India’s caste system is a social structure that divides different groups into ranked categories. Members of “higher” castes have a greater social status than individuals of a “lower” caste. There are different theories about the establishment of the caste system viz. religious-mystical, biological and socio-historical theories. According to the Caste system of India, I would like to point out that the perplexity in it begins by the use of the word caste. The Indians in their different languages use the word ‘Jat’ for any community who has something common like religion, language, origin, similar geographical background and so on. They also use the word ‘Jat’ for Varna. The Portuguese who were the first European power to arrive in India distorted the word ‘Jat’ into caste. The British who arrived to India much later after the Portuguese also used the word caste.
The British used the word Caste instead of Jat and Varna. And so sometimes in English the caste system is explained in a confusing way according to which, the caste system consists of four castes which are divided into many castes. Sometimes in English the word caste is used for Varna and the word sub-caste for Jat. On the other hand, the word ‘Hindu’ may not express immediately this sense of unity. It may have different meanings. One may have to explain what this word really means. At the first glance it has the sense of exclusivity. It is associated with Hindu belief system. This word does not have any roots in the ancient India. It has originated a few hundred years ago and in fact it is the name given to Indians by others.
As Mahatma Gandhi said, “The nation is not built on religion.” And of course, there were other elements in the national struggle like equality of women. Hindu-Muslim unity was not the only touchstone for secularism. Secularism means you rely on reason, not religion. Acceptance of people of different faiths has been the hall mark of the Hindu way of life and thinking. There were no instances of religious persecution in India. Ironically, it is Hindus who ill-treated their own members. Therefore India has been both a secular and Hindu nation from the historical times. Gandhi himself was deeply religious, but he never defined the “self” of “self-rule,” the swa- of swaraj, as Hindu, Muslim or even Indian. It was Gandhi’s quest for the self and for its sovereignty that carried the day, creating the decades-long struggle which eventually liberated India. Our nation has a rich history of tolerance and diversity, perpetrated by a way of life, commonly known as Hinduism.
Our Constitution has taken care that people of all religions live in the country and so the country has not been accorded the status of Hindu Rashtra. It must be remembered that India is not an exclusive domain of any one religion. India is a living legacy of 4600 communities; hence neither cultural nor civilisational ideology can be of any one religious denomination. Unity can be achieved by equal treatment of all linguistic communities. Indians belonging to the same religious group may come from different ethnic stocks, may speak different languages, dress differently, eat different kinds of food in entirely different manners and may have completely different social and economic concerns. Whatever problems that we face today in the sphere of religion vis-a-visa the state are only due to the unnecessary interference with the basic structure of our Constitution.
When the Constitution was adopted, its Preamble read: We, the People of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a Sovereign Democratic Republic. But, in 1977, the Preamble was amended (forty second amendment) and the amended Preamble read: We, the people of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a sovereign socialist secular democratic republic. It is an unwarranted amendment. Different articles in the Constitution guarantee that India has to be a democratic nation in which all citizens enjoy equal rights, including the right to profess one’s own religion.
To preserve the ideals of Vasudaika Kutumbum and hug the inclusive philosophy, not exclusive, that brings all people together irrespective of religion, caste and creed. Lastly I would like to say that in India people are more tolerant and exchange religious sensibilities. This is the only reason why the idea of “Hindu Rashtra” has not wedged on in India though most Indians will be unable to identify what are the secular aspects of our Constitution.
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
