| Sikhism is supposed to be a radical religion free of | | | | do away with the caste system. But the Sikhs over |
| caste. But this has not happened and caste remains a | | | | the years have not really done away with the caste |
| factor that cannot be ignored in this reformist religion. | | | | system and it remains an all pervading fact of this |
| The Sikhs can trace their genesis to the first Sikh | | | | religion. The Sikhs are divided into a number of castes |
| Guru Nanak in the fifteenth century. Over a period of | | | | with the jats and khatris considering themselves the |
| time 9 Sikh gurus followed Nanak with the last Guru | | | | higher castes. This is difficult to explain in the light of |
| Gobind forming the Khalsa. The tenth guru created | | | | the teachings of the Sikh gurus. There are also other |
| the khalsa with a view to do away with the caste | | | | castes like the Ramgariahs (carpenters), and mazabhi |
| system and usher in universal brotherhood. | | | | sikhs. These are the scheduled cast Sikhs. One |
| Hinduism we know despite its immense philosophy of | | | | cannot accept how there can be lower cast Sikhs. |
| life and death has a number of ills that have over the | | | | The Sikh religious leadership has unfortunately not |
| years been magnified by the proponents of the Hindu | | | | been able to give the lead in this matter. The cast |
| religion themselves. Notable is the caste division that | | | | system has become an all pervading aspect of the |
| by itself is difficult to explain. How come a religion | | | | Sikh religion. There are cases where a Jat Sikh will |
| classifies man as per the status of his birth? Thus 4 | | | | never intermarry with a scheduled cast Sikh. This is |
| classes are recognized in Hinduism with the Brahmins | | | | not what the Sikh gurus had envisioned. They had |
| being the highest caste. Castes cannot be | | | | propagated a class less Sikh society. But it has not |
| interchanged and a man born in a particular will remain | | | | happened and the Sikhs are just like their Hindu |
| in that cast till his death. | | | | brethren who are dominated by caste. |
| Gandhi and a host of reformists tried to obliterate | | | | With the advent of the twenty first century this |
| the caste system but unfortunately they failed. The | | | | caste system is certainly an anomaly. But the Indian |
| caste system is so well entrenched in the Hindu | | | | government dominated by the concept of vote bank |
| ethos that this by itself is the biggest stumbling block | | | | politics has sanctified caste. There are now backward |
| for the Hindu religion to become more acceptable to | | | | and most backward castes for which reservations |
| all and sundry. Hence conversions of the lower casts | | | | have been made in all spheres of life that include jobs |
| to Islam or Christianity are very much in vogue. An | | | | and education. |
| example is Dr Ambedekar the leader of the lower | | | | But whatever the government may do, the Sikhs on |
| cast Hindus (untouchables) who along with his | | | | their own must rid themselves of these castes and |
| followers en masse embraced Buddhism. | | | | pave the way for a classless religion as envisioned by |
| When the Great Guru Gobind Singh carried out his | | | | the Sikh gurus. But that is a tall order in present day |
| baptisms on Baisakhi day his aim was to create a | | | | India. |
| uniform religion that would encompass all people and | | | | |