Other side of the caste debate: When Dalits turn against their own

Recent SC order allowed states to implement sub-classification of reservations

Sub-categories within the Scheduled Caste community often face discriminatory practices from other sub-castes considered higher in the hierarchy. Such ‘horizontal discrimination’ affects key aspects of life, including food, religion, birth (midwives), and death (access to burial grounds).

This is illustrated by data from the January 2010 study, Understanding Untouchability: A Comprehensive Study of Practices and Conditions in 1,589 Villages in Gujarat, authored by Dave Armstrong of the University of Western Ontario and Christian Davenport of the University of Michigan.

The study was cited in a Supreme Court judgment delivered earlier in August, which allowed states to implement