New Delhi, 21 September 2025.
On 20th September, a people’s convention on the theme “Annihilation of Caste: Current Situation and Way Forward” was successfully organised at Ambedkar Bhawan, New Delhi. The convention was jointly organised by the Campaign Against Caste Annihilation (CAM) and the Caste Annihilation Organisation (CAO).
The Praesidium comprised Comrade J.P. Narela (Convener, CAO), Comrade Buddhesh Mani (CAO), Comrade Tuhin (All India Convener, CAM), Comrade Shankar (Central Committee member, CAM), Comrade Vijay (Convener, CAM, Madhya Pradesh) and Comrade Neerja (Central Committee member, AIRWO – All India Revolutionary Women’s Organisation). The convention was conducted by Comrade Niranjan (All India Convener, AIRSO – All India Revolutionary Students Organisation).
Revolutionary songs were presented by renowned people’s singer from Bengal, Comrade Asim Giri (All India Convener, Revolutionary Cultural Forum – RCF), and AIRSO singers from Madhya Pradesh – Sandeep, Ragini, Smriti, Dheeraj, Rajnati and Shaitan Singh. Comrade Faheem Sarfarosh (State Committee member, CAM, Madhya Pradesh) placed a resolution in support of the Caste Annihilation Movement.
The convention saw participation and speeches by comrades and representatives from a wide spectrum of
organisations: Comrade Mukesh Aseem (Sarwahara Jan Morcha), Comrade Vidushi (IFTU-Sarwahara), Advocate Ramashankar Bhim (Convener, Social Justice Front, Uttar Pradesh), com.Ramfer and com. Kanhaiya ( CAM U.P.),Comrade Mrigank (IFTU), Professor Uma (DTI), Comrade Nanhelal, Comrade Satyaveer Singh (Revolutionary Workers Front), Comrade Nachhatar Singh (CAM, Punjab), Professor Ashwini Sukrat, Comrades Subhashish, Santosh Katheria, Munna Prasad, Rajat Collective, Ayush Himkhand, Gyanendra, Vivek Srivastava (AITUC), Sompal and Arjun (JSSN). Large contingents of anti-caste activists from Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh attended in strength.
Key Discussions:
Opening the subject, Comrade J.P. Narela recalled Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s seminal intervention through “Annihilation of Caste” when the Jat Pat Todak Mandal in 1936 first invited him as President, but later cancelled due to his radical critique of caste and scriptures. Ambedkar then published and distributed his speech independently. He asserted that without uprooting caste – entrenched for thousands of years – no genuine democratic society can be built. He emphasised that the Indian people’s two chief enemies were Brahmanism and Capitalism, and called for nationalisation of land and industries. Shaheed Bhagat Singh too had recognised the Untouchables as the real proletariat of India and urged them to rise against the oppressive system. Through this convention, he said, we aim to clarify among progressive Left forces that caste annihilation is inseparable from class struggle, and must be taken up as such.
Comrade Tuhin placed the programme of the Caste Annihilation Movement before the house. He stated that
Brahmanism today has taken the form of Hindutva – the ideological foundation of the fascist RSS, the oldest and largest fascist organisation in the world. This Brahmanical fascist Sangh Parivar, in subservience to imperialism and in alliance with crony-capitalist magnates like Ambani and Adani, is trampling upon the working masses. Caste has completely adapted itself within the present imperialist-dependent corporate capitalist system and has grown stronger. Its poison has spread so much that even in Silicon Valley, USA, caste-based discrimination forced American courts to legislate against it. If we wish to make India truly democratic, we must launch a revolutionary struggle for annihilation of caste, understanding its indivisibility with class struggle. Unfortunately, most Left forces have considered caste as merely part of the “superstructure”, assuming it would vanish after revolution – a serious error. Ambedkarites too, instead of following Ambedkar’s revolutionary line, have abandoned the struggle against both capitalism and Brahmanism, many falling into identity politics and even siding with the RSS. For us, caste annihilation and the struggle against patriarchy are inseparable components of class struggle in India.
Comrade Shankar stressed that for over 2,500 years, the ruling classes have looted the labouring masses through the brutal caste system legitimised by Vedic-Brahmanical philosophy. The history of class struggle in India has been the clash between this Brahmanical order and the Shraman materialist traditions of Buddha, Charvaka, Basavanna, Nanak, Kabir, Raidas, Jotiba and Savitribai Phule, Ayyankali, Periyar, Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh. Today’s annihilationists must carry forward this heritage. The RSS, as the biggest defender of Brahmanism, has consolidated control over legislature, executive and judiciary through fascistisation. To counter this, the caste annihilation movement must be advanced with greater speed and determination.
Comrade Neerja underlined how the RSS’s long-standing aim has been to replace the Ambedkar-framed Constitution with the Manusmriti, which denied human dignity to 85% of India’s people – Dalits, Adivasis, women and other oppressed castes. Under BJP rule, atrocities on these sections have intensified – from brutal killings of Dalits for riding horses in weddings, to sexual atrocities like Hathras, to the release of rapists and murderers in Gujarat with state honours. Such incidents reveal the unfolding project of a Manusmriti-based Hindu Rashtra.
Comrade Buddhesh Mani pointed out that even today, a tiny handful of upper castes hold disproportionate control over wealth, state apparatus and judiciary. Through the 103rd Constitutional Amendment, the Modi government has given 10% reservation to so-called “economically weaker” upper castes, further entrenching privilege. The ruling classes oppose caste census as it would expose this dominance.
Comrade Vijay emphasised that caste annihilation must not be treated as a tactical issue but as a strategic question, inseparable from revolution in India.
The convention broadly agreed: caste is rooted not just in the superstructure but also in the economic base; annihilation of caste is integral to class struggle; resistance must be mounted against the project of a Manusmriti-based Hindu Rashtra. Ambedkar was not a reformist but a revolutionary; identity-politics driven neo-Ambedkarism weakens the annihilationist movement.
Resolution:
The convention concluded with the decision to form a Coordination Committee of anti-caste progressive forces, to
carry forward the struggle for building a casteless, exploitation-free, secular, gender-equal and rational, truly egalitarian society.
Issued by:
J.P. Narela, Niranjan Azad
(On behalf of the Joint Convenors of CAM and CAO)
Contact: 9355157922, 9958992904
