‘Dignity of labour applies only to societies where equality is the norm’

Bezwada Wilson
| Photo Credit: SUDHAKARA JAIN

Only if we can come out of the mindset of finding joy in being superior to another person can we overcome the caste system, says Bezwada Wilson, co-founder and National Convenor of the Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA.) 

“Even if you are a Dalit and you think some other subcaste is lower to you and feel happy about it, you are just practising a 3000-year-old system,” he said, speaking at Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) as part of the intersectionality series.  

He argued that similar is the case with patriarchy too and that men of most communities consider women lower to them. 

The Magsaysay award winner further noted that considering oneself as inferior to someone else was equally dangerous. 

“The scavengers feel that they are inferior to everybody else in this country because they have to clean, carry and dispose of human excreta and garbage. But in other countries who are doing similar work, people don’t feel the same way because of dignity of labour.” 

However, he noted that the concept of dignity of labour shouldn’t be applied in the Indian context to ask someone to clean another person’s toilet.  

“Only when you are able to understand and attain an equal society can you bring up the dignity of labour. We are unfortunately far away from it,” he said. 

Fighting caste-based occupation 

In 1993, the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act,1993 prohibited the construction of dry toilets and employment of manual scavengers to clean them. 

Wilson noted that despite the prohibition the practice continued in several parts of the country in the years that followed unhindered.  

In 1994, Wilson founded the SKA along with activist Paul Diwakar and former chief secretary of Tripura S.R. Sankaran to document continuing scavenging practices and fight against it. 

“S.R. Sankaran was with Safai Karmachari Andolan for 18 years. We were determined to destroy caste-based occupation. S.R. Sankaran, who was born as a Brahmin, was the chairperson. We shouldn’t be adamant that only a Dalit should lead, and others should be kept away. We cannot again practise the caste system in our organisations and discriminate people by caste names,” he said.  

Pursuing justice

In 2003, SKA, 18 other civil society organisations, and a few individuals and manual scavengers filed Public Interest Litigation in the Supreme Court naming all states and government departments of Education, Judiciary, Defence and Railways as violators of the Manual Scavenging (Prohibition) Act.  

“You can’t always expect justice to come to you. Try to take a step to go and stand by the side of justice,” he said.  

Wilson noted that the case helped to create awareness around the issue and made officials answerable to manual scavengers for the first time. However, he pointed out that in states such as Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Jammu & Kashmir, dry latrines still existed and women continued cleaning them.   

“After so many years of independence and despite being a democratic country how can this continue?” he questioned. To address this issue, SKA would launch a campaign in the said states, he said.