Spoiled Identity and Stigma: A Case of Ex-Criminal Tribes of India

Dattatreya Bhandalkar

Abstract

The De-notified tribes are tribal communities that were notified under the Criminal Tribes Act (CTA) 1871 in colonial India. Although the Act was repealed after independence, the tribes declared as ‘criminals’ continue to remain labeled and are still living with stigma. Tribes notified under the CTA became De-notified in Independent India. The De-notified tribes in India continue to remain as one of India’s most excluded and marginalized communities, excluding opportunities and deprived of resources. There are 198 De-notified tribes in India. After the repeal of the act post-independence, some of the declared tribal communities were included among the Scheduled tribes’ population in different states; some yet continue to remain enlisted as the ‘De- notified’ tribes in India. The De-notified tribes comprise a significant population in India, and they are classified under a separate category as DNTs or DNCs. These tribal groups,
although were “de-notified” they continue to face discrimination in their everyday life. These tribes do not have access to basic resources and livelihood opportunities; they are treated differently by people from other castes. They also face discrimination at the hands of the police. Their stigmatized spoiled identity due to ancestral labeling influences their present critically. They are subject to atrocities in the hands of the police and power groups in the village. The incidences of atrocities in the case of the De-notified tribes are not acknowledged under the Prevention of Atrocities Act by the state, which protects the marginalized communities and
tribes. Their complaints remain unnoticed, and they are subject to false suspicion. The tribe remains in poverty and is subject to stigma and exclusion; their situations have not changed. The government has made no notable attempt to create provisions for upliftment of these communities and safeguard their rights. The absence of uniformity in the reservation policy keeps them away from the government benefits. This paper attempts to highlight the issues and problems faced by the de-notified tribes in Maharashtra India, narrating their experiences of spoiled identity and stigma.