Indians reach for an identity beyond caste and creed

Expectations of a quality education and decent job prospects are common to many around the world. The notion that these are slipping away has brought young people into the streets across Asia, Africa, and Europe over the last three years.Their distress often resonates with fellow citizens who share concerns about unresponsive institutions and unethical governance. This week, for example, France began a national self-examination after youthful protests led to looting and destruction.In India, meanwhile, a Generation Z-led protest movement succeeded in forcing the resignation of the country’s education minister in July, over repeated corruption in the highly competitive national examination system. Now, that loosely organized, satirically named Cockroach Janta Party has taken on the even larger issue of election integrity in the world’s largest democracy. Over the past year, the government’s “special intensive revision” of voter rolls has removed more than 130 million voters, using criteria widely seen as politically motivated and selectively applied to minority groups.The growing public outcry, rare under the 12-year reign of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reflects a “general frustration with the lack of economic opportunities [and] ... hopelessness in India,” according to Sushant Singh, a former Indian military official currently lecturing at Yale University.What’s different this time, Mr. Singh told The Washington Post, is that the demand for electoral transparency “cuts across classes, it cuts across castes, it cuts across religious groups, because voting rights are something which affect all Indians.” And to many observers of Indian politics, that’s a bright spot countering the claims of hopelessness or democratic decline in this country of 1.48 billion people with hundreds of languages and dozens of religious creeds and castes.This civic resurgence, according to sociologist Suryakant Waghmore, encompasses two core ideas: “collective solidarity – people feeling united as a community” and “individual autonomy – people having the freedom to think and act for themselves.”These are values based on “citizenship, not on ... religion, caste, race, or family background,” Mr. Waghmore wrote on the generally pro-government News9live website. That’s in contrast to the ideology of Hindutva, promoted by Mr. Modi and his ruling party, he wrote, which “seeks to construct Hinduism as a civil religion” and marginalize the country’s significant minorities, including Muslims, Christians, and even the millions of Hindus who are considered of lower caste. Deepen your worldviewwith Monitor Highlights.Politics with respectGet political stories with respectful analysis.There‘s a world of new ideas in everyBooks newsletter.There‘s more to life, enrich yours withCulture & Learning weekly.Follow humanity‘s discoveries withScience & Nature stories in your inbox.Gain a spiritual perspectivefrom the stories in your inbox.Want to understand the deeper impact of critical events? Learn the Monitor‘s insight.Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads. Abhijeet Dipke, the leader of the Cockroach movement, is a Dalit (lower caste) and initially came in for considerable online abuse over that issue. But, as one activist told The New Yorker last week, Indians are redefining civic identity and Mr. Dipke’s status is now promoting “significant participation from the Dalit community,” especially as a public inquiry commission takes testimony from voters about irregular removal.“Whether this movement will succeed in transforming India’s civil sphere remains to be seen,” according to Mr. Waghmore. “But it has already done something remarkable in reminding us that democracy is not a gift from above but a constant ... and necessary struggle from below. That is a lesson that transcends exams, parties, and generations.” ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER? LoginReal news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.The Christian Science Monitor was founded in 1908 to lift the standard of journalism and uplift humanity. We aim to “speak the truth in love.” Our goal is not to tell you what to think, but to give you the essential knowledge and understanding to come to your own intelligent conclusions. Join us in this mission by subscribing.