ICC Note: Churches in India have scheduled a protest on August 10 to address the country’s discriminatory caste system. The protest is in response to the government measures that specify that state aid may be given to only subsidize members of the lowest caste, the Dalits, if they are Hindu, Buddhist, or Sikh. Although many Christian and Muslim Dalits also live in perpetual poverty and squalid conditions, the government refuses to give aid to them because they are not officially a part of the Hindu caste system. The government measures are seen as an effort to curtail religious conversions from Hinduism to other religions.

7/19/2016 India (Anglican Communion News Service) – Churches throughout India are stepping up protests against the country’s discriminatory caste system which disadvantages Dalit Christians and Muslims. The caste system is a Hindu-based status system that grades different groups of people on a social scale.

The lowest castes – the Dalits, or untouchables – are discriminated against in the job market and in the provision of services. Officially, the government is trying to remove the caste discrimination and has introduced measures to provide support for Dalits – designating it a scheduled caste and providing additional state benefits.

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