One fallout of gangster Vikas Dubey’s hide and seek with the police and eventual ‘encounter’ killing in Uttar Pradesh has been a resurgence of Brahmin pride and Brahmin victimhood. For many social media users, Vikas Dubey wasn’t just a gangster. He was first and foremost a Brahmin — a ‘tiger’ who commanded love and respect of the community, and should be venerated by the ‘descendants’ of Parshuram, the sixth avatar of Hindu god Vishnu. And so, Dubey’s killing has ignited a turf war led by Brahmins against the Thakur community in Uttar Pradesh. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is a Thakur.
‘You just didn’t kill Vikas Dubey, you actually killed the faith of Brahmins. You killed our Vishwas, not Vikas. All the Mishras, Pandeys, Chaubeys, Tiwaris, Bhumihars! Brahmins should remember who Lord Parshuram fought against,” said a user who goes by the name Shivam Brahmin Dada Bhai in a Facebook live. The user added: “Dare you to make a film on him. We will burn the theatres.”
Be it on Facebook or WhatsApp or Twitter, social media has been littered with such posts and videos since Vikas Dubey’s encounter killing Friday morning. The message by UP’s Brahmins is clear: It’s Thakurs vs Brahmins now.
Many Brahmins are alleging that CM Adityanath has been ignoring the Brahmin community. They are listing out instances where a Brahmin was killed or murdered, and are praising the criminals from the community, calling those like Vikas Dubey as ‘Brahmin Bahubalis’.
The encounter, therefore, also puts an end to any possibility of seeing the undoing of political-criminal nexus that led to the gangster’s rise. People were hoping that Vikas Dubey, who was arrested Thursday from a temple in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain a week after eight police officers were killed in a shootout in Kanpur, would spill the beans on his connection with top political leaders in Uttar Pradesh, including those from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Also read: Don Dubey encounter: A death foretold, dead men’s tales, dodgy plots, lost secrets & more…
‘Memes turned into anger’
Until Thursday, social media was flooded with memes of the Brahmin gangster, lauding how he fooled the media, the police and the Adityanath government. The anger was towards Muslims. People were demanding similar treatment for Maulana Saad Khandalvi, the chief of Tablighi Jamaat. But the sentiments have changed since the encounter Friday.
Many Brahmins are now threatening to topple the government of ‘Thakur’ Adityanath. They are reminding the BJP of the next assembly election in UP, to be held in 2022. They see themselves as the victims of this caste rivalry between Brahmins and Thakurs, which was most visible during the 2018 assembly bypoll in Gorakhpur. This rivalry, which has its genesis in the squabble over dominance of the Gorakhnath math, was strengthened when the BJP picked Adityanath as UP’s CM after the victory in the 2017 assembly election, ignoring Manoj Sinha — a Bhumihar.
Also read: Kanpur ambush to Vikas Dubey ‘encounter’ — retracing events that unfolded in last one week
The emergence of warrior sage Parshuram
An important aspect of the social media posts ‘celebrating’ Vikas Dubey is the veneration of warrior sage Parshuram. According to folklore, Parshuram had ‘eliminated’ Kshatriyas 21 times from earth. The Thakur-Brahmin rivalry, in a way, goes back to this mythology. Adityanath’s ‘usurping‘ of the bhagwa (saffron) robe and the mathadheesh (the leadership of Gorakhnath math) has only intensified this rivalry.
Moreover, even the Ram temple movement in Ayodhya has been ‘hijacked’ by members of other castes. The traditionally Brahmin-Baniya party BJP is often said to have ‘sidelined’ Brahmins. Now it is a party of powerful angry nationalists who believe in demagoguery. The Brahmin community now sees a question mark over its presence and is unnerved by the shift in power base, at least in Uttar Pradesh.
Also read: Indian voters are ready to go beyond caste, some politicians are not
‘Guns restoring caste pride in UP’
Gun-toting gangsters and politicians in decision-making positions evoke extreme emotions of caste pride. Vikas Dubey killed Brahmin police officers, the officers who tipped him off were also Brahmins and the place where the Kanpur shootout happened is named Chaubeypur — all this signifies Brahmin dominance.
Under Adityanath, the community has seen its traditional role of being an ‘advisor’ to the king waning. UP chief secretary Awanish Kumar Awasthi, although a Brahmin, is neither a gangster nor a politician. And the killing of Vikas Dubey, in the eyes of Brahmins, only deepens this sense of losing ‘power’. Perhaps it is such sentiment that translates into the community members invoking what they must do — “All Brahmins must become Vikas Dubey now”. A Brahmin ‘with a gun’ is the only way now to restore the ‘lost’ caste pride it seems.
Views are personal.
Senseless writing with pre determined notion.
On Brahmins and their clannish culture, read the news about the Silicon Valley company Cisco which is being sued for persecution of Dalits by two Brahmin managers. A Brahmin’s loyalty is to another Brahmin. Some say not all Brahmins are this way. One is not talking about all. One is talking about a statistical truth about Brahmins.
Ambedkar had predicted, should Indians migrate to other countries, they will make caste a problem for the world.
Even 50-100 people from other communities will not post in support of a criminal like Vikas Dubey. Only Brahmins do that.
rasgolla: Your chicanery is quite visible in this regard. You are giving numbers where it is convenient to you and omitting them where it really matters. I have no doubt about it that the majority of Brahmins are condemning this dreaded criminal- who is now dead. By the way, what stops you from writing the comments here with your original ID/name?
‘I have no doubt about it that the majority of Brahmins are condemning this dreaded criminal- who is now dead.
That is an opinion unbacked by any facts. You have not asked even one Brahmin.
Prove to me your name is original.
Rasgolla: Mr Murtada speaks sense. You cannot simply pull numbers out of a hat and pass it as the gospel truth. That is chicanery and
How many Brahmins have you canvassed to buttress your argument? After all, you are the one to claim – without a shred of evidence – that all Brahmins back this criminal.
Your vacuous, hate-filled, anti Hindu posts do more harm than good for Indian Muslims. They need to be dismissed. As journalist Christopher Hitchens famously said:
“.. What can be asserted without proof can be dismissed without proof ..”
Your inconsistent trying to be too clever.
Rasgolla: Mr Murtada speaks sense. You cannot simply pull numbers out of a hat and pass it as the gospel truth. That is chicanery and
“.. What can be asserted without proof can be dismissed without proof ..”
You can apply that to Mr. Murtada. He claimed : ‘I have no doubt about it that the majority of Brahmins are condemning this dreaded criminal- who is now dead.’
I wrote : ‘That is an opinion unbacked by any facts. You have not asked even one Brahmin.’
Mr. Murtada’s assertion is without proof, then why are you butting in and telling me he is correct. Your quotation applies to Mr. Murtada.
Brahmins are a scheming, manipulative lot. They are the lynchpins of Hindu fascism. So why are you defending them ?
Rasgolla: Mr Murtada speaks sense. You cannot simply pull numbers out of a hat and pass it off as the gospel truth. That is chicanery of the worst sort.
How many Brahmins have you canvassed to buttress your argument? After all, you are the one to claim – without a shred of evidence – that all Brahmins back this criminal.
Your vacuous, hate-filled, anti Hindu posts do more harm than good for Indian Muslims. They need to be dismissed. As journalist Christopher Hitchens famously said:
“.. What can be asserted without proof can be dismissed without proof ..”
Who the bloody hell are you to demand proof from other commenters here?
I find it odd that The Print has not banned you yet for your incendiary posts and the blatant hatred to Hindus and Hinduism you spout here.
Read the original post, Murtada is asking me for proof. He said he needs proof of my ID. I asked him to prove me his ID is real.
You seem to be burning inside, so you are butting in on his behalf, without looking at what he said and what I responded..
Learn to bat straight. I see you want censorship. Always the refuge of the weak minded when unable to debate.
Can you provide me the link of these posts . I would really like to cancel these idiots one by one . Thank you
It is funny how all the new age Hindutva Hindus are enraged about discussion of caste.
The same lot proudly show off their Hindu communalism to non-Hindus. But they do not want any skeletons in their cupboard to show. The Dubey incident shows the reality of caste and Hindu criminality. That is why they are angry with this article. They want to us to believe we have a new age, casteless Hinduism.
Whereas we all know caste is the bedrock of Hinduism. If there were no Muslims and Christians, there will be open caste warfare.
ek insan hota ek shaitan ,jati to ap logo ulzhane ki liye hai.
Learn to write English.
rasgolla: He doesn’t need to do that. Hindi is the most favoured language in India and is known almost to everybody. He is free to use it in a transliterated form to express himself, especially, when there is no such restriction to it from the website itself. How can we stop someone from expressing one’s thoughts or others from receiving those thoughts because of language barrier? I have understood well what he is trying to say. You also please try to learn and love Hindi and become all-inclusive rather than attempt to appear more than equal because of the knowledge of some language; which language I am sure might not be your native language even. By the way, is “rasgolla” a Hindi word or an English word, Mr Arrogant?
Who told you Hindi is the most favoured language ? It is the language of cow belt Hindus., and shakha boys. Others do not want it imposed on them.
Next you will tell me the cow is the most favoured animal, and its urine is the most favoured drink and you will advise me to drink it and learn to love it. You have a gobar filled mind.
Hindi is the most favoured language in India – like cow piss is the most favoured drink of Hindus. I suppose your next advice will be to learn to love gomutra because the majority loves it.
Mr Rasgolla: Pontificating fact-free, un-researched and virulently anti-Hindu claims is clearly your forte. Not only does your drivel make many Hindus, Christians and Sikhs turn against bigoted Paki Muslims like you, it also gives a pretext to the Hindutva Nazis to continue their attacks on India’s law-abiding Muslims. Most of whom are too marginalised to be able to defend themselves from the onslaught of rabid Hindutva and yet are held accountable for the hatred of Hindus that your ilk spews with such enthusiasm. I refer to your latest asinine utterance and testament to your gross inability to examine your own self and your own religion in the mirror before braying:
“.. we all know caste is the bedrock of Hinduism. If there were no Muslims and Christians, there will be open caste warfare ..”
Well, you seem to forget that the vast majority of Muslims, Christians and Sikhs were converts from Hinduism and that they took their caste with them to their new religions. And practise casteism with a vehemence and violence that often makes the Hindu caste-based intolerance a storm in a teacup. Fact is, caste is far more entrenched and far more vigorously practised in Indian Islam and Christianity then even in Hinduism. And by the term Indian Islam, I refer to Islam that is seen in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh where trade, proselytisation and forced conversions have resulted in large Muslim minorities.
Take for instance the Pakistani matrimonial site getrishta.com for Muslims. You can specify caste to such a degree of precision that one might be forgiven if one thinks one is actually dealing with a caste obsessed, idol-worshipping Hindu and not a believer in the Qur’an. At that site, caste is one of the criteria in the “Quick Search” page and from the drop down menu, you can specify whether you are the following sub-castes of say Rajputs: Bhatti, Rana, Chohan, Janjua, Sulehri, Khokhar, Manj, Minhas, Rao, Satti, Jarral etc. etc. So much for equality among Muslims and a casteless Islam !!
The notion that conversion to monotheistic, supposedly caste free religions is sheer nonsense. You see similar trends in Christianity as well. For the BBC article on caste in Christianity “Indian Dalits find no refuge from caste in Christianity”, see ref: bbc.in/2C62b20. For an Al Jazeera documentary on the discrimination in Islam towards Dalit converts to Islam, see ref: bit.ly/2BYsA20. Indeed, even when it comes to burials, Indian Muslims have separate cemeteries with caste being a criterion for where one gets buried.
Discrimination within Islam is not solely an Indian phenomenon either. In Europe where I live, Turkish Muslims who consider themselves European look down upon Arab Muslims who in turn look down upon Pakistani Muslims who in turn look down upon Bangladeshi Muslims and at the bottom of the heap, you see dark-skinned Somali or African Muslims.
Sorry Rasgolla, Islam has not ridden itself of discrimination or casteism.
I never raised Islam. I made the observation caste is the bedrock of Indian society. There is no such thing as Indian, nor even Hindu. India is an inexplicable collection of castes. The converts to other religions may hold some caste tendencies, but it is not as rigid. You want to explain it away by pretending it is the same with all religions.
Read the scandal in the US tech company Cisco. Dalits have launched a case against the company for caste discrimination by two Brahmin managers. It it Muslims or Christians who are likely to do this to people abroad ?
Get real. Ambedkar said “If Hindus migrate to other regions on earth, Indian Caste would become a world problem,”
That is proved by the Cisco scandal. Your rage proves if I scratch your skin, you will behave the same way.
The article has rightly exposed nature of U. P. caste contradictions. The reactions of brahmins and their organisations how they are united in criminality also.
The way even politicians are for uniting brahmin might through this incident speaks of caste as bedrock of Indian society. Both Congress, bjp and brahmans are talking in the same tongue.
Caste is indeed the bedrock of Indian society. Not only has it united Congress and BJP, even in this message board, Kili Jolsiyar who has been posing as anti Hindutva, has become enraged at this being pointed out, and is demanding censorship.
Don’t forget most of the officers in up police who did the encounter were also brahmins. Print should stop spreading this fake propaganda against brahmins. You’re making fake posts such that stupid people start hating brahmins. I’m also a brahmin and I say that Vikas dubey died like a dog!
Dubey the history sheeter was a Brahmin criminal. You inform us the police who encountered him (and thereby did a criminal offence themselves) are also Brahmins. So by your own assertion, Brahmins are an unscrupulous, criminally minded lot, and so will be hated. Why are you raging about it then ?
Mister rosogolla, by your utterly disgusting illogical comment ,we can also draw a conclusion that since all the terrorists are muslims, all the muslims are terrorists. What do you have to say about it?.. won’t you play the victim card now? There are these kinds of people in every community . You can’t blame the whole community for statements made by handful of people. So get your mind back to work rather than selling your one sided propaganda. No one gives a **** about your opinions.
Regardless of Dubey, I observe Brahmins have crippled India for centuries with the caste system and idolatry. Brahmins are the fountainhead of Hindu fascism. India needs to eliminate Brahmanism, only then it can even think about development.
You convert if you wish…I will never change by Identity…I am Brahmin …and my ideal are Chandrasekhar Azad,Rajguru,Ram Prasad Bismill,Sanyasi vidroh-Bhawani Pathak,Laxmi Bai,Tilak,WC Banerji,Bankim Chattopadhyay,CV Raman,Ramanujam,Vikram Sarabhai,Pratham Paramveer chakra Somnath Sharma,Ajit Doval,Rakesh Sharma…Sundar picchai,Satya Nadella,Indira Nooyi,Sanjay Jha,Suri ok…You did nothing and predicting and hating other in your non sense way.
You casteist writer you can write anything but let it be clear Rajputs and Brahmins are not opposed to each other.
Mr Rajvir Singh: You pontificate:
“.. let it be clear Rajputs and Brahmins are not opposed to each other ..”
So is that the new caste coalition that is being stitched together? How durable will that alliance be Mr Rajvir Singh given that the caste coalitions in India are always dynamic ?
And then, care to inform as to which other castes / religions that this Rajput-Brahmin coalition is in opposition to ?
This Ahir writer can’t see anything beyond caste. Brahmin/Pandit and Rajputs/Thakurs are not mad caste centric like 3rd class family Ms Jyoti Castiest Yadav
An excellent article! It is accurate in its depiction of reality and very well written.
ब्राम्हणोका राज आज भी है और कल भी रहेगा क्योकी यहाँ का बहुजन समाज मानसिक गुलाम जो है! खास तौर पर ओबीसी की यदी बात करे तो यह समाज ब्राम्हण और बनिया ईन जाती के पीछे पीछे रहकर खुद को सुरक्षित महसूस समजनेवाली ये कोम है! ओबीसी कौम की और एक मानसिकता बनी हुयी हैं वो याने की, ये लोग खुदही खुद को ब्राम्हण और बनिया से निचले जाती के समज कर एस सी, एस टी समाज के लोगों को अपनेसे ओर निचले जाती के समज कर उनका घुस्सा जादा तर यही ओबीसी समाज के लोग ही जादातर करते हुॅंए दिखेंगे! एस सी एसटी समाज के लोगोंको गावके बाहर रखने मे हो या इनका बदला लेना हो तो यही समाज के लोग आगे निकल कर आते है जिससे ब्राम्हण बनिया जैसे लोगोंका काम आसान हो जाता है. डॉ बाबासाहेब आंबेडकर ने समानता का सपना तो जरूर देखा मगर ब्राम्हणोकी चाल को साजा करणे का काम ओबीसी प्रवर्ग के लोग आसानिसे करते है! जब तक ओबीसी नही जाग जाता तब तक ब्राम्हण बनिया ईसी तरह इन शुद्र समाज पर राज करते रहेंगे. इसलीए दोष ब्राम्हणोको देना उचित नही होगा! डॉ बाबासाहेब आंबेडकर कहते हैं, कसूरदार वो नही जो किसी पर जुल्म करते है, कसुरदार तो वो है जो ऊस जुल्म को आसानीसे सहते है!
I have noticed that this Print Media is always biased agaisnt BJP and more than happy publish articles against it. I think you are a part of Lyutens media. Congress and the Communist parties are paying exorbitant money to do so. Please restrain from doing this. I know you will not publish this. Yet I have decided to convey the message loud and clear and see to it that other people also get this message also.
Mr NV Kotian: If you wish to read or hear about news that solely praises the BJP as opposed to indulging in critical journalism that holds the government of the day accountable, you are surely not limited for choice Sir. Paid media that sings parises to the BJP and Messiah Modi is the norm these days in India. Platforms like The Print, The Wire etc. are the few media houses that have bucked the trend and do not indulge in unlimited praise to the Gujaratis who rule and reign over the country.
Clearly, since truth and facts trigger deep allergies in you, I suggest you tune in to Arnab Göbbels Goswami’s hot air shows where you only hear praises being sung to the BJP and its Gujarati Messiah.
I hope I have conveyed the message loud and clear Mr NV Kotian !
Police Ko maroge , police tumko maregi
Ye koi mazak hai ki tum 8 policewalo ko maroge aur Shaan se ghumate rahoge,
Aise logo se caste ki pride badhti nhi…..aise logose Brahmans Ko sharam aati hai…..har community me kuch log hote hai jo aise logo support karte hai…….iska ye matlab thodi hai sab waise hi hai……agar ye bat hai to har muslim terrorist hai par Aisa nhi hai
Don’t plead for Brahmins using Muslims. Brahmins are accused of greater wickedness : they enslaved India with the caste system, and they are the masterminds of Hindu fascism. Brahmins are the reason India is crippled.
Vikas Dubey was a cop killer and a school headmaster murderer. Such scumbags don’t deserve any mercy and was rightly encountered by UP police / ATF. Congress is not going to make any inroads into brahmin vote bank as it is basically a muslim appeasing party right from Nehruvian era. The Congress has a notorious track record of maligning hindus and Brahmins. At this rate they won’t have any support from any community except the muslims and Christians due to roman catholic background of Sonia Gandhi. It is shameful of this author to write such polarizing articles!!!!!
Whare dislike buttun
Acha to ab 2022 tk kuch nhi bolna nhi to jail bhej diye jayegne na, yogi ji ke chamco,brahmin jindabad the or hi
Yogi was the Great Hindu Hope of the Brahmins also – when the killing was of Muslims and Dalits. Now Brahmins are killed, there is outrage.
It is clear that hatred of Muslims is not sufficient to unite Hindus. India cannot function on that. Do Hindus understand ?
The saying I heard was ‘The Brahmin plots, the bania finances, the sudra is the street fighter’. I used to wonder what is the role of the Kshatriyas. I thought it was to defend the borders. But now I see their desire is power to rule. Brahmins are meant to be advisers. But they became rulers. Kshatriyas want restoration of their rights.
Such a shitty article by a casteist journalist. Everyone know that congress want to gather some brahmin votes, and that the founder of the print is a congress lap dog. So this platform which consider itself fact driven is picking some random extremists post from social media and showing it as caste pride. How many people came out on roads pelted stones or cried like bitches on his encounter or arrest, none. But only some casteist like joyti yadav is crying over the caste of the gangster.
Just a little tip to Jyoti Yadav and The Print, people look right through your propaganda atleast put some effort in picking comments of some prominent people(not your masters from congress) to show put some weight in your article. And if you thinks that your casteist try to divide the communities will work than let me pop your bubble, brahmins voted heavily in 2017 elections for BJP but this time they will vote for YOGI who is bigger than BJP in UP.
By the way Jyoti Yadav this was a failed attempt to create further caste gaps, stick to BhimMeem type of articles only that suits you.
Mr Arun Kumar: You ask:
“.. How many people came out on roads pelted stones or cried like bitches on his encounter or arrest, none ..”
Well, when people disappeared or were killed or castrated in UP during Indira Gandhi’s hated Emergency during 1975-77, nobody came out in the streets to protest either. Most Indians do not bother what happens to their neighbour as long things are fine for themselves. It is only when your own loved ones disappear or get framed by the police that you protest and take notice.
For instance, in the Unnao rape case in 2017, BJP PM Kuldeep Sengar raped a SC girl and ensured that her father died in police custody. That horrendous case and the BJP MP’s attempts to intimidate witnesses, have them run over by a lorry etc. did not elicit much public attention either. Hence, public attention – or lack thereof – is no yardstick for justice having been done.
As a fairly senior police officer in the much better run state of Tamilnadu once confided to me :
“When the pressure from politicians is on to show that action has been taken, it suffices to arrest some wretched fellow, frame charges upon him, thrash him and make him sign a pre-prepared confession statement and declare that the case has been solved”
One hoped that such a fate does not befall you Mr Arun Kumar.
Mr Arun Kumar: You bray:
“.. brahmins voted heavily in 2017 elections for BJP but this time they will vote for YOGI who is bigger than BJP in UP. ..”
Yes, the BJP is the party of upper caste Hindus who believe that their interests are protected by a saffron thug who offers mandir as a solution to all of man’s problems. But bear in mind, many UPites – Brahmin or otherwise – are leaving UP in droves for the better run states of South India. Mandirnomics doesn’t put food in your stomach and UP is essentially emptying out.
And as regard the notion that the Yogi is bigger than the BJP, well you ought to pray for his health and hope that the Gujaratis in Delhi allow that to happen. After all, Amit Shah does practise the same violent methods used by the Yogi in subduing dissent and opposition doesn’t he?
Good last paragraph !
The Gujaratis might encounter Yogi.
Very true.. …trying hard to create rift. Most educated people including Brahmans are happy with the decisions of Yogi government.
Well said. Those forces will desperately try to whip up divisive sentiments.
Professional spin art journalist trying to create sensationism news article for publicity.
A person becomes a true brahmin by his noble deeds and not merely by birth. It is disgraceful that some members of the so called “brahmin community” take pride in defending the gangster & multiple murderer Vikas Dubey as a brahmin and his killing is killing of a brahmin.