Assameseboy at 17:39, 7 April 2026

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{{Short description|1985 massacre in Andhra Pradesh, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=May 2019}}
{{Infobox civilian attack
| title = Karamchedu Massacre
| partof = [[Caste-related violence in India]]
| location = [[Karamchedu]], [[Andhra Pradesh]], [[India]]
| date = 17 July 1985
| type = Caste-based violence
| fatalities = 6
| injuries = Several
| perpetrators = Kamma caste landlords
| victims = Dalit Madigas
| motive = Caste-based dominance
}}
'''Karamchedu massacre''' refers to an incident that occurred in [[Karamchedu]], [[Bapatla district]] of [[Andhra Pradesh]] on 17 July 1985, where brutality by [[Kamma (caste)|Kamma]] landlords against [[Madiga|Madigas]] ([[Dalit|Dalits]]) resulted in the killing of six Madigas and grievous injuries to many others. Three Madiga women were raped. Hundreds of Madigas in the village were displaced from their home and killed after their houses were burnt and looted.

Kammas, who held economic power and political influence, were the [[dominant caste]] in the village, while the Dalit villagers, who mostly worked as agricultural labourers under the Kamma landlords for meagre wages, were oppressed socially and economically. The provocation for the violence came from a trivial incident in which a Madiga boy objected to a Kamma boy soiling the water tank where Dalits drew their drinking water. Scholars have reported that the massacre happened because the Kammas wanted to "teach a lesson" to the Madigas since Kammas felt that their caste-supremacy was challenged by Dalits who were perceived as "untouchables" and "nobodies".{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=36-39}}{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=110-112}}

The final verdict was delivered 23 years after the violence took place, in which the [[Supreme Court of India]] sentenced a man to life imprisonment and 30 others to three years of imprisonment. The massacre is said to have highlighted the discriminatory and violent tendencies of [[Caste system in India|caste hierarchies]] that are prevalent in the modern Indian society. It also generated widespread outrage from Dalit activists of the state and led to the formation of Andhra Pradesh Dalit Mahasabha which drew inspiration from [[Ambedkar]]'s ideals and stood for Dalit rights, and fought against [[untouchability]] and exclusion.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=119-120}}

== Background ==
During the 1980s, the village of Karamchedu had a population of around 13,600 of which 6,000 belonged to the Kamma caste. About 2,000 villagers belonged to the [[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|Scheduled Castes]] (Dalits), of which 1,100 were Madigas and 900 were [[Mala (caste)|Malas]].{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=105}} The village had a cultivable land of around 9,000 acres, most of which was owned by the Kamma landlords. They also owned another 2,000 acres in the neighboring villages. Due to the fertile soil and good irrigation facilities developed since the [[British Raj|British rule]] in the previous century (through [[Krishna River|Krishna river]] canals) and also during the post-independence era (through [[Nagarjuna Sagar Dam|Nagarjuna Sagar]] canals), the Kamma people in the village were quite prosperous. They cultivated paddy along with commercial crops like tobacco, earning an estimated annual household income of ₹65,000. Dalits, on the other hand, comprised much of the agricultural labour. The annual income of a ''paleru'' (agricultural labourer) was just ₹2000. The daily wages paid to male and female agricultural workers (who worked for 16 hours a day) was ₹10-12 and ₹6-8 respectively, which was quite lower than the minimum wage rates that were legally prescribed for that region.{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=36-37}} The Kamma landlords also used force to ensure loyalty from Dalit labourers. If the labourers were absent from work for some reason, it was reported that the landlords of the village would personally to go to their houses to beat them up and sometimes the landlords would further punish the workers by suspending them from work for up to nine months.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=110}}

In the 1960s, [[Communism|communist politics]] dominated the village with significant participation from Kamma peasantry. But once their community attained 'upward mobility' in land-ownership and economic wealth, they found it to be against their material interests to continue the left politics. So the Kammas of the region either left the communist party, or diluted the local struggle by remaining in the party. After the formation of [[Telugu Desam Party]] (TDP) in Andhra Pradesh, the Kammas of the village extended their support to it.{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=37-38}} A wealthy Kamma landlord of the village, Daggubati Chenchu Ramaiah, who also happens to be one of the main accused in the Karamchedu massacre,<ref name="Andhra: Police Tonsure Dalit Man for ‘Unruly Behaviour’ Towards YSR Congress Leader">{{cite web|last1=Gali Nagaraja|title=Police Tonsure Dalit Man for 'Unruly Behaviour' Towards YSR Congress Leader|url=https://thewire.in/caste/andhra-pradesh-tonsure-dalit-ysr-congress|website=The Wire|accessdate=2 January 2022|location=Vijayawada, India|language=English|date=24 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128230442/https://thewire.in/caste/andhra-pradesh-tonsure-dalit-ysr-congress|archive-date=28 November 2020|url-status=live}}</ref> had strong connections with the TDP's founder [[N. T. Rama Rao]] (NTR). His son, [[Daggubati Venkateswara Rao]], was married to NTR's daughter. Daggubati Venkateswara Rao contested as [[Member of the Legislative Assembly (India)|MLA]] in the region and won with the TDP party ticket [[Parchur (Assembly constituency)|in 1983]]. Scholar Dag-Erik Berg states that the rise of TDP and the connections the local Kamma landlords had with the political leadership "emboldened" them to intensify their caste-oppression against Dalits.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=108}}<ref name=":0">{{cite news |title=SC convicts 31 in Karamchedu Dalit massacre |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/SC-convicts-31-in-Karamchedu-Dalit-massacre/articleshow/3864622.cms |work=The Times of India |date=20 December 2008 |language=en}}</ref>

In the absence of left politics, Dalits of the village supported the traditional [[Indian National Congress|Congress]] party. Kammas saw this resistance of Dalits, particularly Madigas, voting against the TDP as a sign of revolt, since their "economic bondage" did not translate into "political loyalty". Scholar K Srinivasulu writes that it caused "sufficient injury" to the collective pride of the dominant Kamma caste, "which only waited for a pretext for retaliation".{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=38}}

== Violence ==
On 16 July 1985, a Kamma boy was washing his buffalo near a water tank where Dalits drew their drinking water, letting out the soiled water into the tank. A Madiga boy objected to this, angering the Kamma boy who reacted violently by beating the farmer with his cattle whip. A Madiga girl who came to fetch water was also whipped and kicked for protesting against the beating. She then retaliated with her vessel, and an elderly Dalit intervened and tried to calm the situation. The Kamma boy left the scene after issuing a warning.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=106}}{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=38}}

This episode provoked the Kammas to plan an organised attack against the Madigas of the village to 'teach them a lesson'. To catch the Madigas by surprise, they sent a team for compromise which was accepted by a section of Madigas. And on the morning of 17 July, hundreds of Kammas armed with axes, spears and clubs launched an unanticipated attack on the residents of Madiga ''wada'' (settlement), damaging the entire colony, not even sparing pregnant women and mothers with small children. They tortured and chased the Dalits, and burnt their houses.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=106-107}}{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=38}} Srinivasulu notes:{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=38}}<blockquote>‘What followed was an attack, well planned and executed, that went on for hours in which the Madigas regardless of age and sex were chased from their hovels, the Kammas used all likely forms of transport, scooters, tractors, etc., and the Madigas ran helter-skelter for their lives in all directions. The more likely place to hide was the ''gaddi vamulu'' (fodder heaps) in the fields. Even there they were not spared. The gory details of this are amply recorded by the various fact-finding committees and in the sympathetic accounts reported in the press. But what is important to note is the fact that finally this left six dalits murdered, three dalit women raped and many more wounded, some of them very seriously and the huts burnt, whatever little was with them looted.’ (Fact Finding Team, 1985)</blockquote>The police in Karamchedu did not protect the victims,{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=112}} and Dalits fled the village in large numbers and arrived in the neighboring town of [[Chirala]] which was about 8 kilometres away, where many of them were hospitalized,{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=107}} following which some of them died of injuries.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=113}} The local police of [[Chirala]] initially hit and arrested some Dalits who reached the town in panic, instead of helping them. Later the local Dalit activists and leaders accompanied the victims who sought shelter in a church in the town, and organised a refugee camp to help them. The camp consisted of about 500 Dalits, who never returned to Karamchedu, preferring to settle in Chirala.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=112-113}}

==Aftermath and convictions==

The Karamchedu incident evoked widespread outrage and protests by Dalit activists in the state. In response to the massacre, leaders like [[Bojja Tharakam]] and [[Katti Padma Rao]] decided to establish an 'independent Dalit movement' in the state and formed the Andhra Pradesh Dalit Mahasabha, breaking away from the then popular class discourse and focusing specifically on the issues of caste and untouchability.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=105}}{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=45}} Katti Padma Rao lived in Chirala at the time when Karamchedu victims came to the town and he witnessed the situation in the refugee camp and the local hospital.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=113}} This provided the ideological impetus for the formation of Dalit Mahasabha.{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=45}} The organisation sought to mobilize and organize Dalits to fight against oppression and stand for Dalit assertion, rights and justice. The Dalit Mahasabha movement identified itself with [[B. R. Ambedkar]]'s ideologies and employed them as its principal strategy.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=117}}

A Dalit woman, who was a principal witness to the massacre, was murdered in August 1987.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=September 1992|title=Human Rights in India — Police Killings and Rural Killings in Andhra Pradesh|url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/pdfs/i/india/india929.pdf|journal=Human Rights Watch - Asia|pages=19}}</ref> Following the efforts of Dalit Mahasabha, the state government announced some aid for the victims. Several court cases were fought and the [[Ongole]] district court initially sentenced 159 people to life imprisonment, which was later struck down by the [[Andhra Pradesh High Court]] due to benefit of doubt. The final verdict was delivered by the Supreme Court in 2008 (10 years after the case was filed), sentencing the main accused to life imprisonment and 30 others to three years of imprisonment.<ref name=":0" />{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=119}}

Avenging the Karamchedu massacre, the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) People's War|People's War Group]] murdered Daggubati Chenchu Ramaiah who was a key accused in the violence, though the Dalit Mahasabha opposed such violent moves.<ref name=":0" />{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=119}}

== Analysis ==
Karamchedu massacre was seen as a significant incident which broke the myth that caste-discrimination was a "thing of the past". Dag-Erik Berg writes that it depicted the intensification of caste in the modern agrarian economy, emphasizing the role of "status" and "honor" in the system of stratification, the significance of economic and political power, and the deep rooted notions of [[untouchability]] that could lead to brutality in the Indian society.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=120}}{{sfn|Berg, Karamchedu and the Dalit subject in AP|2014|p=404-405}}

Berg refers to [[M. N. Srinivas]]'s conception of 'dominant caste' for explaining the caste hierarchies in the modern society. After a significant shift in landownership in the post colonial era from [[Brahmin]] to non-Brahmin castes (like [[Reddy]]s, Kammas and [[Kapu (caste)|Kapus]]), Kammas, who already constituted an affluent and politically powerful group before the twentieth century and were classified as "[[Shudra]]s" in the traditional [[Varna (Hinduism)|Varna system]], gained increased social dominance through their economic and political power. Berg says that their claim to caste superiority was dependent on relation to Dalits who were 'excluded' in the traditional ritual classification in which they are treated as "untouchables".{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=109-111}} M. N. Srinivas says that "any caste that achieved political power at the local level could advance a claim to be [[Kshatriya]]s". Accordingly, in this case, the local Kamma historians engaged in providing 'evidence' to claim their Kshatriya status, which coincided with the early 1900s colonial census that categorized people.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=110-111}} However, since this ritual superiority of Kammas was not entirely self-evident and was open to dispute, Berg says, they had to enforce it through violence. "Their everyday dominance involved material exploitation and the use of force."{{sfn|Berg, Karamchedu and the Dalit subject in AP|2014|p=391-392}} The essential difference between "touchables" and "untouchables" supposedly justifies this violence since the 'untouchables' are seen as "nobodies".{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=111}} Berg notes that Dalit expressions of self-assertion and egalitarianism further intensify this conflict.{{sfn|Berg, Karamchedu and the Dalit subject in AP|2014|p=392-393}}
{{quote box|width=30%|align=right|quote=
"Madiga dogs! Have you learnt your lesson well for having opposed the Kammas?"
— Kamma landlords while attacking the Dalit villagers of Karamchedu on 17 July 1985{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=108}}
}}
So, the massacre in Karamchedu is seen as the result of Dalits trying to 'correct' the unfair behavior of Kammas. Both Berg and K Srinivasulu state that Kammas wanted to 'teach a lesson' to the Dalits since their superiority was challenged.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=111}}{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=44}}

Karamchedu incident also posed an intellectual challenge to the classic Marxist perspective which saw caste-oppression as a mere consequence of class struggle between the capitalist farmers and agricultural workers. Although the class dimension is closely related to the caste-oppression, the Dalit movement in the state post-Karamchedu emphasized the need to address the issue of caste in its specificity since it plays a predominant role in the underlying social conflict.{{sfn|Berg, Karamchedu and the Dalit subject in AP|2014|p=405}}{{sfn|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002|p=46}} The Dalit movement also made Ambedkar a powerful symbol for emancipation. Following his ideas of [[Annihilation of Caste]], Dalit leaders and activists fought against untouchability and exclusion, and strove for self-assertion, dignity and legal protection from the state.{{sfn|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020|p=117, 120}}

==See also==
*[[Tsundur massacre]]
*[[Neerukonda massacre]]
*[[List of Scheduled Castes in Andhra Pradesh & Telangana]]

==Citations==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==

* {{cite journal |last1=Berg |first1=Dag-Erik |title=The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability, in ''Dynamics of Caste and Law: Dalits, Oppression and Constitutional Democracy in India'' |date=2020 |issue=Cambridge University Press – South Asia in the Social Sciences |pages=103–126 |doi=10.1017/9781108779616.005|s2cid=236809002 |ref={{sfnref|Berg, The Karamchedu Killings and the Struggle to Uncover Untouchability|2020}}}}
* {{cite book |last1=Srinivasulu |first1=K. |title=Caste, Class and Social Articulation in Andhra Pradesh, India: Mapping Differential Regional Trajectories |date=2002 |publisher=Overseas Development Institute |isbn=978-0-85003-612-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7AkcAAAACAAJ |language=en|ref={{sfnref|Srinivasulu, Caste, Class and Social Articulation in AP|2002}}}} [https://odi.org/en/publications/caste-class-and-social-articulation-in-andhra-pradesh-india-mapping-differential-regional-trajectories/ Available online]
* {{cite journal |last1=Berg |first1=Dag-Erik |title=Karamchedu and the Dalit subject in Andhra Pradesh |journal=Contributions to Indian Sociology |date=2014 |volume=48 |issue=3 |pages=383–408 |doi=10.1177/0069966714540242|s2cid=143769089 |ref={{sfnref|Berg, Karamchedu and the Dalit subject in AP|2014}}}}

==Further reading==
* [http://www.unipune.ac.in/snc/cssh/HumanRights/05%20STATE%20AGRICULTURE%20FOREST%20DALITS%20AND%20TRIBALS/08.pdf Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee's report on Karamchedu massacre. 22 July 1985]

==External links==
* [https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/35-years-after-karamchedu-massacre-andhra-dalit-activists-speak-what-has-changed-128944 35 years after Karamchedu massacre in Andhra, Dalit activists speak on what has changed. The News Minute. 18 July 2020]

{{coord missing|Andhra Pradesh}}

[[Category:Caste-related violence in India]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1985]]
[[Category:1980s in Andhra Pradesh]]
[[Category:Massacres in India]]
[[Category:Crime in Andhra Pradesh]]
[[Category:1985 crimes]]
[[Category:July 1985]]
[[Category:1985 disasters in India]]

Karamchedu massacre - Revision history

Assameseboy at 17:39, 7 April 2026