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Protecting the Rights of Dalits and Adivasis In addition to policies our country also has specific laws that guard against the discrimination and exploitation of marginalised communities. Let us read the following case- study, adapted from a real-life account, to understand how You may have read Kabir’s Dalits use the protection that laws provide. poems in your language textbooks. Kabir was a fifteenth The villagers of Jakmalgur are gearing up for a big festival. century poet and weaver who also belonged to the Bhakti Once in five years, the local deity is honoured and priests tradition. Kabir’s poetry spoke from 20 neighbouring villages come for this five-day event. about his love for the supreme The ceremony begins with a member of the Dalit community being free of ritual and priests. washing the feet of all the priests and then bathing in the It also expresses his sharp and water used for this. In Jakmalgur, the person who performed pointed criticism of those he this task belonged to Rathnam’s family. His father and saw as powerful. Kabir attacked those who attempted to define grandfather had both performed the same task before him. individuals on the basis of their Though they were never allowed to enter the temple, this religious and caste identities. ritual was viewed as a great honour bestowed on them on In his view every person had this special occasion. Now it was Rathnam’s turn. Rathnam the ability to reach the highest level of spiritual salvation and was all of 20 years, studying engineering in a nearby college. deep knowledge within He refused to perform the ritual. themselves through their own He said that he had no faith in this practice and that his experience. His poetry brings family members were forced to perform this ritual because out the powerful idea of the equality of all human beings they were Dalits. Rathnam’s refusal angered both the and their labour. He writes powerful castes in the village and some families from his about valuing the work of the own community. The powerful castes were shocked that ordinary potter, the weaver and the woman carrying the water such a young boy had the guts to refuse. They believed pot – labour that in his poetry that it was Rathnam’s education which allowed him to becomes the basis of imagine that he could start comparing himself with them. understanding the entire Those from Rathnam’s own caste were fearful of angering universe. His direct, courageous challenge inspired many and the powerful. Many worked on their fields as daily-wage even today Kabir’s poetry is labourers. If the dominant castes decided to not call them, sung and appreciated by Dalits, then what would they earn? How would they survive? They marginalised groups and those critical of social hierarchies in also declared that the wrath of the local deity would strike U.P., Rajasthan, Punjab, Madhya them if they refused to give in. Rathnam argued that given Pradesh, Bengal, Bihar and that not a single Dalit had ever entered the temple, how Gujarat. could the deity be angry with them? Social and Political Life 78 2024-25