When Pehlu Khan, 55 years old Muslim man, was mob-lynched in Rajasthan over beef, he made a confession before his death. In his confession, he mentioned six names: Hukum Chand, Navin Sharma, Jagmal Yadav, Om Prakash Yadav, Rahul Saini, and Sudheer. The state probing agency did not find them guilty. Guilty or not guilty is the court’s discretion, not of the State’s investigation agency.

The grounds cited by the state investigation agencies are flimsy: The 6 were not seen in the video recording, their locations as per their mobile phones were not found the location, the “witness” were at the Dehmi Gaushala and not at the spot where the atrocity was committed.

Look at these three ground and one can easily get the entire picture. Let us be very clear that Pehlu Khan was mob-lynched by the Gau-rakshak of the VHP, as claimed by dying Pehlu Khan. The fact remains that he named these people. This is the enough ground for further investigation. The state investigation agency cannot absolve them on the flimsy ground. The court will decide the verdict.

The binary of Hindu-Muslim is one of the major roadblocks in ending caste system in the modern India. Unless this manufactured binary is broken into the clear analysis, the caste system cannot end in India.

The binary is made stronger by polarisation which can result because of riots. Who benefits from the riots has been investigated by the scholars? The answer is the Brahmin (RSS)-led BJP. That is the reason why the Hindutva (Brahminical) nationalists love riots. The entire political success of the Brahminical nationalists is standing on the binary of “Hindu-Muslim”.

That is why the anti-caste movement emerging from the lower caste is a circuit-breaker. In India, before people belong to any “religion”, they are their castes. They live in their caste and they die in their caste. Caste is the way of life for the Indians.

The caste is stronger than the religions in India. It is true for the Hindus as well as Muslims, and therefore, the backward classes (80 percent among the Muslims and 85 percent among the Hindus) must unite against their “upper caste” opponents irrespective of their religions. Only the anti-caste movements have the power to make India a truly democratic society.

Author – Mangesh Dahiwale