Rethinking India: the dalit truth
- Grugram Penguin 2022
- 230 p.
This book is set in contemporary times, when the political mobilization of the Dalits is following a trajectory that the founders of the Constitution would never have expected. Though the Congress party, in partnership with Ambedkar, had formulated the Constitution, and brought out policies, programmes and legislations aimed at their social, economic and political empowerment, the Dalits are drifting away from the Congress in a few states. Some critics argue that it is the Congress that is drifting away from the Dalits, with Manuwadi parties making inroads there. This volume tries to objectively examine the truth and falsities that are influencing the political mobilization of the Dalits.
This book has been influenced by my own career as a former civil servant and current Congress leader, and my life as a Dalit. In over three decades as a civil servant, I have had the opportunity to listen to the small and big voices of the Dalits, partake in their pain and celebrate their victories with them. As a Congress leader, I could closely fathom the realities of politics where the Dalits have a stake. It was with this in mind that I invited thinkers who have the courage of conviction to speak the truth to contribute essays for this book. The truth some of them speak may be unsettling to a politician, whether Congress or non-Congress. It is an attempt to engage with a variety of intellectuals on Dalit lives and politics, and to acknowledge the Dalit truth. Though I strongly believe that the Congress remains the best hope for Dalit emancipation, none of the essays in this book has been 'censored-including those critical of my party.
The book's inquiry into Dalit lives takes you through to the Dalit truth. There are many things which are routinely said about truth: that it is naked and it hurts; that it cannot be hidden for too long; that it prevails. But one thing which is not often said is that it always bears the burden of the past with unflinching grace. It might reveal something ugly, dull or even obvious, but it always holds its head high elegantly since it has nothing to hide. Truth remains plain and solid in its transparency.