Sushilkumar Shinde’s ‘Five Decades in Politics’: A revealing memoir of a Dalit’s life in politics

Politician Sushilkumar Shinde belongs to the Dhor caste, one of India’s so-called lowest castes. Their traditional work was to cure the skin of dead cattle to make leather goods. Shinde’s ancestors lived in the Osmanabad district of Marathwada. But his grandfather migrated to Solapur to better his economic prospects. He made leather bags and became affluent after setting up a business.

Shinde’s father Sambhajirao continued with the business and prospered. Interestingly, Sambhajirao married three times in his desire to have a son. Finally, the third wife, Krishnabai, asked Sambhajirao to marry her younger sister Sakhubai. The first three children died in early birth. But on September 4, 1941, Sushilkumar was born. But tragedy struck the family when Sushilkumar’s father died on July 15, 1947.

In his memoir, this is how Shinde describes what happened. “My father died, leaving behind a family unused to the ways of the world. Friends vanished, the business collapsed, and a day came when there was no one to support my mother and stepmother. Used to affluence and material comforts, my family turned poor overnight. Relatives and acquaintances offered their sympathies, but no one offered a helping hand.”

The beginnings

As for Shinde, his life took another direction. He became a thief. With a...

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