CBSE Class 10 Social Science Gender, Religion and Caste Notes Set 05

Why social differences enter politics

Gender, religion and caste are three social differences found in every part of India. Politics takes them into account because voters, parties and movements all draw on them. When used fairly, this lets weaker groups raise their demands; when used to set one group against another, it harms democracy.

Gender and politics

Sexual division of labour: in most families women do all the work inside the home, such as cooking, cleaning and looking after children, or supervise paid helpers, while men work outside. Women's household work is rarely valued or counted as work, and although women are about half the population, their presence in public life, especially politics, has been small.

Feminist movements across the world demanded equal rights in public life and in personal and family life. They asked for the vote, better education, jobs and equal pay.

Gender gaps that remain:

1. Literacy: about 54 per cent of women are literate against about 76 per cent of men (Census 2011). Fewer girls reach higher studies and more drop out because families spend more on boys.

2. Work and pay: few women hold highly paid, valued jobs, and women are often paid less than men for the same work, although the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 requires equal pay for equal work.

3. Sex ratio: many families prefer sons, and sex-selective abortion has pulled down the child sex ratio in several regions.

4. Safety: harassment and domestic violence continue, even inside the home. The Domestic Violence Act, 2005 offers legal protection.

Political representation: women make up only about one in seven members of the Lok Sabha and a smaller share of state assemblies. One-third of seats in panchayats and municipalities are reserved for women, which has brought over ten lakh women into local government. The Women's Reservation Act, 2023 provides one-third seats for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, to take effect after the next census and delimitation.

Religion, communalism and secularism

Gandhiji held that religion cannot be separated from politics, but meant the ethics drawn from all religions. Human rights groups point out that most victims of communal riots are religious minorities. The women's movement argues that the personal laws of every religion treat women unequally and need reform.

Communalism is the idea that religion is the main basis of social community, so people of one faith form a single political group whose interests oppose those of others. It appears in four forms:

1. Everyday beliefs: religious prejudice, stereotypes and the belief that one's religion is superior.

2. Political dominance: the majority seeks majoritarian dominance, while a minority may seek a separate political unit.

3. Mobilisation: sacred symbols, religious leaders, emotional appeals and fear are used to gather votes.

4. Violence: riots and massacres, as seen at the time of Partition.

Secular state: the Constitution has no official religion, gives every person freedom to profess, practise and propagate any religion, forbids discrimination on grounds of religion, and allows the state to act against practices inside a religion that deny equality, such as untouchability.

Caste and politics

Caste rested on hereditary occupations and led to exclusion and discrimination. Reformers such as Jotiba Phule, Gandhiji, B. R. Ambedkar and Periyar Ramaswami Naicker fought against it. Today the caste hierarchy is weakening because of urbanisation, growth of literacy and education, occupational mobility, the decline of landlords' power in villages, and the Constitution, which bans caste discrimination and untouchability.

Caste in politics takes these forms: parties choose candidates with the caste make-up of the constituency in mind; they appeal to caste sentiments; and governments try to include members of different castes. Caste is not the only factor, however. No constituency has a single caste in majority, voters often care about performance and economic conditions, and sitting representatives frequently lose elections. Politics also changes caste: caste groups enlarge by joining other castes, negotiate with other groups, and new groupings such as backward and forward castes emerge.

Worked examples

Example 1. Give three provisions that make India a secular state. (a) There is no official religion of the Indian state. (b) Every person has freedom to profess, practise and propagate any religion. (c) The Constitution prohibits discrimination on the ground of religion.

Example 2. Explain why the caste hierarchy is breaking down. Economic development, urbanisation and spread of education have weakened old occupational barriers. Landlords have lost influence in villages and people can change occupations. The Constitution outlawed caste discrimination, and leaders and reformers kept the pressure on.

Example 3. Why is caste alone unable to decide election results? No constituency has one caste in majority, so a candidate needs support across castes. Voters also weigh a party's performance, and members of the same caste may vote for different parties.

Quick Check Questions