Why not call ‘lower castes’ by their name wonders BJP MP Pragya Thakur

In a shocking statement attempting to legitimise the highly discriminatory caste system, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Pragya Thakur attempted to advocate for the Varna system at a Kshatriya Mahasabha in Sehore district of Madhya Pradesh on December 12, 2020.

Thakur said that while the society has been divided into four categories by the ‘dharmashatra’ (social treatise) only the ‘Shudra’ caste is hurt by its own label because of their “ignorance” regarding the social system.

“If Kshatriyas are called Kshatriyas, they do not feel bad. But when Shudras are called Shudras, they are hurt. Why? Because they do not understand,” she said.

Her speech garnered considerable criticism on Twitter:

Aside from this short excerpt, Thakur went on to say that people should choose professions based on their caste and encouraged the women present to “understand their duties and produce more and more children to induct them into the Armed Forces so that they can fight for the nation and strengthen its security.”

Never mind that the Architect of the Indian Constitution Babasaheb B. R. Ambedkar, social reformers Mahatma Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule, social activist Periyar E. V. Ramaswamy, religious icon Gautam Buddha and many other Indian personalities spent their lives fighting these very tenants of the caste system.

During her speech, Thakur also attacked the ongoing farmers’ protest calling protesters “anti-nationals.” She argued that those people are not farmers but Congressmen and Leftists in the garb of farmers who raise their voice against the country and spread misinformation.

Meanwhile, the Akhil Bharatiya Kshatriya Mahasabha told the Indian Express that Thakur’s “own people” had organised the event.

Thakur’s insistence to offer reservation on the basis of economic backwardness rather than caste indicates her own origin from the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh, a right-wing Hindutva party to which her father belonged that promoted caste discrimination.

The MP is an accused in the Malegaon bombings of 2008 wherein 10 people were killed and 82 injured. She is also under trial for charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) although unlike most political activists detained under this Act, Thakur was granted bail on medical grounds.

In 2019, she joined the BJP and since then has made many insensitive remarks that have been widely condemned by Indian society. During the Lok Sabha elections, Thakur claimed that former Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare died during the 26/11 attacks because she cursed him for not treating her well during her arrest. Later, she called Nathuram Godse, the man who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi “a patriot.”

During elections, she boasted of participating in the Babri Masjid demolition of 1992, an incident that severely affected the Hindu-Muslim relations in the country and later on went on to say that ‘cow urine’ – a liquid held in high-regard by Hindutva elements – cures cancer.

Each of her statements specifically cater to right-wing notions of Hindutva from trying to reinstitute the caste system to boasting open hatred towards the Muslim community.

Her recent comments now raise a question as to why a person who makes such caustic remarks is allowed to hold the post of a Member of Parliament.

Related:

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Malegaon blast case: Court rejects Pragya’s plea seeking exemption from appearing for trail