Caste and Politics In India

A small presentation on Caste and Politics In India.

1. Caste And Politics In India Anusha Rizvi BA 1 Semester 2 224174 Sociology [Minor], Regular

2. Caste is a term that is used to define a system of social stratification that is based on an individual's birth. The system of social stratification based on birth is called 'Caste System'. This term is mostly common in India but it is also used in some other parts of the world as well like South Asia and Africa. The Caste System determines your labor and your level of spiritual purity in the society. The caste system in India is considered to be the world's oldest surviving form of social stratification at around 3,000 years old. In India, when a child is born his/her status on the social hierarchy gets fixed on the basis of the caste he/she is born into.  What is Caste?

3. According to A.W. Green, “ Caste is a system of stratification in which mobility up and down the status ladder, at least ideally, may not occur. ” According to Robert Morrison MacIver, “ When the status is wholly predetermined so that men are born to their lot without any hope of changing it, then class takes the extreme form of caste. ” According to Charles Coole, " When a class is somewhat strictly hereditary, we may call it a caste. " According to Ketkar, in his book 'History of caste in India', " Caste is a social group having two characteristics (a) membership is confined to those who are born of members & includes all persons no born (b) the members are forbidden by an inexorable social law to marry outside the group. " Definition of Caste

4. The word caste has been derived from  Spanish and Portuguese word, “ Casta ” which means “ race, lineage, or breed ”.  Portuguese employed Casta in the modern sense when they applied it to hereditary Indian social groups called as ‘ Jati ’ in India.  Jati has been originated from the root word ‘Jana’ which means taking birth.  Thus, caste is concerned with the birth of an individual. Early written evidence about the caste system appears in the Vedas, Sanskrit-language texts that date from as early as 1500 BCE.  Origin of Caste

5. Caste System in India India's caste system classifies Hindus into four varnas based on their occupation:

6. According to Hindu scriptures, many people believe that these four classes originated from Brahma, the Hindu god of creation.  According to Rig Veda, the first man Purush used his body to create a human society. Continuation..

7. Brahmins are priests, or spiritual teachers. They are the superiors within the social system. Brahmin originated from the head of Purush, so they are at the top of the varna system. They have the privilege of interpreting religious scriptures and sacrificing to gods and to get the best education. Brahmins They came from the arms of Purush, and they are considered to be the second highest caste in the varna system. Kshatriyas have temporary authority and power. They have the privilege of collecting taxes, and they are in charge of the army. They are responsible for guarding the Brahmin class. They also learn weaponry, warfare, penance, austerity, administration, moral conduct, justice, and often start ruling from an early age. Kshatriyas

8. They came from the thighs of Purush. They are the commoners. They are economically strong as they have close relation to commerce and many become traders, merchants, landowners, and money-lenders. Vaishyas support Kshatriyas and Brahmins by sacrificing, giving gifts, providing food through agriculture, and money through taxes.  Vaishyas They have come from the feet of Purush.  They are mainly artisans, laborers, and high-level servants and craftsmen, and those who serve meals and cook. Shudras are the most populous caste, making up nearly half of India's population. They face a lot of discrimination from the higher castes and are not permitted the same rights and privileges as higher caste. Shudras

9. The term politics has been derived from a Greek word called " Politika " which means " affairs of the cities ". Politics is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. Politics of India works within the framework of the country's Constitution. The politics of India is based on a multi-party system, which is modeled according to the British Westminster System of government. India is a parliamentary secular democratic republic in where the president of India is the head of state & first citizen of India and the prime minister of India is the head of government. Politics In India

10. There are two Houses in the political system in India, namely, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. There are also three divisions in the politics of India. The Legislative Branch The Executive Branch The Judicial Branch Continuation..

11. Caste and democracy are different from each other and they cannot co-exist as caste advocates fragmentation of society whereas democracy stands for the unification of society. Caste is based on inequality by birth. Democracy is based on principles of equality. Caste advocates social exclusion and democracy advocates social inclusion. Caste provides wealth, power and status to specific groups but democracy provides equal chances to all categories. The irony is yet they both caste system and democracy co-exist in Indian society. Caste and Politics In India

12. The relationship between caste and politics has been analyzed at two lev­els: Political System Influences Caste:  All political parties calculate caste support at the time of distribution of tickets.  Political behavior also influences the caste people. Caste Influences Political System:  Caste reserves its votes for its own members. People prefer to vote for a candidate of their own caste irrespective of the merits/demerits of the candidate. Leader of a particular caste prefers to select his own caste people in different posts. Relationship between Caste and Politics

13. Thank you.