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- Adivasis and the Two Faces of Violence: Emergence of the postcolonial Indian State
Adivasis and the Two Faces of Violence: Emergence of the postcolonial Indian State
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This essay investigates the epistemic and physical harms committed against the Adivasis (tribes) of Chhotanagpur by the early postcolonial state.
| creator | Kamra, Umang (Class of 2022) |
| Title | Adivasis and the Two Faces of Violence: Emergence of the postcolonial Indian State |
| sponsor | Landstrom, Ann - Global Fellowships & Awards adviser |
| advisor | Prevost, Elizabeth (Faculty / Staff) |
| Index Date | 2022 |
| Date Issued | 5/24/2022 |
| Publisher | Grinnell College |
| Type of Resource | text |
| Genre | essay |
| Digital Origin | reformated digital |
| Digital Extent | 18 pages |
| Media Type | application/pdf |
| description | This essay investigates the epistemic and physical harms committed against the Adivasis (tribes) of Chhotanagpur by the early postcolonial state. To achieve this aim, the essay first develops a narrative of the Kharsawan massacre, which was the first state-sanctioned massacre by the postcolonial Indian state against its citizens. The Kharsawan massacre, which took place on January 1, 1948, claimed between 1,000 to 2,000 lives, based on eyewitness statements and related sources. Despite the brutal nature of this massacre and its effects on Adivasi politics, mainstream scholarly discourse has largely failed to provide a comprehensive account of this event or recognize its implications. The essay, by providing a narrative of the massacre, aims to position it as an event that should serve as the symbolic precedent of the violent relationship between the Adivasis and the postcolonial state. Second, through a study of the discourse in the Constituent Assembly, an institution which defined and embodied the ideals of the early postcolonial state, the essay depicts concrete cases of epistemic harms committed against the Adivasis. Together, this evidence suggests that despite gaining the status of full citizens under the independent Indian state, the Adivasis could not escape the cycle of epistemic and physical violence that has plagued them since their first interactions with state structures. |
| Language | English |
| Topic | Adiwasi Garasia (Indic people) |
| Topic | Indigenous peoples |
| Topic | Insurgency |
| Topic | Civil rights |
| Geographic | India--Jharkhand |
| Geographic | India--Seraikela-Kharsawan |
| Temporal | 20th century |
| Temporal | 21st century |
| Keyword | Frederick Baumann Essay Prize (2022) |
| Classification | DS432,A2 |
| Related Item | Digital Grinnell |
| Related Item | Frederick Baumann Essay Prize |
| Related Item | Student Scholarship |
| Identifier () | HIS |
| Identifier (hdl) | http://hdl.handle.net/11084/31980 |
| Identifier (local) | grinnell:31980 |
| Access Condition | Copyright to this work is held by the author(s), in accordance with United States copyright law (USC 17). Readers of this work have certain rights as defined by the law, including but not limited to fair use (17 USC 107 et seq.). |