Social Difference and Inequality in South Asia

This paper discusses the social divisions within the different religious communities in India since the middle ages, the ways in which conflicts have arisen around social differences since the mid-20th century, major social movements in South Asia, and the use or rejection of international political ideologies surrounding major social movements.

Running head: ASIAN STUDIES
ASIAN STUDIES
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note:

ASIAN STUDIES
Introduction
The history of the South Asian region has been diverse and full of extreme events.
Starting from the subjugation of the Asian countries by the Muslim conquest of the
Middle East and then the British Empire, the freedom movement of the Indian sub-
continent and the internal caste and religion based conflicts within the region,
subcontinent has been full of events. The thesis of this paper is that the social difference
has contributed to inequality and conflicts in the region.
The Indian subcontinent has been home to various groups of population including
Hindus, Muslims and Christians. There have been various divisions and sub divisions
within these religious communities which have been causes of many conflicts and
inequality (Oddie, 2013).
This paper will be discussing about the aspects of social difference and their
associated structures of inequality in South Asia intersect, and how have conflicts arisen
around them since the mid-20th century. It will be explaining what are some of the major
social movements in South Asia, and how do they use, or reject, international political
ideologies (like democracy, neoliberalism, Maoism) and/or concepts of human rights and
development.
“The modern nation-states of South Asiastruggle with the problems of defining
national identities, providing social and political inclusion for all groups of people within
their borders, and relating to neighboring nations in mutually beneficial ways.”
1

ASIAN STUDIES
Body of the Paper
Social difference and their associated structures of inequality in South Asia
There are various social divisions within the different religious communities in
India since the middle ages. The coming of the Muslims in India had escalated the
religious and caste divisions and conflicts (. During the time of independence in the 20th
century India has been affected by deep social hierarchies and divisions like caste,
religion, gender and class. The Zamindari system or the Indian version of feudalism has
been effective in causing the divisions of the society.At the season of freedom, India was
portrayed by profoundly settled in social chains of importance, characterized by rank,
sexual orientation, area and religion (Wadley, 2014). The medieval zamindari framework
partitioned country society into three wide classes: “landowners (zamindars),
sharecroppers, and landless workers”. Ladies, Untouchables, and ancestral people groups
were avoided from basic leadership at both provincial and national levels. The new
legislature of India set the objectives of binding together the country, building industry,
advancing monetary development, and over the span of these, decreasing disparity and
destitution.
The ways in which conflicts have arisen around social differences since the mid-20th
century
The caste system in India is one of the negative phenomenon of the South Asian
subcontinent (Hindu vs. Hindu: caste violence in India, 2018). One of the effects of this
system is to formalize exploitation the lower positions, an issue that was most genuine for
minimal rung of society, the Untouchables (Guha, 2013). Working with leather, cleaning
2

ASIAN STUDIES
toilets, clearing garbage, and trades, for instance, oil crushing were seen as ritualistically
unclean, and would messy those related with them. Unclean trades were principal to
society, anyway couldn't be a bit of the standard, so positions related with these trades
must be isolated from society. Going before independence, the amount of people set apart
as Untouchable spoke to perhaps 20% of the quantity of tenants in India (Bhattacharya,
2016). These people were subjected to genuine confinements, and were maintained a
strategic distance from havens, cremation grounds, wells, and other open utilities. Social
prejudices banned them from hair parlors, diners, and lodgings. In a couple of domains,
notwithstanding observing a couple of Untouchables was regarded dirtying, and they
were simply allowed out of their homes amid the night, and disallowed from living inside
a vast segment of a mile of a town.
Some of the major social movements in South Asia
There have been a number of social movements in South Asia which helped in
bringing change to the social and political scenario of India. The freedom movement in
India has radically changed the scenario of the country in terms of social order and the
unity of the people. The whole country without any distinction of caste, class or religion
participated against the British imperial government (SarDesai, 2018).
Prior to that there was social movements against the Sati which was abolished by
the then government. There was widespread protest against the Brahmanical caste system
by the Bhakti saints in Bengal even prior to that. The 20th century with the advent of the
western education system there was much improvement in the divisive social status in
India (Sri Lanka: an island with a smile, 2018).
3

ASIAN STUDIES
The use, or rejection, of international political ideologies surrounding major social
movements
There were many social ideologies which were adopted by the politicians of the
contemporary times who were fighting against the British imperial forces. There were
communist parties, rightist parties and the liberals who were all launching their political
operations against the imperial forces (Oberst, 1988). The political ideology that was
embraced was democracy. This political ideology was accepted by the Indian political
entities. The system that prevailed after the independence of India was democracy and the
political establishment. The democratic system was successful in replacing the earlier
malpractices of forced monarchy and feudal system (Piliavsky, 2014). He communist
ideology was largely rejected and today the communist parties in this region have very
little role to play in the overall political scenario.
Conclusion
The south Asian history has been a very eventful one and the history of this
region has been one of the oldest in the entire world. The theosophy of this region has
been very ancient but with time it was polluted by some miscreants which gave rise to
caste system and there were many conflicts because of such a divided society. The British
government used the divided political scenario of India in order to reign in this region for
a long time. From the Middle Eastern conquests to the British rule there have been a
history of subjugation in this region and the people have been further divided due to
political reasons.
4

ASIAN STUDIES
Reference:
Bhattacharya, J. N. (2016). Hindu castes and sects. Thacker, Spink & Co.(1896).
Guha, S. (2013). Beyond caste: Identity and power in South Asia, past and present. Brill.
Hindu vs. Hindu: caste violence in India (2018). Retrieved from
http://fod.infobase.com.eres.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/p_ViewVideo.aspx?xtid=37130
Oberst, R. C. (1988). Federalism and ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. Publius: The Journal
of Federalism, 18(3), 175-194.
Oddie, G. (2013). Religious Conversion Movements in South Asia: Continuities and
Change, 1800-1990. Routledge.
Piliavsky, A. (2014). India’s demotic democracy and its ‘depravities’ in the ethnographic
longue durée. Patronage as politics in South Asia, 154-175.
SarDesai, D. R. (2018). Southeast Asia: past and present. Routledge.
Sri Lanka: an island with a smile (2018). Retrieved from
http://fod.infobase.com.eres.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/p_ViewVideo.aspx?xtid=37130
Wadley, S. S. (2014). Social Change in Rural India: A Village Study. In South Asia in the
World: An Introduction (pp. 121-140). Routledge.
5