The Dalit Shoshit Samaj Sangharsh Samiti, abbreviated as DS4 or DSSSS ( lit. "

Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...

and other Exploited Groups Struggle Committee") was founded in 1981 by Kanshi Ram to organise Dalits and other marginalised groups of India.

Origins

Kanshi Ram started the Dalit Shoshit Samaj Sangharsh Samiti (DS4 or DSSSS) on 6 December 1981 by Kanshi Ram to organise Dalits and other oppressed groups of India. The sociocultural organisation's slogan was "

Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

, Thakur, Bania chhor, baaki sab hain DS4". ("Leaving Brahmins, Thakurs and Banias, everyone else is DS-4.")

Works

A large number of singers from north India joined as volunteers in the organisation. Its cultural wing composed songs of resistance and created anti-caste consciousness. In

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

, siblings Ashok Kumar and Saroj Kumari were singers whose popularity extended to the neighbouring

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

. The brother-sister duo's songs of resistance versed the inhumane condition of Dalits and their aspirations, as well as critiqued the incumbent

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

party. Their songs channelised a constant shift from pain to resistance. DS4 was related to

BAMCEF Waman Meshram The All India Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation, abbreviated as BAMCEF, is an organisation for employees of oppressed communities that was established in 1971 by Kanshi Ram, D. K. Khaparde, and Dinabhana. ...

. The organisation was absorbed by the

Bahujan Samaj Party The Bahujan Samaj Party ( BSP) is a political party in India that was formed to represent Bahujans (literally means "community in majority"), referring to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes (OBC), along with Religious ...

in 1984.

References

{{Reflist Youth wings of political parties in India Dalit politics Ambedkarite organisations