Where politics of caste goes wrong

• Caste plays a significant role in regulating life chances in India, making caste counting essential for addressing social inequalities.
• However, the political landscape often impedes such counting and the evaluation of social disparities.

Caste Politics and Dynastic Power

• While social equality is lauded in political rhetoric, it is sometimes used to consolidate power in political dynasties.
• These dynasties often appeal to caste and communal sentiments to gain and maintain authority.

The Gandhi-Ambedkar Compromise

• Constitutional provisions for SCs, STs and Backward Classes in India were based on the Gandhi-Ambedkar compromise.
• These aimed at proportional representation as a means of empowerment.
• It assumed that such representation would lead to social mobility, acting as a model for other community members, instilling self-respect and aspirations for a better life.

The Challenge of Creamy Layers

• Unfortunately, the expected demonstration effects of reservations have not worked as intended.
• Creamy layers within OBC, SC and ST categories have garnered benefits, leading to demands for special quotas within these categories and reclassification.
• Even dominant castes have sought reservations, highlighting the creamy layers that prevent benefits from reaching the marginalised.

The Formation of Creamy Layers

• Creamy layers develop as early beneficiaries of reservations build social and cultural capital to monopolize privileges, affecting later entrants within the reserved categories.
• This phenomenon poses a significant challenge to combating social inequality and necessitates closer examination.

The Role of Family in Creamy Layer Formation

• In India, the institution of the family exacerbates creamy layer formation.
• Kinship ties and family bonds contribute to nepotism, with all family members gaining importance.
• Battling social inequality in India must extend to challenge the institution of the Indian family.

The Neglect of Public Institutions

• The politics of caste, including discussions on caste counting, diverts attention from the crucial task of nurturing public institutions, particularly in education and healthcare.
• India is lacking in both the number and quality of such institutions, leading to a decline in the overall quality of public institutions.

Conclusion

• There is a need to address creamy layer formation, nepotism, and the decline in public institutions to combat social inequality effectively, moving beyond the politics of caste.