Generally, most high ranking castes occupied high economic positions, and the majority of the untouchable castes were confined to the lowest economic positions.

For people questioning why JusticeforJisha is not making headlines like Nirbhaya She is a Dalit woman. Dalit Dhamma ( dalitdhamma) 2 May 2016 Dalit means oppressed and is the self chosen political name for castes historically considered untouchable within the Hindu caste system.

There was an elaborate gradation and hierarchy among the middle ranking and even untouchable castes, which governed interaction between them and kept inter caste socialization to a minimum.

Historically, the rich in each low caste emulated the customs and rituals of the upper castes, such as child marriage, the payment of dowries, and prevention of widows remarrying.

The size of holdings was similar for most upper castes and some lower castes.

Of course, every kind of pogrom against castes, tribes, religions has been seen here.

But India s democracy has opened new pathways to empowerment for its underclasses.

Some of the traditional literary castes also embraced Westernization.

Most other cultivating and artisan castes, enjoying similar ritual ranks as the financially more successful group, occupied much lower economic positions, which resulted in an amazing degree of heterogeneity among backward castes.

This helps co opt the elite among the lower castes to the ruling coalition, and keeps the poor divided along caste lines.

The third front involves assorted petty particularisms parties representing the sectarian interests of specific castes, sub regions, or linguistic groups.

The most obvious fact in the data is the great disparity in the economic positions of castes sharing the same ritual rank.

What about OBCs and Dalits who think that it is their right to gain this status by wearing gold?

What about OBCs and Dalits who hopelessly believe that they can confront the casteist patriarchy by wearing gold?

2. old social barriers to education for girls and lower castes are giving way, under democratic pressures, to strong calls for universal education.

India suffered caste conflicts, clashes over the rights of different linguistic groups, religious riots (mainly between Hindus and Muslims), and separatist threats.

Such differences are particularly acute for middle ranking castes, which are now called OBC s, and are observed in all parts of India.

Among the middle ranking, agricultural castes, some had high economic status due to improved agriculture, brought about by canal irrigation and commercialization. Most other cultivating and artisan castes, enjoying similar ritual ranks as the financially more successful group, occupied much lower economic positions, which resulted in an amazing degree of heterogeneity among backward castes.

Among the middle ranking, agricultural castes, some had high economic status due to improved agriculture, brought about by canal irrigation and commercialization.

Farmers, the single largest occupational group in most castes, with ritual rank ranging from high to low, were highly differentiated in terms of size and economic status.

Due to the lack of drainage system, manual scavenging (cleaning human waste by hand) was designated to the lowest caste called the untouchables , a practice that is very much prevalent among upper castes to this day.

Dalits and India s aboriginals (listed in the Constitution as Scheduled Castes and Tribes ) are entitled to 85 seats in India s 543 member parliament that are reserved for candidates from their communities.

What about the OBCs and Dalits who cannot manage to wear gold even when they wish to do so, especially in the socio cultural context of Kerala where gold symbolises social status!

Mayawati s shrewd alliances, including with some members of the upper castes, which propelled her to power in Uttar Pradesh, give her party a fighting chance to win a number of other seats as well.

Indeed, nowadays political parties dangle the carrot of reservations to ever more castes, and even promise to extend the policy to admissions into elite educational institutions and the private sector.

Mayawati s shrewd alliances, including with some members of the upper castes, which propelled her to power in Uttar Pradesh, give her party a fighting chance to win a number of other seats as well.

Sonia Gandhi and her family should also take credit for putting at the forefront of their campaign a vision of an inclusive society, which rejects divisions on the basis of caste, ethnicity, language, and religion.