An interview with Manjula Pradeep, Executive Director of Navsarjan - the Dalit organization that reported widespread incidences of dalit atrocities in Gujarat. This interview was first published in the Insight Young Voices Blog.

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Manjula Pradeep is the Executive Director of Gujarat-based Dalit organisation Navsarjan. After receiving her Masters in Social Work (MSW) she joined the organisation in 1992 and has been working on different issues since then. Apart from leading organisation’s legal cell on Dalit atrocities, she has been in forefront of the movements for agricultural labourers, bonded labourers and developing women cooperatives in the rural areas of Gujarat. In 1997, she completed her law degree to be able to take up cases related with caste and gender atrocities. Leading Navsarjan since 2004, Manjula Pradeep has trained hundreds of grassroots activists and has represented Dalit and Dalit women’s issues at various national and international fora.

Our study on the practices of untouchability covered 1655 villages in Gujarat and took three years to complete. We have shared some of its findings with the media to create awareness. In the study, we found 99 different practices of untouchability and have tried to identify the specific regions where these are practiced. Most prevalent practices are related to right to equality in religion and religious affairs. In more than 90 % of the villages, Dalits are not allowed to enter the temples or to touch the idols and worship articles. They are not allowed to participate in the religious processions and other rituals.

In addition to that, Dalits are not allowed to sit on the chair or cot before any non-Dalit. They necessarily have to sit on the ground. The other practice that comes out very prominently is on food. Dalits are generally not invited in the community meals, if invited they are seated separately and have to carry their own vessels. They are served tea in cups ironically called Ram patras that are kept separately in non-Dalit households. Then we find untouchability being practiced against Dalits in providing basic amenities like drinking water, use of ration shops, postmen not providing their services, not allowed to touch the vegetables in shops etc.

Every one knows that there is untouchability in our country but somewhere this whole issue is being put aside and portrayed as a thing of the past.  So we carried this study to give authenticity to our claim that untouchability practices are not only alive and kicking in this country but also present everywhere and in every sphere of our social life. We cannot just wish away from the reality.

What was the methodology used for this study?

While initiating the study we were clear that it should be done scientifically, without any bias. A thorough training was provided to 200 field workers of Navsarjan for the survey and to collect information. We prepared a detailed questionnaire of 6 pages and whatever information that was collected was then scanned and fed into the computer and statistics prepared.

Also the study was carried by a mixed group (of men and women) of Navsarjan activists because we knew that if the team consisted only of men then the women in the village would not talk and if the research team had only women, the village men usually would not respond. So we had teams of two activists, a man and woman, going to each village and collecting the information through community based interviews and household surveys. Within the community, the study stratification was based on sub-castes, age and gender and within household surveys it was on age and gender. So it took 4-5 days for our colleagues to complete the survey in one village.

The study was carried through the support of Prof C. Davenport (Professor of Peace Studies & Political Science at the Kroc Institute of International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame, USA). He has already done a marvelous study on ethnic cleansing in Rwanda and has authored numerous well-researched documents on Afro-Americans and their struggles.

The practices of untouchability are found in almost every part of the country. Did you find any peculiar form of untouchability being practiced in Gujarat?

One peculiar form of untouchability we have come across is that, in many villages, milk sellers from the shepherd community do not sell milk to Dalits during the navratri festival. Navratri is celebrated for nine days across the state with great fervour and for all these nine days the milk sellers believe that they would get polluted if they sell milk to Dalits. Then there are some villages where when a rajput dies, Dalit men have to shave their heads to mourn the death. I don’t know whether this is practiced anywhere else in the country.

Apart from the untouchability practices against Dalits, did you focus on any other issues in your study?

We also focused on untouchability practices within Dalits. Though we knew about the prevalence of untouchability among different Dalit sub-castes but still it was shocking for us to know the extent of the practice. Within the Dalits also there is a hierarchy, for example, the vankar caste practices untouchability against balmikis in Gujarat. This gives us the challenge of how do we address the issue of sub-caste divisions within the Dalits while fighting for overall Dalit rights.

What are the major Dalit sub-castes in Gujarat?

Major sub-castes are Weavers (Vankar), Leather Tanners (Chamar or Rohit), Senwa, Nadia and Balmiki. There are various other Dalit sub-castes but these are the major ones.

What have been the responses on the findings of this study in Gujarat?

The study is yet to be published. But we have shared some of its major findings with the press. In response to that we have been getting some media attention. Apart from that, I have received letters from the State Social Welfare Board and Director General of Police asking for a copy of the study so that they could take action. I am waiting for the study to get translated in Gujarati and then share it with media, to the community, to people from across castes.

The findings of this study must reach to common man in Gujarat. Then, probably, there will be some challenges before us as the study not only highlights the private practices of untouchability but also that in public sphere – panchayats, schools, temples etc. I know it will create some tension.

The widespread prevalence of untouchability is one issue on which the government and so called Indian civil society has always been in the denial mode. And they have been quite successful too in doing so since independence. In such scenario what are your expectations from this study?

Coming to state’s response, I would like to quote one incident. Recently, The Times of India carried a news item on our study and had mentioned the name of one village - Lodariyal. Immediately government officials came to that village and started threatening people of Balmiki community for their talking about the untouchability practices. The officials claimed that whatever they shared was not true and forced them to give that in writing by taking their thumb impressions on blank papers. As soon as the officials left, our local activist was informed about this incident and all of us immediately rushed to the village. Now the counter affidavit has been filed by the Dalits that they were being threatened by government officials. We are also taking legal actions against the concerned government officials.

All this is going to happen, we are very well aware. It would be interesting to watch how a study that has been conducted across 1,655 villages out of 12,500 total villages in Gujarat, representing 98,000 Dalits (almost 11 % of total Dalit population in the state) can be ignored. It will be quite a challenge to do so.

When will this study be published?

We are thinking of publishing it on 14th April, 2010 on the Birth Anniversary of Babasaheb Ambedkar.

While interviewing Dalit activists and scholars, we are increasingly getting aware of rich traditions of Dalit assertions and struggles in pre-independent India. Almost every region had a well-organised Dalit movement that fought against untouchability and social exclusion, simultaneously claiming an independent identity for all untouchables.  How was the movement in Gujarat?

Gujarat, definitely, has a history of Dalit assertion but then it is a little different from other regions. With only 7 percent of its population as SC, Gujarat has the lowest concentration of Dalits in the country. Then Gujarat being the birth place of Gandhiji and one of the main centres of anti-colonial struggle, the autonomous Dalit movement against social exclusion and untouchability could never assume prominence, especially during British times.

Later every one believed that because of Gandhiji untouchability has been abolished, at least in this state. Though there had been many Dalits across Gujarat who fought against caste discrimination but their struggle was never recognised.

Even prior to colonial period there were many Dalits who sacrificed their lives for the cause. However, with the passage of time, these martyrs got religious colours. One such example is of Veer Megh Mahya, a Dalit hero, who sacrificed his life to win some freedoms for the community during the reign of King Siddhrajsinh Solanki (with his capital at Patan) in medieval period.

Who was Veer Megh Mahya?

It is said that once there was a severe drought during Siddhrajsinh Solanki’s reign and people were dying without water. The court astrologer advised the king to find a man with 32 good qualities and sacrifice him to end the drought. The hunt for the perfect man ended with Mahya, an untouchable, who hailed from Ranoda village (in present Dholka taluka, Ahmedabad).

Mahya agreed to sacrifice himself but with three conditions - the untouchables from then onwards would not carry brooms tied behind their backs, they would not tie pot around their necks for spitting and would not carry extra pocket or third sleeves on their upper garments. These were the markers of being an untouchable during those times and were strictly enforced by dominant castes. The king had to agree to these conditions and then Mahya was killed.

It is unfortunate that modern historians have never recognised him and his struggle but his memories are being kept alive by the Dalits in Gujarat.  In the rural areas, they keep a copper pot in the foundation while constructing their houses and tie a green festoon (chundadi) at their doors in memory of Veer Megh Mahya. I feel it is very important for all of us who are engaged in fighting against caste discrimination to remember the lives and struggles of our forefathers.

Thanks so much for elaborating on the study undertaken by your organisation and narrating the story of Veer Megh Mahya. We are sure that this would benefit our readers and help them to make their resolve to fight against caste-discrimination much stronger. How did you get exposed to the Dalit struggle and what motivated you to become part of it?

I belong to a family that like many other literate, urban-based Dalit families suffer from insecurities about revealing their caste identities and suffer the indignities silently. This insecurity makes children and youth of such families more vulnerable to caste-ridicule and prejudices that are prevalent in urban public spaces. My motivation came from having such a family background. I was ridiculed in school and then in college due to my caste background. I was amazed to witness how people view you differently just because of your birth in ‘low’ caste.

Then I had also gone through much gender discrimination in my own family. So there was lot of anger in me and that made me very vocal and I was always seen as a rebel child. I had to go through lot of struggles while opposing the conservatism prevalent within my family itself. I think, all this made me want to do something in the society and so I did my Masters in Social Work (MSW) from MS University Baroda and joined the organisation  - Navsarjan, which is working on caste issues, in 1992.

I was the first woman to join the organisation and started working in the villages. I realised that the world I have understood through books and cities is completely different from the reality and that made me more focussed, committed and passionate about our cause – both caste and gender.

How do you define a Dalit organization?

Dalit organization should be an organization working with a particular ideology – the ideology that liberates the entire community from the shackles of caste-based discrimination and exclusion. It should be an organisation promoting Dalits as leaders and pioneers ensuring equality in the society. It should not be an organization where you are excluded, you are isolated yourself. Dalit organisation aims towards making Dalit a powerful socio-political identity rather than making it merely an oppressed community. Anger of the Dalit community must come out and these organisations have to channelise that anger towards making it a strong community.

There are a lot of issues that are significant for any Dalit organisation. What according to you are the most important ones?

The major Dalit issue for me is constant exposing of the exploitative mechanism of caste system in our society. In a way it is not just a Dalit issue rather I would say it is a societal issue. Why only the Dalits should take the entire burden in fighting against caste system? The burden lies with the entire society. However, it is also true that this issue is not going to become the national issue till the Dalits raise their voice, assert themselves and lead the movement against caste discrimination as they are the ones who bear the maximum brunt of caste-based discrimination. So the primary responsibility, as far as I feel, lies with the Dalit organisations and by far this is the major issue they need to deal with.

Navsarjan is one of the largest Dalit organisations of the country that has led successful movements for Dalit land rights, against caste-atrocities, against manual scavenging apart from creating institutions like Dalit Shakti Kendra (DSK) and opening residential schools for Dalit children. How do you mobilise the local Dalit community and activists around common issues?

Navsarjan is basically a grass-roots movement, a network of people who are politically and socially conscious and want to contribute towards fighting against caste-based discrimination. Started in 1989 as a small group of people, Navsarjan, after two decades of its involvement, has become an organisation of different Dalit groups. Within the organization, almost 95% of people are from Dalit community itself and work with the local groups. In that way, the mobilization of the community happens. There are various small groups in Gujarat and in other states too who need support from organizations like Navsarjan and so we provide them support in terms of trainings, capacity building skills etc.

How do you mobilize financial resources for the organisational activities?

Navsarjan started very modestly with almost no financial resources and when I joined it just had a small office at Rs 25 as monthly rent. But with time we were able to get right donors to carry forward our organisation’s activities. Having right donors is very important for any organisation. It is not that you only need funds for the growth of organisation but also the right kind of partnerships. Navsarjan does not believe in project-based organisations that are driven by funding agencies.

We also believe in common people’s participation and contribution in raising resources for our activities. For running our schools, we raised Rs 12 lakh from the community by taking individual contributions from different villages in Gujarat. For all our local programmes and activities, almost half of the financial resources come from the community directly.

Being engaged primarily with the issues of rural Dalits, what have been your experiences dealing with local administration?

Navsarjan has to confront the local administration and the state very often as we believe in rule of law and work for ensuring the constitutional rights for not only Dalits but for others too. We put pressure on the state to perform its responsibilities with our legal-based approach and use all the laws and provisions available. Being a grass-root organisation, the state is also very well aware of our capacity for mobilising the community. We also realise that we do work that carries some weight and therefore feel confident while dealing with the local administration on the issues that we feel are genuine and have impact on the larger society.

What kind of strategies you use to mobilize rural Dalit community on the particular issue of caste-based atrocities?

To fight caste-based atrocities and violence was the very first programme of Navsarjan and the basic issue around which its foundation was laid in 1989. In the same year, the central government came out with the Prevention of Atrocities (SC/ST) Act. Our organisation not only highlights atrocities but also fights the legal battles by using the above-mentioned Act. Navsarjan uses this Act in two ways - one is using the law effectively to get justice to the victims and then mobilising the community to condemn that particular atrocity as it is never one person or family that is affected by that incident but it is always the community that is the target.

How far the laws like Prevention of Atrocities (SC/ST) Act, 1989, are effective? How do we ensure that such laws are implemented properly?

Many laws are there to provide justice to Dalits but if we keep waiting for the state to implement them, then it is never going to happen. Such laws can be effective only when we, ourselves, learn how to use them. We conduct a lot of legal awareness campaigns within the community on POA (SC/ST) Act. It is very important that our people should know about such laws.

But more importantly the local administration including the police department must be made aware about such laws because most of the time authorities themselves are unaware of the laws and have no inclination to become aware and implement these laws.

The laws are the potent tools for the liberation of Dalits but the system itself is much prejudiced against Dalits. In context of Gujarat, I would say that Navsarjan has been able to get lot of convictions and judgements including life imprisonments for the people who were guilty of caste based violence like murders and rapes but for all this we have to push and go after the system each time.

In the last 20-30 years there has been sudden upsurge in the Dalit movement.  A  number of Dalit led organisations have come up working at different levels. What are the reasons behind this phenomenon?

I feel, one of the strongest reasons is growing awareness in the community and I think the legal awareness among the Dalits has increased manifold compared to other communities. You take any other minority or marginalised community of this country and compare. And because of this awareness the Dalits are trying to organise themselves. They have also realised that they need to fight for their rights on their own. In the period of 80s and 90s, many Dalits started their organisations in different spheres of social life and that also set models for other assertive Dalits to follow.

What are your expectations from the contemporary Dalit movement?

There are a lot of expectations. First, it should come out of identity politics and if the movement has to become truly a national one then it also needs to create a new definition of the word ‘Dalit’. In Navsarjan, we have tried to do it. For us, ‘Dalit is a moral position, where a person believes and practices equality and fight against the inequality across caste, gender and religion’. I think the Dalit movement has to work on that. We also need to introspect that within the movement where the spaces for other sub-castes are and how to take up systemic issues like manual scavenging, devdasi practices more effectively. Then there are issues of Dalit women and children that need to be highlighted and to be brought in forefront of the Dalit movement.

You have been leading one of the major civil society organisations of this country for almost five years now. Being a woman, what are the challenges you have faced while heading the organisation?

This is the question everyone has for me (laughs). It was very clear from the beginning that I have to prove doubly than any man while heading the organisation. Although I could say that I am as efficient and capable as anyone else but the thing is your identity as a woman makes people perceive you through gender lens - how could a woman lead the organisation?  The society also believes that the leadership is masculine quality. I have gone through all that and it was a bit painful but if you keep on working hard and are able to articulate your concerns, people at some point of time would start acknowledging your leadership.

Apart from having Dalit woman as head of the organisation, how far has Navsarjan provided space for other Dalit women at different levels?

Navsarjan is one organisation that is treated as a model within the Dalit movement in the sense that we are able to address the issue of caste together with talking about the role of Dalit women in the movement. It is very important as the Dalit movement is often seen as being led by Dalit men and talking only about caste as major form of discrimination by not looking at intersectionalities with different issues.

Within the organization, we have made lots of structural changes and women are occupying many important positions. If a woman is heading some organisation, it does not necessarily mean that automatically space will be created for other women. You need to create some space. But ultimately we need to make gender issues as our core agenda within the Dalit movement to bring more Dalit women leaders.

[Gomathi Kumar and Sanjay Kabir did their Masters of Social Work (MSW) from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai in the session 2007-09]