Author Description

The Namasudras of Bengal present a curious case. From being the largest Hindu caste group in Bengal and a census-defined community in 1872, they disintegrated after the Partition of India in 1947. Under the banner of the Matua Mahasangha, the group assumed political significance, again, in West Bengal's embattled political arena in 2010-11. This book chronologically delineates the critical moments in the history of the Namasudras. It examines their influence in nationalist and local politics from the 1870s to the 1930s to their appropriation into larger political groups like the Congress, the Hindu Mahasabha, and Kisan Sabhas after Independence. Exploring the transient nature of caste in modern India, this volume discusses the fracturing of caste solidarities along class lines, and the creation of competing and contesting religious and national identities. The new postscript introduces a contemporary perspective to this classic study and analyses the reasons for the disintegration of the Namasudras as a political entity after the Partition. Sekhar Bandyopadhyay also evaluates the implications of their recent resurgence and their role in the 2011 assembly elections.