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Historical Mistake
Not long ago,
fears were being expressed after the
Vienna
incident that Punjab is set for a caste conflict and that it could
lead to a communal divide between dalits and mainstream Sikhism.
While such fears may be a little bit exaggerated, the fact remains
that the parting of ways by one sect of the Ravidassias has
underlined certain flaws in the way Sikhs have been administering
their religion.
On the face of
it, these flaws seem sort of an oxymoron. We have been too
accommodating towards many malpractices and misuse of our religious
symbols, salutations and idiom. And we have not addressed issues of
caste discrimination that continue to prevail in the face of the
great ideal of castelessness preached by our Gurus.
Historically, a
large number of Ravidasias did revere Guru Granth Sahib but not all
of them identified with the Sikh religion in any case. They have
chosen to remain an autonomous caste-religious community.
They have over
the years evolved their own symbols and practices of worship which
distinguish them from the Sikhs, and much is being made of their
latest move to announce separation. What is important is that while
earlier, as scholar Surinder Jodhka had brought out, they did not
see their faith as being in an antagonistic relationship with
contemporary Sikhism, the latest move will inculcate in the younger
generations of the sect a reality which did not exists at all.
One can trace
back the phenomenon to the rise of the Ad Dharm movement that took
off with the arrival of Mangoo Ram, the son of an enterprising
Chamar of village Mangowal of the Hoshiarpur district of Doaba
subregion of Punjab, on the scene, but while initially the Ad Dharm
movement did see itself as a religious movement, it later remained
only a social statement.
Now, the
Ravidassia sect leaders have even nullified the meager gains of the
Ad Dharm that was propagated as the religion of the dalits.
In the very
first conference of the organization, they had declared decades ago:
We are not Hindus. We strongly request the government not to list us
as such in the census. Our faith is not Hindu but Ad Dharm. We are
not a part of Hinduism, and Hindus are not a part of us. Now,
unfortunately, the sect has pushed its followers closer to Hinduism,
without even saying so.
The emphasis on
Ad Dharm being a separate religion, a Quam, was to undermine the
identity of caste. By having this so called new religion, the caste
identity has been solidified. Is that what Bhagat Ravisdass would
have been happy about?
Mangoo Ram had
expected to bring other untouchable communities into the fold of Ad
Dharm but if that movement could not maintain its momentum for very
long, and did not survive long after its grand success in 1931, for
how long will a bunch of self-styled sect leaders continue to have
their hold on the gullible masses?
If it was during
the Ad Dharm movement that the Ravi Dasi identity had begun to take
shape, this was the time that the sect should have aligned itself
with progressive forces. If they are indeed the lot that was
oppressed by the caste structure and brahamanical hold on power of
certain forces, then why not join the forces which are fighting
against this power system? Across India, democratic forces and those
representing the people’s movements are fighting against the tyranny
of the nation state. The marginalized, the tribals, the dalits, the
minorities are coming together and playing force multipliers in a
paradigm in which the only way the Indian government can deal with
them is through operations like Operation Green Hunt.
In such a
scenario, the Dera Sach Khand Ballan has emerged as a sect that is
moving away from a progressive ideology to the regressiveness of
state protection. At a time whne Dalit forces are fighting on thee
forefront to stem the tide of brahamnism, anyone casting his or her
lot with the oppressive system will be held as an accused by forces
of history.
The sect leaders
in Ballan dera may not know much history, but is the truth not
simple enough for those who claim to understand the message of
Bhagat Ravidass?
3
February 2010
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