Namasudra Literature and the Politics of Caste in West Bengal

Authors

  • Rajat Roy

Keywords:

Caste, Bengal Politics, Namasudra Literature, Utopia

Abstract

The paper examines the popular claim that West Bengal politics is ‘unique’ due to an absence of caste-based assertions in the post-colonial period. By taking Namasudra literature as the primary site, the paper argues that since the late twentieth century there is numerous literature written by low caste people in West Bengal on the issue of caste. These writings have created a literate Dalit public sphere operating at the grassroots level and mainly outside the framework of governmental party politics. One of the dominant themes of Namasudra literature is the visions of anti-caste utopia. By analysing a Namasudra writer and activist Manindranath Biswas’s texts Harichand Tattwamrita, the paper argues that Dalit’s writings on history don’t follow a linear or a mythical structure; rather, there is a political exigency for history, in which utopic past/future is often invoked through a logic of circularity and yet redemptive fulfilment of time.

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Author Biography

Rajat Roy

Rajat Roy is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Presidency University, Kolkata. Before joining in Presidency University, he taught at Shaheed Bhagat Singh (E) College and Indraprastha College for Women, University of Delhi for over two years. He is also a doctoral candidate at the Centre for Political Studies, School of Social Sciences, JNU and presently writings his dissertation on Caste and Postcolonial theory. His areas of interests are Dalit literature, Caste politics, and continental philosophy.

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Published

2021-11-10

How to Cite

Roy , R. (2021). Namasudra Literature and the Politics of Caste in West Bengal. Sanglap: Journal of Literary and Cultural Inquiry, 6(1), 78–87. Retrieved from https://sanglap-journal.in/index.php/sanglap/article/view/121