that are derogatory in nature and result in humiliation of people based on their caste or gender. It is not just about the degradation of ‘some people’ but of ‘humanity’. Discrimination dilutes the whole essence of democracy. Only if it thrives to bring about a social change and create a society which is ‘equal’ and ‘just’, our Democracy will be truly democratic.