Skip to main content
School of Law
  1. School of Law
  2. Events
  3. Items

Caste: Critiquing Colonial and Contemporary Constructions

5 April 2014

Time: 10:00am - 5:30pm
Venue: Oshwal Association of the UK, Oshwal Centre, Coopers Lane Road, Northaw EN6 4DG

View videos from the conference. 

This is a one-day conference on the issue of caste. It takes place in the context of the caste discrimination legislation now on the statute book in the UK via the Equality Act 2010. The conference is hosted by Oshwal Association of the UK and co-organised by GLOCUL: The Centre for Culture and Law at Queen Mary University of London, the British Hindu Voice and the British Sikh Consultative Forum. It brings together academics and community leaders. It is hoped that a constructive discussion can allow the matter to be taken forward to government and other relevant policy making bodies. The conference will examine historical and contemporary dimensions of the caste issue and discuss Indian and Western understandings of caste.

Programme

All paper titles are provisional and subject to confirmation.

  • 10.00 - Chai
  • 10.30 - Welcome - Raaxeet Shah, President, Oshwal Association of UK
  • 10.45 - Panel 1: Caste under Colonialism
    • Professor Chris Fuller, London School of Economics - Caste in Colonial Anthropology
    • Professor Martin Farek, University of Pardubice, Czech Republic - Caste or qualification? Vaisnava discussions about brahmanas in colonial India
    • Marianne Keppens, University of Ghent, Belgium - The Mysterious Ways of the Aryans: Caste and the Aryan Invasion Theory
    • Discussion
  • 13.00 - Lunch
  • 14.00 - Panel 2: Contemporary Approaches to Caste
    • Dr Dunkin Jalki, University of Pardubice, Czech Republic - Towards Refuting Degenerate Theories of the Caste System
    • Dr Prakash Shah, Queen Mary University of London - The Caste Provision of the Equality Act 2010 and Implications for the Indian Community in the UK
    • Discussion
  • 15.30 - Chai break
  • 16.00 - Roundtable Discussion: Findings and Strategy
    • Mukesh Naker, British Hindu Voice
    • Dr Jasdev Singh Rai, British Sikh Consultative Forum
    • Professor Chris Fuller, London School of Economics
    • Professor Martin Farek, University of Pardubice
    • Marianne Keppens, University of Ghent
    • Dr Dunkin Jalki, University of Pardubice
    • Dr Prakash Shah, Queen Mary University of London
  • 17.00 Closing remarks - Raaxeet Shah, OAUK

Contact

For details about the conference, contact Dr Prakash Shah at prakash.shah@qmul.ac.uk

Photography, video and audio recording

Please note that Department of Law events may be photographed or video and audio recorded. These materials will be used for internal and external promotional purposes only by Queen Mary University of London. If you object to appearing in the photographs, please let our photographer know on the day. Alternatively you can email lawevents@qmul.ac.uk in advance of the event that you are attending.

Back to top