CHAPTER – IV DALIT LEADERSHIP IN PUNJAB...
Transcript of CHAPTER – IV DALIT LEADERSHIP IN PUNJAB...
CHAPTER – IV DALIT LEADERSHIP IN PUNJAB – GRASSROOT TO
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY
With the dawn of independence, we adopted democracy. In a
democracy, the elected leadership plays a very significant role in
every politico-administrative organization. The elections have
provided for our polity a steady supply of leaders right from the
level of village Panchayat to that of the Parliament.1 For the process
and development of any community, leadership is considered to be
an important factor. As the Indian society is caste society and caste
continues to be a relevant factor in determining the leadership. For
a long time leadership invariable is drawn from among the higher
castes and in most of the cases leadership is an aspect of the
hereditary and family functions.2 However, the leaders come from
lower castes also. It is the constitutional provisions that force the
parties to allocate the tickets to the Dalit candidates from the
reserved constituencies. Robert D Putman has observed that
leaders who grew up in middle and upper class homes are likely to
have different political perspective from those leaders who, are
brought up in lower class homes.3 He also believes that leadership
generally favours the interest of those social groups from which
they come.4 So the study of socio-economic profile of leadership is
important because it is helpful to understand the behaviour of the
leadership. In this chapter an attempt has been made to analyse
the representation of Dalits in Panchayati Raj Institutions as well
as social and economic background of the Dalit legislators in
different Legislative Assemblies in Punjab.
Meaning of the Term Leadership
Leadership has been defined differently by different scholars.
There is no unanimity among the social scientists about the precise
meaning of leadership.
According to Bernard M. Bass "Leadership is a kind of
interaction between and among the people. Any attempt on the part
of group members to change the behaviour of one or more member
is an attempt at leadership".5
The word leadership has been widely used. Political orators,
business executives, social workers and scholars employ it in
speech and writing. Leadership is a group process through which
individuals initiate activities for achieving the common objective of
the group or community by working together, stimulating each
other, supplementing abilities and resources and evolving an
effective organizational and hierarchal pattern.6
J.M. Burns viewed leadership as a process, 'a reciprocal
process of mobilizing - with certain more or less clear motives and
objectives and, for that purpose, utilizing the resources. That
process, as he said, operated in the context of competition and
conflict. What was crucial was the nature of goals and the
reciprocal process between leaders and followers.7
Pigors says "leadership is a process of mutual stimulation
which by the successful interplay or relevant individual differences,
controls human energy in the pursuit of a common cause."8
Pennock Roland defined "leadership as the influencing and guiding
of the conduct of others in a situation where the followers act
willingly, not automatically and with some consciousness that the
leader is acting in pursuit of purposes they all hold in common."9
David Kingsley has defined leadership as, "the relation
between an individual and a group built around some common
interests and behaving in a manner directed or determined by
him."10
After going through the various definitions one finds three
main components of leadership: the leader, the follower and the
situation. Thus the leadership may be defined as a the interaction
of leader and followers in a particular situation. Leadership is a
tripartite situation because behaviour of one is generally influenced
by the behaviour of the other while the behaviour of both is
determined by the nature and structure of social system in which
they interact. Therefore, in simple words, the art of planning,
leading and guiding the activities of a group of people to achieve a
common goal is called leadership which is an act of persuading the
people to cooperate in the achievement of a common objective.
Dalit Leadership: Panchayati Raj Institution
In a vast country like India, the principle of democratic
decentralization needs to be promoted both in political and
economic spheres. People need to have the right to participate in
the decision making process and for this an appropriate institution
at the grassroots level is essential. Panchayati Raj Institutions have
emerged to serve this purpose. The objective of the PRI is to act as
an instrument of self- education for people and involve them in the
decision making process so as to ensure proper implementation of
policies and programmes meant for their development.
The creation of Panchayati Raj Institutions raised great hopes
among the rural people. The concept of Panchayati Raj has been
considered variously by different academicians and policy makers.
It has been regarded as the foundation of participatory democracy.
M.K. Gandhi said "true democracy cannot be worked by
twenty men sitting at the center, it has to be worked from below by
the people of every village", and Gandhi has also announced in the
golden words “my notion of democracy is that under it, the weakest
should have the same opportunity as the strongest.”11 This was the
dream of M.K. Gandhi about Indian democracy.
After Independence, Government of India under the influence
of M.K. Gandhis' ideology of Gram Swaraj was committed to set-up
Panchayati Raj system to provide real Swaraj to the people of rural
areas. Therefore, Union Government appointed many committees
and Commissions from time to time to suggest the structure and
functioning of Panchayati Raj Institutions system which can help
the people to come out of abject poverty, unemployment, illiteracy,
squalor, disease etc. The most important committees were Balwant
Rai Mehta Committee, G.V.K.Rao Committee, Singhvi Committee,
Ashok Mehta Committee. All these committees recommended
'Democratic Decentralization through two or three tier system.
The latest development in this direction is the Constitutional
Amendment (73rd and 74th) of 1992 which aimed to provide
Constitutional status to Panchayati Raj system. This amendment is
considered a landmark in the history of local government in India.
The amendment provides the certain far reaching steps to
strengthen Panchayats. Article 243 (a) recognizes Panchyats as
institutions of self - Government with prime responsibility of
promoting economic and ensuring social justice.
The Amendment envisages the establishment of uniform three
tier system- Village Panchyats at village level, Panchyat Samities at
block level and Zila Parishads at district level.
The Amendment also laid down necessary guidelines for the
reservation of seats for the weaker groups including women.
1. Reservation of seats in favour of Scheduled Castes in
proportion to their population and reservation of one third seats
for women at all level (Including SC women).
2. Reservation of one office of Panch for BCs in a Gram
Panchyat where their population in the Gram Sabha area is more
than 20 per cent of the total population.
3. Reservation in the cases of Sarpanches and Chairman
/Vice Chairman in Panchayat Samiti has been provided on the
basis of the proportion of Scheduled Caste population in the
district, in the case of Chairman/Vice Chairman Zila Parishad on
the basis of SC population in the State.
It is a major departure from the earlier Panchyati Raj System
in the aspect of gender and caste reservation in all the three tier
system for both seats and positions. This kind of constitutional
provision has created scope for Dalits to exercise their political
rights in local governance and steadily give thrust to more of Dalit
friendly grassroot governance. Thus, the new Panchyati Raj system
brings all those whose interests are affected by the decisions, to
have voice in decision making through the participation in PRIs.
Panchayat In Punjab
In October 1961, the Punjab state government decided to
reorganize its Panchyati Raj system on the Balwant Rai Mehta
Committee's recommendation of three tier structure of PRIs.
The new three tired system became operative between 1962-
1963.The Gram Panchayat set - up under this new scheme
continued to function over the years but the Panchyat Samitis and
the Zila Parishads had breaks in their tenures.12 They functioned
as representative bodies from 1965 to 1970 and again from 1975 to
1978 and remained superseded in the intervening years. During
the period of suppression, these bodies were administered by
government officers.
Following the 73rd constitutional Amendment, the
government of Punjab enacted the Punjab Panchyati Raj Act,
1994. The New Act replaced the Punjab Gram Panchayat Act, 1952
and the Punjab Panchayat Samities and Zila Parishads Act, 1961.
The new Act came into force on 21 April 1994 and established three
tier Panchayati Raj system in the state.13
New rules were framed under the provisions of this new Act
and the first elections to 138 Panchayat Samitis and 14 Zila
Parishads were held in 1994. The next elections to existing 141
Panchayat Samitis and 17 Zila Parishads were held in 2003 and
after that elections to 141 Panchayat Samitis and 20 Zila Parishads
were held in 2008. Elections to the Gram Panchayats were held
almost regularly since independence with exceptions of 1988 due to
the turbulent situation in the state. The Gram Panchayat elections
were held in June 2008.At present 12821 Gram Panchayats exists
in Punjab.
Gram Panchayat
Under the three-tier system, Gram Sabha and Gram
Panchayat form the lower tier. Gram Sabha is the basic unit
declared in any village or group of contiguous village with a
population of not less than two hundred. After the demarcation of
the Sabha area, a Gram Sabha may be established by name in
every Sabha area. The government may include or exclude any area
from the Sabha area. Gram Sabha is the general assembly of all the
adults living in its area whose names are included in the electoral
roll.
Gram Panchayat is the representative body which consist of
elected members. Its importance lies in the fact that it is the base
of the true Panchayati Raj and, therefore, the success of PRI's
depends on the vitality and effectiveness of the village Panchayats.
It is, infact, the executive committee of the Gram Sabha.
Table 4.1 District-wise Number of Gram Panchayats in the State of
Punjab (1968-2008) District 1968 1973 1978 1983 1992 1998 2003 2008
Gurdaspur
Amritsar
Kapurthala
Jalandhar
Hoshiarpur
Nawansheshar
Rupnagar
Ludhiana
Ferozepur
Faridokot
Bathinda
Sangrur
Patiala
Mansa
Fatehgarh
Sahib
Moga
Muktsar
Barnala*
Tarntaran*
SAS Nagar*
Total
870
1009
236
833
835
-
611
805
658
536
481
574
970
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
8418
1056
1045
340
878
1035
-
629
824
756
542
510
657
1059
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
9331
1246
1080
427
1055
1294
-
716
877
907
552
516
683
1258
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
10611
1335
1088
449
1084
1350
-
757
884
931
552
516
685
1318
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
10949
1451
1164
490
1113
1432
-
805
840
1036
581
278
703
1035
241
428
-
-
-
-
-
11597
1589
1268
533
886
1314
440
456
871
1202
180
303
727
1063
243
438
191
265
-
-
-
12369
1592
1287
535
886
1317
445
852
876
1089
181
306
735
1079
242
430
326
265
-
-
-
12443
1659
817
549
886
1362
458
594
908
1139
190
314
585
981
544
431
337
264
157
543
376
12794
Source: Department of Panchahats and Rural Development, Punjab. * The panchayats of newly carved district of Barnala are included in Sangrur district, Tarantaran in (Amritsar district) and S.A.S. Nagar in (Rupnagar and Patiala Districts)
Table shows the number of Gram Panchayats since the re-
organization of Punjab in 1966. The number increased from 8418
in 1966 to 12794 in 2008 elections, On the same pattern, the
number of elected members of gram Panchayats also increased.
To ensure equality of participation and involvement, provision
have been made to involve the weaker sections by reserving seats
for them in the Gram Panchayat. The Act provides that seats are be
reserved for SCs, BCs and women. Within the seats reserved for
SCs, one third of the seats are further reserved for SC women
If no SC got elected as panch, a defeated candidate belonging
to this category and getting the highest number of votes was made
a panch, and failing that, a SC was co-opted if the population of
SCs was five perecent or more of the total population of the
Panchayat Area.14
A Panchayat consists of several Panches and a Sarpanch. The
Sarpanch occupies a leading status in village activities and affairs.
There has been great difference over the manner of elections of
Sarpanch. In some states Sarpanch is directly elected by the
members of Gram Sabha while in some states Sarpanch is elected
by Panches. Earlier, In Punjab Sarpanches were elected by the
voters of the whole Panchayat area. But in the 2008 Panchayat
elections Sarpanches were elected by the elected member of
Panchayat i.e. Panches.
Table 4.2 District-wise Number of Scheduled Castes Sarpanches in
Punjab (1978-2008) District 1978 1983 1992 1998 2003 2008
Gurdaspur 124 100 92 266 275 290
Amritsar 44 32 32 278 276 259
Kapurthala 59 49 67 111 116 176
Jalandhar 257 217 45 252 267 314
Hoshiarpur 186 202 201 313 311 483
Nawanshahr - - - 112 119 122
Rupnagar 65 51 20 143 152 135
Ludhiana 46 41 49 206 206 216
Ferozepur 21 16 25 166 152 156
Faridkot 8 9 14 45 46 39
Bathinda 16 7 7 62 70 91
Sangrur 31 13 29 140 146 177
Patiala 104 37 58 153 190 295
Mansa - - 8 51 50 48
Fatehgarh Sahib
- - 24 90 89 109
Moga - - - 42 71 111
Muktsar - - - 69 62 72
Barnala* - - - - - 48
Tarntaran* - - - - - 121
SAS Nagar* - - - - - 91
Total 961 774 671 2499 2598 3353 Source: Department of Panchayats and Rural Development, Punjab
Panchayat Samiti-The Middle Tier
In the hierarchical set-up of Panchayati Raj, Panchayat
Samiti is the intermediate tier. It has emerged as a pivot of the
entire Panchayati Raj system as most of the functions reated to
rural development are entrusted to this tier. The Panchayat Samiti
acts as it bullock.
Panchayat Samities are governed by the Punjab Panchayat
Samitis and Zila Parishads Act, 1961; According to this Act, the
government is authorized to form a Panchayt Samiti either for every
tehsil or for every Block in a district.15 However, Punjab
government preferred to constitute this body at the Block level
which coincides with the Community Development Blocks
demarcated in 1952. The jurisdiction of a Panchayat Samiti is
confined to the rural areas of a community development blocks.16
Like the Gram Panchayat every Panchayat Samiti is a corporate
body having perpetual successions and a common seat with power
to acquire, hold and dispose of property and to contract and is
capable of sue and being sued by others.17
There is also a provision for the reservation for the office of
chairman and vice-chairman. The number of the offices reserved
for SCs in a district is to be in the same proportion as the SC
population to the total population in the State. The reservation is to
be allotted by rotation.18
Table 4.3 Elected Members of Panchayat Samitis in Punjab
General Scheduled Caste BC Total Districts
Male Female Total Male Female Total
Gurdaspur 133 70 203 54 25 79 7 289
Amritsar 75 37 112 38 21 59 2 173
Kapurthala 38 18 56 19 11 30 2 88
Jullundhar 65 35 100 55 27 79 2 184
Hoshiarpur 82 42 124 50 24 74 5 203
Nawanshahr 89 33 122 25 12 37 2 89
Rupnagar 42 22 64 17 8 25 2 91
Ludhiana 96 45 141 56 30 86 - 227
Ferozepur 102 51 153 33 17 50 6 209
Faridkot 20 10 30 14 6 20 - 50
Bathinda 62 29 91 28 19 47 - 138
Sangrur 80 38 118 34 17 51 1 170
Patiala 78 39 117 32 16 48 3 168
Mansa 39 20 59 19 9 28 - 87
Fatehgarh
Sahib
34 15 49 17 10 27 - 76
Moga 49 25 74 26 13 39 - 113
Muktsar 37 17 54 24 13 37 - 91
Barnala* 28 13 41 12 6 18 - 59
Tarntaran* 61 35 96 31 17 48 1 145
SAS Nagar* 42 22 64 17 8 25 2 91
Total 1187 592 1779 596 307 903 33 2715 Source: Department of Panchayats and Rural Development, Punjab
In Punjab the total Panchayat Samitis are 141 having 2715
members. Out of the total members 1187, 592, 896, 307 and 33
are General, women, Dalits, Dalits women and backward castes
respectively. The Dalit elected members represent 21-95 per cent of
the total members. Percentage of the Dailts in Panchayat Samitis is
33.25 per cent if we include the Dalit women members that are
higher than their population in Punjab.
Highest number of Dalit Panchayat Samiti members 29.9 per
cent in Jalandhar which is the part of Doaba region where the
concentration of Dalit population is higher then the Majha &
Malwa.
Zila Parishad-The Upper Tier
A Zila Parishad, constituted for every district is the third and
apex tier of the Panchayati Raj setup. It is the successor to the
district boards in Punjab. Unlike Maharahstra, where it is vested
with wider powers, Zila Parishad is a coordinating and advisory
body in Punjab. Like other two tier of Panchayati Raj, it is also a
corporate body, having perpetual successions and a common seat,
can sue and be sued and is empowered to enter into contracts.19
In Punjab right from the very beginning of the introduction of
these institutions, the government has been in favour of a strong
Zila Parishad various committees and study teams appointed by
the government of Punjab from time to time favoured the creation
of a strong body at the district level. Despite all the
recommendations, the Zila Parishad in Punjab is purely and
advisory and co-coordinating body.
Table 4.4 Elected Member of Panchayat Samitis in Punjab
General Scheduled Caste BC Total Districts
Male Female Total Male Female Total
Gurdaspur 12 6 18 5 2 7 - 25
Amritsar 8 5 13 6 2 8 - 21
Kapurthala 4 2 6 2 1 3 1 10
Jullundhar 7 4 11 7 3 10 - 21
Hoshiarpur 10 5 15 6 3 9 - 24
Nawanshahr 4 2 6 3 1 4 - 10
Rupnagar 4 3 7 2 1 3 - 10
Ludhiana 11 5 16 6 3 9 - 25
Ferozepur 12 6 18 4 2 6 1 25
Faridkot 3 2 5 2 2 4 - 9
Bathinda 8 3 11 3 2 5 - 16
Sangrur 8 7 15 4 2 6 - 21
Patiala 10 5 15 4 2 6 1 22
Mansa 4 3 7 3 1 4 - 11
Fatehgarh Sahib
4 3 7 2 1 3 - 10
Moga 7 3 10 3 2 5 - 15
Muktsar 5 2 7 3 2 5 - 12
Barnala* 5 2 7 2 1 3 - 10
Tarntaran* 7 4 11 4 2 6 - 17
SAS Nagar* 5 2 7 2 1 3 - 10
Total 138 74 212 73 36 109 3 324 Source: Department of Panchayats and Rural Development, Punjab
After coming to power in March 2007, the newly formed SAD-
BJP government headed by Parkash Singh Badal announced the
Zila Parishad elections in Punjab. The elections was conducted in
one single phase on 12th May while some polling station was
declared sensitive, where elections were holding on 26th may with
Panchayat elections. After the announcement of elections the
political parties comes up before the electoral with their respective
manifestos.
After issuing the notification of election congress, SAD-BJP
alliance and BSP selected their candidates. Besides these parties,
other political parties who were also involved in Zila Parishad
elections were CPI and CPM, but their role was not very effective
because the main competition was between congress and SAD-BJP
alliance.
If the village Panchayat Election in 2008 were aimed at
acquiring Legitimacy, rebuilding people's confidence and restoring
democratic political process in the state of Punjab, the objective of
the Zila Parisahd/Panchayat Samiti polls in May 2008, particularly
according to the opposition parties, was to consolidate the position
of the ruling party in the state. These parties alleged large-scale
electoral malpractices. The congress party members accused the
ruling party of throwing overboard all democratic norms. They
termed these elections as a fraud which violated all democratic and
normal values. Although Akali rejected these allegations as false
and politically motivated. The elections overwhelming majority of
Akali's as Chairman and Vice-Chariman of Panchayat Samitis and
Zila Parishads.
As the consequence of the reservation policy for Scheduled
Castes in Panchayati Raj institutions following the 73rd & 74th
constitutional amendment, it was expected that Panchayat Raj
Institutions would now ensure representation to Dalits, so as to
make it more democratic. Through structural changes, it was that
the new leadership would be different from traditional leadership in
the sense that it would not represent just the dominant strata of
society, as has been the case so for.
The literature on grassroot leadership studies shows that
number of Dalits in Panchayati Raj institutions was meager before
73rd constitutional Amendment Act. One or two Dalits were either
co-opted or nominated.20 People of upper castes and political
influential families dominated positions reserved for Scheduled
Castes in PRIs.21 The Panchayat election of 1994 have brought a
major change in the character and composition of Panchayati Raj
institutions. A large number of people from the underprivileged
section of society have not only been elected to various position
but have also come to occupy important positions like chairman of
Panchayat Samiti and president of Zila Parishad22 Reservation may
be the only way to ensure the presence of Scheduled Castes in the
PRIs as the traditions and conservations of rural areas, patriarchal
nature of family, the lack of education and access to information
and media, the poor exposure of outside would etc have been
obstructing the opportunities of the SCs earlier.23
The influence of caste on the politics of Punjab is evident. One
has seen that the person who occupied the top position socially,
economically and educationally is the one who actually dominate
the politics of Punjab. In reality, it is not the people of all categories
who control the politics of this state but it is guided by a limited
category of people. As far as leadership at the grassroots level is
concerned the village scene reflects the tradition of leadership role
of the landed class. The important fact is that a handful of the
landed elite have been dominating the Gram Panchayat and the
other two Panchayati Raj Institutions. The poor and marginal
farmers are not allowed to have any effective say in village affairs.
Elite among the Dalits have been recognized as leaders of their
castes and communities. In some areas where they were
numerically or economically dominant, leadership role was
assumed by them at the district, sub-division or village level.
Dalit Leadership in Punjab Legislative Assembly
In the democracy, the Legislators are so significant that they
represent the sentiments, psyche as well as the physical entities of
their people. Members of the legislative Assembly are chosen
through direct elections by territorial constituencies in the state.24
Legislators are the key figures in the socio-economic and political
affairs of the state. The role of legislative leadership is important in
the developing countries where the gap between political elite and
masses is wide. Leaders are perhaps the only link between rulers
and the masses and between upper and lower classes.
The term legislative leadership is restricted in its application.
It generally includes all those leaders, who happen to be members
of the representative Assemblies or Legislatures. Since these
Legislators play a decisive role in the management of the state
affairs and to that extent they can be termed as political leaders.25
The Punjab Legislative Assembly was formed after independence in
the year 1952. The number of members of the Punjab Legislative
Assembly has been revised several times. In 1952, the number of
members was curtailed and reduced from 154 to 81. The strength
of the Assembly was again revised after the general elections of
1967 and the Assembly was given the permission to accommodate
104 members. Again in 1977, the number of seats in the Assembly
was increased to 117 on the basis of the 1971 census.26 Presently
the strength of the Punjab Legislative Assembly is 117. Similarly,
the Dalits representation in Punjab Legislative Assembly has also
been revised. In 1967 to 1977, 23 out of 104 seats were reserved
for Dalits. Since 1977 the number of reserved seats was increased
to 29. However it needs to be noted that with the latest delimitation
of the constituencies the number of reserved seats in Punjab has
been raised to 32.
The politics of Punjab has been eventful since its re-
organization on November 1966. The Congress party and the
Shiromani Akali Dal have been the main power contenders in
Punjab. Before 1967 elections, there was the dominance of the
Congress party in the state political system but after 1967
elections, the Shiromani Akli Dal has broken its dominance. After
1967, Akali Dal formed its government. And in subsequent years,
both Congress and Akali Dal formed governments in the state by
rotation.
Political parties have politicised the caste system because
they take caste into consideration not only while selecting
candidates for elections but also while assigning ministerial berths
and even filling the posts of organizational hierarchy. The economic
status of Jat Sikhs has been enhanced by the benefits of the Green
Revolution and this led to the politicization of their caste
affiliations.27 As they constitute the majority of the rural
population, they obviously control the strings of the political power
in the state and command a position of considerable influence in
both the major political parties- the Akali Dal and the Congress.
The Jat Sikhs form the main support base of the Akali Dal and it
always selects a Jat Sikh as the Chief Minister and the party
President. Even the Congress party, which is based on secularism,
is not immune from the caste and religion. There were always a Jat
Sikh Chief Minister in Congress except the one OBC Chief Minister.
In the context of Dalit politics, Punjab is an important state
because it has the highest proportion of Dalits in its total
population (Census, 2001). The Dalits account for approximately
30 per cent of the total population of the state. The position of
Dalits in Punjab is different from the rest of the country. They are
more educated, conscious, liberated and empowered. The Sikhism
is supposed to have been one of the liberalising influence on the
lives of the Dalits of Punjab which has also provided enormous
scope for Dalit identity formation and assertion.28 The Sikh Gurus'
opposition to Brahminical orthodoxy and caste reduced the
oppressive nature of casteism in Punjab. In Punjab, Dalit leaders
have not been able to mobilize Dalit people politically on the basis
of caste because the question of untouchability is not so strong as
in other north Indian states.
Dalits in Punjab have experienced political power either
through two main political parties i.e. the Congress and the Akali
Dal or through BSP which claims to be their representative. The
support base of the Communist Parties (CPI or CPI (M) is not
limited to any single caste, rather it is broad based. Infact, Dalits
have been numerically dominant amongst the Communist
leadership also.
As the main focus of this part is on the profile of the Dalit
Leaders in the Punjab Legislative Assembly, the data for the same
has been collected from 1967 to 2007. Table 4.5 shows the number
of the Dalit leaders who were able to become members of the
Legislative Assembly from different political parties from 1967 to
2007.
The perusal of the data given in the Table shows that the total
members of the Punjab Legislative Assembly from 1967 to 2007
were 1131. Out of the 1131 members of the Punjab Legislative
Assembly, 272 belonged to the Dalits. Out of 272 legislators 42.64
per cent belonged to the Akali Dal, 38.97 per cent to the Congress,
5.14 per cent to the CPI, 4.77 per cent to BJP (JP, Jan Sangh), 4.04
per cent to CPI(M) and 2.57 have been from the BSP. The figures
(Table 4.5) show that on the whole Akali Dal has been in the
dominant position as far as the Dalit Legislators are concerned.
Closely following the Akali Dal is the position of the Congress. The
Communist Parties and BSP have a marginal share among the
state Legislators as a whole but they have largest number of Dalit
Legislators as compared to the main parties.
Age
All the world constitutions require the attainment of a certain
age by the representatives for reasons of experience and knowledge.
This is necessary for the discharge of legislative duties which are
not likely to be possessed by minors. India is no exception. Here
the qualifying age for entry into the state Legislative Assembly as
well as the Lok Sabha has been fixed as 25 years by the Indian
Constitution. It was assumed by the Constitution makers, that a
person is mature enough at that age for active participation in
Legislative. The constitution lays down no upper age limit.
Table 4.6 Age Profile of Dalit Legislators in Punjab Vidhan Sabha,
1967-2007 Age
Group 1967 1969 1972 1977 1980 1985 1992 1997 2002 2007 Total
25-35 5 3 1 6 3 3 5 2 2 1 31
(11.39)
36-45 5 8 7 7 6 11 7 5 6 5 67
(24.63)
46-55 8 9 9 11 12 10 15 9 10 14 107
(39.33)
56-65 5 3 3 2 7 4 1 7 8 6 46
(16.91)
66 &
above
- - 3 3 1 1 1 6 3 3 21
(7.72)
Total 23 23 23 29 29 29 29 29 29 29 272
(100)
Source : Punjab Vidhan Sabha Compendium who's who, 1960-2007. Note : Figures in Parenthesis Denote Percentage Share
From the Table 4.6 it is clear that the largest percentage of
Dalit Legislators in the Punjab legislative Assembly from 1967 to
2007, belonged to 46-55 age group. They constitute 39.33 per cent
of the total Dalit members, followed by age group of 36-45 i.e.
24.63 per cent. Those who were in the age group of 25-35 were only
11.39 per cent which was lower than the age group of 55 and above
55 age group. So it is clearly proved that the middle age group
dominates among the Dalit leadership in Punjab.
Table 4.7 Party-wise Age Profile of Dalit Legislator in Punjab, 1967-2007 Age
Group Congress Akali
Dal CPI CPI(M) BJP/JP BSP Others* Total
25-35 8 12 3 3 01 4 - 31
(11.39)
36-45 24 34 03 - 01 2 2 67
(24.63)
46-55 48 40 07 06 03 01 3 107
(39.33)
56-65 20 20 1 2 03 - - 46
(16.91)
66 and
above
6 10 - - 05 - - 21
(7.72)
Total 106
(38.97)
116
(42.64)
14
(5.14)
11
(4.04)
13
(4.77)
7
(2.57)
5
(1.83)
272
(100)
Source: Punjab Vidhan Sabha Compendium who's who, 1960-2007. Note: Figures in Parenthesis Denote Percentage Share. * Including smaller parties like RPI, P.S.P., S.S.P., Swatantra, Independent.
While analysing the party wise position of Dalit leaders it is
clear from Table No. 4.7 that only BSP has proportionately more
young M.L.As. (out of its total 7 as many as four were in the age
group of 25-35). Another noticeable fact that emerges from the data
is that CPI, CPI(M) and BSP has never been able to return a Dalit
Legislator in the age group of 66 and above.
Education
Education is a pivot around which the gradual development
of a country revolves. There are no two views about the desirability
of educated persons being returned to the legislatures because
education level is not only a major indicator of one's personality,
but also enables him to think and tackle the problems being faced
by the people. Bhatt (1967) accorded importance to education and
observed that illiteracy restricts one's capacity to give thoughtful
judgement on issues of importance. Education facilitates the
development of a progressive attitude in individuals towards social
and economic problems.29 For the present analysis, the educational
qualification of the members has been classified into 5 categories
i.e. (i) illiterate (ii) under matriculates (iii) matriculates/Higher
secondary or intermediates (iv) graduate (v) post graduates
including, Law, M.Ed. and Technical qualification.
Table 4.8 Educational Qualification of Dalit Legislators in Punjab
1967-2007 Qualification 1967 1969 1972 1977 1980 1985 1992 1997 2002 2007 Total
Illiterate 4 5 3 6 3 1 1 1 - 2 26
(9.55)
Under Matric 4 5 7 7 8 3 1 6 3 2 46
(16.91)
Matriculation 9 11 8 10 8 13 11 10 13 7 100
(36.76)
BA/B.Com, B.Sc.
5 1 4 4 5 7 7 8 7 13 61
(22.42)
M.A/ LL.B MEd. Eng.
1 1 1 2 5 5 9 4 6 5 39
(14.35)
Total 23 23 23 29 29 29 29 29 29 29 272 (100)
Source: Punjab Vidhan Sabha Compendium who's who, 1960-2002. Note: Figures in Parenthesis Denote Percentage Share
The Table 4.8 clearly demonstrates that out of the total Dalit
M.L.As elected from 1967 to 2007 the largest number of Dalit
leadership i.e. 36.76 per cent had education only upto
matriculation. 22.42 per cent leaders were found to be graduates,
whereas 16.91 per cent were under matric. Only 14.33 per cent
were post graduate or with technical degree. 9.55 per cent were
found to be totally illiterate. After 1985 the number of illiterate
members drastically decreased. It may also be observed that the
educational qualification of the Dalit Legislators improved after
1997 when more Dalit law graduates were found to be in the
Vidhan Sabha. Moreover, the highly educated Dalit members
increased since 1980. Before that, only 1 to 2 members were found
to be from this category.
Table 4.9 Party-wise Educational Profile of Dalit Legislators in Punjab
1967-2007 Qualification Congress Akali
Dal CPI CPI(M) BJP/JP BSP Others* Total
Illiterate 4 12 8 - 1
- 1 26
(9.55)
Under Matric 17 21 1 5 2 - 1 46
(6.91)
Matriculation 51 34 1 3 6 2 2 100
(36.76)
BA/B.Com,
B.Sc.
16 33 2 3 2 4 1 61
(22.42)
M.A/ LL.B
MEd. Eng.
18 16 2 - 2 1 - 39
(14.33)
Total 106
(38.97)
116
(42.64)
14
(5.14)
11
(4.04)
13
(4.77)
7
(2.57)
5
(1.83)
272
(100)
Source: Punjab Vidhan Sabha Compendium who's who, 1960-2007. Note: Figures in Parenthesis Denote Percentage Share * Including smaller parties like RPI, P.S.P., S.S.P., Swatantra, Independent.
If we look at the party wise educational qualification of Dalit
legislators again the matriculate members were higher in both the
major political parties i.e. Congress 52.68 per cent and Akali Dal
33.33 per cent (Table 4.9) of the total Dalit legislators from the
respective political parties. In Congress Party, matriculate members
were above 50%. Again more MLAs from Congress party were
having post graduate degrees as compared to MLAs from other
parties.
Occupation
Modern era is an era of functional specialization. In the
present age, the society has been divided into numerous
occupational groups. The standard of living of the people in any
country largely depends upon the national income of the country.
National income depends upon the per capita income and per
capita income is the resultant of occupation. In Punjab, almost 90
per cent people directly or indirectly have a deep relation with
agriculture.
The members of Punjab Legislative Assembly come from
various walks of life. Income is one of the important criteria not
only to determine the social status of a member but also to enable
him to play a useful role as a legislator.30 To classify the Dalit
legislators according to their occupation was not an easy task. The
reason for this was that many Legislators had more than one
occupation but out of the fear of divulging their real income they do
not tell anything about their multifarious business activities. They
just record agriculture, business, advocate, politics or social service
as their main occupation. But they have additional sources of
income like - transport, contracts, mines, brick kiln, rice shellers
etc.
Table 4.10 Occupation wise Profile of Dalit Legislators in Punjab
1967-2007 Occupation 1967 1969 1972 1977 1980 1985 1992 1997 2002 2007 Total
Agriculture 7 8 8 8 9 13 11 9 14 10 97 (35.66)
Business 3 2 2 3 2 4 2 4 5 6 33 (12.13)
Politics and Social Service
11 9 10 12 15 4 12 12 8 9 102 (37.50)
Other professions
2 4 3 6 3 8 4 4 2 4 40 (14.70)
Total 23 23 23 29 29 29 29 29 29 29 272 (100)
Source: Punjab Vidhan Sabha Compendium who's who, 1960-2007. Note : Figures in Parenthesis Denote Percentage Share
Regarding occupation, the data demonstrates that politics
and social service has been recorded to be the main profession of
37.50 per cent of Dalit leaders, followed by 35.66 agriculturists.
12.13 per cent leaders were businessmen whereas 14.70 per cent
were from other professions (Tailoring, Medical Practice,
Journalism, Teaching and advocates). In 1967 there was not even a
single member who was a lawyer. Both the major political parties
have similar number of agriculturists and social workers. The BSP,
CPI and CPI(M) had not a single businessman or an advocate.
Legislative Experience It is a common practice of all political parties to re-nominate
the majority of its sitting members. A change is affected only when
it is warranted by local requirements. Old and experienced
members of the party are thus returned again and again and being
already conversant with rules of the game, they acquire influence
and power in the process.
Table 4.11 Party-wise Legislative Experience of Dalit Legislators in
Punjab 1967 to 2007 Group Congress Akali
Dal CPI CPI(M) BJP/JP BSP Others* Total
Once 61 62 9 6 7 7 4 156
(57.35)
Twice 28 30 4 3 5 - - 70
(25.73)
Thrice 13 17 1 2 1 - 1 35
(12.86)
Four or more
times
4 7 - - - - - 11
(4.04)
Total 106 116 14 11 13 7 5 272
(100)
Source: Punjab Vidhan Sabha Compendium who's who, 1960-2007. Note : Figures in Parenthesis Denote Percentage Share * including smaller parties like RPI, P.S.P., S.S.P., Swatantra, Independent.
The data reveals that of the total Dalit Legislative leaders an
over whelming majority of 57.35 per cent have been first time,
25.73 per cent became members for the two times, nearly 12.86 per
cent for third time and 4.04 per cent for the fourth and fifth time.
The Congress and Akali Dal has been re-nominating some of their
important Dalit members again and again. For example Gurdev
Singh Badal has been elected from Akali Dal from 1967 to 2002 i.e.
9 times. Similarly Darshan Singh K.P. got elected from 1967 to
1985 i.e. 5 times from the Congress ticket.
Dalits constitute the substantial part of population in the
Punjab, therefore representation in the political structure should be
accordingly, to make the democracy more healthy. Though the
number of Dalit Legislators has been increased since the inception
of Legislative Assembly in the state in 1952 but this is more due to
the reservation policy rather than the willingness of the social and
political structure of the state.
If one tries to find out if any Dalit leader has been elected to
the state Assembly from general constituency it is seen that only 3
Dalit candidates who were elected from general constituencies, one
was Madho Singh won from Anandpur Sahib (1977) seat on Janta
Party ticket, second was Surjan Singh Joga (1992), from Joga
Constituency who won on IPF's ticket and later on joined the
Congress party and third was Hargopal Singh (1992) who won from
Balachour Constituency on BSP ticket. The Joga and Balachour
constituencies have otherwise always been represented by Jat
Sikhs and Gujjar candidates respectively. This shows that political
parties generally do not allocate tickets to Dalit candidates from the
general constituencies and it is the Constitutional provisions that
compel the parties to allocate the tickets to Dalit candidates from
the reserved constituencies.
The profile of Dalit Legislators in the state from 1967 to 2007
clearly depicts that mostly the leaders come from middle age group.
As far as their education qualifications are concerned it may be
concluded that 70 per cent of the Dalit Legislators were educated
though many only upto Matriculate, though some have higher
educational degrees also.
It may be concluded that the maximum Dalit leaders have
been elected from Akali Dal and Congress party. Although, both the
major political parties are dominated by the upper strata of the
society. Out of the total of Dalit legislators 80 per cent belong to
both these parties. But it is observed that the Dalit leaders had
marginal share in ministerial portfolio and party organizational
hierarchy. Though the Bahujan Samaj party claims to be the party
of the Dalits, yet the party has failed to organize the Dalits.
Contrary to a state like UP, the BSP has not been able to mobilize
the Dalits in Punjab despite the fact that Dalits constitute the
substantial part of the population. BSP emerged in 1992 and got 9
seats but it happened only because the Akali Dal had boycotted the
elections. Dalits have been numerically dominant amongst the
Communist Parties.
To conclude, it may be stated that the reservation policy has
provided opportunity to the Dalits to become members of the PRIs
and the State Legislative Assembly. Other than the reserved seats
very rarely Dalits have been elected from a general seat. Dalits'
participation in Punjab politics has been far behind their numerical
and participatory strength. It is high time to pay attention to this
aspect, if Dalits have to improve their status in society as well as in
other walks of life.
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1. Hoshiar Singh, Leadership in Municipal Government, RBSA
Publications, Jaipur, 1984, p. 1.
2. Rangnath, "Rural Leadership-old and New" in L.P. Vidyarthi
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1969, p. 267.
3. Robert D Putman, The Comparative Study of Political Elites,
Princeton Hall, New Jersey, 1976, p. 42.
4. Ibid.
5. Bernard M. Bass, Leadership, Psychology and Organizational
Behaviour, Harper and Row, New York, 1960, pp. 89-90.
6. Krishna Chakraburthy and Swapan Kumar Bhattacharya,
Leadership, Factions and Panchayati Raj, Rawat Publication,
Jaipur, 1993, p. 15.
7. James Macgregar Burns, Leadership – Who Changed the
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9. Pennock Roland, Democratic Political Theory, Princeton
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10. David Kingley, "The Origin and Growth of Urbanization in the
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11. The Tribune, Oct. 2, 1989.
12. Sec. 30, Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, p.3.
13. Sec. 32, Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, p.6.
14. B.S. Khanna, "Punjab" in George Mathew (ed.), Status of
Panchayati Raj in the State and Union Territories in India,
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15. Sec. 3 The Punjab Panchayat Samities and Zila Parishads Act,
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16. Sec.4, Ibid.
17. Sec. 3 (2), Ibid.
18. S.L. Goel & Shalini Rajneesh, Panchayati Raj In India - Theory
and Practice, Deep and Deep Publications, New Delhi, 2003,
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19. Sec. 86, The Punjab Panchayat Samiti and Zila Parishad Act,
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30. K.V. Viswanathaiah, "An Empirical Study of Socio-Economic
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