Struggles for a Dignified Life: A Documentation of Invisible Resistance of Kuchbandhiya Community in Bundelkhand Region of Uttar Pradesh

Introduction

There are 66 scheduled castes (SC) in Uttar Pradesh in government list. Among them, some castes such as Kori, Chamar, Dhobi and Pasi have succeeded in developing and moving ahead politically, socially and economically. There are varied reasons for it, including their considerably larger population, own community leaders and education which have led to the emergence of their organic intellectuals who can write, speak and disseminate information about them to increase their visibility. These castes are asserting their identities through their caste history, heroes and other caste/cultural symbols. On the other hand, there are some SC that are invisible in the socio-political milieu due to their significantly smaller population size, absence of political voice, absence of organic intellectuals, community leaders and lack of education. These castes are referred to as the most marginal communities. Some of these most marginal communities are Basor, Bhantu, Bhuiya, Boria, Dhangar, Dhanuk, Kalabaz, Khairha, Kanjar, Kuchbandhiya, Kabootara, Dharkar, Khatik, etc. They are denied the space to assert their voices in the socio-political arena which makes them invisible. Their vulnerability increases if they live in backward regions. I try to explain how regional backwardness adds to vulnerability in community.

Bundelkhand is a hilly region spread over 13 districts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. There are limited livelihood options for the communities residing there. The marginal castes of this region are engaged in traditional occupations such as hunting and catching birds, basket weaving, musicians, snake charming, collecting firewood, manufacturing bamboo furniture, stone cutting, etc. They have become more vulnerable due to the arid conditions of the region. Their traditional occupations are not enough for their livelihood support, and due to lack of education, technical skills and training they do not get opportunities for growth either in the government or in the private sectors. They are unable to take benefits of state policies of positive discrimination. These highly marginalized Dalit castes are not even at the minimum economic level of production in which they can develop their own politics or their ‘organic intellectuals’. ¹ There is a need to identify the factors that lead to the invisibility, deprivation and exclusion of these communities and suggest appropriate measures for providing them visibility, voice and democratic space. We often miss the heterogeneity of Dalits while categorizing them under one flag of Dalit or state categories. Although Dalit identity as a broader theme is seen as a homogeneous identity, the heterogeneity cannot be disregarded.

Dalit is not a new word. The history of the word Dalit goes back to the nineteenth century when a Marathi social reformer and revolutionary Mahatma Jyotiba Phule used it to describe the outcastes and untouchables as the oppressed and broken victims of the Indian caste—ridden society (Zelliot, 1992, p. 271). It was used in the 1930s as a Hindi and Marathi translation of ‘depressed classes’, the term the British used for what are now called the SC (Omvedt, 2006, p. 77). During the emergence and development of Dalit movement this term has been frequently used, and it has become popular among the Dalit people in various contemporary protest movements in India. Only by exploring its historical roots, we can provide the clue to the devalued identity of the Dalits.

Historical Roots of the Dalitness

The narrative of Dalits begins almost 3,500 years ago. H. G. Wells described how at that point of history, one group (the nomad folk) defeated the other group (the settled folk) and how as a result the history of both the groups was completely changed. In the Rigveda, which is supposed to be the oldest literary source available to us, the famous Purusasukta hymn mentions the existence of four castes when it says: The Brahman was his mouth, of both his arms was the Rajanya (Kshatriya) made, his thighs became the Vaishya, from his feet the Sudra was produced (Griffith, 1986, p. 603). Dalit problem took shape right from the Rigvedic times as a result of the conflict between two hostile groups. The two great epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata, explicitly tell us how far the condition of the Dalits had deteriorated by the time these were composed. In Ramayana, Valmiki narrated the degradation of Sudras, the fourth caste through the story of Shambuka who was punished with death by lord Ram for performing tapasya (penance and meditation) (Sen, 1989, pp. 699–702). In Mahabharata, there is a reference to the degraded state of the Dalits. The story of Ekalavya, an indigenous boy, narrates how he had to lose his right thumb because Dalits did not have the right to education (Goyandaka, pp. 69–72). The Manusmriti narrates the degraded inhuman state of these groups in the following words:

The dwelling of Chandala and Cavpacas (sapaka) (should be) outside the village; they should be deprived of the dishes (apapatra); their property (consists of) dogs and asses. Their clothes (should be) the garment of the dead, and their ornaments (should be) of iron, and their food (should be) in broken dishes; and they must constantly wander about. (Massey, 1995, p. 42).

The role played directly or indirectly in the development of the untouchability during this period by the ruling classes on both the state and local levels was a very significant one.

During the long period of Muslim domination in India, one would have expected some changes in the lives of the Dalits as Islam upholds the principals of equality in all human beings. Al-Biruni, writing on his visit to India around 1030 AD, described the treatment received by the Dalits as follows:

The People called Hadi, Doma, Chandala, and Badhatau are reckoned amongst any caste or guild. They are occupied with dirty work, like the cleaning of the villages and services. They are considered as one class, and distinguished only by their occupations. In fact, they are considered illegitimate children from a Sudra father and a Brahmin mother and as the children of fornication; so they are degraded outcasts (Ahmad, 1978, p. 14).

During this period, the Bhakti movement helped the cause of the Dalits, particularly in the spiritual sphere. This happened mostly through the Bhakti saints who were either non-Brahmans or Dalits.

In the British period, there were some personalities, such as Jyotiba Phule, Ambedkar and Gandhi, who were involved directly in the struggle for change or reform. Among them, the first two worked for the total upliftment of the Dalits while Gandhi’s work was limited to certain reforms, more within the Hindu society. Christian missionaries also worked for the betterment of the Dalits which ultimately influenced the British government to do something in this regard. During this period, new titles and phrases were coined to denote the Dalits. For example, for the first time the existence of the depressed classes was recognized in the text of the act of 1919 (Lokhande, 1982, p. 181). In 1931, the census superintendent of Assam made a suggestion to change the title from depressed classes to ‘exterior castes’. Exterior castes would include those who had been caste out because of some breach of caste rule (Hutton, 1946, p. 167). More pertinent to our discussion, and the struggle of the Dalits, is the term SC that was first coined by the Simon commission (appointed by the British government) and embodied in the Government of India Act, 1935, in section 305 (Ghurye, 1961, p. 306). Later, the same expression was included in Government of India (Scheduled Caste) Order, 1936.

In the nineteenth century, British government was developing cantonment areas on the Indian landscape. The growth of Cantonment towns and their number was directly connected to the British military expansion and military need of the colonial power to control the older native cities. After the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, large military establishments were set up with regional headquarters in urban centres and with smaller compounds in the outlying towns. For this system of military surveillance required the extended use of ‘native’ soldiers and ‘native’ bureaucrats, thereby establishing norms of procedure, conduct, even of thought, which, after generations of inculcation and acceptance, came to be regarded by many as proper and right. The arrogance of the privileged Europeans and the favouritism enjoyed by the native servants, soldiers and concessionaires bred increasing resentment, jealousy and anger. Native businessmen saw the best ventures dominated by foreigners or by their hirelings—‘managing agents’. Moreover, the economic development of a landscape such as it was, had an imperialistic orientation, one whose epicentre was London, Liverpool or Manchester rather than Kanpur, Lucknow or Allahabad (Johnson, 1974).

The problem of the Dalits and the struggle for emancipation are continued even in the post-independence period with equal fervour, because even India’s political freedom in 1947 was not able to help them get out of their condition. While piloting the constitution of independent India on 4 November 1948, Ambedkar did say it was ‘workable’ and ‘flexible’ but even this character of the constitution has been used only to maintain the status quo of the set rules of life in Indian society because it has gone only in favour of the powerful and has not been of much help to powerless. The constitution itself, as Ambedkar said, is not ‘bad’, it is the use of its flexibility which has proved bad. It is because of this, that the condition of the Dalits, even after independence, has not improved (Gupta, 1985, p. 283). After independence, when Dalits were unable to gain substantial change, they became disenchanted and started assertion.

Dalit Assertions

Introducing Bundelkhand in the Context of Castes: Its Space and Identity

This most marginal community becomes more vulnerable if they are of some backward region. Several caste studies have been done on different regions in India including Maharashtra, south, east and west, few parts of central Uttar Pradesh. But Bundelkhand region remains untouched till present from the perspective of caste study. So far, Bundelkhand has been studied through the lens of development perspective only. There are complex interactions of caste, class and space in Bundelkhand. Many scholars have done various studies on different aspects of Dalit life in contemporary Uttar Pradesh. Badri Narayan in his book Fractured Tales (2016) described about marginality and invisibility of excluded communities in Indian democracy. But Bundelkhand region is left behind in the academic discourse of most marginal communities of Dalits. Bundelkhand is one of the most backward regions in Uttar Pradesh with a large population of other backward castes (53 per cent), SC/Dalits (25 per cent) and tribals (10 per cent). However, it is the remaining 12 per cent, mainly Thakurs and Brahmins, who own lands. Presently, semi-nomadic Kuchbandhiya ² Kanjar ³ community is scattered in different districts (Hamirpur, Jhansi, Chitrakoot, Jalaun, Mahoba and Banda) of Bundelkhand region. For this study, I have covered these districts in 2015–2017. Many Dalit communities are living in vulnerable conditions in Bundelkhand region. They are suffering the stigma ⁴ imposed on them. In the absence of numerical strength, community leaders and organic intellectuals, they are unable to assert their voice in socio-political arena which makes them invisible and allows state machinery to push them on periphery. The current study is focused on one such community, namely Kuchbandhiya Kanjar (Table 1).

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Table 1.

Demographic Profile of Invisible Communities

Name of Districts	Name of Community and Their Total Numbers
Jhansi	Baheliya—1,013, Kanjar—2,544, Nat—784
Lalitpur	Baheliya—80, Kanjar—562, Nat—37
Jalaun	Baheliya—24, Kanjar—382, Nat—2178
Hamirpur	Baheliya—10, Kanjar—495, Nat—299
Mahoba	Baheliya—97, Kanjar—45, Nat—183
Banda	Baheliya—107, Kanjar—299, Nat—38
Chitrakoot	Baheliya—597, Kanjar—376, Nat—126

Source: http://www.censusindia.gov.in//2011census/populationenumeration.html. Accessed on 27 October 2017.

Who are the Kuchbandhiya?

Kuchbandhiya is a sub-caste of Kanjar also known as Gehar Kanjar in Bundelkhand region. The people claim descent from the legendry hero, Mana. Besides, they associate themselves with the Sisodiya Dynasty to which Maharana Pratap belonged. Their total population in Uttar Pradesh, according to the 1981 census, is 50,752 (27,394 males and 23,358 females). Ibbetson (1916) wrote that Kanjars of Delhi are vagrants who wander about the country catching and eating jackals, lizards and the like, making rope and other articles of grass for sale. The Kanjars are divided into four occupational and endogamous sub-groups (kulis) in Bundelkhand region in Uttar Pradesh: Gehar or Patharkat (workers on stone), Sirkipal (workers on reed mats), Kuchbandhiya (workers on hairbrushes) and Rechbandh (professionals who catch tortoise) (Crooke, 1896). Kuchbandhiya of the Central Provinces are a sub-caste of the Kanjars. The main source of income for the Kuchbandhiya is stone articles, which they make and sell in the daily and weekly markets in the neighbouring areas (Russell & Hiralal, 1916).

The 1931 census report was the first caste-based census in India. In the supplementary list of this census report, some castes of Hindu have been given as excluded castes (exterior castes). There is Kuchbandiya community as well whose home was in Rajasthan’s Ajmer, Mewar and Rajputana area. Then the population of Kuchbandiya community was only 395. Presently they are distributed in small hamlets of the region. Kanjars are enlisted SC category as per Census 2011 in Handbook of different Districts of Bundelkhand.

At present, this community is located at the lowest point of society. They are socially, economically and politically marginalized. The crisis of maintaining their existence and livelihood has deepened over time.

Contestation and Marginalization of Sub-castes

The numerical strength (‘whoever would have the higher number would have the higher share’ quoted by Kanshiram) caste history (‘a community which does not have a history cannot rule, because inspiration comes from history, awakening comes from inspiration, thought comes from awakening, strength comes from thought, and ruler comes from strength’ quoted by Mayawati Ji), organic intellectuals and community heroes/icons are very important for visibility of a community.

Kuchbandhiya community has its own history, organic intellectuals and community leaders, and they are also asserting for a dignified life but their resistance is fragmented and limited to community level. Their resistance is not capable of making headlines in public sphere because of their stigmatized identity.

In this democratic assertion, only a few castes and a small section of Dalits acquired visibility, while a huge cluster of Dalit communities remained far from democracy. This large section still remains voiceless and invisible despite so many years of BSP’s emergence. The marginalized communities that have gained power and are empowered do not want to share with their less-fortunate brethren. Thus, a dominant section has been created among the Dalit castes, many of them are on the margins. Even within the dominant caste, an elite section has taken advantage of identity politics and gained control of resources. Thus, a class hierarchy has emerged within the same caste, where the upper class dominates the lower classes in the same caste. This is why identity politics, in democracies, initially has a liberating and empowering influence on the dignity and self-respect of the marginalized but, after some time, when the dominant section of the caste hegemonizes the process of identity-making it disempowers a large section of its own people (Narayan, 2015). Identity politics provides democratic empowerment of a few communities or specific sections of communities, while, on the other hand, it produces disempowerment of people within these communities who are not yet able to understand the language of democracy and thus lag behind. The voice of a community is one that can be heard or recognized in a democracy if it acquires the ‘capacity’ to be heard. Communities need to attain a level from which they can aspire, for visibility. The capacity to aspire creates the ‘capacity to demand’. According to Sen, ‘in a democracy, people tend to get what they demand more crucially, they do not get what they do not demand’. Thus, the consciousness of demand and a lack of it in a democracy play a crucial role in making communities acquire visibility and demanding their rights. However, many other Dalit castes despite of considerable numbers are insignificant in vote bank politics and continue to face exclusion. Apart from these, there are many Dalit castes that have fewer numbers such as Bahelia, Kuchbandhiya, Khairha, Kalabaaz, Balai and so on. These castes are not visible in political domain as they lack the politics that can provide them visibility. This way these communities become more vulnerable, invisible and mute in public sphere. Thus within the Dalits, a new section called Ati-Dalit (lowest of the low) has developed as a result of this exclusion (Narayan, 2015).

Interaction with Community Members

During semi-participant observation, my first interaction with Vishnu Panda, priest of the community (a devout worshipper of the deity of Goddess Kali), was surprised when I asked for water. He then asked a child to go hurry up and fetch some water. After which he and other community members felt comfortable around me. He said very innocently ‘what is the reason to come to our home. Son, how should we serve you?’ I asked him to help me initiate conversation with the men, women and children of the community which he readily agreed to do (Vishnu, personal communication, 12 November 2015).

Socio-economic Conditions

When I reached my field area, community’ member Vishnu Panda responded to me ‘kahin Babu, kaisin aana hua hamar garib khane mai, batava kaisin seva kre aapki hum to bahut chhotan hai seva kai layak bhi nhi hai”. (Say Babu, why have to come to our poor house, how can we serve you, we are low not even worthy of serving you.) Community people informed us that they have no access to any of the welfare schemes launched by the government for the uplift of the downtrodden sections. The benefits of reservation make no sense to them. Most of the people are illiterate. In their hamlets, there are no primary schools. Many children or young people work as labourers and supplement the family income by working in rag picking, selling dry fruits, rickshaw pulling, etc. The people of these communities still live in small, thatched huts. Their Patti is like a village slum. In the name of development, there are some Pucca houses (walls made from bricks and roof covered from Kush grass or thick plastic sheets), and few roads and electricity poles (without electric wires) are available in the hamlets. In the name of drinking facility, there are only three handpumps between four hamlets. In every hamlet, at most 60–80 people are living. At present, only one handpump is working but other three are not. These facilities are provided to them in the period of election by the candidates for votes. They have no Antyodaya cards, BPL cards or APL cards. Without any valid ID proof, they could not access the benefits of government policy. They always live in fear that any time anybody can displace them from their homes. They are most marginalized in the SCs. They are powerless, resourceless, identity less and voiceless persons. ⁶

Occupational Displacement

For a long time, they were dependent on natural resources. They were very skilled in their work. Their identity and existence were based on this work. With the end of the work, their identity and voice were also becoming weaker. It could be said that it stands on the verge of extinction. Traditional occupations of the Kuchbandhiya was hunting, going into the forests to collect honey, extracting roots of the khas grass, and collecting reeds from banks of the rivers. From the stalks of the Munji grass they made ropes which they sold in villages. They also made things of domestic use from Kush grass, roots and flowers of Palash (Chivala) tree were used to make colors. They earned good money on the occasion of Holi, weddings, etc. They used to make granules from the grass of the Khas, whose sales were good in March-June (summer days) (Jagdish, personal communication, 12 November 2015). They used to go to villages and cities, selling things made of wild raw materials. At present, due to the impact of marketization in the villages and cities, the access to cooler, AC and things made of plastic in every household has completely eliminated this work. Since past few years, the community has been forced to leave its work. Some people have even given up. The community was also involved in tanning of leather from which drums are made. They engaged in dog, cow and lizard husbandry (GOY). Ever since the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 has been implemented, their access to the forest has been completely eliminated and the community has become completely unemployed. In rural and urban areas, there was a passion for their gymnasiums and potential drugs. In the current times, they have now been replaced by the private fitness trainers, and these people have lost their self-employing work. At present, the forests are being destroyed in the name of development projects. The people who were dependent on forests are being displaced. This community is finding it very difficult to find wild products. They have been forced to leave their traditional occupation. The community is also coming to an end with the end of the forests. It is not that before it was a golden period in their life, but these sectarian groups did not have so much helplessness. After the market has penetrated the villages with tremendous strength, these attributes have deepened in other groups making them unemployed and mute.

At present, in Bundelkhand division of Uttar Pradesh, only 7.92 per cent forest area is left. ‘15% in Lalitpur, 16.4% in Chitrakoot, 6.9% in Jhansi, 5.6% in Jalaun, 6.2% in Hamirpur, 4.2% in Mahoba and 1.2% in Banda are forest areas’. ⁷ This statistics shows that there was no scope for destruction of forests in Bundelkhand division. The tribals and nomadic communities also have been displaced. The cost of this destruction of nature is being paid by the people of the nomadic Kutchchandia community.

Claiming Their Dignified Identity

In my field survey, I found that this community is asserting its dignified identity. But their voices and resistance are fragmented. They have their own caste history, culture and gods and goddess. They have powerfully claimed that their ancestors were very brave and kindhearted. They fought against the British rule for the independence. And they feel pride in being Kuchbandhiya. They have their own community booklets that glorify the community. When asked if they are a sub-caste of Kanjars, the community members collectively denied any association with them. According to Hukum singh, Kanjars engaged in theft and other criminal works but they did not do anything as such (Hukum Singh, personal communication, 18 December 2015). They said that they were Kshatriyas and worked with honesty. It is interesting to note that they wish to be identified as Kuchbandhiyas, a separate identity from Kanjars. They said that they belonged to Sisodiya Dynasty of Maharana Pratap. Their original name is from the Sanskrit word Kanana-chara, which means wanderer in the jungle. They proudly proclaimed that their Kooch ⁸ and Khanta ⁹ went as far as Delhi. Each member of the community uses kooch, khanta and goy for claiming their identity. But the state does not recognize their identity and continues their marginalization. One interesting thing they believed was that they were above Chamars, Pasis or Dhobis. They avoid food from Dhobi, Bhangi and Chamar communities. They accept cooked and uncooked food and water from Thakur, Brahman, Lodh and Yadav castes. They also follow codes of conducts of Hinduism. Their community deity is Manna and Kuchbandhiya Baba. With the shrinking of facilities within the SCs, these small castes now desire to crossover to the ST category. Kuchbandhiya wants Bhotia tribe identity in the state category. I met and talked with several people from Kuchbandhiya community of Bundelkhand region. All of them demand that they get recognition in Bhotia tribe. Their justification for this crossover is that they had originally been forest dwellers who had later moved to plain land and became a part of the SCs but in the process, they had been outcompeted by the bigger, powerful and more dominant SC castes. This is not a problem of a particular caste but a challenge faced by 62 of the 66 castes among Dalits in Uttar Pradesh. Their anguish is similar. Castes such as Dusadh, Bansphor, Kanjar, Kharvar, Dom, Nat, Bahelia, Kabutara, Kalabaaz, etc. only have small population size, but the literacy level among them is also very low. Very few youths among them have passed high-school exams.

Control by Upper Caste

When asked for how many years have they been living here, Kuchbadhiya people replied that they were living there for 20–25 years. They told me that few years ago they all lived in Umanniya village. ¹⁰ But they left their village because they were facing some problems. When asked about the problem they responded that they were working for the upper caste, and fighting for them who would beat them up and abuse them: ‘Upar vale ne tumhein banaya hai hamari seva karne ke liye’ (The Almighty has made you [precisely] to serve us). ‘Hamare joothe tukde khane valon, hamare bailon-bhaison ke gobar mein se dane nikalkar khane valon, hamare mare hue jaanvar khane vaalon, hamare saamne tumhari himmat kaise hoti hai hamare khilaf baat karne ki.’ (You who eat the crumbs we leave for you, who eat the grains you pick out of the dung of our cattle, who eat our dead animals, how dare you speak out against us [or, for that matter, even ‘speak’] in our presence…)? One day we denied that we will not work and fight for them. Then those people (upper caste) burned our houses and displaced us from our land (Radhe Shayam, personal communication, 22 January 2015). Angoori (aged 35) said ‘Jo log daba de or daga de’ (if people suppress and cheat you), then one should not live there (Angoori, personal communication, 18 December 2015). There was some problem so they had to leave that place. They are less in numbers, so they could not fight and they left that place for the sake of security of our children. Then they came here and live in congested huts. Sarkar (government) do not do anything for us. They are so weak therefore they cannot fight for our identity, self-respect and dignity. If they plan to do something for ourselves, then upper caste people do not allow that. And they always face abuses and humiliation due to our stigmatized identity. A general perception exists about these communities manifested in every day utterances like: ‘They are lazy’, ‘They are habitual thieves’, ‘and they cannot save’, ‘They enjoy their idleness’, ‘They lack the ability to handle wealth and liberty’. They have their own set of problems with upper castes. They were told that ‘you are uncivilized, illiterate beasts who do not know how to talk in front of officials in tehsil/court. You should do what you are advised to’. So upper castes and even dominant Dalits want to rule over them. Upper caste domination, harassment, social control, ridicule and contemporary politics and politicians (who do not support them because they are less in numbers) and modernity and development (which has seized their traditional occupation) are also responsible for muting the community.

Their Interaction with the State

These small Dalit groups say that some big and influential castes within the SC category have usurped all the benefits meant for the entire section for their own good. The dominant castes grabbed all the benefits and they were left empty-handed due to being small and insignificant and they lacked powerful voices.

The benefits of government schemes do not reach them because they are not educated and lack political leadership. Thus, they are unable to make their presence felt in the discourses and debate within the SCs and are largely invisible. State government officials, such as District Magistrates (DMs), Sub Divisional Magistrates (SDMs), Block Development Officers (BDOs), who are responsible for protecting and developing these castes are not even aware of them. When asked if they have any caste certificate, they responded negatively. Many times they tried for caste certificate and they all went to Tehsil through the Lekhpal. They all paid money for this but it was of no use. In 2005, they went to SDM court to complaint. They said sahib that they have a complaint and they all belong to Kuchbandhiya community and are very poor and illiterate. They requested sahib to issue their identity cards. Then SDM said that their caste is not in the records and not mentioned in their list. If they want to have voter card or caste certificate they have to go to High Court and file a case. If decision comes in their favour, then he will issue their caste certificate. He also said not to come there next time. They were surprised that on the one hand, state is not ready to recognize them as Dalits and on the other, they were treated as outcasts. Somehow, they have accepted this status. Due to such unending tortures, they feel better to be mute and anyhow get bread to survive. This shows that their hidden assertion/resistance is for the betterment of life and identity. Their resistance does not make headlines because of lack of education, icons, heroes, community leaders, lesser numbers and so on. These are the major causes of their backwardness. Community resistance is limited only on the grassroot level.

Formation of Muteness of Community

The study areas are different districts of Bundelkhand region. This study concentrates on marginalization of the marginally living Kuchbandhiya community of this region. The community is categorized (by name of Kanjar and not Kuchbandhiya) under the SC category in the district census handbook. Upper castes, upper Dalit classes, social structure and contemporary modernity and development are responsible for their marginalization, invisibility and muteness. Study traces the sense of relative deprivation of most backward small Dalit groups in Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh. In this community, culture of silence also exists where people usually do not speak unless spoken to or asked a question, where people respect the views of elders and they do not contradict what has been agreed upon. This culture of silence means the views of certain community members are not heard, and this culture of not speaking out, raising questions, questioning decisions made by community, upper caste people, state, elders and leaders sometimes culminates in conflicts between resource users and resource owners. During my fieldwork, I observed that the presence of state-led democracy in the everyday life of people works in different communities in distinct ways. First it makes them economically dependent on the state, and second it makes them feel more deprived than other communities.

Conclusion

We may find that communities such as Kuchbandhiya have not become invisible in a day or in recent times. They have a long history of deprivation, which made them mute with the process of humiliation and exclusion. This history is due to their sharing of Dalit identity. But the sad part of the story is that due to exposure to modernist discourses few Dalit castes have become visible and have started speaking for themselves. They question the given/imposed identity and assert against it. Due to this resistance, they have become able to capture the state’s attention and somehow get a small share in power and discourses. They have tried to deconstruct all the histories and stigma that devalue them and reconstruct their caste history based on cultural symbols to assert a dignified identity. This has helped them to assert and aspire and to construct political consciousness simultaneously. All such efforts have helped them to get some share in power and dignity in life. But this mobility has also pushed their fellow communities further behind and deprived them. Due to lack of community leaders, organic intellectuals, education, they were unable to assert their identities and suffer marginalization and oppression. We have to understand this heterogeneity, only then we would be able to understand the pain and stigma of the most marginal Dalits.