D espite constitutional promises of equality, Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) face persistent caste-based violence and exclusion. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report, released in late September, reported that 57,789 cases were registered against SCs in 2023, marking a 0.4% increase over the 57,582 cases reported in 2022, and 12,960 cases were registered against STs in 2023, a sharp 28.8% increase over the 10,064 cases reported in 2022. From assaults in rural areas for defying caste norms to urban discrimination in housing and employment, caste continues to deny citizens dignity and opportunity.

Caste hierarchies remain

Social reformers such as Mahatma Phule, B.R. Ambedkar, Periyar, and Mahatma Gandhi, who challenged the Brahm

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