Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 73
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 73
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
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Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 74
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 74
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Code Context
            if (Configure::read('debug')) {

                trigger_error($message, E_USER_WARNING);

            } else {
$response = object(Cake\Http\Response) {

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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.

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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.

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                <strong>Prof Ronki Ram, former Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, interviewed by Tripta Narang (Newsclick.in)</strong></h1>
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                <p style="text-align:justify">-Newsclick.in</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &ndash; past and current?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify">Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.</p><p style="text-align:justify">After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.</p><p style="text-align:justify">In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram" title="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram">click here</a> to read more.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy:&nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please <a href="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265" title="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265">click here</a> to access</strong></p>               </font>
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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;

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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.

The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-Newsclick.in&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot; title=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot; title=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&#039;,
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	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Prof Ronki Ram, former Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, interviewed by Tripta Narang (Newsclick.in)&#039;,
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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.

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$disp = &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-Newsclick.in&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot; title=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot; title=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&#039;
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                <strong>Prof Ronki Ram, former Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, interviewed by Tripta Narang (Newsclick.in)</strong></h1>
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                <p style="text-align:justify">-Newsclick.in</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &ndash; past and current?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify">Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.</p><p style="text-align:justify">After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.</p><p style="text-align:justify">In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram" title="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram">click here</a> to read more.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy:&nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please <a href="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265" title="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265">click here</a> to access</strong></p>               </font>
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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.

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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.

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$disp = &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-Newsclick.in&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &amp;ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &amp;nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&amp;rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &amp;nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &amp;ndash; past and current?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &amp;ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &amp;ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &amp;nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot; title=&quot;https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy:&amp;nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please &lt;a href=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot; title=&quot;https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;amp;qstrempdesigcode=265&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to access&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&#039;
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                <strong>Prof Ronki Ram, former Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, interviewed by Tripta Narang (Newsclick.in)</strong></h1>
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                <p style="text-align:justify">-Newsclick.in</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &ndash; past and current?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify">Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.</p><p style="text-align:justify">After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.</p><p style="text-align:justify">In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram" title="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram">click here</a> to read more.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy:&nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please <a href="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265" title="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265">click here</a> to access</strong></p>               </font>
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<p style="text-align:justify"><em>Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&nbsp;</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &ndash; past and current?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&nbsp;</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram">click here</a> to read more.&nbsp;</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy:&nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please <a href="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265">click here</a> to access</strong></p>
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<p style="text-align:justify"><em>Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&nbsp;</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &ndash; past and current?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&nbsp;</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram">click here</a> to read more.&nbsp;</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy:&nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please <a href="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265">click here</a> to access</strong></p>
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$metaTitle = 'Interviews | Prof Ronki Ram, former Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, interviewed by Tripta Narang (Newsclick.in)'
$metaKeywords = 'Scheduled Castes,Punjab,Guru Ravidass Jayanti,Punjab Polls,Assembly Elections,Ravidassias'
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Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.

The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of...'
$disp = '<p style="text-align:justify">-Newsclick.in</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab &ndash; 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership.</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16, &nbsp;is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC&rsquo;s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country. &nbsp;In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs &ndash; past and current?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify">Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs.</p><p style="text-align:justify">After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur &ndash; now spelt as Jalandhar &ndash; the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election.</p><p style="text-align:justify">In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents. &nbsp;Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram" title="https://www.newsclick.in/unlike-pre-partition-punjab-strong-leaders-yet-emerge-32-strong-sc-population-ronki-ram">click here</a> to read more.&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy:&nbsp;Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please <a href="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265" title="https://politicalscience.puchd.ac.in/show-biodata.php?qstrempid=1669&amp;qstrempdesigcode=265">click here</a> to access</strong></p>'
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Prof Ronki Ram, former Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, interviewed by Tripta Narang (Newsclick.in)

-Newsclick.in Caste and religious divisions within 32% SC population of Punjab – 39 castes over 5 religions -- over the years have precluded them from developing their own distinct and viable state-level leadership. The postponement of Punjab Assembly elections on account of Guru Ravidass Jayanti on February 16,  is a clear indication of the reinforcement of the SC’s identity in the state, which has the highest percentage of SC population (31.94%) in the country.  In an email interview with NewsClick, Prof Ronki Ram, former Dean (Faculty of Arts), Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor of Political Science, Panjab University, explains the trajectory of the political journey of SCs in Punjab, the strong presence of Deras and why the community has not thrown up strong leaders as yet.  TN: Can you explain the political journey of the Scheduled Castes in Punjab? And what electoral trends can be observed among SCs – past and current? RR: The political journey of Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Punjab began with the formation of the historic Ad Dharm movement in 1926. The Ad Dharm movement was founded by Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, who earlier was active in the Ghadar Movement and was involved in the herculean task of smuggling weapons to India for armed revolt against British rule. However on the way to India from the US, he was arrested along with four other Ghadarites and was sentenced to death. But, timely help by their German sympathisers saved his life.  Thereafter, he (Mugowalia) went underground and finally reached India in 1925 after spending 16 years abroad. He was surprised to find that in all these years nothing had changed in the caste-based social set-up of the society. To cut the fetters of caste, he founded the Ad Dharm movement. This was the only movement of its kind in the region aimed at generating political awareness among the SCs. After establishing its headquarters (Ad Dharm Mandal) in Jullundur – now spelt as Jalandhar – the Ad Dharm movement intensified its lobbying with the British government to get a separate religion for SCs. In 1931, the British government notified Ad Dharm as an exclusive religion of the lower castes. Consequently, 418,789 lower castes reported as Ad Dharmi in the 1931 Punjab Census. Another major development that underlined the initial political journey of SCs in Punjab was their successful participation in the maiden Punjab Provincial Assembly elections of 1936-37. The Ad Dharmis supported independent candidates in the eight reserved SCs constituencies throughout the undivided Punjab province. Their caste-based consolidation for political support helped seven out of the total eight independent candidates, who won the election. In the second crucial Punjab Legislative Assembly election of 1945-46, on the eve of Independence, the Ad Dharmi candidates contested as Unionists as well as Independents.  Both the Unionists and Independents won 10 seats each. Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia got elected as a Unionist candidate from Hoshiarpur constituency; and in 1996, Babu Kanshi Ram won from there as a Member of Parliament. Please click here to read more.  Image Courtesy: Department of Political Science, Panjab University, please click here to access