Introduction :
- 1. Social anthropologies and sociologists like Dube (1962), Srinivas (1967), Rajani Kothari (1960), Rudolph and Rudolph, Anil Bhatt (1975), Harold Gould (1988), and several others studied the interrelation of castes and politics in India . In this regard they examine two questions: (i) How caste influenced the politics and (ii) Politics influenced the castes? Recently some social (A) like B.M. Chapper (1989) and Ram Ahuja, (2003) and few others have summered the researches of the above-mentioned sectors and have given a picture of how caste affects politics and how politics affects the caste system.
- 2) Caste affects the politics: Anil Bhatt (1975) studied the attitudes of caste in N and S towards politics in India. In this context Bhatt said: High status castes have higher level, of political interest and lower castes have lower level, of political interest. Higher caste people in contast with low caste, have a higher level of awareness about political changes and issues in the country. There is no relationship between caste and identification with political parties. That is a particular caste does not have control over any particular party. There is no relation between caste status and political dominance. High caste status is not necessarily a basis for influences in village affairs.
Participation of caste in politics :
According to Rajani Kothari, caste participated in politics may be analysed in two different stages (Kothari 1973:188). The first stage involved high castes like Reddi (in Andhra Pradesh) Pattidars (in Gujarat), Lingayats (in Karnataka), Rajputs and Jats (in Rajasthan) and Rayanthan (in Bihar) and intellectuals, while the second stage involved lower castes and masses. In the first stage, only three components of castes were involved the power structure of caste, distribution of economic benefits, and caste consciousness. But in the second stage, other components of castes also came to be involved, for example, patron client loyalties, caste associations, and so forth.
Further, three sub-stages may be pointed in the first stage, (a) In the first sub-stage the struggle for power and for benefits was at first limited to the entrenched castes, that is those that exercise preponderant influence economically and politically but not necessary numerically. Preponderant. In this sense, it is different from dominant caste , (b) In the second sub-stage, ascendant castes, that is, unsatisfied castes wanting higher roles, also started competing for power.(c) In the third sub-stage, there was not only competition between entrenched and ascendant castes but also within these castes. This may be described as the stage of caste fragmentation or factionalism.
In the first sub-stage, leader ship cleavages were created and their came into being multi-caste and multi-factional alignments. This also created the problem of rival leaders (from entrenched castes, ascendant castes and various caste factions) in politics. These leaders had perforce to appeal to wider identities. Thus, the involvement of masses into politics may be called the second sub-stage.
In tire second sub-stage, there was necessity for change in the leadership. Earlier, the leader had to deal only with western and westernised administrators, but later on he had to deal with traditional masses also. With this happening, tire Brahminic and administrative castes began to be outnumbered by men from commercial and peasant proprietor occupations that had always called for a pragmatic approach to problems. Thus, these were the new innovators of politics who were less modem than the elite they replaced, less educated, and more rural based. But even more important is the fact that the innovativeness with which these new leaders are credited came more from inherited characteristics and early socialization in prevailing life styles than from any conscious adoption of a new culture. This is the most important in analysing the course of political modernization in India. Indian politics, because of all this, achieved a new dimension and took on a character of its own.
Analysing the nature of relationship between caste and politics in the third sub-stage, it may be said that while in the first two sub-stages, the inter-caste and intra-caste competition and process of factionalism were very’ much caste-oriented, in the third sub-stage of development there was weakening if older identities. A more sophisticated system of social and political participation, which cross-cultural allegiances, a great awareness of individual self-interest and forms of involvement and alienation, overlie the structure of particularistic loyalties that are pre-eminently the products of modern education and modern system of social communications.
Thus, today (i)caste on the one side ceases to be exclusive political support base and on the other side lends itself to increasing political articulation (ii) by participating in the modern political system, caste is now exposed to divisive influences and a new form of integration resulting form a new scheme of universalist- particularist relationships;(iii) caste provides to politics on the one hand a structure of divisions and accommodations and on the other hand a cohesive element which adsorbs tensions and frustrations.
Three conclusions may thus drawn regarding the process of adjustment that we find today between caste and politics:(l ) the first one refers to elite structure. In this connection, ‘ it may besaid that there has emerged what can be called a dominant elite which is drawn from different castes but shares a common secular outlook and homogenous in terms of some of the values but is at the same divided into many special groups. (2) The second conclusion refers to new organizational forms of castes. In this context, it may be said that castes take on an openly secular form for new organizational purposes. There are several such forms such as (a) ‘associations’ of castes members ranging form simple hostels and recreational bodies to reform clubs; (b) caste ‘institutions’ or ‘conferences5 that are more broad -based and cover districts or even states; and (c) caste ‘federations’ composed of not one but several castes which may have some specific interest or political objective in common; for example, securing of economic benefits, jobs or special concessions, fighting ‘upper’ castes, bargaining with apolitical party or government, etc. (3) The third conclusion refers to factional structure.
In this connection, it may be said that there has developed a vertical structure of factions along which the elite groups have got politically organised. The system of factions along which is such that it divides not only political groups but also social groups. It thus facilitates the process of cross- cutting identifications.
Caste and Vote:
Several scholars like Mayor,(1965), Vamia(I 967) Ramasray Roy (1970), studied the interrelationship of caste and voting behaviour in India. According to their analysis.
Castes were able to influence each other to bargain for power. (a)In this context, Rajani Kothari said that castes asserted their identify and contested for power (b) Rudolph and Rudolph said single caste associations have given castes a new vitality and democracy has enabled to play an important role in politics, (c) At the same time formations of caste federations also played a key role in influencing voting behaviour. For example,: In Haryana, Gujjars Jats, and Rajputs formed into a federation. They were like-minded in terms of political interest. No other party was able to face and the party supported by them own. (d) Political parties consider the caste as a vote bank. This enabled the lower castes to be politically influenced on the basis of numerical preponderance.
In selecting candidates for election, political parties often give consideration to the caste composition of the constituencies. This has enabled many lower castes to be politically influential on the basis of their numerical strength. Studies on election in India in 1960s and 1970s revealed that: (i) high castes tended to Vote for opposition parties to Congress, (ii) middle and low castes tended to vote for Congress, and (iii) the Scheduled castes tended to vote for Congress. Rut the elections in the end of 1980s and beginning of 1990s have discarded these theories. Kothari (19700 has also mentioned that castes is becoming less important in national polities along with many other variables. Harold Gould (1977) is also of the opinion that caste has ceased to be a determinant of polities in India. The actual factors today that influence a vote include infinitely complex and appear to arise from a vast number of conscious and unconscious forces and conditions. Some of these forces and conditions can he easily identified, while others are much more elusive.
“Caste thinking” is deeply rooted in political elites and political parties. Political leaders are surrounded by leaders from their own castes. Caste prevents political parties from coalescing around class and economic issues. However, it is incorrect to say that caste alone is tire key factor in the Voting behaviour. Many a time, personal loyalty, ideolocal orientation, regional identification, etc also operate within the political parties. According to Gould (1988) caste still plays a factor in voting behaviour. However loyalty is primarily to persons and not to castes ideas or issues. Ram Ahuja (1993) says that in Bihar caste played a prominent role in voting and formation of ministries. Leaders were able to create a coalition of factions on caste basis and procure votes. So was the case in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. The mobilization of caste votes by caste leaders in all these states was common. Thus the mobilization of Jats by a Jat Minister, of Kurmis by a Kurmi Agriculture Minster, of Reddys by a Reddy Chief Minister and Scheduled Caste members by a Scheduled Caste leader illustrates the way in which caste organises its own members to vote in favour of leaders supported, by itself.
Influence of Politics on Caste :
Several castes have used politics in their attempt to better their conditions or to achieve their goals. Use of politics or political means, according to Eleanor Zelliot, covers securing governmental benefits and representation on legislative and political bodies. Some example which may be given in this connection are: Mahars or Maharashtra, Kshatriyas of Gujarat, Nadars of Tamil Nadu, and Reddys and Kammas in Andhra Pradesh. The Mahars of Maharashtra constituted about ten per cent of the population of the state of Maharashtra. Initially they operated under conditions of social degradation but ultimately used politics for ameliorating their social conditions. Ambedkar organised them into a political force and formed a Scheduled Caste federation, which was ultimately used as a political means towards the goal of social equality. The traditional place of a Mahar in the village community was of a village servant who served the village as a watchman or village guide or a messenger to government servants, calling landowners to pay land revenue at the village hall, sweeping the roads, carrying death notices and messages to the village hall, sweeping the roads, carrying death notices and message to other villages, and.so on. The Mahars were regarded as untouchables, because of the nature of their duties. Temples,
schools, village-wells were all closed to them. Some restrictions in clothing use ornaments, metal housed hold wares and the observance or ceremonies were also enforced on them.
However, in spite of there being untouchables, they remained in close association with caste. Hindus and government officials with new methods of communication justice and government, their earlier position lost significance. The post-office, the courts and the police replaced the Mahars as massagers and watchmen. They, therefore, started working in textile mills, railways, docks, government ammunition factories, etc. form 1860s onwards. They also pushed for education and improved social status. Even those Maharas remaining in the village began to discard both duties and caste practices that where associated with their low status. While the new economic opportunities presented to the Mahars undoubtedly encouraged a movement up from their inferior position, another factor that contributed both to their economic and social progress and to their castes spirit was military service. Thought their record of military service dated to the Pre-British period but it was their entry into the British Army, which proved significant for the subsequent history of the Mahr movement. The movement comprised not in any automatic elevation in the social hierarchy through military. Service but in the fact that military service at such an early date exposed them to British instructions much before the dissemination of western culture took place on a large scale. Such an exposure socialized them sufficiently early to the new political order. In 1893,with the abolition of the old presidency armies, the Mahars of Poona sent a memorandum to the governor of Bombay and in 1910 to the secretary of state for India for permission to the join in the police and army during World War I. In the World War II, a Mahar Regiment was also raised. Many Mahars were converted into Christianity too. Many of the military Mahars joined the Kabir and Ramadi panths (sects), which stressed equality. The Mahars thus started ‘ efforts to relate to Hinduism on higher level than village status allowed. They also adopted higher caste ritual practices (what Srinivas has called the process of ‘sanskritization7). From 1927 onwards, they made several temple-entree attempts also which unified and organised them. But in 1936, the Mahars as a caste announce their decision, under the leadership of Ambedkar,’ to leave Hinduism, The temple-entry attempt thus turned to political movement, rejecting Hinduism altogether. At the time of 1937 elections for the provincial legislatures, Ambedkar established independent Labour party, which gave majority of the tickets to Mahars. Since then, through the Republican Party as well as 1946,1951 and 1956 elections, the Mahars have established themselves as an important political force in Maharashtra . politics. In recent years, however, the leadership issue has cut the Mahar political unity.
Some middle and lower castes of Gujarat also achieved their goal(s) by using politics. Rajni Kotari and Rushikesh Maru (1973:70-101) have discussed as to how a number of economically depressed communities of cultivators of Gujarat federated together in late 1940s and 1950s into a common organization for achieving political power. Various caste groups ranging from high caste landless and destitute Rajputs to intermediate caste Kolis to tribal Bhils formed the Gujarat Kshatriya Sabha, spresd the Kshatriya label, mobilized the mass political support and pressed their demands for bargaining with a more powerful age old rival group of Patidars. They then achieved their goal of upgrading the position of the lower castes and winning elections against Congress through a Patidar-Kshatriyas alliance. The process was one of mobilization of the group support whereby many castes were ‘accepted’ into the Kshatriya fold. Political worked as a cementing force. Instead of individuals competing for power, one big group (federation of castes) asserted itself and consolidated its position.
Robert Hardgrave Jr.(l 973: 102-126) examined the solidarity and cohesion among Nadars (a caste in Tamil Nadu) and its integrated political culture. He upholds that the breakdown of economic dependence on other castes and the extension of caste ties over a wide geographic area give tire castes a new solidarity. The integrated culture of the caste gives rise to the emergence of association for the social, economic and political uplift of community. The same thing was found in the case of degraded and defiled caste of Nadars or Tamil Nadu. The Nadars were forbidden entry into Hindu temples up to the middle of the nineteenth century. They were also not permitted to use public wells, wear shoes and gold ornaments, milk cows, carry umbrellas, and wells, wear in certain streets. Their women were forbidden to cover upper portion of their bodies. But in the middle of the nineteenth century, a mass movement brought majority of rural Nadars in of the southern regions into the Christian fold. The Nadars thus sought escape from the hierarchy of ritual , purity in Christianity. Many Nadars secured small landholdings and improved their economic position. A good number went for the higher education and got good jobs. As the wealth of the community grew, the common funds, called mahimai, were used for Ihe welfare of the community as a whole. The newly advantage Nadars claimed the high Kshatriyas status. New books and articles were written creating a historical myth as to the origin and greatness of the Nadar community. The Nadar leaders challenged the ban on temple entry. This led to the conflict among Nadars and other communities. Jealous of the rise of Nadars to great wealth and outraged at their pretentions to high status, the high caste Hindus nursed a bitterness. The Nadar Mahajana Sangam was formed in 1917 for promoting the welfare of the Nadars. In 1921 Census, all Nadars declared themselves as ‘Nadar Kshatriyas\ In 1935 and again in 1940 and in 1952, the Nadar community requested the government to list it a among the ‘backwards classes5. Since a sizeable portion of the community was among the most the most advantage community educationally and economically in Tamil Nadu, the backward classes commission (1952) designated only Shanars as backward class. Today, the Nadars have become one of the most economically and politically successful communities in the south.
Conclusion :
It may now be concluded that in the present times, not only caste affects politics but also by achieving the political power and caste solidarity, a caste succeeds in achieving a high social, economic and political position in the society. On the one hand, the involvement of caste organizations brings changes in the political system and on the other hand, the casteseven low in status-are enabled in pursuing their collective interests