What was the caste structure in Madras presidency as per 1901 census?
Let us first take the data from Madras Presidency and do a detailed analysis based on this.
The Gradation given in Madras Presidency is given below
So clearly there is a list of castes in various region in Madras Presidency.
In this it is noticeably clear that there was around 6% of the population who were twice borns. However, 31% of the Hindus were Good Sudras who were like the forward castes.
Now in Class V, we see a small amount of untouchability towards these communities. This is around 16% of the population. However extreme untouchability was also practiced against Shudras in Class VI( 11%) and Class VII( 6%) of the Hindu Population.
Class VIII, IX, X are exterior castes who form 27% of the total Hindu Population. They are the Scheduled castes.
Surprisingly, we see Lingayat’s being placed at Class XI who just form 3% of the total population in Madras Presidency.
So, we have the following, Twice Born castes( I, II, III) are around 5.7% of the total Hindu Population. The Sat Sudra or Good Shudras form almost 31% of the population. Next is those Sudras where Brahmins are employed as purohit but whose touch pollutes to a slight extent. Next is the pollution is high and hence they are considered lower. So Sl No VI and VII, untouchability exists, but they there are still considered to be Sudras.
Now let us take the list of Good Shudras
This data clearly shows many castes in the region like Vellala, Balija, Kapu, Kamma, Nayar, Vokkaliga where forward castes, where there was no untouchability practiced.
However, in many cases it was noticed that these castes practiced untouchability against other castes including the current day OBC’s and SC/ST.
Some prominent castes on whom some amount of untouchability/Pollution was inflicted in Madras Presidency are Agamudian, Kankolan, Maravan, Nattaman, Palli, Vaniyan. These castes are lower in status than Vellalars in Madras Presidency.
Palli is numerically higher than even Vellalar’s in Madras Presidency.
But the question to be asked now is who deserve a better reservation, whether it is the Palli or Vellalars. If you see the social backwardness, surely Palli caste should get more share of OBC reservation since they have suffered some amount of untouchability for one thousand years.
The above is the list of cases where Brahmans were going and some kind of pollution/untouchability was noticed.
Here you can see Ganiga, Kuruba, Samantiya in Karnataka. But there is some factual evidence to state that untouchability practices were done against these castes like Kuruba, Ganiga and Samantiya by upper castes and forward caste Shudras. The same pattern is going to be there in other parts of Madras Presidency.
So clearly, we can see many socially backward classes who were subjected to untouchability practices like SC/ST. However, the severity may vary. Some of them would have been included in SC/ST but many continue in OBC’s.
So, it clearly shows that OBCs are not a homogeneous group and there is a huge variation in social backwardness among themselves.
So, it is especially important to split them into three category (a) Socially Forward Shudras (b) Socially Backward Shudras and ( c ) Extremely Socially Backward Shudras.
OBC has a group is not homogeneous. There are various classes of High and Low Social Gradation.
Extremely Socially Backward Classes require adequate protection.
This analysis clearly shows the existence of socially backward classes who require adequate protection within the exceptionally large Shudra Group in southern states.
Now let us take the last set of groups who are untouchables. If we can see there is also a clear-cut gradation. However, the only gradation here is untouchable castes who eat beef and untouchable castes who don’t eat beef. Now for argument’s sake, if we take two castes who eat beef, then this classification does not indicate anything about their social backwardness. It is this crucial fact which may be necessary in analyzing whether the Exterior castes are homogeneous groups are not.
The exterior castes as per this census is divided as
(a) Exterior Castes — Untouchable castes who don’t eat beef
(b) Lowest Exterior Castes — Untouchable castes who eat beef
(c ) Other Exterior Castes — There are few touchable castes who were included in Exterior Castes. However their social status is above the Untouchable castes. The reason of their inclusion is similar social conditions that these castes where living where British India considered them equivalent to an exterior castes.
Off late there is a demand of reservation within reservation based on social backwardness within the SC/ST community. But sometimes when I see, the division asked for was within two castes who are untouchable and who eat beef. Is this bifurcation possible?
This is an enigma to me, since British compared all castes in comparison with forward castes like Brahmanas and placed in the same group. They did not compare two castes within the same category.
These are the first group of exterior castes who are considered to cause pollution, but dont eat beef. They are higher than those who eat beef
This group social is lower since they eat beef, but they dont cause pollution by touch. Eating beef is the hallmark of lowest exterior caste in Hindu Philosophy
So clearly the lowest of the exterior castes is the Castes which eat beef and pollute even without touching. These castes are the most disadvantaged ones. Numerically also they are the highest and because of neo Brahminism now, many have left eating beef, but the fact remains that eating beef some time long back put them at the last leg of the social order.
Pariayan, Chakkiliyan, Madiga, Mala, Holeya all are the lowest rungs and require protection within this exterior group.
Now whether this group can be further divided again in absence of any other fresh caste census is a larger question that needs to be addressed.
There is a bitter rivalry between Left and Right castes where traditionally left castes have been put at the lowest rungs of the caste ladder. Now various British records clearly indicate Left castes are lower in status then Right castes. A chapter on Madiga community in earlier British records will clarify that they were the lowest in the hierarchy.
