ABSTRACT
The well-documented decline in the acceptance of caste hierarchies in most rural areas is one of the most important changes to occur in India since Independence. But what are its implications? What ensues? Three trends are evident: inter-caste violence, accommodations and stalemates. This chapter, which is based on studies in and of 12 varied regions and sub-regions of India since 2010, seeks to explain how these three trends have emerged. They have developed out of changes of mind rather than changes of heart. Calculations by “higher” castes have been vastly more important than empathy towards Dalits and other disadvantaged groups. The varied impacts of anxieties, distractions and disengagements upon those who might resort to violence are examined. So are the key roles played by elders within different castes – as well as potential threats to elders’ authority which may undermine their capacity to arrange accommodations or at least uneasy stalemates that offer alternatives to violence.
