My Caste is Human

For the first time in over 70 years the Indian government is very likely to include the question of a person’s caste in the Census.  This should not come as a surprise to many Indians.  The Congress Party led UPA government has done its best to slice and dice the Indian population in whichever way it can to make sure that it clings on to power.  New quotas in the name of gender, caste, financial and job situation and religion have been introduced in India in the past six years than any time before in Indian history.

Caste based discrimination is technically illegal in India.  Many believe that caste system was introduced in India by the Indo Europeans who migrated to India from Central Asia (in many cases the oldest inhabitants of India are the lower castes with the new immigrants (Indo-Europeans) forming the upper castes).  Today caste system is not just a problem of the Hindu society alone. It is deeply rooted in almost all other religions found in India including Christianity, Islam and Buddhism.  Unlike what many people think caste system can also be found in many African countries, China, Japan and Korea.

We all know what will happen when the latest Census data is published.  The Congress Party and key political leaders like Gopinath Munde, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Sharad Yadav will use the Census data to demand more quotas for the underprivileged.  Caste system and the reservation policies which are really holding India back will become more entrenched.  Many individuals who belong to the “forward community” who are pushed to the margins will become more alienated as time goes on.

When asked about his opinions on the caste based Census famous Indian actor and former politician Amitabh Bachchan said that he does not believe in the caste system.  He said “Wary of the sensitivity that this has raised recently by politicians, they keep away from it. They reason that they would wait for some government decision on this. I tell them irrespective of what the system decides, my answer is ready – caste, Indian”.  I respect Amitabh Bachchan a lot not just as an actor but as an ambassador of India.

Caste is a hot button issue in India.  Amitabh Bachchan’s comment about caste is without question bold and powerful.  He has the credentials to make a statement of this nature.  His family is as diverse as you can get in India.  He said “My Father never believed in caste and neither do any of us. He married a Sikh (Teji Bachchan), I married a Bengali (Jaya Bhaduri), my brother a Sindhi (Ramola), my daughter (Shweta) a Punjabi (Nikhil Nanda), my son (Abhishek) a Mangalorean (Aishwarya Rai)… in his autobiography he (Harivansh Rai) had expressed that future generations of his family should marry into different parts of the country. So far that tradition has been kept alive.”

But the question is whether there is a lot of difference between saying “I am an Indian” versus saying “I am a Brahman”.  Both are classifications that are artificial and man made.  My mother is an Indian.  But she was born before India got independence from the British.  At the time she was born most of Afghanistan to parts of Burma (Myanmar) was known as India.  Can a person today in Kabul or Islamabad call themselves as Indians today?  They did less than 70 years ago.

I think that the idea of a census has outlived its use.  The outcome of census is division and never unity.  It is time for us to move from labeling people based on their caste or nationality to acknowledging who we really are, a high Primate who is also a very discriminating Mammal!!

Related posts:

1. Lord Krishna and Caste System in India
2. Terrorists Have No Caste, Creed or Religion?
3. Tamil is Part of Indian Heritage
4. Should Human Beings Save the Tiger?
5. India and United States Should Stop Census

Tags: Amitabh Bachchan, Brahman, Buddhism, Caste, census, Central Asia, China, Christianity, Congress Party, government, Hindu, Human, India, Indian, Indo European, Islam, Japan, Korea, mammal, UPA

Category: News & Government