Volume 14, No 1, 2017
Role And Impact Of Elected Dalit Women In Local Governance: A Case Study Of Kolar District
Dr. Umesh K
Abstract
An important political development in India over the last few decades has been the Dalit struggle for identity and rights. The term "Dalit" was occasionally used by Ambedkar, but it was first introduced by Jotiba Phule in the nineteenth century to describe the oppression faced by the 'untouchable' castes of Hindu society in India (Phule, 1873). The principle of purity and pollution was central to the relations between the upper and lower castes in India, and ritually impure occupations were historically associated with the Dalits (Ambedkar, 1936). The term "Dalit" became popular in the 1960s among Marathi writers and neo-Buddhists (Nagaraj, 1994). According to Victor Premasagar, the term expresses the weakness, poverty, and humiliation faced by Dalits at the hands of the upper castes in Indian society (Premasagar, 2000). Although the term does not have a reference in historical texts, it is said to be derived from Sanskrit, meaning "suppressed" or "crushed" (Sharma, 2010). "However, if the principle of exploitation is applied, all the socially, politically, and economically oppressed sections of Indian society are Dalits" (Sharma, 2010, p. 23).
Pages: 86-91
Keywords: Dalit identity not only expresses who Dalits are but also conveys their aspirations, struggles for change, and revolution (Guru, 2009).