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"The identity politics of the householder Naths (Yogis), on the one hand, is one of the oldest and most persistent identity assertions in Bengal and Assam. On the other, for an array of reasons, the identity assertion of the householder Naths of Bengal and Assam has failed to draw academic curiosity so far. Since the late nineteenth century, a segment of the Naths, largely educated and elite, has been crafting their identity as Brahman grounded on their "origin myth", negotiating with the British colonial administration through different census enumerations, as well as internal social reforms. One of the primary reasons for their current lagging is that the Naths never politicised their identity and demands, and did not mobilise themselves in the democratic political arena"--

"The identity politics of the householder Naths (Yogis), on the one hand, is one of the oldest and most persistent identity assertions in Bengal and Assam. On the other, for an array of reasons, the identity assertion of the householder Naths of Bengal and Assam has failed to draw academic curiosity so far. Since the late nineteenth century, a segment of the Naths, largely educated and elite, has been crafting their identity as Brahman grounded on their "origin myth", negotiating with the British colonial administration through different census enumerations, as well as internal social reforms. One of the primary reasons for their current lagging is that the Naths never politicised their identity and demands, and did not mobilise themselves in the democratic political arena"--

This article is about the Naths (also known as Yogi, Jogi and Jugi) of Bengal and the evidence about the depression of their status that occurred during the early medieval times. Today the householder Naths, who maintain a caste framework, are quite distinct from the ascetic branch of the Nath Sampradaya (community). The householder Naths were apparently degraded by the smarta-ruled Brahmanical society during the twelfth century, the marginalisation being multidimensional—social, political, economic and cultural. Because of their backwardness, the householder Naths were put among Other Backward Castes by the Central government and West Bengal state government in the 1990s. Thus, the householder Naths endure ambiguous identities—claiming high caste status themselves but placed in the Sudra varna by others. This article is an attempt to investigate the historical background of the marginalisation of the householder Naths in Bengal.

The Naths of Bengal belong to the Yogi caste which can be seen from the perspective of 'a struggle for recognition'. The Naths of Bengal have been asserting their identity and showing resistance against the Brahmanical caste order since the mid-nineteenth century through breaking the monopoly of the Brahmans over priestcraft, sacred thread, and the apex position of the caste hierarchy. All of these monopolies were challenged by the Naths and they contested their position in the system of hierarchy through the popular 'origin myth' of their caste. However, the question of the Naths is still unaddressed in the academic realm. Despite their social resistance against their ascribed status, the Naths are lagging in the arena of politics in post-colonial West Bengal since they are unenthusiastic to politicise themselves.

Sekhar Bandyopadhyay and Tanika Sarkar (Eds), Caste in Bengal: Histories of Hierarchy, Exclusion, and Resistance. Permanent Black, 2022, ₹1495, x+605 pp. ISBN: 9788178246512 (Hardback).

Dr B. R. Ambedkar, one of the makers of the Indian Constitution, is known best as the emancipator of the untouchables. Ambedkar's effort to make India as a nation through 'breaking the internal differences' is much debated and not widely recognized as he has still been confined only to his identity as a 'liberating leader of the Dalits'. Ambedkar's ideas—caste annihilation, securing rights to the depressed class, representation of the oppressed in political affairs, egalitarian economic arrangement, women's rights and thoughts on democracy—all have the potential to be linked with his ideas of a nation, which is inclusive in nature.

B.R. Ambedkar is often held to be an uncompromising advocate of the cause of the depressed castes or Dalits. But his advocacy for Dalits was within the larger framework of his vision for an Indian nation that needed to be formed, since he believed that there could be no nation unless everyone within it was not treated as an equal—an end that could be only attained through the annihilation of the caste system. He was not unmindful also of the need to protect religious minorities, for which reason he argued in favour of their adequate representation in legislative bodies, services, etc.

Indian society is undergoing a growing crisis related to a much debated issue 'Indianness' – a sentiment of being an Indian – socially, culturally and spiritually. This logocentric term 'Indianness' implies a monolithic characteristic of Indian people. Thought, action, behaviour, movement – all are under the lens of (in)visible eyes to shape all the Indians in a same mould. Democracy itself appears as a socio-political normativism as if it ought to be upheld by everyone. Plurality of reasons is being limited because of such normativity. At this time, message of Sri Ramakrishna, a well-known Bangalee legend, might be thought provoking while 'Indianness' lacks plurality of reasons. Once Sri Ramakrishna said 'jato mat tato path'. He taught mankind to believe in all-inclusiveness irrespective of people's social, cultural and spiritual identity. His thought supports plurality of reasons and subjective reality which are the need of the hour in present day Indian context. This paper, therefore, intends to highlight the relevance of the message of Sri Ramakrishna in present day India.

Identity is one of the key variables in a society that makes differences among people or groups. No particular identity is accepted wholeheartedly by all associated with human society. Some always play a dominant role over another. Since no identity is accepted by all and some identities play a dominant role, so it is implied that some identities take position at the centre of the society and some other are at the margin. This characteristic exists in human society from the very beginning. The LGBTQ community in India has been facing this type of problem due to their sexual and/or gender identity which is 'beyond normative' to the 'homophobic' state as well as to the society. Several dimensions are associated with the deprivation of LGBTQ people in India due to their which need to be explored. This article also offers a critique on liberal democratic state which, in practice, to large extent promotes a 'majoritarian normative' version of democracy. Civil society also shows its limits to transform its theory into actual practice. This article, finally, intends to draw a question whether can the LGBTQ movement be regarded as a post-civil society resistance or not.

Indian society is undergoing a growing crisis related to a much debated issue 'Indianness' – a sentiment of being an Indian – socially, culturally and spiritually. This logocentric term 'Indianness' implies a monolithic characteristic of Indian people. Thought, action, behaviour, movement – all are under the lens of (in)visible eyes to shape all the Indians in a same mould. Democracy itself appears as a socio-political normativism as if it ought to be upheld by everyone. Plurality of reasons is being limited because of such normativity. At this time, message of Sri Ramakrishna, a well-known Bangalee legend, might be thought provoking while 'Indianness' lacks plurality of reasons. Once Sri Ramakrishna said 'jato mat tato path'. He taught mankind to believe in all-inclusiveness irrespective of people's social, cultural and spiritual identity. His thought supports plurality of reasons and subjective reality which are the need of the hour in present day Indian context. This paper, therefore, intends to highlight the relevance of the message of Sri Ramakrishna in present day India.

Identity is one of the key variables in a society that makes differences among people or groups. No particular identity is accepted wholeheartedly by all associated with human society. Some always play a dominant role over another. Since no identity is accepted by all and some identities play a dominant role, so it is implied that some identities take position at the centre of the society and some other are at the margin. This characteristic exists in human society from the very beginning. The LGBTQ community in India has been facing this type of problem due to their sexual and/or gender identity which is 'beyond normative' to the 'homophobic' state as well as to the society. Several dimensions are associated with the deprivation of LGBTQ people in India due to their which need to be explored. This article also offers a critique on liberal democratic state which, in practice, to large extent promotes a 'majoritarian normative' version of democracy. Civil society also shows its limits to transform its theory into actual practice. This article, finally, intends to draw a question whether can the LGBTQ movement be regarded as a post-civil society resistance or not.

Abstract"Social identities are relational; groups typically define themselves in relation to others. This is because identity has little meaning without the 'other'" (Okolie 2003). So, can we ignore the "other" identity to examine the concept of identity as a whole? "Other" is the counterpart of "self," and means those who are neglected and situated at the margin of the power structure. These concepts of "other" and "self" have been popularized after the emergence of postmodernism and postcolonialism. The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community can be regarded as "other" of the male‐female binary. The state has a big role to create and/or erase the differentiation between "self" and "other." The demand of the LGBT community, that is, the exclusion of Section 377 from the Indian Penal Code is yet to be fulfilled by the Indian State, "but it also made possible the formation of a 'reverse' discourse: homosexuality began to speak in its own behalf, to demand its legitimacy" (Foucault 1976, 101). The aims of my paper are to find out the theoretical aspects of the otherness in the case of LGBT. What should be the way of inclusion of the LGBT community in the mainstream?