View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE

provided by Wolverhampton Intellectual Repository and E-theses

PUNJAB—EXPLORING PROSPECTS 2 September 2016 that it will open con- Casteism amongst sultation on whether caste needs to be added to legislation at all, instead of the in Britain previously promised consultation on the mandatory secondary order. The pressures of the anti-legislation lobby to avoid at all Meena Dhanda costs the mention of “caste” in the Equality Act 2010 are relentless. On 15 December Despite clear evidence of n April 2013, the Enterprise and Reg- 2016, the Conservative MP Bob Blackman caste-based discrimination, ulatory Reform Act (ERRA) was ena- (MP Harrow East) demanded “a statement harassment and victimisation, Icted in Britain. Section 97 of the to the House on the consultation docu- ERRA requires government to introduce ment before Parliament rises, so that Brit- Punjabis in Britain stand divided a statutory prohibition of caste discrimi- ish Hindus have the optimal opportunity on identifying with the victims nation into British equality law by mak- to respond” and “the opportunity to en- of casteism. In the context ing “caste” an aspect of the protected sure that this ill-thought-out, divisive and of legislative, religious and characteristic of “race” in the Equality unnecessary legislation is removed from Act 2010, thus prohibiting caste discrim- the statute book.” Lies beget lies. academic contestations on caste ination as a subset of race discrimina- On the other hand, the developments discrimination in Britain, this tion. In the context of this direction, the in British law were preceded by years of article argues for acknowledging Equality and Human Rights Commission campaigning by opposed groups. On the EHRC casteism where it exists. ( ) contracted a team of experts pro-legislation side, efforts were made drawn from different research institu- by exemplary (Punjabi) activists, such as tions to carry out an independent study Chanan Chahal, Arun Kumar and Satpal on caste in Britain. I led this team from Muman, chairperson of CasteWatch United September 2013 to February 2014. Along- Kingdom (UK), who warned in 2000 of the side a detailed review of socio legal likely backlash from so-called upper-castes research on this issue, we conducted an if caste discrimination were made a target experts’ seminar and a stakeholders’ event, of criticism. In addition to these veterans, producing two reports (Dhanda et al the leadership of the pro-legislation side 2014a, 2014b). My intense engagement is largely composed of Punjabis, with no- in this short period with experts and table exceptions of Gautam Chakravarti, stakeholders offered a unique opportunity Eugene Culas and V T Hirekar. to gauge the range of positions on caste The EHRC stakeholders’ event on 9 No- in the diaspora. It is important to locate vember 2013 clearly indicated a regional the divergence in views in a complex split. Of the representatives of Hindu political economy, including within it the groups present at the event and opposed restricted exch ange of psychic energies to the legislation, only three (16.6%) were enforced by a dual life in the diaspora, Punjabi. By contrast, of the representa- closeted by usually subtle, but sometimes tives of pro-legislation organisations at obvious, forms of racism and casteism. the event, 15 (75%), a signifi cant majority, In May 2015, the issue of caste was were Punjabi. The emergence of regional catapulted to centre stage once again in variations in the leadership positions Britain, raising the political stakes of perhaps rests in the Gujarati/Punjabi dif- South Asian voters in the general elec- ference in experience of caste. Eleanor tion. Conservative party candidates were Nesbitt, a founder member of the UK actively lobbied by sections of the South Research Group notes that “Guja- Asian voters to axe the inclusion of caste rati jatis in Britain are far more numerous, in the Equality Act 2010, which had been defying easy ranking … thus although the made mandatory by the ERRA, subject to ‘highest’ caste (Brahmins) are represent- the passage of a secondary order follow- ed in Britain, the scale does not include ing public consultation. The Conservative any low caste group as stigmatised as party won, the consultation on the sec- the Punjabi Valmikis and Ravidasis” ondary order was pushed into the “long- (Nesbitt 1997: 214–15). There is a striking Meena Dhanda ([email protected]) is grass” and has not happened at the time difference in the way in which caste oper- with the School of Humanities, University of of writing. Under pressure from various ates in the Gujarati community compared Wolverhampton, UK. quarters, the government announced on to the Punjabi community. “Caste is

62 january 21, 2017 vol lIi no 3 EPW Economic & Political Weekly PUNJAB—EXPLORING PROSPECTS something that you choose to identify attempted erasure of talk of caste. The routine ways of practising caste-based with; there are formal caste associations resurfacing of the post-1984 Sikh agen- identities will come under scrutiny. Part that represent particular jati groups” da to recognise a separate Sikh identity of the problem here is a lack of under- (Dhanda et al 2014b: 7). Commenting on has veered activism towards a focus on standing of the legislative process, in- the “Gujarati caste phenomena in Brit- human rights of as a group. Hence cluding uncritical repetition of the false ain,” Vertovec writes: any tendency which opens fi ssures with- claim that the proposed UK legislation caste identities among Gujaratis have con- in Sikhs is viewed with suspicion. Calls to implies a requirement, for people to record tinued to be of considerable importance acknowledge caste dis crimination are their caste. There is no such implied with regards to status, marriage, social mistakenly feared as divisive. requirement, as clearly noted in our EHRC networks and formal institutions. Caste has also played a major role in differentially re- report (Dhanda et al 2014a) and reiter- producing and transforming socio-religious Veneer of Religion over Caste ated elsewhere (Waughray and Dhanda phenomena in Britain. (2000: 92) It has been argued that caste legislation 2016). The misleading suggestion that “a Indeed, there are many caste-based “could introduce and reify caste bounda- statutory prohibition may entrench the orga nisations in the UK, such as Ramgarhia ries,” “induce caste based-thinking” and notion of caste as form of a social identi- Gurdwara Society of Hitchin, and Shree “induce tensions between groups which fi cation” (Pyper 2016) is a ruse to block Kshatriya Association of UK. Such organi- have never been felt before” (Jaspal and the legislation on caste discrimination. sations are acknowledged as cementing Takhar 2016). This is a rather odd set of communal identity. It is arguable whether conclusions from a study using 23 British Dubiously Manufactured Unity Ramgarhia boards managing various Sikh repondents alongside the claim that Various umbrella organisations have gurdwaras should be counted as caste- “caste is maintained as an important sprung up as stakeholders in the last few based organisations. They do not seem aspect of identity.” How can the legisla- years since UK legislation on caste began to be as direct about accommodating tion “introduce” what is already present to take shape, such as the Anti Caste Legis- caste identity as, for example, one active as a valued source of self- esteem? lation Committee (ACLC), including mainly and unique caste-based Gujarati organi- Further, each interviewee self-identifi ed Hindu organisations and the eponymous sation, Navnat Vanik Association of the as “moderately religious” or “very reli- Alliance of Hindu Organisations. Several UK. In a history of this community, gious” Sikh, but there is no record of any organisations from the ACLC participated Jayant Doshi writes: tension between self-identifi cation as in the EHRC stakeholders workshop.

I realised that the caste system, the customs Sikh and caste identity. One would expect Amongst the Sikhs, there is the Sikh and traditions are so entwined in our lives that at least one “threat” to caste identity Council, which insisted that our invitations that it would be diffi cult to discard them is posed by the core teachings of Sikhi, to the EHRC stakeholders workshop be re- over night. I realised that the caste based as an anti-caste way of life. Contrariwise, stricted to them as the sole representative social organisation would be required in a threat to their identity as Sikhs could of Sikhs, presenting a “united” view. Being our lives for many years to come.1 stem from caste identifi cation. But none ecumenical, we invited other Sikh repre- Apropos the difference between Punja- of these potential tensions is recorded or sentatives too: from the Kesri Lehar, the bis and Gujaratis, I suggest that there analysed. In support of their caste-is- Panjabi Centre and the Sikh Feminist exists a split consciousness amo ngst the benign view, the authors cite the British Research Institute, and thus enriched the Sikhs with regard to caste, owing to a gap Sikh Report (BSR) 2013 to claim that 61.2% views represented (Dhanda et al 2014b). between the proclaimed anti-casteist re- of its sample of 662 online respondents Presently, there are two surveys ligious ideology and its erosion in practice. “indicated that they have no concern for claiming to represent the British Sikhs’ Sikh organisations are divided as to how caste related issues.” A little maths sug- views. There is the BSR, published annual- the removal of caste discrimination should gests 39.8% of this sample do have con- ly since 2013, and the Sikh Survey 2016, be effected—by a legislative or an edu- cern for caste-related issues. What are produced by the Sikh Network, support- cational route. In contrast with Hindu these concerns? We are not told. ed by the Sikh Federation UK and follow- Gujarati or Punjabi Muslim communities Unsurprisingly, this signifi cant per cen- ing through the agenda set in the Sikh where the solidarity conferring role of tage of the British Sikh population, who Manifesto in the early 2015. The 10 key caste is notable (Dhanda et al 2014b), caste have some “concern” for caste-related areas of this agenda do not include any pride is criticised as antithetical to the issues, is not refl ected anywhere in the reference to caste (Tsn_admin 2016). core values of (Singh and Dhan- reframing of caste identity as “salient” Unsurprisingly, caste discrimination has da 2014). From the legal point of view, the and “inherent,” but purportedly not pre- simply disappeared from the fi ndings of inclusion of caste in the Equality Act 2010 judiced or discriminatory. Caste prejudice, the Sikh Survey. In contrast, the BSR 2016 is no threat to caste-based community and its potential to ground discrimination, included a question on caste (“As a Sikh formations but opposition to the legisla- is simply theorised out of existence, with- living in the UK, the relevance of caste to tion relies on whipping up fear that these out the need for any remedial action— me is”), and found that for 11%, caste is identity-preserving organisations will legal or extralegal. “important now and has always been,” come under attack if the legislation is Opposition to the legislation is con- for 3% it is “important now and previously enacted. There is a further reason for the nected to the barely hidden fear that the did not matter,” and 6% are unsure of the

Economic & Political Weekly EPW january 21, 2017 vol lIi no 3 63 PUNJAB—EXPLORING PROSPECTS importance of caste. The headline fi gure of Britain, and Hindu Council UK (Dhan- He writes: reported in the summary of the BSR 2016 da et al 2014a). We had a very strong bond, and I simply can- is that 80% consider caste to be unimpor- Caste-related research on Punjabis not let her go. I would have stomached it if tant (Singh 2016). Commenting upon this has focused on the with out of choice she did not want to be with me, but I cannot accept that we have to separate fi gure, Satpal Muman astutely asked: little specifi cally on . for the deranged reasoning imposed by the Well, what about the remainder 20%? Ac- With its focus on middle-class Punjabi caste system! cording to the last census there are nearly Hindus, Raj (2003) has been criticised And concludes: 4,50,000 Sikhs in the UK and 20% amounts for ignoring comparison with working- I would like to emphasise that it is not only to 90,000 people who believe caste to be im- class Punjabi Hindus. Intersectional work those who belong to the lower tiers of caste portant. Further there are over 8,00,000 Hin- segregation (or as you like to refer to them dus. By extrapolating 20%, this will amount is needed to fully understand the relation scheduled castes or SC) that suffer from the to 1,60,000 Hindus. Adding these numbers of class and caste in the diaspora. This injustice. Whether you are viewed as an gives a total of 2,50,000 for whom Caste is relation is not straightforward as the exclusive member of this bogus society, or important.2 true story below will illustrate. whether you are considered as an untouch- able, we are all victims! Research amongst A plea for the ‘abolition of an unethical It is far too late for me, but I would like you Diaspora Punjabis and stubborn code of conduct’: On to share my experience with the greater community and if I do not make it, maybe Research on caste has occurred in Britain 20 June 2011, during my Leverhulme it will be a strong wake-up call that clinging in two ways: by British academics con- Research Fellowship project titled on to such deep-seated ignorance ruins and ducting textual studies, and by academic “Caste Aside: Dalit Punjabi Identity and even takes lives. and non-academic community groups Experience,” I received an email: I replied to the email within an hour or producing empirical studies from various Dear Meena, Let me introduce myself. so of receiving it, urging the stranger to disciplinary points of view. Caste in It went on: get in touch with me or a professional general has been examined by Indologists, As a British Punjabi man in despair I stum- counselling service for help and, also in- through a study of ancient texts, and by bled across much of your work online about vited him to the CasteWatch UK confer- historians of the precolonial and colonial caste discrimination... I applaud you for your ence on 2 July 2011 where I was due to periods. Specifi cally, in relation to Punjabis, efforts in bringing an ancient yet still preva- speak. There was no reply. caste is studied by religious educationists lent framework of the caste system under On 7 September 2011, another unex- the microscope and opening it up to intel- (Nesbitt 1990, 1997) and by social anthro- lectual debate. pected email arrived: pologists (Bhachu 1985; Ballard 1994). I would like to share my appalling expe- It has fallen on me to tell you the sad news Caste has also received attention within rience with you, and hope that it will be a that my little brother … took his own life useful example of lessons learnt, as we try to 24 hrs after emailing you. We (my family “faith guides” (Warrier 2006) and within & I) didn’t understand what had made him move towards the abolition of an unethical particular communities (Juergensmeyer come to that decision, until I found the email and stubborn code of conduct. 1982; Hardtmann 2009). In addition, caste written to you. and casteism have been studied in the This Wolverhampton professional in He had not read my reply, she informed context of globalisation and migration his mid-20s was told by his father to give me, when I met her later to learn more (Dhanda 2013; Qureshi 2013); the Sikh up on his dream of marrying his beloved, about this stranger, her brother, who diaspora (Jacobson and Myrvold 2011); who belonged to a different caste, as it had entrusted me to tell his story. conversion (Taylor 2014); the experience would be “against family traditions.” of prejudice and generational differenc- Still the young man tried to convince Unpublished Novel, Play, es (Dhanda 2014); workplace struggles them, and the families on both sides Documentary (Wilson 2006); Sikh communities (Kalsi agreed to meet to discuss matrimony. Refl ecting on his efforts to publish his

1992; Sato 2012; Singh and Tatla 2006); [T]he tension was suffocating at every sit- novel, Land without Sorrow, Balwinder identity (Dhanda 2009; Jaspal and down, meeting and phone conversation. Banga, recalls a literary agent’s response: Takhar 2016); bullying and name-calling Not before long, the two families were in “great if you want to talk about your (Bauman 1996; Ghuman 2011); as racism disagreement over arrangements of the parents’ experiences as Chamars and their (Dhanda 2015); and with regards to the wedding. transition to but that’s not mar- implications of including caste in the He found her father to be “an exception- ketable…” (Bhanot and Banga 2014: 124). Equality Act 2010 (Dhanda et al 2014a, ally rude man with little interpersonal How can one invoke kinship where none 2014b; Waughray 2014; Waughray and ability.” Perhaps this impression was exists? The problem is lack of identi- Dhanda 2016). Finally, beyond the oft- caused by a difference of class, overlaid fi cation with or, in Ambedkar’s words, cited National Institute of Economic and with caste superiority. Words were fraternity. Social Research report (Metcalf and exchanged. All ties “were severed.” The Some years ago, a successful British– Rolfe 2010), caste is covered in several two lovers continued to meet for one Asian play The Fifth Cup addressed the community reports funded respectively more year. Her parents made her see issue of caste. “The play suggests an by Dalit Solidarity Network, Anti Caste other suitors. She chose one, having “re- understanding of caste as a form of race Discrimination Alliance, Hindu Forum signed herself to her fate.” on grounds both of ethnicity and colour”

64 january 21, 2017 vol lIi no 3 EPW Economic & Political Weekly PUNJAB—EXPLORING PROSPECTS

(Waughray and Thiara 2013: 13). The in some quarters an outright hostility to Jaspal, R and O Takhar (2016): “Caste and Identity Processes among British Sikhs in the Mid- making of the play was documented in the mention of legislation on caste (Dhan- lands,” Sikh Formations, DOI:10.1080/1744 2007 by Billy Dosanjh, a courageous fi lm- da 2015), increases the dangers of back- 8727.2016.1147174. maker who has recently made Sikhs in sliding on the advances made in the last Jacobsen, K and K Myrvold (2011): Sikhs in Europe: Migration, Identity and Representations, Alder- Smethwick (BBC4 broadcast on 1 Decem- few years in acknowledging the existence shot: Ashgate. ber 2016) using archival footage to tell the of cas teism and its pernicious effects. Juergensmeyer, M (1982): Religion as Social Vision: story of the settlement of early working- At this juncture, Punjabis in Britain The Movement against Untouchability in 20th Century Punjab, Berkeley: University of Cali- class migrants in the Midlands. Dosanjh have the historic opportunity to set an fornia Press. boldly shows an inter-caste marriage, example for the European, North Ameri- Kalsi, S S (1992): The Evolution of a Sikh Commu- nity in Britain: Religious and Social Change with the Anand Karaj ceremony taking can and Australian diaspora by collectively among the Sikhs in Leeds and Bradford, Leeds: place in Guru Ravidass Bhavan. His clear lobbying to enact the urgently needed University of Leeds. voiceover states: “They walk around the protection against caste discrimination. To Metcalf, H and H Rolfe (2010): Caste Discrimina- tion and Harassment in Great Britain (NIESR Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy Bible, accomplish this task, they must rise above Report), National Institute of Economic and four times, to be pronounced man and factional fi ghts, and by seeking inspira- Social Research, . Nesbitt, E (1990): “Pitfalls in Religious Taxonomy: wife in the eyes of the faith.” This depic- tion through their inheritance of an anti- Hindus and Sikhs, Valmikis and Ravidasis,” tion was not an easy directorial decision. caste legacy from the land of their ances- Religion Today 6(1), pp 9–12. In a Skype interview with me, Dosanjh tors, they must forge principled alliances — (1997): “‘We Are All Equal’: Young British Punjabis’ and Gujuratis’ Perceptions of Caste,” International disclosed that the Christian groom and with genuine supporters of human rights Journal of Punjab Studies, 4(2): 201–18. Sikh bride—an inter-caste, inter-religious to eliminate the menace of casteism. Pyper, D (2016): The Equality Act 2010: Caste Discrim- ination, Briefi ng Paper Number 06862, London: couple—were turned down by several gur- NOTES House of Commons Library, 21 November. dwaras, on unclear grounds of religion/ Qureshi, K (2013): “Sikh Associational Life in 1 http://www.navnat.com/pages.php?page=his caste, before the Handsworth Bhavan Britain: Gender and Generation in the Public tory last on visited on 11 October 2015. Sphere,” Migration and Religion in Europe: Com- stepped up to hold the ceremony. He 2 Samaj Weekly, “Caste Legislation Debate: House parative Perspectives on South Asian Experiences, also reported that following the broad- of Commons, Wednesday 23 November 2016,” E Gallo (ed), Aldershot: Ashgate, pp 92–110. 28 November 2016. Raj, D (2003): Where Are You From? Middle-Class cast of his fi lm, when he went one day to Migrants in the Modern World, Berkeley and a Smethwick gurdwara for seva, he was References Los Angeles: University of California Press. reprimanded for what he had shown. Ballard, R (ed) (1994): Desh Pardesh: The South Sato, K (2012): “Divisions among Sikh Commu- Asian Presence in Britain, London: Hurst & Co. nities in Britain and the Role of Caste System: When the prevailing rhetoric is either A Case Study of Four Gurdwaras in Multi- Bhanot, K and B Banga (2014): “Writers Kavita Bhanot Ethnic Leicester,” Journal of Punjab Studies, that caste is dying or that it is harmlessly and Balvinder Banga in Conversation: South 19(1): 1–26. confi ned to the private sphere and there- Asian Diasporic Literature, Culture and Politics,” South Asian Popular Culture, 12:2, pp 123–32. Singh, G and D Tatla (2006): Sikhs in Britain: The Making of a Community, Zed Books. fore best left alone, it is becoming increas- Baumann, G (1996): Contesting Culture: Discourses ingly diffi cult to acknowledge the ills of of Identity in Multi-ethnic, London: Cambridge Singh, J (2016): The British Sikh Report 2016, http://www.britishsikhreport.org/wp-content/ University Press. persisting caste self-identifi cation. uploads/2016/03/British-Sikh-Report-2016.pdf, Bhachu, P (1985): The Twice Migrants, London: last accessed on 3 December. Tavistock. Acknowledging Casteism Singh, P and M Dhanda (2014): “Sikh Culture and Dhanda, M (2009): “Punjabi Dalit Youth: Social Punjābiyat,” Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies, Perpetrators and victims of casteism are Dynamics of Transitions in Identity,” Contem- Pashaura Singh and Louis E Fenech (eds), porary , Vol 17, No 1, March, pp 47–63. caught in an unacknowledged history of Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 482–92. — (2013) : “Caste and International Migration, In- Tsn_admin (2016): “‘UK Sikh Survey Findings’ No- suffering caused by abominable practices dia to the UK,” The Encyclopedia of Global Hu- vember 24; ‘The Sikh Manifesto and Sikh Vote’,” —some past, some continuing. Within the man Migration (Four Volumes), Editor-in-chief: 30 May, ‘www.thesikhnetwork.com/blog/press- Immanuel Ness, Oxford: Wiley Blackwell. and-media, last accessed on 3 December 2016. restricted economy of exchange of psychic — (2014): “Certain Allegiances, Uncertain Identities: Taylor, S (2014): “Religious Conversion and Dalit energies, the expected response to a slight The Fraught Struggles of Dalits in Britain,” Trac- Assertion among a ,” Socio- ing the New Indian Diaspora, Om Prakash Dwive- is rebuttal, revenge, or retribution, but logical Bulletin, 63(2), May–August, pp 224–46. di (ed), New York: Editions Rodopi, pp 99–119. Vertovec, S (2000) The Hindu Diaspora: Compara- without the supporting power of legal — (2015): “Anti-Castism and Misplaced Nativism: tive Patterns, London: Routledge. protection, such responses are blocked Mapping Caste as an Aspect of Race,” Radical Warrier, M (2006): Faith Guides for Higher Education: Philosophy, 192, July–August, pp 33–43. A Guide to , Leeds: Subject Centre for or unavailable. Self-sacrifi ce, or inverted Dhanda, M, A Waughray, D Keane, D Mosse, R Green Philosophical and Religious Studies, University violence, which the young man from and S Whittle (2014a): Caste in Britain: Socio- of Leeds. Wolverhampton, chose to enact as his legal Review, Equality and Human Rights Com- Waughray, A (2014): “Capturing Caste in Law: mission Research Report No 91, Manchester: Caste Discrimination and the Equality Act 2010,” rebellion against casteism, is one extreme Equality and Human Rights Commission. Human Rights Law Review, 14 (2): 359–79. response. Conversion to a different reli- Dhanda, M, D Mosse, A Waughray, D Keane, Waughray, A and M Dhanda (2016): “Ensuring Pro- R Green, S Iafrati and J K Mundy (2014b): Caste tection against Caste Discrimination in Britain: gion is also chosen by some to escape in Britain: Experts’ Seminar and Stakeholders’ Should the Equality Act 2010 Be Extended?,” the traps of casteism. By far the most Workshop, Equality and Human Rights Com- International Journal of Discrimination and common position taken by bystanders, mission Research Report No 92, Manchester: The Law, June/September, 16, pp 172–89. Equality and Human Rights Commission. Waughray, A and N W Thiara (2013): “Challenging sometimes wilfully, sometimes thought- Ghuman, P (2011): British Untouchables: A Study of Caste Discrimination with Literature and Law: lessly, is evasion. This “normalises” en- Dalit Identity and Education, Ashgate. An Interdisciplinary Study of British Dalit Writ- UK Hardtmann, E (2009): The Dalit Movement in : ing,” Contemporary South Asia, Vol 21(2), pp 1–18. demic violence. In the , the absence of Local Practices, Global Connections, New Delhi: Wilson, A (2006): Dreams, Questions, Struggles: a sympathetic and informed public and Oxford University Press. South Asian Women in Britain, London: Pluto.

Economic & Political Weekly EPW january 21, 2017 vol lIi no 3 65