Karamchedu and the Dalit subject in Andhra Pradesh

Abstract

The modern history of the Dalit movement in Andhra Pradesh involves significant experiences relevant to the sociology of caste and Dalit studies than is often reflected in existing scholarship. At the centre of this history is the massacre of six Dalits in Karamchedu village, coastal Andhra, in 1985. The article focuses on the Karamchedu massacre and how this event was decisive for the emergence of an independent Dalit movement, fully engaged in a struggle against untouchability, violence and caste-based discrimination. The Dalit Mahasabha was created, representing a collective, emancipatory project in opposition to the dominant Naxalite movement. The initial struggle started from a camp that was established to support the victims who had fled the attack in Karamchedu. Ambedkar, moreover, became the summarising symbol for the new Dalit movement, providing the basis for a Dalit approach and relations to other movements. Overall, the history of Karamchedu involves significant theoretical lessons concerning caste and class, Dalit discourse and ontology. The article concludes by sketching a hypothesis of how caste may be intensified in its social and political situation in India’s modernity.