The essentials
Caste-based movements seek to end caste discrimination, gain dignity and secure a fair share of resources and power. The Dalit movement has been the most important. "Dalit" means broken or downtrodden, and the term expresses both oppression and assertion. Dalit movements struggled for access to temples, water sources and public spaces, for education and jobs, and above all for self-respect.
B.R. Ambedkar was the central figure. He led the Mahad Satyagraha (1927) to assert the right of Dalits to draw water from a public tank, founded organisations and parties, and played a leading role in drafting the Constitution. Earlier and parallel movements included Jyotiba Phule's Satyashodhak Samaj, Sri Narayana Guru's movement in Kerala, the Satnami movement in Chhattisgarh, the Adi Dharma movement in Punjab and E.V. Ramasamy (Periyar)'s Self-Respect Movement in Tamil Nadu.
In the 1970s, the Dalit Panthers, formed in Maharashtra in 1972, expressed a more radical and militant voice, influenced by the Black Panthers in the United States. Dalit literature, written in many Indian languages, became an important form of protest and identity.
Backward caste movements, especially in south India, challenged Brahmin dominance in education and government jobs and later shaped politics. After the Mandal Commission recommendations were implemented around 1990, OBCs became a powerful political force. Some upper-caste groups responded with protests against reservations, arguing for "merit"; these can be seen as counter-movements.
Key points
- Dalit movements: dignity, rights and an end to untouchability.
- Ambedkar: Mahad Satyagraha, Constitution, political organisation.
- Dalit Panthers (1972) introduced militant assertion.
- Backward caste movements: regional and political.
- Anti-reservation protests represent upper-caste responses.
Common mistakes
Do not limit Dalit movements to the period after independence; they have deep roots in the colonial period.