Chapter 01
This chapter gives you the political, social situation on
eve of BRA’s birth.
1. BRA hailed from a poor family belonging to one
of the untouchable communities (lowest strata of Hindu society) in India. Before
the Indian Constitution abolished untouchability in 1950 they were divided into
three categories – Untouchables, Unapproachables & Unseeables and were
nearly 20 % of the Hindu population in India. They had different names in
different parts of the country – Outcastes, Antyajas and Namashudras. Their
social disabilities were specific & numerous. Their touch, shadow and even
voice were deemed by the caste Hindus to be polluting. They were obliged to
wear a particular type of dress & footwear, eat a particular type of food,
and were forced to occupy the dirty, dingy, and unhygienic outskirts of
villages & towns for habitation where they lived in dark, insanitary and
miserable smoky shanties or cottages. Men wore a turban, carried a staff in the
hand - rough blanket on the shoulder and a piece of loincloth. The women wore
bodices & rough sarees barely reaching the knees.
Their children were not admitted to schools attended by
caste Hindus. Though they worshipped Hindu gods, observed the same festivals,
the Hindu temples were closed to them. Barbers & washermen refuse to render
them service. These untouchable Hindus were treated by the caste Hindus as
subhumans, less than men, worse then beasts. This picture is still true of
villages and small towns (written in 1954). Cities have now mostly overcome
this prejudice. As they were uneducated all public services including police
& military forces were closed to them. Some of them plied trades of a lower
& degrading order such as those of street-sweepers, scavengers &
shoemakers. Others who were more fortunate tilled the land as tenants, worked
as laborers in fields, a great number of them subsisted on food or grain given
to them as village servants. They were born Untouchables, lived and died as
Untouchables.
2. The origin of Untouchability is an enigma
to modern history. But it is generally held to be a perverted outcome of the
caste system. The Vedic Aryans knew no caste system. As time passed by, they
divided themselves for different occupations. Those who took to learning became
Brahmins, undertook governance became Kshatriyas, took to trade were Vaishyas
and those who served these three classes became Shudras. But in actual practice
this original principle of division of labor did not sustain for long. The
result was that the original four divisions became watertight compartments
& degenerated later into the present day caste system. Another view holds
that these Untouchables were Broken Men and then followers of Buddhism. In
their fallen days they did not assimilate themselves with Vedic Hindus or give
up beef eating, and so they were degraded & segregated as Untouchables. The
question is – Did this disruptive system go unchallenged?
Several worthy sons of India from
generation to generation made attempts to free Hindu society from this system.
There was Buddha who around 500 B.C. rocked the system to its foundations for a
considerable period and even initiated the Untouchables into his religion.
‘Friends Buddha’s was a reformist movement, not a Religion, because in India
existed Never Religion but Dharma did’. In the 11th century
Ramanuja, who had an untouchable discipline, threw open the monasteries &
temple to them which he had founded & built. There was Basavana in Karnatka
followed by saints like Ramananda, Kabir, Chaitanya, Eknath, Tukaram, Rohidas
& Chokhamela who succeeded to a great extent in establishing equality in
matters of their Bhakti Cult.
Then followed the waves of socio-religious revival led by
Raja Ram Mohan Roy. But the most vital role was played by Mahatma Phooley who
started in 1848 India’s first School for Untouchables. Among the Indian Princes
it was Sayajirao Gaekwad of Baroda who started schools for the Untouchables in
1883. Gopal Baba Walangkar, a follower of Phule strove hard to convince the
caste Hindus of their inhuman behavior. The virile & valiant Dayananda made
great efforts too.
3. The attitude of the British
rulers, who had just abolished slavery in their own land, towards the
Untouchables was quite indifferent. Their neutral role was in effect a negative
support to the caste Hindu oppressors. After the fall of the Maratha Empire
they about stabilizing their newly acquired empire a manner so as to drain them
slowly, fleece them safely and exploit them softly. Thus they first took up the
cause of the Brahmans who had suffered tremendously by the change of Govt. For
enlivening their hearts they began to educate them to enable them to be in
service of the new Govt.
In those days literature was the
privileged treasure & education was the monopoly of the Brahmans. They were
forbidden to other caste Hindus too. When the Govt opened a Sanskrit school in
1821 for education of other castes the Brahmins protested and a majority of
them resigned. However, as time passed by, it may be said to the credit of the
British govt that non-Brahmins & backward class Hindus advanced gradually
in education & govt service as never before.
If this was the situation of the caste Hindus what must
have been the condition of the Untouchables. The Christian missionaries fully
exploited the situation. By their tact, kindliness & readiness to help they
ingratiated themselves with the lower classes & Untouchables with the
result that a strong feeling grew that foreigners were preferable to the
Brahmins. Due to the problems faced by Untouchable students in 1858 the Govt
announced that it reserved the right refuse support to any partially aided
school in which the benefits of education are withheld from any class of
persons on account of caste & race. But this directive was not enough to
result in a changed mindset of the caste Hindus.
4. Maharashtra – by the 1890s a strong
socio-political revival had set in. The main problem that confronted the
leaders along with political backwardness were the caste system,
untouchability, child marriage, widow remarriage and emancipation of women. A
bitter controversy arose over whether social reforms should take precedence
over political reforms. The British naturally so wanted the Indians to focus on
social reforms & bypass political
agitation. But the Indians believed that both need to happen simultaneously.
The foremost among them was the glowing & mighty Ranade who conceived a
vast broadening of the social foundations. Agarkar, a man of intellect &
character, envisaged a profound reshaping of national, social & individual
values. Dr Bhandarkar, a man of great learning actively propagated social
reform.
On the side of political reformers was the commanding,
aggressive personality of Tilak. He led the orthodox section of people who
shouted that political reforms constituted the nation’s first necessity, with a
subtle motive of bypassing social reforms. Telang an eminent judge wanted
social reform running along the path of least resistance and political reform.
Most of the political reformists opposed social reforms because they feared
that social & religious disabilities if removed, would jeopardize their own
prestige, privileges & position in Hindu society. So they bitterly opposed
every move sponsored to give Hindu society a real & sound foundation.
The Indian National Congress had been founded 7 years ago,
its sessions ended in appeals to the British for atleast Indianizing the
Governmental administrative posts & Councils.
