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Maratha reservation stir has been anti-Phule-Ambedkarite from birth: Part I

A very tragic incident took place in the year 2016. A Maratha girl was raped and murdered in Kopardi village of Ahmednagar district. The incident shook Maharashtra. Dalits, Adivasis, OBCs, Muslims – every section of society condemned it. But the power-wielding Brahmins and Marathas hatched a conspiracy, writes Shrawan Deore

Whether your objective is fostering a revolution or fomenting a counter-revolution, polarizing society is an essential prerequisite. In class-based societies, the capitalist is often seen as a messiah and a benefactor of the oppressed and the poor. In feudal societies, the capitalist-industrialist class liberates the farmers and farm labourers from the cruel exploitation, tyranny and atrocities of the landlords.

That is why Ambedkar called upon the Untouchables to abandon the villages and move to the cities. Feudal slavery is unbearable. It makes the poor work the fields like animals. No wonder, being a slave to a capitalist factory owner seems less demanding.

In this first phase of capitalism, the capitalist-industrialist seems progressive, democratic and humanistic. However, the growth and progress of capitalism brings with it cut-throat competition and profiteering. That makes the exploitation of the workers more intense and unbearable. The factory owner, who once felt like a friend, now looks like an enemy. That leads to an anti-labour polarization of capitalists. Thus, class struggle ensues, which is the springboard of Marxist-Communist concepts. This is the second stage of social development.

Now, let us see the Maratha-OBC caste struggle through this lens. Initially, the Marathas donned the garb of a progressive, Satyashodhak community, faithful to the ideals of Phule. The Marathas first wore this cloak in the 1930s. I have dwelt on it in my two books in Marathi.

It is an incontrovertible historical truth that in the 1925-30 period, the Marathas were not in a position to take on the Brahmins. Under the leadership of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, a large number of Brahmins had infiltrated the Freedom Movement. Tilak had emerged as a tall national leader and the small-time Maratha chieftains, who represented a particular community of a particular state, did not stand a chance before him.

Bahujan Vanchit Aghadi leader Prakash Ambedkar speaking at the protest venue of Maratha reservation stir leader Manoj Jarange Patil

So, when Tilak kicked up a furore with his comment that “Do the Kunbats (a derogatory term for Kunbis) want to enter the assembly to drive a plough?”, it led to consternation among the Maratha leaders. The Marathas needed the support of the likes of Kunbis, Malis and Telis to emerge as a political force. However, since the OBCs of the time were under the influence of the Satyashodhak movement, it was not easy for the Marathas to woo them. That was why the erstwhile Maratha leaders joined the Satyashodhak Movement of Tatyasaheb Mahatma Jotirao Phule and posing as progressives, began befriending the OBC communities.

The OBCs saw through the game of the Marathas in 1930 itself and did not fall prey to it. But in 1993, the Dalits fell into the trap.

In a scenario where it is difficult to gauge who is pretending and who is sincere, polarization of progressive castes becomes next to impossible. That was how, wearing the mask of progressivism, the enemy sneaked into the Dalit-OBC camp. Dr Ambedkar had proposed inter-caste weddings as an antidote to casteism. But what happened was that pretending to be progressives, many upper-caste women married well-placed Dalit politicians and bureaucrats and damaged the Dalit movement. In a similar fashion, the Marathas destroyed the Satyashodhak Movement in the 1930s.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that wearing the mask of Satyashodhaks, the Marathas destroyed the Satyashodhak Movement and won political power in Maharashtra. 

The Marathas are still continuing the tradition of infiltrating the Satyashodhak and OBC movements and destroying them from within. In 2014, Peshwai (brahmanical rule) was established in Maharashtra and at the Centre and the power-wielding Brahmins gave their blessings to the infiltrator Marathas. 

A very tragic incident took place in the year 2016. A Maratha girl was raped and murdered in Kopardi village in Ahmednagar district. The incident shook Maharashtra. Dalits, Adivasis, OBCs, Muslims – every section of society condemned it. But the power-wielding Brahmins and Marathas hatched a conspiracy. If any serious crime comes to the fore, what does a sane person do? He demands punishment for the culprits and justice for the victims. Since the government and the administration have a big role in ensuring that this happens, people take to the streets to bring pressure to bear upon them. 

The Kopardi victim came from a ruling caste and the Maratha MLAs, MPs and ministers could have easily worked their phones to ensure that the administration and the government got the victim’s family justice. There was absolutely no need for demonstrations and sit-ins. But the ruling Maratha and Brahmin leaders decided to take undue advantage of the incident. Suddenly, big crowds of Marathas began thronging the girl’s home. The demand for justice took a backseat and instead, the demand for reservation for the Marathas and abrogation of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act emerged from nowhere.

These demands had no connection with the rape and the murder. Still, Sharad Pawar visited Kopardi to support the demands. Here, I would like to inform you that Sharad Pawar was the first to visit Manoj Jarange and extend support to him. 

After Sharad Pawar’s visit, Maratha MLAs, MPs and ministers made a beeline for Kopardi. The then chief minister Devendra Fadnavis literally rushed to the village and backed the two demands.

It is a matter of research as to how seriously the Khairlanji incident, involving atrocities against a Dalit woman, was taken by the Dalit leaders. But they were very upset by what had happened with the Maratha girl and were very keen on visiting Kopardi. They included Ramdas Athavale and another prominent Dalit leader. 

Then, the Marathas of Kopardi issued a fatwa saying that Dalit leaders won’t be allowed into Kopardi. They said that let alone the shadow of the Dalits, they did not want even their sympathies. 

This addition to the Manusmriti, was not opposed by any Maratha scholar or leader. The Marathas, who described themselves as scholars, intellectuals and thinkers and rendered speeches from Dalit-OBC platforms, kept quiet when it came to criticizing their own caste.

A sinister plot was hatched in Nagpur, the capital of the Peshwas, to ensure that the hostility against Dalits-OBCs spread from Kopardi to entire Maharashtra and to push the Maharashtra of Phule, Shahu and Ambedkar into the cauldron of caste violence. That was before similar violence engulfed Manipur. It was decided that the Marathas would hold huge demonstrations in every district and tehsil to strike terror into the hearts of the Dalits and the OBCs. The government and the administrative machinery as well as the army of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers got cracking to implement the decision. This caste polarization was a negative phenomenon, aimed at fomenting a counter-revolution. The Manuwadi forces know pretty well that the code of Manusmriti cannot be enforced in India till the SC-ST Act remains in the statute books. 

The modern-day Peshwas have used the Maratha protests to destroy whatever remained of the progressive edifice so laboriously built in Maharashtra by Phule, Shahu and Ambedkar. Apparently, the decision to condemn an incident of atrocity is to be based on the castes of the victim and the perpetrator. What is worse is that the Maratha protests have created an atmosphere in which even supporting the perpetrator has become possible. That is unprecedented. In the progressive Maharashtra of Phule, Shahu and Ambedkar, even asking someone about their caste was considered immoral. But now asking about another’s caste and announcing one’s own has become a matter of pride. Stickers like “Shekhi nahi bagharna” (Don’t brag) and “Hum bhi aaye hain lakhon mein” (We are here in lakhs) are now visible on motorcars and motorcycles. The hostility has spilt over to social media, too. Maratha’s slogans like “Ek Maratha, Lakh Maratha” (One Maratha is equal to a one lakh Marathas) are met with “Ek Maratha, lakh Kharanta” (One Maratha is equivalent to one lakh brooms) and “Aaya Maratha, kara utpaat” (Maratha comes, trouble begins) from the Dalit-OBC side. 

(To be continued)

(Translation from the Hindi by Amrish Herdenia)


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About The Author

Shrawan Deore

Shrawan Deore became associated with the progressive movement in 1978 while he was still in college. He joined the movement for the implementation of the Mandal Commission’s recommendations in 1982. He has been elected the vice-president of the Maharashtra OBC Association. In 1999, Deore set up the OBC Seva Sangh for the OBC Employees and Officers and became its general-secretary. He is often the main speaker and chief guest at events organized in different parts of Maharashtra to raise awareness among the OBCs.

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