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Punjab polls: Parties’ idea of Dalit vote consolidation looks utopian
The Congress is hopeful of ‘Dalit vote consolidation’ in its favour after it named Channi’s as the chief ministerial face and his 111-day performance as the CM. SAD, on the other hand is banking on its ally Bahujan Samaj Party’s rapport in the community
With the Congress announcing Charanjit Singh Channi as its chief ministerial face, the dynamics of Dalit vote politics in Punjab have been dominating the political discourse like never before. Around 32% of the state’s population falls in the Scheduled Caste (SC) category.
However, at least 13 districts of Punjab have SC population more than the state’s average (32%) as per the 2011 Census. With 42.5% Dalit population, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar tops the chart, followed by Muktsar Sahib (42.3%) and Ferozepur (42.2%).
The Congress is hopeful of ‘Dalit consolidation’ in its favour after it named Channi’s as the chief ministerial face and his 111-day performance as the CM. However, seeing an entire community walking behind it is too much to expect going by the layers and fault lines within this stratum of society.
There are 39 sub-castes in Punjab that fall in the SC category as per state government notification. Of the 32% Dalit population, 19.4% follow Sikhism, 12.4% are Hindus and 0.98% are Buddhists.
The SC votebank comprises 29.7% Mazhabi Sikhs, 23.6% are Ravidassias and Ramdassias, 11.5% are categorised as Ad-Dharmis, and Balmiki account for 9.8%. Channi belongs to Ramdassia community. Together, they account for 74.5% of the total SC population in the state.
Because of their beliefs and background, these four sub-castes are broadly categorised in two groups: Mazhabi Sikhs-Balmikis; and Ravidassias-Ramdassias-Ad-Dharmis.
Mazhabis more in numbers, Ravidassias dominate politics
Despite three out of 10 Dalits in Punjab coming from the Mazhabi Sikh category, Ravidassias, who are concentrated mainly in Doaba, dominate the electoral politics. Most prominent Dalit leaders of the state from across parties come from this community.
Ravidassias are considered influential for they have a large population settled in foreign countries and are considered socially and politically aware. Mazhabis, who have dominance in Malwa and Majha, are either landless or have small landholdings. They are socially and politically neglected.
The two broad categories of the Dalit population — Ravidasias-Ad-dharmis, and Mazhabi Sikhs-Balmikis — have been competing with each other in the past. Balmikis who are mainly settled in urban, semi-urban areas, earning a living from sanitation activities are mainly Hindus. Though Deras, too, have a big impact on the Dalit politics of Punjab. Dera Sach Khand Ballan, the biggest centre for the Ravidassia community, sways the choices of its followers, small deras here and there play the refuge for Balmikis and Majhabis. Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda, too, has a big influence on Majhabi Sikhs, especially in the Malwa region.
A five-decade-old issue of providing 50% reservation in indirect recruitment to Valmikis and Mazhabi Sikhs is yet another fault line among the SC population. The issue is still pending before the Supreme Court.
Will Dalits walk after Channi?
Prof Raunki Ram from Panjab University, Chandigarh, says caste dynamics of the SC population in Punjab have remained such that they have never come under a single umbrella. History reveals that consolidation attempts on two prominent occasions had failed, he says. “The Ad-Dharam movement in the pre-Independence era got unprecedented response in the joint Punjab. However, Majhabis and Balmikis did not participated in this movement. Then BSP was formed and it ended up becoming the party of Ravidassias, and its found Kanshi Ram could not get support of other sub-castes and shifted party’s base to UP. Both were social movements,” he elaborates.
Ram says if Congress is banking on Channi for Dalit consolidation, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has BSP by its side.
“If even the BSP failed to consolidate SCs, how can Congress does that. I have a strong feeling that this open declaration of CM face on caste lines could backfire in the form of consolidation of Jats and other uppper-castes against the Congress,” he says.
Prof Parmod Kumar, director, Institution for Development and Communication, says SCs have never acted as an exclusive ‘vote bank’ of a particular political party.
“While six times, the SCs in Punjab have voted for the Congress, five times they opted for the SAD. Moreover, caste lines are drawn so deep among various subcastes among the community that consolidation looks unlikely,” Kumar says.
Chairman, Safai Karamchari Commission, Geja Ram, who comes from the Valmiki community and recently quit Congress to join the BJP, said Balmikis and Majhbis have strong apprehensions about the Congress giving preference to influential Ravidassias.
“If you look at the ticket distribution this time, the Congress has cut four tickets of Balmikis to prefer Ravidassias. Out of 34 reserved segments, 24 candidates are Ravidassias/Ramdasias whereas only nine are Balmikis, and one Bazigar, whereas we are the highest in population among the SCs. What is there for other castes aiming consolidation?” he said.
In 2017, of the 34 reserved seats, Congress had won 21, AAP bagged nine, three went to the SAD and BJP captured one.
