Paswan

Paswan, also known as Dusadh, are a Dalit community from eastern India.[1] They are found mainly in the states of Bihar,[2] Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand.

Paswan
An image showing 'Dusadhs' in pre independence India.
ReligionsHinduism
Languages
CountryIndia
Populated statesBihar • Uttar Pradesh •Jharkhand
RegionEastern India

Etymology

The Paswans claim their origin from a number of folk and epic characters in order to seek the upliftment in their social status. Some Paswan believe that they have originated from Rahu, a superhuman and one of the planets in Hindu mythology while others claim their origin from Dushasana, one of the Kaurava prince. The claims regarding origin from "Gahlot Kshatriya" is also persistent by some of the castemen but others view these claimants as inferior, as they do not like to be associated with Rajputs.[3]

It has also been argued by some Bhumihars, that they are scion of the cross marriage between men and women of two different castes. While, the Paswan community rejects these theories and argues the origin of the name 'Dusadh' lies in Dusadhya, meaning "who is difficult to be defeated".[3]

History

They have been considered to be an untouchable community.[4] In Bihar, they are primarily landless, agricultural labourers and have historically been village watchmen and messengers.[5] Prior to 1900, they also used to rear pigs particularly in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. The Paswans defend the occupation of rearing of pigs by stating it as a strategy to counter the Muslims. They assert that, in order to protect themselves from Muslims, Paswan girls used to wear amulets made from bones of pigs and kept pigs at their doors, given the animosity of Muslims with pigs. Since Rajputs of Rajasthan also reared as well as hunted wild pigs, this fact is used by them to defend this occupation which is corroborated by the fact that after the end of Zamindari system, the traditional occupation of serving as guards couldn't provide subsistence to them.[3]

The Paswans have also been historically associated with martial pursuits[6] and many fought on behalf of the East India Company during the 18th century in the Bengal Army.[7] The 2011 Census of India for Uttar Pradesh showed the Paswan population, which is classified as a Scheduled Caste, as being 230,593.[8] The same census showed a population of 4,945,165 in Bihar.[9]

The folk hero of the Paswans is Chauharmal. Within Paswan folklore, the tale of Chauharmal and Reshma is well known. Reshma, the daughter of a powerful Bhumihar landlord, persuades Chauharmal to marry her against her father's wishes. Eventually Chauharmal confronts his beloved's father and defeats him, symbolizing the victory of the community over their Bhumihar oppressors.[10] Other versions of the tale reject this empowering message by claiming Chauharmal was born in a Brahmin family in previous birth while Reshma was born as his wife.[11][6]

Politics

In 1900, caste association became the dominant method to pitch for the social and political rights .Hence, a number of caste association of politically aware castes were formed in the meantime.Like Koeri, Kurmi and Yadav community, Paswans also formed their own Paswan Sabha in 1911 to make claims to Kshatriya status. They were first among Dalits to achieve this feat.[12]

The Paswans emerged as a political force in Bihar, primarily after the resurgence of socialist leader Ram Vilas Paswan. Paswan floated the Lok Janshakti Party, which became an ally of Lalu Prasad Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal. Earlier, the Dalits including the Paswan community voted for Congress but during RJD-LJP alliance they became a supporter of a bloc which included their earlier preference Congress as well as the new choice LJP. It is difficult to predict the actual data regarding the population of various caste groups but according to political analysts, this new bloc of RJD-Congress aided by LJP commanded huge support from Yadav, Muslim as well as Paswan community.This social axis remained successful to offset the JDU-BJP alliance in 2004 Lok Sabha elections of Bihar.[13]

Earlier, the attempts to woo Paswans in his favour was also made by RJD chief Laloo Yadav (then Chief Minister of Bihar), who portrayed Chauharmal as an iconic figure and attempted to reconcile them with his politics of social justice. He also organised a Chauharmal Mela in 1995. Ram Vilas Paswan was too in this fray, who aimed both to champion himself as the real face of this community as well as to gather the support for his newly formed organisation, Dalit Sena.[14]

Inter-caste conflicts

Belchhi massacre

In 1970s, the Belchhi village in Bihar witnessed one of the severest massacre of Bihar's history.The root cause of the massacre was caste conflict between Paswan landless peasants and Kurmi landlords.This massacre parted the way between Kurmis and Paswans and made them skeptical of each other's activities in all spheres of life.[15]

Bhojpur rebellion

Bhojpur Rebellion is the term used to describe the internecine conflict between upper caste landlords & landless Dalits led by poor peasants from middle peasant castes during the 1960's. The cause of caste wars in Bhojpur was not only the economical issues but also the unrestricted access of upper castes to Dalit women . Here, the spark of rebellion emerged from Ekwaari village, under the leadership of Koeri militant, Jagdish Mahto, who was aided by his lieutenants namely "Ramnaresh Ram" (Ramnaresh Paswan) and Rameswar Ahir "Sadhuji." The trio organised murders of a number of upper-caste landlords under the banner of Maoism. After the encounter of its core commanders, the Maoist resurgence in Bhojpur faded away.[16][17]

Senari massacre

In the 1990s in Senari, Jahanabad district, a Maoist communist centre (MCC) unit composed primarily of Paswans and Yadavs assassinated 34 Bhumihars. A 'session Court' of Bihar awarded death penalty to ten perpetrators in 2016.[18][19]

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See also

References
  1. Mendelsohn, Oliver; Vicziany, Marika (1998). The Untouchables: Subordination, Poverty and the State in Modern India. Cambridge University Press. p. xiii. ISBN 978-0-52155-671-2.
  2. Tewary, Amarnath (27 March 2019). "Hemraj Paswan: A 'centenarian' voter shows political acuity". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  3. Narayan, Badri (2013), "Documenting Dissent", in Channa, Subhadra Mitra; Mencher, Joan P. (eds.), Life as a Dalit: Views from the Bottom on Caste in India, SAGE Publications India, p. 322,323, ISBN 978-8-13211-777-3
  4. Mendelsohn, Oliver; Vicziany, Marika (1998). The Untouchables: Subordination, Poverty and the State in Modern India. Cambridge University Press. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-52155-671-2.
  5. Hewitt, J. F. (1893). "The Tribes and Castes of Bengal, by H. H. Risley. Vols. I. and II. Ethnographic Glossary, Vols. I. and II. Anthropometric Data". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland: 237–300. ISSN 0035-869X. JSTOR 25197142.
  6. Walter Hauser (2004). "From Peasant Soldiering to Peasant Activism: Reflections on the Transition of a Martial Tradition in the Flaming Fields of Bihar". Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient. 47 (3): 401–434. doi:10.1163/1568520041974684. JSTOR 25165055.
  7. Markovits, Claude; Pouchepadass, Jacques; Subrahmanyam, Sanjay, eds. (2006). Society and Circulation: Mobile People and Itinerant Cultures in South Asia, 1750-1950. Anthem Press. p. 299. ISBN 978-1-843312-31-4.
  8. "A-10 Individual Scheduled Caste Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix - Uttar Pradesh". Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  9. "DATA HIGHLIGHTS : THE SCHEDULED CASTES Census of India 2001" (PDF). censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  10. Vibodh Parthasarathi, Guy Poitevin, Bernard Bel, Jan Brouwer, Biswajit Das (2010). Communication, Culture and Confrontation. India: SAGE Publications. ISBN 8132104862. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  11. Vibodh Parthasarathi, Guy Poitevin, Bernard Bel, Jan Brouwer, Biswajit Das (2010). Communication, Culture and Confrontation. India: SAGE Publications. p. 164,168. ISBN 8132104862. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  12. Kunnath, George (2018). Rebels From the Mud Houses: Dalits and the Making of the Maoist Revolution ... New york: Taylor and Francis group. p. 66. ISBN 978-1-138-09955-5. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  13. Kumar, Sanjay (5 June 2018). Post mandal politics in Bihar:Changing electoral patterns. SAGE publication. p. 133,134. ISBN 978-93-528-0585-3.CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  14. Kunnath, George (2018). Rebels From the Mud Houses: Dalits and the Making of the Maoist Revolution ... New york: Taylor and Francis group. p. 164,165. ISBN 978-1-138-09955-5. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  15. Sinha, A. (2011). Nitish Kumar and the Rise of Bihar. Viking. pp. 82–83. ISBN 978-0-670-08459-3. Retrieved 7 April 2015.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  16. Omvedt, Gail (1993). Reinventing Revolution: New Social Movements and the Socialist Tradition in India. M.E.Sharpe. p. 59. ISBN 0765631768. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  17. Samaddar, Ranbir (2019). From popular movement to rebellion:The Naxalite dacade. New york: Routledge. p. 317,318. ISBN 978-0-367-13466-2. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  18. Tewary, Amarnath (16 November 2016). "10 get death penalty for Senari massacre". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  19. Kumar, Ashwani (2008). Community Warriors: State, Peasants and Caste Armies in Bihar. Anthem Press. p. 165. ISBN 978-1-84331-709-8.
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