Causes for Dalit Movement are as follows:

1. Social injustice: As per the law of nature, all men are born equal. But in practice, equal treatment and equal opportunities have been denied. Exploitation in society was widespread. To get their legitimate rights and opportunities, dalits rebelled under the leadership of many reformers which took the form of movement against the injustice.

2. Economic inequality: Dalits worked in the lands of high caste Elindus and were responsible for the wealth of the feudalist upper castes. Inspite of it, they were treated inhumanly and were not given proper share of wealth. Hence, their position was pathetic. Added to the this, they were victims of exploitation, atrocity, harassment and other heinous Acts. Their opposition was expressed in the form of agitations.

3. Discrimination: Discrimination was rampant in all walks of life. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar himself was the victim of such discrimination. He dared to enter the Kalaram Temple of Nasik against all opposition with his fellow dalits. He publicly used the water of Mahad tank. With this, he started democratic struggle against discrimination to attain social equality. This became the stepping stone for Dalit Movement.

4. Lack of awareness: Dalits were deprived of educational facilities which lead to lack of awareness. Hence, exploitation atrocities mounted up. To get relieved of such situations and to create awareness, movements like Bahishkrith Hitakarini Sabha (1924), Dalit Sangharsh Samiti (1974) and others were initiated nationwide.

5. Political Backwardness: Basically Dalits were kept away from political participation and decision making processes due to denial opportunities. Social boycott, exploitation and subordination were responsible for political backwardness. To come out of these barriers, Dalits were forced to organise agitations and protests which finally got converted into movements.

6. Political implications: Dalit movement is named as Dalit Andolan in Karnataka, Asprushya (untouchable) Aandolan in Maharashtra, Adi Dravida Andolan in Tamilnadu, Pulaya Aandolan in Kerala, Adi Dharma Andolan in Punjab and Namasudra Aandolan in West Bengal.

As a result of Dalit Movements, in the post Independence period, several measures were taken to improve the status of Dalits. The Constituation of India has provided many provisions for the upliftment of Dalits to bring them into the main stream. Many rights have been incorporated to empower Dalits.