Prakash Karat calls for united fight against class, caste oppression

CHENNAI: CPM former General Secretary Prakash Karat on Friday called for a simultaneous fight against class exploitation and caste oppression to take on the Hindutva Corporate Communal Alliance.

Releasing the book titled “Struggle Against Caste Oppression - My Field Experience” by CPM central committee member and one of the founders of Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front P Sampath here, he said that what the BJP-RSS trying to accomplish is to perpetuate the Manu Dharma under the cover of pan-Hindu identity.

“In the political sphere, you can see every day the way they are trying to co-opt OBCs, SCs and STs into pan-Hindu order without distributing the caste structure and without disturbing social inequalities which are perpetuated by Hindu Brahminical order. This is the attempt which they are pursuing seriously,” he said. Citing the example of the Ram temple at Ayodhya the first brick was laid by Dalits, he said that through such token symbolism, they wanted to co-opt all the oppressed castes into the Hindutva order.

“When we are fighting against Hindutva forces, we must understand that a more effective way to fight them is also to fight against all forms of social oppression and injustice. Fight against Hindutva corporate communal alliance requires a fight against class exploitation and caste system and oppression,” he said.

Pointing to the history of social reform and anti-caste movements in the country and in particular, the Dravidian movement in Tamil Nadu, he said that the potential which was there for social reform for the anti-caste movement has been exhausted or diverted. “Today in Tamil Nadu, we find atrocities against Dalits in various parts of the state,” he said, calling for the fight for the complete elimination of caste-just like how Dr Ambedkar called for Annihilation of Caste.

CPI State Secretary R Mutharasan, CPM State Secretary K Balakrishnan, party politburo member G Ramakrishnan, Central Committee members Sampath and U Vasuki were also present at the event.