Dalit Nationalism
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[edit] Harijans (Hindu Dalits)
Harijan was a term for untouchable, coined by Mahatma Gandhi, which means Children of God—Hari is another name for the god Vishnu. It is now considered patronizing. The term can also be attributed to Dalit castes of Pakistan called the haris, who are a group of mud-hut builders. Neo-Buddhist Dalits try to make appear 'Harijan' as a disgrace to all Dalits as it comes from a Hindu name. This term had already been used, in a different form, by the medieval philosopher Ramanuja who uplifted many backward caste peoples: as Thirukulattar, or People of Holy Clan. (He was probably the first to allow the untouchables into temples, albeit for limited periods.)
The word 'Dalit(a)' comes from the Marathi root dal, and means 'held under check', 'suppressed', or 'crushed', or, in a looser sense, 'oppressed'. Maharashtrian Dalit Activist and poet Namdeo Dhasal made it a symbol of pride to fight against social injustice. He said:
“ Yes, I do feel that the fight to eradicate caste has to be fought by Dalits and caste Hindus together carrying forward the tradition of Adi Shankara, which got broken somewhere in between[1]. ”
It is possible that Dr. Ambedkar borrowed this term from Swami Vivekananda from his quote, "Deena-Dalita-Dukhi Devo Bhava!" ("Service to the weak, the down- trodden and the suffering masses itself is the worship of God")[2]
[edit] neo-Buddhists
The idea of Dalit Nationalism is now available in clearly formulated paradigms, especially after the publication of anti-Hindu activist Kancha Ilaiah's book Buffalo Nationalism. Iliah sought to invent an icon in the shape of the buffalo, a black animal and domesticated principally by backward Castes and Dalits who were (and still are in some places) considered untouchable. The buffalo was nobody's god or goddess, unlike the cow which is considered sacred by Hindus. One can think of Dalit Nationalism as something akin to Black nationalism in the USA. Like Black nationalism, it involves a fairly large (larger than blacks in America) percentage of the population, about 20 percent, who supposedly have their own cultural features, own dialects when they are speakers of the major languages.
Dalit Nationalism has been expanded into Bahujan Nationalism[citation needed] (not without much success, however) by drawing in the other backward castes (e.g. Yadavas in North India, Ezhavas in Kerala) and minority communities like Muslims and Christians[citation needed]. The politics of Dalit Nationalism has been brought into full play only in the North Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, where the Bahujan Samaj Party, representing the Dalit community, has consistently polled 20 percent of the vote in the elections in the last two decades, and even shared power with one of its rival the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a Hindutva party. This experiment, like the historic compromise between Christian Democrats and Communists in Italy, died a quick death.Gian Singh Rarewala was the first political figure in Indian politics to appoint a Dalit[citation needed] in his government(pepsu).He was a very significant figure in the Indian political climate after independence[citation needed].
[edit] Muhajirs (Islamic Dalits)
Most Muhajirs who originally immigrated to Pakistan are relatively more educated and skilled than their rural middle class counterparts. Despite having better academic qualifications and professional skills, some Muhajirs felt discrimination in public services. Introduction of a quota system, between provinces and in urban and rural Sindh.
Today, many observers have said that the open discrimination against Muhajirs has considerablly been reduced. This was helped by the fact that some of the top Pakistani figures are of muhajir descent, which includes people of the performing arts and sports. It is also believed that discrimination against muhajirs has reduced or even vanished in some areas as current President of Pakistan and de facto ruler, Pervez Musharraf, and the Governor of Sindh are both Muhajirs. In addition to that, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), a Muhajir political party, is running the city district government of the city of Karachi and is publicly allied to the central government in Islamabad.
In the 1960s and 1970s, the Muhajirs only constituted 7% of the Pakistani population but monopolized most of its bureaucracy due to their higher educational backgrounds. Academia, finance, and the service sector in general quickly became engorged with Muhajir influence. This created resentment in other linguistic and ethnic groups of Pakistan, mainly the Punjabis who own most of the indigenous land of what became Pakistan. The Pakistani government tried to create a balance by introducing job quotas in bureaucracy and educational institutions to help other ethnic and linguistic groups to get their fair representation comparable to their share in the Pakistani population. This affirmative action by the government of Pakistan was resented by the Muhajirs who preferred qualification and merit as the only criteria for jobs and admission into universities.
[edit] Massacre of Alighar
On December 14, 1986, a group of armed Afghans, seized the Alighar, Orangi and Qasba colonies and adjacent areas of Karachi and killed innocent Muhajirs, burnt shops and houses, and raped women. The total number of Muhajirs killed is unknown but some estimates put figure as high as 286.
[edit] 1992 military operation
June 19, 1992, an army operation was launched by the Pakistan Army on orders of Nawaz Sharif which was approved by parliament, to crush terrorists in Karachi. The Army and State Agencies of Pakistan took action against terrorists and destroyed them successfully to restore calm in Karachi and Hyderabad. During this time, MQM leader Altaf Hussain, with help of Nawaz Sharif, left the country. Many observers say that this action by Nawaz Sharif created rifts between him and the Army.
[edit] Muhajirs and the rise of MQM
The MQM party was formed by Altaf Hussain in 1985 which sought to bring political representation to the muhajir community. The party currently holds a very strong footing in Karachi and urban Sindh ( Hyderabad, Sukkur, Mirpurkhas & Nawabshah ). Now the MQM is making inroads into the Northern Areas including Azad Kashmir. It is also active abroad, most notably in the UK, the US, and Canada where there is a significant diaspora of Pakistani muhajirs.
It is generally believed in Pakistan that the MQM was created by the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the main military intelligence agency in Pakistan. It was created to break the stronghold of Benazir Bhutto in her home province, Sindh. ISI believed that the ethnic tension between Sindhis and Muhajirs would distract Benazir Bhutto and her political party, Pakistan Peoples Party, from launching a campaign against the military government of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq. Altaf Hussain was living in Chicago at the time and was called to form a Muhajir ethnic political party with funds supplied by the ISI.
The success of MQM in attracting support of Muhajirs both surprised and scared the ISI. This unexpected popularity helped the MQM to chart its own independent political course rather than follow the ISI agenda. MQM went out of control of ISI and began a violent struggle for Muhajirs that turned Karachi into a virtual war-zone. In 1992, after months of extreme violence by the MQM, the Pakistan Army launched a military operation to restore law and order in Karachi. The MQM gunmen were killed or arrested, and armories and torture rooms were destroyed. The Army involvement is an indication of the seriousness of the crisis that MQM perpetrated in Karachi. Since the army operation and the subsequent heavy activities of Pakistani police and paramilitary, the MQM has given up its violent activities.
[edit] Further reading
- Kancha Ilaiah. 2004. Buffalo Nationalism: A Critique of Spiritual Fascism. Kolkata: Samya; Mumbai: Distributed by Popular Prakashan. ISBN 81-85604-69-X.
