ঔপনিবেশিক বাংলায় তফসিলি জাতির রাজনীতির পরিণতি : যোগেন্দ্রনাথ মণ্ডলের ভূমিকার সমাজতাত্ত্বিক অন্তর্দৃষ্টি/ The Ultimate Fate of Scheduled Caste Politics in Colonial Bengal : Sociological Insights on Role Played by Jogendranath Mandal

Abstract

In colonial Bengal, from 1936 to 1946, we witnessed the emergence of lower-caste political force as a pressure group, i.e., the emergence of Scheduled Caste political force within the provincial political structure under the leadership of Jogendranath Mandal. Although the Scheduled Castes of colonial Bengal were not homogeneous, their community was divided into different political associations but they still managed to challenge the Bhadrolok’s hegemony, mainly in political space of colonial Bengal. In colonial Bengal, lower-caste political activism was so strong that Dr B. R. Ambedkar needed Jogendranath Mandal’s help to enter the Constituent Assembly. At the time of the 1946 provincial election in colonial Bengal, the Scheduled Caste politics under the leadership of Jogendranath Mandal had faced natural challenges from Bhadraloks. Jogendranath Mandal tried to tackle those challenges, but ultimately he was not successful. As a consequence of that, lower caste political activism and their opportunities to achieve socio-political empowerment were ruptured in colonial Bengal, and in continuation of this, in contemporary Bengal, we still do not find any definite political force based on lower caste support.

         In response to the above context, by analysing the role of Jogendranath Mandal in lower caste politics, the researcher mainly wants to show how a Scheduled Caste political force emerged in colonial Bengal. What kind of threats were posed towards Scheduled Caste politics? Finally, through this article, the researcher wants to show how lower caste political leaders reacted in that situation and how they shaped the ultimate fate of Scheduled Caste politics. With these questions, the researcher wants to understand how caste identity was transformed in late colonial Bengal and how caste identity became obscure in the social discourse of colonial Bengal, which left a greater impact on the politics of post-colonial Bengal.