Often , I find many in my circle of friends and family ,who become very emotional and voluble on the subject of caste , particularly on caste based reservations . Personally , I find the concept of caste to be obnoxious, abhorrent and inhuman. But along with the same view let me also make it clear that I do not support any form of reservation being extended till eternity to multiple generations of the same family. That creates the problem of privileges being usurped by the creamy layer within the so called backward castes who monopolise and stop the flow of the benefits to those for whom it is intended , in the first place . But that is my personal observation and as a citizen of the country , I am expected to abide by the constitution and the laws passed by the legislature in a democratic country.
But clearly , even after seven decades , the blot of caste system has not been erased from our society , in particular from the followers of the majority Hindu religion. From time to time, we come across different incidents , events and happenings which open our eyes to the proliferation of caste as a motif in our social fabric . A recent news item from Pune reveals that a lady holding a senior level designation at the India Meteorological Department (IMD), has lodged an FIR against another woman , who was employed as a cook by her , with charges of impersonation by suppressing her caste and marital status . Though news reports have not mentioned it, other allied charges must also have been lodged against the accused , I am sure about it, because that is the way it is done. And mind it , all this happens not in some rural hamlet , but in a city which is touted as high-tech and cosmopolitan .
It transpires that the requirement was for a married woman of Brahmin caste as a cook ostensibly for religious reasons and after more than a year of employment, the discovery that cook was neither a Brahmin nor married triggered the police complaint. Now how or why the police accepted such an FIR is a bit of mystery to me as the logical corrollary should have been the immediate arrest of the complainant under the provisions of Article 15 of the Indian constitution which prohibits discrimination on grounds of caste besides discrimination on grounds of religion, race, sex or place of birth .
I do not support the actions by the cook in falsifying her caste or marital status. But spare a thought for the reasons why she did it . It was to earn her living . When the certificates required for a job itself are such demeaning and discriminatory , where is the crime in faking them. In a country where ministers and even army generals have fake birth certificates and educational qualifications, she is now being hounded only because she is poor . Thank the heavens that she belongs to the same religion. Just imagine for a second , if she turned out to be a Christian or Muslim . What would have happened then ? What would the lady do then ? How many kilos of Cowdung or how many buckets of Cowpiss would have been required to purify ?
Some reports also refer the complainant as a Scientist . Now we can well imagine the level of science that is being pursued in the country by such noble souls. She is not alone . We will find thousands of such "scientists" in our country who still believe in the precedence of rituals in their religious beliefs and a strong conviction about the supremacy of their caste which they inherit by birth. As a citizen of the country these incidents shame us individually and collectively . As a person who was brought up as a Hindu , it highlights the hollowness of the faith which I am supposed to follow. As a literate person, it makes me wonder about the gaps in our education .
Shorn of the caste angle , the incident also provides insight to the faultlines of class conflict that exist in the society where the privileged can demand and get the services of the underprivileged for a pittance. Suppose the cook was indeed a Brahmin married lady . Then would this qualification enable her to be treated at par with her employer socially? If not , then what purpose does her higher- caste status serve ? And what happens to the principle of equality of all ? I don't have any answers to this. I don't suppose the police inspectors bothered to consider all this ? As usual the administration represented by the police have done their job . They have sided with the socially powerful elite against a member of the less advantaged. The complainant can afford to engage lawyers to fight her case, the accused may not .
Let me very clear that even if it transpires later that the accused committed felony, bore a bad character or any such accusations that can be made against her , the premises of discrimination done against her does not alter . She can be punished for all her acts of ommissions and commissions as provided under the law, but what about punishing a senior government official for displaying such crass mentality and disregard to the constitution.
And what about the Hindus ? Are they comfortable with this dominance by the upper castes to dictate on the religion or its rituals . If anybody really thinks so, then my middle finger salute to the bigoted religious beliefs.
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