Seven years on, Prabhanjan Pradhan, 38, a professor in a Mumbai college, has hardly received a guest back home in Purusottampur in Ganjam district of Odisha. His family has been ostracised by the All Odisha Banayat Odia Samaj (AOBOS), a Ganjam-based caste group, or kula samaj, as it is called locally.
His “fault” was that he chose to register his marriage, rather than loop in the Samaj members. The group also slapped a fine of ₹5,000 on him, which the professor refused to pay. Mr. Pradhan lodged a police complaint in the local police station, but nothing has come of this. “Why should my family suffer on the strength of an association that does not have any legal standing?” Mr. Pradhan asks, rhetorically.
There are more than a dozen caste groups in Ganjam district. They preside over marriage alliances, dictating dowry; make decisions on alimony in the case of a divorce; and impose penalty or issue notices of social isolation, if their orders are not followed. They have political affiliations, prey on fear, and often operate on public money, strengthening their bases over the past 10 to 15 years.
In 2016, up to 39 social boycott diktats were issued by the AOBOS in the Polasara region comprising parts of Beguniapada, Polasara, Kabisuryanagar, and Buguda of Ganjam district. The boycott orders were issued on the letterhead of the caste group.
Non-cooperation diktats are issued against both individuals and groups: “There are about 50 to 60 individuals facing it (in the community affiliated to them), and about 25 families,” said a former office bearer or the Nikhila Utkala Alia Khandayat Samaj (NUAKS).
Laxmi Naik with her son at a mud house at Rent village near Sorada, as caste groups do not allow her to return to her home at Balichhai village in Ganjam district of Odisha. | Photo Credit: Biswaranjan Rout
“The adjudications of caste groups are medieval, feudal, and regressive. It is difficult for a family or two to cope when they are ousted from a community,” said Bhalachandra Shadangi, a social activist who has taken up many such issues with administration.
Caste groups maintain marriage registers documenting almost all weddings in their caste. Families need to fill a form that includes a list of household articles, details of the wedding feast, and dowry. The marriage must take place within six months, or the marriage stands “cancelled”.
“Before the wedding, family members and the kula samaj office-bearers of the bridegroom’s village usually go to bride’s house. They ‘approve’ the negotiation (on dowry and customs) reached between the families,” said Purnachandra Mohanty, former Chief Election Officer of NUAKS.
Mr. Mohanty said, “On the day of the wedding, the marriage papers are signed between the two families in the presence of caste representatives. Four copies of the papers are maintained at the village, regional, and district level offices of the association.”
NUAKS has office buildings in almost 400 villages and there are regional and district headquarter buildings too. “The MP and MLA funds (MLA Local Area Development Fund and Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme)have been received for construction of at least five to seven office buildings,” said a former NUAKS office-bearer. A majority of caste groups have their office buildings constructed with contributions from local politicians.
In case of a separation, the couple will have to apply to the offices. “The village, regional, and headquarter committees of the caste will first try to counsel them not to end the relationship. If separation is imminent, we decide as per our stated guidelines,” said Mr Mohanty. The “stated guidelines” include disallowing a widower from marrying again if the parents of the first wife do not agree.
In November last year, Dandeswar Nahak sat in a dharna in front of the office of Ganjam District Collector seeking the intervention of the administration: his family had been suffering social isolation since 2016. A few days after he was married, his wife left. He claims the NUAKS forced him to opt for a formal separation and fined him ₹1.5 lakh. When he didn’t pay up, his family was expelled from the caste.
Most groups disallow people from marrying into another caste. However, Ganjam Kurmi Kshatriya Samaj “allows” its members to marry someone from a so-called higher caste. “It will be difficult to convince caste elders and other members if one of us marries into a lower caste,” said Abhimanyu Pradhan, president of the group.
The Ganjam police admitted prevalence of such caste hegemony in the district. “We are taking action whenever a written complaint reaches us. But, when a group of people decide not to visit a particular family or attend social functions, it is difficult to take action,” said Satyabrata Bhoi, Inspector-General of Police (southern range).
Published - January 07, 2023 11:52 pm IST
