Latest News Update

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

[ZESTCaste] Khap tells Haryana couple to live like siblings

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Khap-tells-Haryana-couple-to-live-like-siblings/680819

Khap tells Haryana couple to live like siblings

C B SINGH Posted online: Mon Sep 13 2010, 03:21 hrs
Chandigarh : The khap panchayats have done it again.
In yet another bizarre order, a khap panchayat of Bainsi village in
Haryana's Rohtak district has allegedly declared the marriage of a
Dalit couple illegal and ordered them to live like brother and sister
for the 'usual' reason — they belong to the same village and gotra.

The panchayat also ordered the couple's parents to honour the diktat
in five days.

Bainsi village is dominated by the Jat community. The panchayat
meeting was held on Sunday night and presided by sarpanch Daleep
Singh.

On May 5 this year, Sumer, 28, and Viky Rani eloped and married in a
Shiv Mandir in Delhi without the consent of their family members.

Later, they informed their families and neighbours about their
marriage and showed the photos of their wedding and the certificate
issued by the temple management. This led to the khap panchayat
meeting in which their marriage was declared illegal and they were
asked to treat each other as brother and sister.

One of the local residents said the girl's mother belonged to the same
village because of which the marriage cannot be honoured as per
traditions.

Police said the girl's parents were offered protection but they
declined it. Neither the boy's nor the girl's parents have filed any
complaint.

Rohtak Deputy Commissioner P C Meena said action would be taken
against the village panchayat sarpanch if he was found guilty of
issuing such an unconstitutional order and forcing the couple to break
their marriage.

------------------------------------

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[ZESTCaste] Dalits reject VHP’s temple politics

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/national/dalits-reject-vhp%E2%80%99s-temple-politics-383

Dalits reject VHP's temple politics

September 13th, 2010

Narayan Bareth

Hindu outfits may dismiss him as one misguided by the anti-Hindutva
forces but Harishankar Bairwa says he suffered a setback when he tried
to break the centuries-old tradition of keeping dalits away from
common pond. "I was a karsewak and went to Ayodhya, but when dalits
requested VHP leaders to help share water from the pond, they did not
take any interest," says Bairwa who is now a dalit activist in
Chakwada village under Jaipur district.
Located 60 km from Jaipur, Chakwada saw a conflict between dalit and
upper-caste Hindus over the sharing of water from the village pond in
2002. "As a Hindu nurtured by the RSS, I went to Ayodhya at the risk
of my life. There was violence and many of my fellow karsewaks were
injured, but I struggle for a temple at Ayodhya," Harishankar Bairwa
says. "But the moment I knocked the doors of VHP leaders there was no
response. We were greeted with stones by upper-caste Hindus. Are we
not Hindu too?" he asks.
Bairwa was part of a team of karsewaks, who went to Ayodhya during the
temple movement. "I took part in several meetings of Hindu
organisations and it seemed there that all Hindus are equal. But that
was not true. When I raise issue of untouchability no one paid
attention," he says.
"Now none of the dalits will like to become karsewak," he says. The
dalits of Chakwada fought on their own and were allowed to use water
from pond as others. "The problem remains in other forms. We are not
allowed to temple. In the wedding season, the wedding procession of
dalits greeted with opposition. We are not even free to use the band
party," he said.
"When dalits were targeted in village in 2002, there were over 50 VHP
supporters in my village but none of them came out to help us," he
laments.
"They all the time talk about Hindu-Muslim unity but never like to
discuss the plight of dalits. We are still unequal and face
discrimination at every step," Bairwa said.
"Why our saints remain silent when a dalit is victimised?" he asks.
VHP leader Narpat Singh Shekhawat however, refutes these charges. He
says the VHP had organised a meeting for sambhav [harmony]. ''We
provided all help and support to them. I do not know why Harishankar
saying this," Mr Shekhawat said.
''If such humiliating practices continue to harass dalits, we will not
hesitate to drift away from Hindu religion," he says.

------------------------------------

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[ZESTCaste] Dalit literature an integral part of Indian Literary history: Ananthamurthy

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Dalit-literature-always-an-integral-part-of-Indian-Literary-history--says-eminent-historian-Ananthamurthy/Article1-599498.aspx

Dalit literature an integral part of Indian Literary history: Ananthamurthy
Press Trust Of India
Thiruvananthapuram, September 13, 2010First Published: 12:46 IST(13/9/2010)
Last Updated: 15:13 IST(13/9/2010)

Dalit literature, whether oral or written, has been an integral and
enlivening part of Indian literary tradtions for centuries, eminent
writer and academic U R Ananthamurthy has said. For the depressed
classes like tribals and those destined to live in the lower rungs of
the social hierarchy literature had
always been a means to achieve "self-respect", the Jnanpith laureate
said here last evening.

He was delivering a lecture on the "Contributions of Dalits to Indian
literature", organised by Dr K Ayyappa Panicker
Foundation, in honour of the late Malayalam poet and scholar. Quoting
from Kannada and other Indian languages, Ananthamurthy said while
non-Dalits could write about the Dalit situation they could not claim
to represent the Dalits.

There had been several examples of non-Dalits writing on Dalit
situation, like the famous Kannada novel "Chomana Dudi"
by Shivaram Karanth. But there was a kind of arrogance when non-Dalits
claimed to represent Dalits, he noted.

When Dalits themselves write about their situation, it imparts to the
literature a new strength and idiom. Some kind of a protest had been
part of the Dalit writings, especially in Marathi since the time of
Bhakti movement.

Often the spark was convyed through the rejection of the generally
accepted "respectful" language to express their
"disrespectful" situation, he noted. A collection of poems of
Ayyappa Panicker, translated into English by writer and journalist P
Raveendran Nayar, was released on the occasion.

Former Kendra Sahitya Akademi Chairman Sachithanandan and former
diplomat T P Sreenivasan spoke on the contributions and influence of
Ayyappa Panicker to Malayalam literature.

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[ZESTCaste] Indian Dalits find no refuge from caste in Christianity

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11229170

14 September 2010 Last updated at 01:01 GMT

Indian Dalits find no refuge from caste in Christianity

By Swaminathan Natarajan

BBC Tamil

Till death do us part: Dalits are buried on the other side of the
wall in this cemetery
Many in India have embraced Christianity to escape the age-old caste
oppression of the Hindu social order, but Christianity itself in some
places is finding it difficult to shrug off the worst of caste
discrimination.

In the town of Trichy, situated in the heart of the southern Indian
state of Tamil Nadu, a wall built across the Catholic cemetery clearly
illustrates how caste-based prejudice persists.

Those who converted to Christianity from the formerly "untouchable"
Hindu caste groups known as Dalits are allocated space for burial on
one side of the wall, while upper-caste converts are buried on the
other side.

The separating wall was built over six decades ago.

Continue reading the main story
"
Start Quote
Caste discrimination is rampant in the Catholic Church"
End Quote
Father Yesumariyan

Jesuit lawyer, Dalit campaigner
"This violates the Indian constitution. It is inhuman. It's
humiliating," says Rajendiran, secretary general of Periyar Dravidar
Kazhagam, a small socio-political group that has announced a protest
demanding the removal of the wall.

The Catholic Church in India says it does not approve of caste
discrimination. But it says it is helpless in resolving this issue.

"The burial ground is owned by private individuals, so we are not able
to do anything about this. Even the local bishop is not going to the
cemetery to perform rituals," says Father Vincent Chinnadurai,
chairman of the Tamil Nadu state Commission for Minorities.

He says there is a new cemetery in the town, where bodies are buried
without any discrimination.

Yet burials continue to take place in the controversial cemetery,
presided over by Catholic priests.

For centuries Hindus from different castes have been cremated or
buried in different places, according to their caste.

'Cementing caste'

This practice is fading in the big cities and towns, but in some
places in rural Tamil Nadu, caste-based graveyards are still in
operation.

Discrimination against Dalits persists in all strata of Indian
society Dalit Christians are demanding more proactive steps from the
Church to remove the wall.

Father Lourdunathan Yesumariyan, a Jesuit, practising lawyer and
Dalit-Christian activist, says the Church has the legal power to
remove the wall.

Even though the cemetery is on privately owned land, he says, a recent
high court judgement ruled that the Church has full responsibility as
it administers the graveyard.

"The failure to remove the wall only helps cement caste feelings," he adds.

Some years ago two Catholic priests demolished a small part of the wall.

But the influential land-owning upper-caste Christian group rebuilt it.

The Church is meanwhile accused by critics of refusing to give "just
representation" for Dalits in its power structure, even while it
campaigns for a separate quota for the Dalit Christians in government
jobs.

Fr Yesumariyan says: "In Tamil Nadu, over 70% of Catholics are Dalit
converts. But only four out of 18 bishops are from the Dalit-Christian
community.

"In many places influential caste groups have lobbied and made sure
that only the person belonging to their caste is being appointed as
bishop in their diocese."

He says that in places where Dalit Christians are the majority, they
often struggle to get the top job.

Even though the archbishop of Tamil Nadu region is a Dalit Christian,
he has been unable to improve the situation much for other members of
his community in the Church.

Untouchablity 'everywhere'

In recent years a fixed number of jobs and seats have been earmarked
in Catholic-run schools and colleges for members of the
Dalit-Christian community.

There are estimated to be more than 17 million Catholics in India But
this is being challenged in the court on the grounds that "there is no
caste in Christianity".

Fr Yesumariyan continues: "The Indian constitution says it has
abolished untouchablity. But it is everywhere. In the same way, the
Catholic Church says there is no caste bias but caste discrimination
is rampant in the Church.

"There are hardly any inter-caste marriages among converted
Christians. Until recently, Church-run magazines carried matrimonial
advertisements containing specific caste references. Only after our
protest they stopped it."

A few churches in Tamil Nadu have even been closed after Dalit
Christians demanded a share in the administration.

"We say there is no caste in Christianity," says Fr Chinnadurai. "But
in India, Christianity was not able to get rid of caste.

"Those who converted to Christianity brought their caste prejudices
with them. We are trying our best to get rid of them."

------------------------------------

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[ZESTCaste] Dalit writings vital part of Indian literature: Ananthamurthy

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/dalit-writings-vital-part-of-indian-literature-ananthamurthy/316902.html

Dalit writings vital part of Indian literature: Ananthamurthy

PTI | 01:09 PM,Sep 13,2010
Thiruvananthapuram,Sep 13 (PTI)Dalit literature, whether oral or
written, has been an integral and enlivening part of Indian literary
tradtions for centuries, eminent writer and academic U R Ananthamurthy
has said. For the depressed classes like tribals and those destined to
live in the lower rungs of social hierarchy literature had always been
a means to achieve "self-respect, the Jnanpith laureate said here last
evening. He was delivering a lecture on the "Contributions of Dalits
to Indian literature", organised by Dr K Ayyappa Panicker Foundation,
in honour of the late Malayalam poet and scholar. Quoting from Kannada
and other Indian languages, Ananthamurthy said while non-Dalits could
write about the Dalit situation they could not claim to represent the
Dalits. There had been several examples of non-Dalits writing on Dalit
situation, like the famous Kannada novel "Chomana Dudi" by Shivaram
Karanth. But there was a kind of arrogance when non-Dalits claimed to
represent Dalits, he noted. When Dalits themselves write about their
situation, it imparts to the literature a new strength and idiom. Some
kind of a protest had been part of the Dalit writings, especially in
Marathi since the time of Bhakti movement. Often the spark was convyed
through the rejection of the generally accepted "respectful" language
to express their "disrespectful" situation, he noted. A collection of
poems of Ayyappa Panicker, translated into English by writer and
journalist P Raveendran Nayar, was released on the occasion. Former
Kendra Sahitya Akademi Chairman Sachithanandan and former diplomat T P
Sreenivasan spoke on the contributions and influence of Ayyappa
Panicker to Malayalam literature.PTI NM RC 09131215