Caste and Village Society

• Caste and village society

The Dominant Caste

• The idea was first expressed by M.N. Srinivas in 1955.
• The dominant caste is greater in number than other castes.
• The dominant caste has great economic and political power.
• A large and powerful caste group can more easily be dominant if its position in the local caste hierarchy is not too low.

Criticism of the Idea of Dominant Caste

• Class differences exist within a single caste.
• Power might be shared between different castes in some villages, and would not be confined to a dominant caste.

Oliver Mendelsohn's perspective

• The idea of the dominant caste is an important observation made by M.N. Srinivas in the 1950s.
• Mendelsohn argues that by this time the idea of the dominant caste was vanishing.

Dominance Through Judicial Authority

• Dominance can be identified by the capability to exercise juridical authority, do justice, or settle dispute.

• The caste panchayat, the panchayat of the dominant caste, and official courts give justice.

• M.N.Srinivas claims that the dominant caste settles disputes in three cases:

  • When both parties are from non-dominant castes
  • When both parties are from one (non dominant) caste

• A caste panchayat has authority to settle disputes internal to its own caste.

Devisar: A Village in Jaipur District

• Anand Chakraverti did fieldwork in 1964/65.
• His study shows that the Rajput phase was in the past.
• Jagirdari abolition in 1954 deprived Rajputs of much of their land.
• Land was redistributed to Jats, Kumavats and Ahirs.
• Chakraverti does not seem to regard the loss of land by the Rajputs as the main reason for the destruction of their dominant status.
• He emphasizes the ideological and general political environment outside the village and also leadership factors internal to the village.
• Rajput power loss took place due to:
  • Land redistribution
  • Impact of political landscape as Congress gained influence over the local population
  • Other caste groups such as Jats gained political and social power
  • New leaders in village emerged

Rajput Status Prior to Loss of Power

• Case 1: In 1928, there was a dispute regarding a relationship between a Brahmin widow and a Mahajan man.
  • Both were removed from their caste and the assistance of the Rajput landholders was sought to bring this resolution.
  • The two paid a fine of 11 rupees and were readmitted to their caste.
  • One would have expected the problem to be handled by the Brahmin and Mahajan caste panchayat sitting separately.
• Case 2: In 1924, an altercation arose because a calf strayed into field where it did not belong, and it led to an Ahir hitting a Rajput.
  • All of the Rajputs met afterwards and suggested a fine of 101 rupees.
• Case 3: In 1954, a dispute rose about illicit milking of goats that belonged to a Raegar. During the altercation, the Rajput lost his temper and struck one of the Raegars with a rake.
  • All the Raegars were asked to bow down in symbolic submission and apologize before the father of the Rajput who was hit.
• The Ahirs and Raegars were punished because they returned blows or refused to do a polluting job which traditionally they had to.
• They were challenging the authority of the Rajputs.

Behror: Oliver Mendelsohn's Analysis

• Oliver Mendelsohn studied the village from the 1970s to the early 2000s.
• In Behror, the dominant landholding caste are the Ahirs. This pattern is centuries old, but to visualize the pattern today is complicated.
• The Ahirs did not possess any power in terms of settling disputes for other castes.
• They lacked economic power to make the rest of the village dependent on them.
• The Jajmani system (client patron system of exchange of goods and services) is mostly absent.

Factors that Changed the Village Structure

• Villagers in Behror are now engaged in economic activity outside the village.
• Many other castes, such as Bhangis, are not dependent on Ahirs for employment.
• Green revolution led to agricultural expansion, and the condition of Bhangis improved.
• Bhangis have migrated to other cities for work and left the traditional occupation of sweeping.

Migration in Other Communities

• Brahmins for a long time moved on to take other respectable occupations - medicine and army.
• The Ahirs want their sons, and to a less extent their daughters, to study outside the village and operate trucking and bus lines, stone quarries.

Ahirs and Lack of Unity Within the Community

• Individualism and family centredness have replaced caste solidarity.
• The Ahirs never meet as a community (e.g. Panchayat).
• They might gather for weddings and funerals, but they do not hold any meetings of their community.
• Disappearance of caste panchayat.
• In some low caste communities, especially the untouchable castes, the panchayat is still important
  • But a Bhangi tailor predicts that increased money will soon erode the solidarity of the community
• MLA from some other community might intervene in disputes now