Socialists and the Question of Land and Caste in 1950s India

Abstract

This paper examines the ways in which Indian socialists in the opposition engaged with the land question, including the abolition of landlordism or zamindari, redistribution of land, and agrarian reforms, in Bihar in the decade after India’s independence. Land reforms, especially the abolition of zamindari, had become part of the Congress’ nationalist agenda by the time of independence and the state introduced various legislations in the late 1940s and ‘50s to bring about land reforms from above, including in Bihar. In addition to such reforms initiated by the state, working under a broadly-defined framework of what has been called Nehruvian socialism, socialist forces in the opposition had also long raised demands for land redistribution, while Gandhian socialists were also active in the Bhoodan movement, appealing for voluntary land donations. The sphere of land reforms, hence, became a site where socialists of various hues were active and provided multiple models for addressing the land question. While land reforms have been studied, less attention has been given to caste dynamics, especially the position of Dalits in both the process of land reform and socialist politics during this time. Focussing on the state of Bihar, this paper explores the nature of politics the socialists advanced in the 1950s with respect to caste and class dynamics of land ownership, which structured social relations and political power in a deeply agrarian state.