Author – Dr Amritpal Kaur

Punjab is a state in the northwest region of India and is considered to be the most prosperous state. The name Punjab is made up of two words Punj (five) and Aab (water) i.e. land of five rivers, which are Sutlej, Beas, Ravi, Chenab and Jhelum. Only Sutlej, Ravi and Beas flow in today’s Punjab, the other two are now in the state of Punjab situated in Pakistan. The state is divided into three regions- Majha, Doaba and Malwa.

Punjab contains the largest population of Dalits in India. The main religion of Punjab is Sikhism which emerged as an offshoot of anti-caste bhakti or Sant tradition. The founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak organized it into a religious movement in the 16th and 17th centuries changing the political outlook of Punjab. The emergence of Sikhism was the turning point for the lower castes in Punjab, and they joined this movement zealously, expecting the right to their self-dignity and self-identity will be upheld.

Dalit Sikhs, known as mazhabi Sikhs played elemental role in the establishment of Sikhism as a religion. The hymns of three lower caste exponents of the bhakti movement – Kabir, Namdev and Ravidas are included in the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs. Guru Nanak introduced the revolutionary concepts of the dignity of labour and common kitchen where everyone could have a meal without discrimination based on caste, class or gender. These practices were a big blow to the divisive and inclusive practices of Brahmanism.

The tenth and the last living Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, inducted the untouchables as baptised Sikhs and warriors of the Khalsa force. Three of the panj pyaras were from the backward castes. Punjabi Dalit historian, Prof. Raj Kumar Hans writes in his paper ‘Dalits and emancipatory Sikh religion’:-“…in true egalitarian spirit, Sikhism had succeeded in integrating lowest of the low, the former untouchables, Dalits into its fold… the way Bhai Jaita Singh was integrated not only into Sikh religion but also into the family of Guru Gobind Singh, it is understandable any other identity would have been meaningless to him…”

Alas, the religious movement that emerged as a  social revolutionary force got Brahmanised over a period of time and today is deeply entrenched in social inequality and gender bias. Khushwant Singh in his magnum opus “The Sikhs” writes: – “Sikhism didn’t succeed in breaking the caste system. If intermarriage is considered the test of equality at no time was there much inter-caste marriage amongst the Sikhs. The untouchables converted to Sikhism remained outcastes for matrimonial alliances. Although he was no longer an untouchable in the sense of not being touched and sat in temples along with other Sikhs, in time… Sikhs from higher castes refused to eat with untouchable Sikhs, and in villages, separate wells were provided for them.”

This practice of social exclusion can be seen today in the form of separate gurudwaras and cremation grounds for upper caste Sikhs and mazhabi sikhs. Apart from mazhabi sikhs, Ad-dharmis and Balmikis constitute rest of the Dalit population of Punjab. Ad Dharmis are the scheduled castes of chamar origin (leather/skin removers from dead cattles of the upper castes). Ad dharmi movement was initiated by Babu Mangu Ram in 1920 in order to establish a distinct religious identity with Saint Ravidas as their spiritual guru. Balmikis are a follower of rishi Valmiki who was described as the Saint of the sweepers by sociologist Mark Juergensmeyer. Dalit social movement in Punjab was only associated with conversion whereas the origin of deras (a sectarian institution) is more related with Dalit assertion for social justice, dignity and pressing for a creditable share in the local power structure.

In this series divided into three parts, we examine the ground reality of casteism in Punjab. First part deals with sustenance of caste in Punjab in relation to its agrarian society, second part will portray the condition of Dalit women and the last one will introduce you to Punjabi Dalit literature of recent past.

Part I

Caste divide is geographically pronounced in most villages of Punjab, and different castes have separate residential areas. Caste identification is the most spontaneous eruption of any rural interaction. Once you declare your caste, you will be treated according to your place in the hierarchy. The society here is deeply and selfishly ingrained in caste prejudice. Most of the mazhabi sikhs live in vehras situated on the outskirts of the village (traditionally at the western end so that the rays of sun are not contaminated by the untouchables before reaching the dwellings of the upper castes with drainage running from east to west). They can also be seen living in clusters of mud huts on a patch of land called thathi or chamrali (a derogatory word).

Most of the Dalits in Punjab have been debarred from owning lands and live on the mercy of upper-caste Jat landlords. Landlessness, in a state where agriculture is the main source of economy, has destined them into free forced labour, any refusal of which leads to abuse. Most of the Dalits in Punjab constitute the agrarian labourers (known as kammis) and farm labour in Punjab is a part of unorganized sector. Forced to work like bonded labourers in fields or homes of upper-caste landlords(feudal Jats), poor Dalits take loans from money lenders and get caught in a vicious circle.

Many Dalits own goats or buffaloes (especially in Malwa region) but the absence of fields at their disposal makes them depend on landlords for unused fodder, most of them die in debt generation after generations and no government helps them leaving no room to escape from the clutches of high caste moneylenders.

Agriculture labour is the largest rural category of Punjab, the majority being Dalits who continue to be at the bottom of the social and economic ladder. The economic conditions of Dalit households in rural Punjab have deteriorated over time. Because of the low wages and low family earnings, they live under debt and more than 90% rural households do not have even a single member with qualifications up to matriculation. Very few Dalit households have well-placed toilets in their households and use open fields (owned by upper-caste Jats) for relieving themselves.

Over the years following the Green Revolution, agriculture became more mechanized and labour became increasingly marginalized and unorganized. The Jat landowner’s control over land has significantly strengthened and consolidated, increasing their social, political and economic control over productive resources enhancing return. This considerably increased dependency of the landless on landowners for basic necessities. Overall, the Green revolution transformed the outlook of Punjab as a land of prosperity but only for the Punjab Jat farmers, the divide between rich and poor has grown, pushing marginal farmers more backwards.

With more and more land being diverted from cultivation to developmental projects, not only the employment of marginal labourers has reduced but they also lose homes and right to live in the villages where they and their ancestors have lived. Such land acquisition policies have forced them to move towards perennial casual labour.

Indebtedness and humiliation in the hands of commission agents and bank officials pushed a large number of peasants towards suicide. The suicides and agrarian crisis are primarily understood as the crisis of the upper caste farmer community, excluding the Dalit labourers from such a sensitive matter. Their households have been plunged into deep crisis widely affecting the most oppressed section of Punjabi society i.e. Dalit women of Punjab.

Dalit woman’s labour force forms the backbone of Indian agricultural economy. Punjab has the lowest number of women in the workforce, whereas the literacy rate among Dalit girls and women is gloomy and the dropout rate is high.

The second part of this series is about apathies and struggles of Dalit women of Punjab.

About the author – Dr Amritpal Kaur, Institute of Ambedkar studies, Jalandhar, Punjab.