My Dalitality:

Issue #29: June 2024

Dear Friends:

The summer is increasingly troubling. I saw a post on social media where a younger man complains to his elder that this is the hottest summer. The wise elder replies, "this may be the coolest summer". 

Climate damage has ascended to real experiences. The cyclones, fires, drought, dry weather, and changes in the regular rain patterns have added to this. In Cambridge, MA, the heat is felt as you step out. We don't use air conditioning, though it has been shoved in one corner of the room. But the heat at night was unbearable, so the cooling machine was installed today.

I watched the Trump-Biden debate. Biden lost to his age and the frontal assault of Trump. Biden is incapable of taking on the heedless attack of an opponent like Trump. The democrat donors and many sympathisers have gathered to replace Biden from the race. As I was typing the newsletter, a notification from NYT popped up to say senior House Democrats have been whispering against Biden's candidacy. 

I am unable to fathom the old man's long public career has been anything but in the limelight. He has worn many hats, and the ultimate one of the President is behind him, yet he is recalcitrant about his stand. It will be one thing to keep an eye out for in the coming months.

In France, the left-wing coalition has emerged as a triumphant player. The fascination with the left in France is an old static position amongst its educated and rural masses. What comes out of it is to be seen. 

UK politics saw the victory of Labour against the Tories after 14 years of unabashed rule. The Left, led by Keir Stammer, is not a left labour force but a right-tilted politician who campaigned against long-time labour leader and a man slated to become the Prime Minster, an anti-apartheid activist and a Dalit rights supporter, Jeremy Corbyn. 

Dalitality

June

The Indian election verdict brought relief to many who had started to question the state of Indian democracy and the future of the nation. As the political cleavages were drawn between the BJP-led alliance and the Congress-led alliance, there were many players who stayed away from the binary of this complex election. 

For the June edition of Dalitality, I write:

‘Commentators and political party leaders seem to habitually attack Dalits for exercising their right to vote and choosing whom to support. These off-hand remarks are usually made to psychologically pressure Dalit voters to get agitated with their leaders. The mistrust, clubbed with critiques of opponents, cements the view that Dalit politics is doomed and thus, a better option is to choose between the lesser evil.’

I continue to write further,

‘Dr Ambedkar envisioned a non-hegemonic force that could act as a power broker and force the ruling dispensation to act in their favour. The Scheduled Caste Federation’s Manifesto before the 1952 polls resolved to not have an alliance with “Congress, Hindu Maha Sabha, R.S.S., Communist Party and Jan Sangh”. In 1956, the Republican Party of India’s foundation was also based on similar ideals. Kanshi Ram famously interpreted this as “mazboot nahi, majboor sarkar chahiye (we need a helpless government, not a strong one)”. The logic was that this would force the majoritarian party to not act in self-indulgence. The purpose of Ambedkarite parties has been to protect their interests and rule the country. This is against the belief of the political class, which prefers a subordinate leader as opposed to an articulate one.’

Read the complete article here. 

This election undermined BSP's influence and also drastically reduced its vote share. A JNU professor told me before the elections that if the BSP manages to retain its vote share, it could be seen as a success. It was a desperate attempt reflected in the lack of coordination and presence of the party.

I asked Suresh Mane, a former organizer of BAMCEF and general secretary of the BSP, to help us think about what these election results would mean for Dalit activists.  

In his entry for Dalitality, Mane writes, 

In fact, Bahujans voting for INDIA bloc is in contrast to the radical discourse of Jyotirao Phule, Ambedkar, Kanshi Ram and others. Ambedkar’s first political move before the Southborough Commission in 1919 was the demand for the right to vote and a separate representation electorate. His warning in the Constituent Assembly on November 25, 1949 — that “the downtrodden classes are tired of being governed” — speaks volumes about the strength of political power. Against this backdrop, how the Bahujans will secure their share in the national wealth is a million-dollar question.

The complete piece is available here.

Publications

My June column for the ‘ArtReview’ focuses on ghazal as an art form performed by extraordinary Dalit artists such as Bhimrao Panchale. He contributed immensely to the genre of Marathi ghazal, which is now an established form of musical taste. Panchale has been captivating audiences for four decades. It is possibly his first profile in an English language arts magazine. For he deserves the rightful place.

Artwork by Sanjeev Sonpimpre

As I explain: 

Ghazals are not meant to be a long path. They are suggestive, and with a tease of brevity they are meant to leave the listener with occlusions. Panchale’s soft tone is unlike singers of ghazal who have high decibels and a pitch to match the Hindustani gharanas. Panchale walks into the terrain of raised inferences but delivers in treble, making it a one-tempo delivery. During an interview he said he composes music to ghazals by reading them hundreds of times and letting the process of matching the weight of words evolve. 

Ghazals, however, encourage communal confession. Here’s an example of a translated Marathi ghazal written by Ilahi Jamadar and sung by Vikas Kadam:

Either burn me like corpse or decorate like flowers in necklace
You may ignore me with words but curl me with your eyes

You may forget me or misplace me but don’t put me in someone else’s custody
I am a sensitive book of poem, read me or even skim over

I will visit you in my imagination, keep the house of dreams open
We will meet at leisure, talk, touch me with your fragrance.

Other Features

The Kanshi Ram Lecture series lecture by Dr Netrapal Singh is now accessible on the link below. Watch it here.

Film screening and discussion on Umar Khalid: From the eyes of his loves ones is available here.

https://www.surajyengde.com/talks/

You can watch the film produced by Newsreel Asia here.

Here is the link to the mini tour of my office at Harvard University. It is in English and Hindi language.

I enjoyed listening to Sumeet Mhaskar in conversation with Sudipto Mondal on various issues that are both educative and engaging. You can view the video here.

In History

June:

1 June: Phule’s book ‘Gulamgiri’ was published

4 June: Sant Kabir Jayanti

18 June: Death Anniversary of Ayyankali

26 June: Birth Anniversary of Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj

29 June: ‘Samata’ newspaper was started by Dr. Ambedkar

Recent Events

21 June: Film Screening & Discussion: Umar Khalid – From the eyes of his loved ones| Arif Hussain & Suraj Yengde| Belfer Case Study Room, CGIS 1730, Cambridge St, Cambridge.

22 June: How to Understand Kanshi Ram? Speaker: Prof. Dr. Netrapal Singh, Moderator: Suraj Yengde and Prashant Ingole

An unfortunate incident involving the murder of the BSP party's Tamil Nadu chief, K Armstrong, has brought attention to the law and order situation in Tamil Nadu and the protection of Dalit lives.

Mr. Armstrong was a lawyer and a former corporator of the Greater Chennai Corporation. He was at the helm of BSP for 17 years. Lawyer by profession, Armstrong was a committed Ambedkarite Buddhist who got many youths out of squalors and gave them a promising life by mentoring and inculcating confidence in them. He also became an advocate for Buddhism in Tamil Nadu. With his passing, there is a gap in the new age movement of Bahujan ideologies.

Here is a short profile of Armstrong. 

Upcoming events

The inaugural lecture at the Dr Sukhadeo Thorat Distinguished Lecture will be delivered by reputed lusophone anthropologist Jose Jorge de Carvalho.

Please register here to attend.

The third segment in the Kanshi Ram Lecture Series will be delivered by M. Gopinath, a former cadre and associate of Kanshi Ram from Karnataka. Gopinath was instrumental in translating Kanshi Ram into Kannada and organizing BAMCEF and later BSP activists. PLEASE NOTE THE DATE CHANGE. It is now on 10th July at the same time.

I am heading to Kenya and South Africa with a possible stopover in Ethiopia this coming month. In Kenya, I will hear about the incredible leaders of the labour migrant community. I also look forward to meeting with the Kenyan scholars and activists who have been friends for many years. In South Africa, I will be attending the Lancet Commission's meeting on global health and racism.

#JaiBhim #DalitLove

suraj

www.surajyengde.com