CHAITANYA MARPAKWAR Mumbai A taxi driver, an angry panther and a literary genius popularly called the poet of the underworld; Namdeo Dhasal is arguably one of the most influential Dalit intellectuals alive.
Dhasal is a poet who crea
ted a sensation with his poems and an intellectual who crated sensation with his militant brand of Dalit activism.
As his once militant alt39 Dalit Pantheralt39 turns forty, Dhasal, now 62, recalls his journey as a poet in the literally world and as a militant Dalit activist in politics.
Dhasal is also probably the only Dalit leader alive who grew up in Mumbais infamous red light district, has rubbed shoulders with notorious gangsters, as well as the top political leadership of Maharashtra and won the Padma Shri too.
Having tried and tested different political combinations and ideologies from across the spectrum over the years, having seen Maharashtras Dalit movement from close quarters, Dhasal admits in a candid confession that political bargaining by Dalit leaders has been the main reason for the failure of the Dalit movement.
” Right through the postindependence period, Dalit parties and leaders have indulged in political bargaining.
That is the real reason for the failure of the Dalit movement. Even today, Dalits are struggling to get a majority stake in power in spite of being a majority in population. Political bargaining has been a constant part of Dalit politics. All our leaders including contemporary ones have tried to latch on to ruling parties, they never cared for the people but only cared for power, our own leaders are to blame for the state of affairs today,” Dhasal, now a veteran Dalit leader told FPJ in an freewheeling chat.
Dhasal founded the Dalit Panther in April 1972 along with his associates, Raja Dhale and Arun Kamble.
The Dalit Panther was inspired by the Black Panther Party, a revolutionary movement amongst African- Americans in the US, which saw its heydays in the 1970s and the 80s. It was a radical departure from earlier Dalit movements.
Its initial thrust on militancy through the use of rustic arms and threats, gave the movement a revolutionary coloration. While the movement attracted Dalit youth from across the state, it was Dhasal who gave intellectual ammunition to the organization.
Dhasal is the only Indian poet to have received a lifetime achievement Award from countrys top literary institution, the Sahitya Akademi.
He delights in shocking, in shaking up the staid, in stirring up controversies.
The more his critics are exasperated, the more he enjoys being outrageous. As an activist, Dhasal has repeatedly taken shocking political positions – in 1975, he supported the Emergency; in 1997, he allied with the Shiv Sena, to which the Dalit Panther had been violently opposed for decades; in 2006, he appeared on the RSS platform. More recently, he once again allied with the saffron combine ahead of the municipal elections in Mumbai. The formula failed but Dhasal has no regrets.
” I have no regrets but let me tell you, no political party in the country is serious about the Dalit people. No one interested in abolishing the caste system, they all want Dalit votes but donalt39t want them rise up socially,” Dhasal says. Dhasal writes a weekly column in alt39 Saamnaalt39, the Shiv Senas mouth piece.
Dhasal points out that the entire Dalit movement is increasingly becoming sectarian, which is one of the main hurdles in its success.
” Its been more than six decades since independence but still our social fabric is divided. As a people we are together but socially there are many divisions. Such a sectarian society has no future.
Dalit leaders of today are anti- Hindu and indulge in sectarian politics. How can you abolish caste system without taking on board the upper caste, I think thats where the Dalit movement and subsequent politics has failed the Dalit people,” Dhasal says.
Those close to him say Dhasal is a maverick; he changes political stance
