The Persistence of Caste: India's Hidden Apartheid and the Khairlanji Murders

While the caste system has been formally abolished under the Indian constitution, according to official statistics, every eighteen minutes a crime is committed in India on a member of the dalit caste.Understanding Caste uses the shocking case of “Khairlanji,” the brutal murder of an entire Dalit family in 2006, to explode the myth that caste is a feudal relic, and argues that it has been well assimilated not only by capitalist India, but also Globalising India - spreading out through the diaspora. The author argues that anti-caste activism itself has reflected and reinforced the worst stereotypes, identifying foes and friends in obsolete terms, and that in post-independence India, the authority of Caste has found a new ally -- the state and its police. This shocking and insightful new analysis will not only provide a fascinating introduction into the issue of caste in a globalised world, but will sharpen any readers' understanding of caste dynamics as they actually exist.