Has equality been reduced to redistributive justice or distribution of economic rewards? At a session during the international conference on Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, which came to a close on Sunday, political scientist Prof. Neera Chandhoke said redistributive justice is only a prerequisite to equality and the latter encompasses a lot more.
She argued that while there has been much focus on reservation, it is time to look at a new vocabulary for equality, which is also about equal respect in both public and private space. “We should drop compensation for past wrongs from our political vocabulary, as youngsters question why they should compensate for their forefathers. This creates divisions of ‘us’ and ‘them’. We should move beyond victimhood, learning from the feminist movement,,” she said.
Dr. Chandhoke lamented how affirmative action has constricted the imagination and energy of society. Equality in its broad sense means equal respect to people, which was still a distant dream, she said.
Agreeing to the observations of former University Grants Commission chairman S.K. Thorat, who noted that equality and fraternity in private space was still a concern, Dr. Chandhoke said a political discourse on equal respect and dignity to all might be a good starting point.
At a session on Saturday, Prof. James Manor, Emeritus Professor of Commonwealth Studies, University of London, and political psychologist Ashis Nandy had observed that accommodations between Dalits and other caste groups were on the rise, leading to a decrease in discrimination in the public space.
On Sunday, Dr. Chandhoke argued that the private space mattered as it forges public dialogue. “While our Dalit students today reach universities, they are denied the warmth of friendship and there is very high unaccountability in rural areas,” she said.