The word Dera is the current lexicon going around. It is in the news for all the wrong reason.
The meaning of the word for ডেরা , Dera, Dero, Daro, Dhoro, Dahar or Dehra is a Sindhi, Kutchi, Saraiki, Punjabi, Gujarati and, Dogri-language word meaning camp, mound or settlement.
In Punjabi, it is usually used as a place where men meet and socialize in the village. Pronounced as ḍērā or deraa.
It is also an accepted word in Bengali meaning a settlement to socialize. There were many ডেরা in Bengal. One of the most common was wrestling extended to religion; more to Sadhus and Sants.
One of the earliest forms of Dera was of the thuggee. Thuggee or tuggee refers to the acts of Thugs, an organised gang of professional robbers and murderers. Thugs operated in groups across the Indian sub-continent for six hundred years. The Thugs traced their origin to seven Muslim tribes. The earliest authenticated mention of thugs appears in Ziyā-ud-Dīn Baranī's History of Fīrūz Shāh, dated around 1356. Thuggee was a secret cult whose members, both Muslims and Hindus, worshipped Kali, the goddess of destruction. They operated as gangs of highway robbers, tricking and later strangling their victims. They lived in Dera where they trained themselves in their profession.
It is later that other Deras started to grow around other religious practices. In fact thee Deras became poor cousins of institutionalised religions. They primarily represent the disadvantaged subaltern and the lower middle class. Their followers are people who subsist on the margins both in terms of economy and the caste system. There is no caste discrimination in Deras.
Bengal had the tradition of Dera which also became a hub for freedom movement. In the 1900s there was discontent among freedom fighters with the Congress’ method of “appealing” to the British Government for more autonomy for the country. It is during this time that “revolutionary terrorism” took root and operated from Deras. In the case freedom fighters, Khudiram Bose and Prafulla Chaki attempted to kill Magistrate Kingsford, known for his harsh verdicts on nationalists on April 30, 1908. Although Chaki shot himself to avoid arrest, Khudiram was arrested and later hanged. Sri Aurobindo was influenced by studies on rebellion and revolutions against England in medieval France and the revolts in America and Italy. In his public activities he favoured non-co-operation and passive resistance; in private he took up secret revolutionary activity as a preparation for open revolt, in case that the passive revolt failed. In Bengal, with his brother Barin's help, he established contacts with revolutionaries, inspiring radicals such as Bagha Jatin, Jatin Banerjee and Surendranath Tagore. He helped establish a series of Deras, including the Anushilan Samiti of Calcutta in 1902.
The followers of the Deras feel largely excluded from institutions such as village panchayats, district administrations, police and courts. Their daily experiences range from denial of identity and dignity and coercive extraction of labour. They have far greater faith in the Dera than in the political class or judiciary. They feel the Dera is morally superior to these institutions. For instance, many women like Deras because they preach against consumption of alcohol and drug abuse which leads to lessening of domestic violence. The Deras are a sub-culture; they create a new social capital which the followers appropriate. People also start marrying within the Deras. It also gives its inhabitants a new identity.
Over the years, Deras have accumulated land and property through state patronage, donations and business, enabling them to subsidise the impoverished, give them cereals and provide access to health facilities. Wherever the government and the political class fail, the Deras step in and deliver. Followers believe Deras have brought them the achhe din the state couldn't. The political class always tries to use their support base to their advantage in polls, while self-proclaimed godmen exploit the complete allegiance of followers to put pressure on the law.
Baba Ram Rahim the Chief of Dera Sacha Sauda is one such godhead of the new generation. He took over the Deara in 1990. Singh, one of the most powerful men in India, runs the 69-year-old sect from its ashram headquarters on a sprawling, 1,000-acre Haryana property that includes a hotel, cinema, cricket stadium and schools. He claims to have 60 million followers worldwide. He has reinvented the Dera culture in a new market-driven economy. He wears flamboyant costumes and ornate jewellery, acts in films and makes money from them. He also knows how to use the electronic and social media.
Punjab has always been a home to Deras but most recently the institution has grown. The primary reason being the religious oral tradition is very strong. People don't interact as much with the text as listen to religious discourses (pravachans). In this cultural backdrop, gurus who can deliver sermons become popular. Punjab is known for its liberal religious tradition.Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj -different religions and sects found a place here. When people do not get to practice religion the way they want, they move to other choices. The easiest is to become a part of a Dera.