“#Dalitlivesmatter” is this the only thing we can do?

“#Dalitlivesmatter” is this the only thing we can do?

"A 19-year-old Dalit woman was seen hanging on a tree with her torn genitals and prolapsed rectum after she was abducted and gang-raped the previous day". "Another woman of the same caste was raped and thrown naked in the road with an iron rod inserted into her genital". "Case files after eight upper-caste men murdered a Dalit man for eating in front of upper-caste people in a wedding". "Two Dalit cousins were brutally beaten up by the upper caste, and one of the cousin’s private parts were severely injured because the upper caste men inserted a petrol-soaked screwdriver inside his anus."

These are just one-third of the news stories we hear about Dalit oppression in our country.

India’s rigid Hindu hierarchical system isn’t something new. The system that led to untouchability and prejudice has been in place for three thousand years. According to the Rig Veda, people are split into communities based on their occupation, and this system was known as the "Varna system". Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra are the four basic castes that make up the Varna system, and Dalits were considered to be the lowest of the low classes.

They were (and still are) known to be dirty, filthy, and untouchable in some parts of the country. Even though untouchability was officially abolished from the Indian Caste System in 1950, discrimination still exists in the twenty-first century, with an entire village remaining completely isolated and separated from the main village.

The Dalit community makes up over 240 million people in India, which is about 25% of the country's total population. Despite this, the majority of Dalits are still poor. The bulk of them work as agricultural labourers for a few kilos of rice or 15 to 35 rupees per day. Dalits also perform 90% of the cleaning and sanitising in public spaces and on private property. And when they make an effort to rise above this foul vortex, they are either raped, beaten, or, worst of all, brutally murdered in public!

If we speak about stats:

Being a Dalit and hailing from a lower-class family raises the risk of becoming a victim of a hate crime in this situation. According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data from 2016 (the most recent data available), the rate of crime against Dalits during a ten-year period exhibits a steadily inclining curve. Violence affects 2.4% of every 10,000 Dalits, which is eight times more than it was in 2006. According to the ST (preventions of atrocities) Act, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes make up the majority of the 23 percent of rape victims. Throughout the 1980s, significant actions were done to benefit OBCs, SCs, and STs. The nation's affirmative action policy was introduced in 1950.

The number of offences against Scheduled Castes that are currently under investigation by the police has doubled since 2006, from 8,380 to 16,654, while the number of Scheduled Tribes that are currently under investigation by the police has increased by 55% since 2006, from 1,679 to 2,602. Bihar is regarded as the worst state for hate crimes against the lower community, with 4,311 crime cases.

Reservations in government jobs for Other Backward Castes (OBC) were introduced in 1993, and in 2006 the quota in the education system came into force. But have we ever given it a thought about how this current reservation system is working? Reservations came in force to help these "so-called" low caste people, but that is not the case. The numerically and economically stronger castes of OBCs and SCs are the ones who enjoy the comfort and benefits of the reserved seats. The government has also formed a commission that looks into the sub-categorisation of OBCs, especially Mahadalits (E/MMBCs).

The panel, which consists of five people and is presided over by retired judge G. Roshini, has been tasked with investigating how the advantages of OBC and SC reservations have been distributed unfairly and inequitably. The panel is tasked with developing a system or mechanism for OBC subcategorization. These were among the primary issues raised by disadvantaged members of the backward caste regarding the current quota system.“Sub-categorisation has become urgent and inevitable due to the inequality in the availing quota benefits” point Justice Roshini.

"Why is the reservation and quota system still in force, Dalits are coming up backwards, and caste people have way too much privilege." When people say these things, they should realize that they are seriously mistaking the empowerment of a few skilled members of a caste or society for the empowerment of the caste as a whole. Even today, Dalit children are not allowed to sit inside the classroom with their fellow students. Grace Banu, the first Dalit trans engineer in Tamil Nadu, says, "Being a Dalit transgender in this society can be a nightmare. After much resistance, my school administrator finally permitted me to attend, but she made me sit by the door where everyone used to leave. With gender discrimination, caste discrimination is one thing that I have to face daily in my life, even today."

So many cases that made huge headlines, like "The Suicide of Dr. Payal Tadvi" on May 22, 2019, have gone obliterated and vanished. Though the "#DalitlivesMatter" hashtag was initially started in November 2014, soon after the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag went viral, this hashtag went viral on Twitter again in May 2020, after numerous cases of Dalit violence and rape were reported.

But the question is, "Is this the only thing we can do about the cruelty happening against our fellow humans?" Is this the only thing we can do to change the mindset that has been embedded and bred in people’s blood for more than 100s years? Is this the only thing we can support for the right?" Till then, a Dalit, perhaps dead and quelled, may only get a hashtag.