ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at Bihari Sunni Muharram in Dhaka in its own right and on its own terms. It suggest that while migrants draw upon elements of their history as a symbolic resource, what is played out on the streets of Dhaka is in no sense a replica of the Muharram of old Bihar or, indeed, of Sunni belief in the Bihari homeland. The so-called Biharis of Dhaka's camps are best understood as part of one of the largest and most enduring labour Diasporas in South Asian history. If the Bihari diaspora in East Bengal already had a predominantly working-class character before partition, this was accentuated by the influx of refugees, giving the urban proletariats of the new Pakistani province a distinctive, North Indian profile. But as minorities without citizenship rights in Dhaka, Biharis clearly often felt the best course for them was not to insist on customary rights or precedence to urban space.
