Privileged should break historical cycle of 'othering' marginalised communities: Justice DY Chandrachud

The process of 'othering' and excluding persons belonging to marginalised communities must be put to an end, Supreme Court judge Justice DY Chandrachud recently opined..It falls on "the people of India", especially the privileged members, to break the historical cycle of othering marginalised communities and confer respect and recognition on people belonging to such communities, the judge said."The process of 'othering' and exclusion must be put to an end. There must be a transformation towards securing a vision premised on inclusiveness. It is necessary that the privileged members of the society break free from the shackles of the past, and confer respect and recognition to the members of the marginalised communities," he stated.The Supreme Court Judge was delivering the 13th BR Ambedkar Memorial Lecture on"Conceptualizing Marginalisation: Agency, Assertion, and Personhood" at an event organised by the Indian Institute of Dalit Studies, New Delhi and Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, South Asia.In his speech, Justice Chandrachud touched upon the concept of personhood and how marginalised communities, especially Dalits, LGBTQIA+ persons and women, are deprived of the same despite being citizens with equal rights. Justice Chandrachud pondered on the ever-relevant question that rises from the preamble of the Constitution which begins with the phrase, "We, the People of India". "But who are we, the 'People of India'? I often wonder if 'the people' referred to in the preamble of the Constitution includes the Tribes which were still recognized as 'notified tribes' when the Constitution came into force? Does it include the homosexuals? Does it include the women? The Dalit community, and the disabled?", he asked.He went on to trace the history of the provisions of the Constitution which incorporates specific provisions providing the right to equality and how, despite the same, many sections of society have consistently been left out. "It was only in 2005 that women by birth became a coparcener in their own right; and it was only in 2018 that homosexuality was decriminalised. Thus, for nearly half a century of the Constitution's existence, a group of persons was denied its rights as equal members of this country".Justice Chandrachud began his address by referring to a short autobiographical story of Dr. BR Ambedkar "Waiting for a Visa", in which he recounts the events that occurred when he had visited a village in Jalgaon to enquire into the instance of social boycott that members of the Dalit community was facing. The horse-carriage that was arranged for him met with an accident after which he struggled to find anyone who was willing to drive a Dalit passenger.“Here lies a melancholic tale of diminishing Personhood. A well-educated Barrister who has been addressing the issue of untouchability at a high level, had to face ruthless and brutish humiliation by being a a member of the Dalit Community", Justice Chandrachud said..He then went on to pose a pertinent question"I ask if all human beings who talk walk in earth are under the umbrella of Personhood.".We ought to be wary of consolidating the ideals of citizenship and personhood, he said, while drawing the distinction between citizenship and personhood."Both citizenship and personhood can be granted and withdrawn, but while citizenship can be formally withdrawn by the law, personhood can be diminished, contracted and moderated by non legal tools as well. A class of society may be citizens in the eyes of the law of the country, yet their personhood status could be withdrawn by the acts of the society which they inhabit.".This led him to the critical issue of the protection of personhood of individuals belonging to Dalit and other marginalised sections of society who are provided the right to substantive equality by the Constitution, and protected by various statutes enacted by Parliament."However, are constitutional and legal mandates sufficient to protect the personhood of an individual belonging to a marginalised group," he asked.Moreover, even if a discriminatory law is held unconstitutional by the courts, or is repealed by the parliament, the discriminatory behavioural pattern is not immediately overturned, he noted.Therefore, he asserted that the personhood conferred to members of marginalised groups will be diminished unless we recognise and abolish, in spirit, the unequal power structures which existed at the time when the Constitution was created and continues to exist now..Having argued that the members of the marginalised groups possess diminished personhood because of social and institutional marginalisation, Justice Chandrachud moved on to possible solutions to the problem.First, the most obvious answer would be through legal means which provide them positive rights. However, he highlighted in various examples throughout the lecture that the presence of multiple such rights in the Constitution has not always led to a positive change in the society's perception of these marginalised groups and the individuals who belong to them.Second, though providing protective rights to the members of the marginalised community is empowering since it furthers internalisation, it is in itself insufficient to confer personhood. It is important that we celebrate their identity, recognise their individual and group identities, and create conducive spaces for them to exercise their agency..Therefore, he concluded that it falls on us, "the people of India", to break the historical cycle of othering marginalised communities.