Debating the 'Dalit' word

On December 19, 2023, veteran Nepalese communist leader and upper-house parliamentarian Bamdev Gautam caused quite a stir in the Dalit community by suggesting that the word 'Dalit' must be removed from official documents, including the constitution and the law.

- MITRA PARIYAR

He made a fallacious argument that removing the word Dalit from all written documents would somehow emancipate that community and guarantee their rights.

Speaking to the National Assembly's Development, Economic Affairs and Good Governance, Gautam said, "Let's remove the term Dalit from our dictionary... On the one hand, we decry discrimination against Dalits and the infringement of their rights; but on the other, our language, acts, constitution, law as well as documents written by the scholars all refer to them as Dalits."

No doubt, Dalit has become a controversial term over the years, even within the Dalit community. Social media is full of comments from ordinary people, most of whom are upper castes, where the word is presented as a kind of license to dominate and discriminate against the "untouchables".

And, strangely, some Dalits themselves tend to agree! Especially the younger generation of Dalits, particularly those from the towns and with some opportunities and privileges, harbor a degree of disgust with the word. They think Dalit identity, Dalit quotas and Dalit literature have further exposed them to discrimination. There's some truth in that, of course, but it's a mistaken understanding.

But this is the first time a senior communist politician—a former deputy prime minister and home minister—has expressed his anger at the Dalit word. How do we understand this attitude of a senior politician towards us? What does he want by attacking Dalit identity, one wonders: True liberation of Dalits or the end of their limited access to power and privilege?

Gautam's assertion on removing the word Dalit from legal and official documents and literature apparently for their own sake doesn't make any sense. There's no evidence to suggest that simply getting rid of a word automatically liberates the community from traditional oppression.