Caste Politics

Caste is oxygen for politics. Like oxygen, it is ubiquitous but cannot be seen. As oxygen sustains life, caste sustains society. As oxygen fuels the fire, caste ignites the emotions. Politics is like carbon dioxide. It is a powerful and instant remedy for the fire. For politicians, the caste politics is chapter-1 of their political initiation. From then, it is an integral part of the political career. In fact, during the past six decades almost every politician mastered the art of caste politics and took it to new heights. While constitution guarantees quotas for SC / ST category, politicians have amicable solution & went a step ahead, settled with quotas for each castes in different constituencies.

Caste Politics is all about Mathematics. In simple terms it is additions, subtractions and divisions. But for those people who have matured this art, they play at even higher level - integration and differentiation. While BJP plays largely with arithmetic of additions and divisions, all other parties including communists play at the level of integration and differentiation. What ever level they play, all these parties and politicians essentially see this mathematics as an opportunity for their political betterment.

This week B V Raghavulu made big news in Andhra Politics. His theme (mathematics) is Integration. He wanted to see integration as a route for the betterment for those deprived classes. He went on fast on to death, until Andhra Pradesh Government agreed to his demands. What are these demands? He wanted the Government to solve the problems of these deprived classes. This demand at the outset looks a holy cause. Government agreed to constitute a commission and will send a team to Maharastra. Raghavulu took the lime juice. All those people for whose cause he went on fast rallied behind him. Raghavulu became a hero.

Good opportunity, good timing and good result. This issue will take a natural death until the next politician wants oxygen and wanted develop some mathematical equations.

But the truth is, even after another six decades the problems of these deprived communities will remain same. Sooner these people realise that their destiny is in their own hands it is good for them. Else, they will remain as numbers in arithmetic or variables in equations!