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They
are not simply restrictions but severe limitations bordering on
exclusion of Brahmins altogether. Above all, the lower classes of
India are taught to blame the Brahmins for their backward state
economically or educationally. This anti-Brahmin communalism masks
itself as anti-communalism, as if the existence of Brahmins as a
group was the basis of all other communal problems.
Anti-Brahminism has been put forth as
a way of rectifying class inequalities, as if these were all the
fault of the Brahmins. The Brahmins are decried as the corrupt
"upper classes," as if they were in control of the wealth
and power of the country. But instead of bringing about social
integration this anti-Brahminism promotes division in society and
reinforces communal identities. It does not address the core issues
of social inequality but rather turns the Brahmin class into a
scapegoat.
Putting down the Brahmins is not
going to raise up the lower classes of India, though it may bring
votes to certain political parties whose concern is short term
electoral gains. On the contrary, it is bound to depress the
intelligence of the country and to remove attention from the real
problems, which are poverty, lack of education, overpopulation and
corruption, and rigid class and religious identities of all types.
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