CRPF blasts The Caravan's "pathetic and meaningless" caste-census of Pulwama martyrs, says "we identify ourselves as Indians - Not more, not less"

CRPF has hit out in no uncertain terms at a shameful, objectionable, and divisively ill-intentioned article that was published in magazine ' Caravan' in which caste-based profiling of Jawans who were martyred in dastardly Pulwama terrorist attack was carried out.

In response to article, CRPF's chief spokesperson Moses Dhinakaran has tweeted that personnel in paramilitary forces identify mselves as Indians, not more, not less. Going on to call article's motive "patic divisiveness", he tells magazine to not insult martyrs by reducing m to statistics in "demeaning and meaningless write-up".

response by CRPF spokesperson underscores outrage that has been triggered by magazine's article, which is still available online at time of publishing.

article is helined "Urban upper-castes driving Hindutva nationalism have little representation among Pulwama’s slain jawans". In it, author writes about his single-eyed focus on ascertaining caste background and making callous presumptions about not just Jawans, but those who are condoling ir martyrdom, and everyone else. He writes, among or things:

"I tracked caste background of 40 CRPF jawans whose deaths were confirmed immediately after attack. While names of a few jawans revealed ir respective caste identities, for those bearing caste-neutral last names, I spoke with ir family members on telephone numbers registered with CRPF."

"I also determined caste identities through conversations with journalists who covered jawans’s cremation; local politicians; social activists; sociologists; and by scanning media reports."

After determining castes, he performs crude number-crunching, positing it as though it is a deep statistical learning: 

"So, only five out of 40 jawans, or 12.5 percent, came from Hindu upper-caste backgrounds."

He n delves into background of how Jawans - seemingly identified by ir caste and last names only - came to join CRPF, quotas and all:

"Rajput (referring to He Constable Sanjay Rajput, though without mention of any rank or designation), however, was unable to secure a caste certificate, and qualified for CRPF through general category. Excluding Rajput and Muslim jawan, only eight, or 20 percent, joined CRPF through general-category quota."

What follows is a slicing-and-dicing of caste numbers per state:

"Twelve of 40 jawans who died in Pulwama were from Uttar Presh, and y included two Brahmins, three from Scheduled Castes and seven from OBC communities."

n comes 'expert analysis':

"" CRPF has reservation,” Satish Prakash, an acemic and Dalit activist based in Meerut, said. “It is reason why people who died were overwhelmingly Bahujan.” word “Bahujan” means majority and is used to denote individuals from non-upper and high-caste groups. “It is y who lay ir lives for nation,” Prakash said."

Finally, in his conclusion, after having brought caste to fore in such a shameful manner, article tries to absolve itself and fires a pre-emptive political attack:

" BJP has not spoken of caste and class dimensions of those jawans who died in Pulwama. It is unlikely to do so— party prefers to orchestrate song of nationalism in election year."

40 CRPF Jawans were martyred on Thursday, February 14, as ir convoy was targeted by a suicide bomber in an explosives-len car. Pakistan-backed Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility for attack minutes after its true scope and devastation became apparent. A very large number of countries have come toger to condemn attack and Pak-based terrorism, with UNSC issuing a strong statement specifically naming Jaish-e-Mohammed.