Democratic Politics

The intricate relations between caste-based identity politics and anti-caste social associations and visions in West Bengal are unravelled, based on findings from a micro study conducted in a village in Nadia district between November 2020 and March 2021. In-depth interviews too were conducted with Namasudra leaders, the anti-caste Matua sect, and Matua dals (village associations) in Nadia and North 24 Parganas districts. While the discourse on citizenship and the long experience of social and political marginalisation have resulted in a strategic polarisation of the Matuas towards the politics of Hindutva, this has never stifled their quest for social justice.The intricate relations between caste-based identity politics and anti-caste social associations and visions in West Bengal are unravelled, based on findings from a micro study conducted in a village in Nadia district between November 2020 and March 2021. In-depth interviews too were conducted with Namasudra leaders, the anti-caste Matua sect, and Matua dals (village associations) in Nadia and North 24 Parganas districts. While the discourse on citizenship and the long experience of social and political marginalisation have resulted in a strategic polarisation of the Matuas towards the politics of Hindutva, this has never stifled their quest for social justice.

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