Dalit Voice

Dalit Voice

Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and time - One Hundred Twenty Nine

Palash Biswas


I could not go to New Delhi to attend Dalit Voice Silver Jubilee Ceremony due to personals reasons. I missed a great opportunity of interactions with DV readership! I am unlucky.

I wrote to DV editor VTR:

Congratulations for the occasion!
I am proud of the DV team and feel extremely honoured being invited. But I have some prior engagements and would be missing the opportunity.
But I am always with the team.
It is high time to go on all out attack on the Hindu Zionist Global order, the Neo liberalism and the postmodern Manusmriti.
Nandigram has become a launching pad for Global resistance which should be made possible with a worldwide Dalit movement!
I believe that Dalit Voice will lead us.
Palash Biswas
Read:
http://www.dalitvoice.org/Templates/march2006/articles.htm
Read the Latest Issue of Dalit Voice:
http://www.dalitvoice.org/

First read the news:
Reservation not the only solution for Dalits: Buddhadev
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1130168955.cms

West Bengal chief minister Bbuddhadev Bhattacharjee on Wednesday said reservation was not the only way for liberation of dalits, but the present policy of reservation in the fields of employment and education would not be withdrawn. "we leftists think that reservation is not the only way of liberating dalits. what we need is extensive land reforms in eliminating the evils of feudalism and consequent casteist vices," bhattacharjee told a function here organised by dalit intellectuals to felicitate ministers and mlas of the sixth left front belonging to the backward classes. the chief minister, however, made it clear that his government had no immediate plans to do away with the present policy of reservation in the field of education and employment. the school service commission and college service commission had been instructed accordingly. stating that india still suffered from the dual evils of feudalism and capitalism, he said, this gave rise to caste related problems. "we find, therefore, that some parties in north india are indulging in casteist politics. they don't use economic yardsticks to measure backwardness. the bjp, on the other hand, is playing their game on the basis of communalism and fundamentalism. this is perversion," he said.

Many Dalit groups, taking their cue from civil liberties organizations, ignore much of the economic ground for untouchability. Communist leader Brinda Karat notes that “only Communist inspired movements, enabled by the active participation of Dalits, have led to concrete gains against casteism.” In West Bengal, she shows, the Communist government initiated land reform that now forms “the backbone of Dalit self-respect and dignity in the State.”
http://72.14.235.104/search?q=cache:SbgkNvuciuMJ:www.zmag.org/ZMag/articles/march2000prashad.htm+Dalits+In+bengal&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=36&gl=in



Caste identity" kills BJP & Shiv Sena
OUR CORRESPONDENT
Bangalore: Did we not say this? "Let them go on uniting us in the name of Hindu but we will go on dividing them in the name of caste". This is called "caste identity". And its latest victim is the Brahmana Jati Party (BJP) and its tiny tail, the Hindu terrorist party of Shiv Sena.

Did not DV prove right? Is this not the "miracle of caste identity?"

The Brahminical people have a monopoly on their media. Hence we can do nothing to fight (forget about defeating) the reckless hinduisation (enslavement) of our people. So the cheapest, easiest and the most well understood method is "caste identity" which is already in our blood. Simple.

Unfortunately, DV circulation is not catching up in West Bengal. Otherwise by this time we could have killed the Manuwadi Marxists (CPM) of Bengal.

Namasudras warned: The worst victims of CPM are the Dalits (Namasudras) and Muslims.

If the Untouchable Namasudra — who form a formidable state population — study our "caste identity" thesis, within three years we can finish the Bhadralok rule of Brahmins, Baidyas and Kayasths (less 10%).

We have held "caste identity" seminars in cowbelt states, Punjab, Orissa, AP. The Bombay meeting is fixed for Jan.29. But the best of our efforts to have one in Calcutta have failed.

Namasudra intellectuals in Calcutta must come forward and Muslims will join us. Once the Namasudras and Muslims withdraw support from the CPM,the Manuwadi govt. led by the Bengali Brahmin will collapse.

Will the Namasudras of Calcutta wake up?

World Prout Assembly

Dalits In Pakistan

Book Review By Yoginder Sikand


In a speech in 1944, Satyani writes, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, declared that the Muslim League would protect the rights of the Dalits, and he assured them of full security. Accordingly, Jogendra Nath Mondal, a Dalit from East Bengal, was appointed as the leader of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and the first Law Minister of the country. This suggests, Satyani says, that Jinnah was genuine in his concern for the Dalits of Pakistan. However, things began to change after Jinnah's death, and in 1953 Mondal resigned from the Cabinet and migrated to India. This was an indication of the growing intolerance towards minorities in post-Jinnah Pakistan. Today, as Satyani shows, minorities lead a bleak existence in Pakistan, the worst sufferers among them being the country's Dalits.

Following the Partition of India, Satyani says, most Hindus living in what is now Pakistan migrated to India. The vast majority of those who stayed back in Pakistan were Dalits. In the years after the Partition, he writes, there has been a steady migration of Hindus to India, especially in the immediate aftermath of the 1965 and 1971 wars between India and Pakistan. The destruction of the Babri Masjid in India in 1992 and the ensuing massacre of Muslims in different parts of India by Hindutva extremists, led to a heightening of insecurity among the Pakistani Hindus, causing a sizeable number of them to migrate to India. Most of these migrants were 'upper' caste Hindus. Lacking money and resources, Dalits in Pakistan were unable to make the same choice. In addition, Satyani writes, 'The Dalits are so caught up with mere day-to-day survival issues that Hindu-Muslim conflicts or Pakistan-India disputes are not as important for them as they are for rich 'upper' caste Hindus'. To add to this probably is the fact that life for Dalits in India is hardly better than in Pakistan.

http://www.worldproutassembly.org/archives/2005/09/dalits_in_pakis.html

http://www.dalitvoice.org/Templates/jan2006/reports.htm

Dalits Ask For Justice In West Bengal


By V.B.Rawat



“ If I speak untruth, I can survive,
If I speak the truth,
It will be Explosive’

Bulleh Shah


The Baul singers famous for love songs provide a musical odyssey to otherwise lackluster journey from Kolkata to Shantiniketan. The chaotic Howarah station wherefrom the train Vishwabharati Express left for Shantiniketan, reflected the old glory of Kolkata, the financial capital of the country. Today, thanks to the 30 years rule of the progressive left, Kolkata just live in its past. It is a city unlike other metros where the poor can afford to live, they say in their support of existing system yet failed to answer as why the man-pulling rickshaw is still one of the most familiar sights in this ‘city of joy.’

Read More:http://www.countercurrents.org/dalit-rawat071204.htm


Marxist allows Not any Dalit Movement in Bengal. Whatever movement is allowed , it has to be under Party surveillance. Dalit movement must be guided by Party as wel as Brahminical Intelligentsia. All dalit leaders and intellectuals in Bengal enjoy IN- Law status and this is why each of them is silent event after Nandigram Genocide. They could not retaliate Marichjhapi Massacre even after three full decades!

Dalit Sahity Sanstha has joined the Nandigram Agitation! Defying Marxist Brahminical rule, dalit writers, poets and intellectuals have followed suit with Shilppee, Sanskriti Karmee Buddhijeevi Manch. Other day I had a prolonged discussions with Manohar Mauli Biswas, spokes person of Dalit Sahitya Sanstha in Bengal. he accused that the Marxists tried their best to hijack dalit Movement in Bengal. He alleged that Dalit mobilisation is always undermined by Dalit Marxist Cadres.

I would not have been involved with Dalit movement at all , if I had been in North India. It is West Bengal where I realised what Dalit life means. We never faced any discrimination out of Bengal, and in fact, most of my best friends are Brahman writers and intellectuals. Two most powerful Brahman leaders from Nainital ND tiwari and KC Pant always supported the Bengali refugees in UP and my father had a very close relationship with both of them! Though I knew from the beginning that they used my father to ensure en block support of Bengali Vote Bank in undivided UP which made their national political career. Because a very few helpless out caste Brahmans were there in Bengali Refugee colonies and majority, almost all people belonged to Dalit castes , I had no opportunity to feel the Brahminical hatred in my heart. More over my primary teacher Pitambar Pant to GIC, Nainital teacher Tarachandra Tripathi tried their best to groom me. Whatever I managed to become , it was possible for the love and support of these two Brahmins.

In GIC, Nainital first year Half yearly examinations, Hindi lecturer Tripathi stumbled to my answer book and called me to enquire my background . from that very day he adopted me. He advised me to learn English as it has to be the best tool to fight for underclasses. He advised me to write in Hindi, as he thought that without social interactions and involvement no creative work is possible. i had been in his home in B.A. previous days. He was the man who annihilated all illusions about Gandhism, Sangh Parivar, Sex, perversion, Lohia and socialism. He guided me to know Marxism on academic line. He was the man who taught me to read world classics and Indian literature. He made me read communist Manifesto and Psycho analysis, all political theories and economy!

He was a follower of Charvak! He was known as Kautilya for his wisdom. He advised me to read Rahul Sankrityayan. He made me a keen student of History.

But like all Marxists, he never advised me to read Ambedkar. It was out of study circle list. Whatever I used to read in those days, was nothing about Manusmriti ridden Indian Brahminical system. though my Guru always advised me how to fight Brahaminism!

There was no way to know the plights of Dalits in India. As Bengali refugees are deprived of citizenship and reservation, I had no way to know the social status of my people. They were liberated fro m the Brahman Dominated East Bengal Society and they never remembered the gloomy days of the past! So unaware was I! My people thought that they are banfied Indians! They were mostly illiterate and never cared for jobs outside village. whoever was educated , got the job easily. whenever my father demanded reservation, majority opposed as they hated Dalit Status!

But my father used to say that all refugees are Dalits. Uprooted from geography and history, life and livelihood has made all refugees dalit. Simply I disagreed.

I believed in class struggle. But my father Pulin Kumar Biswas led the Terai Peasant`s uprising and always had been an all India Refugee leader, he knew all about Communist betrayals. He always cursed Jyoti Basu and Bengal Brahman Marxists. In seventies, during my schooling and college days, my generation was spellbound either by Thundering Spring or by Total revolution of JP! We never had the patience to learn from the experiences of older people.After Dhimri Block, my father was almost despised Communists! He always declared that these communists never mean Revolution. Contrarily, they undermine revolution itself!
He was associated with Jyoti Basu and Jogendra Nath Mandal both.
But I was never ready to listen.

Virtually there was no communication between us as ideologically we were quite different!

My father is no more. He always emphasised to be with the roots! I was rather involved in Nationality movements. Uttarkhand and Jharkhand. I supported AASU and AGP! I was also deeply involved in Chipko movement. But I had never been involved in any refugee movement. Though I knew everything. I drafted all his correspondance since my childhood as he was not at home in Hindi!

Had my father been alive, he would have been a happier man now.
I am involved deeply in refugee movement because it is his legacy.
I am disillusioned with Communist Movement in India. Whatever was left, Nandigram washed that out. My Marxist friends never supported the helpless Bengali refugees when they needed it most. I could not tolerate this. i saw with shock how the citizenship amendment bill was passed in Parliament with Left Support!

Landing in Bengal, I was surrownded by dominating Brahmins all round. My career as a professional was sabotaged as they do not leave any space for underclass advocating.
Now, I know well what I am. I learnt Jogendra Nath Mandal, Ambedkar and realities of partition! I know well the Dalit Movement in India and , moreover, the history of persecution and enslavement.
Thus, I satnd by VTR and am ready to face any consequence!



Urgent Appeals Desk -- Hunger Alert
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
---------------------------------------------------------

DETAILED INFORMATION:

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) received a reply from the Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS) on 3 December 2004 in regards to a letter sent by the AHRC detailing the eviction of some thousands of persons from Bellilious Park, Howrah, greater Kolkata, West Bengal. The circumstances of that eviction were detailed in an original urgent appeal (FA-27-2003). The starvation of a young child due to the eviction was described in subsequent updates (UP-54-2003, UP-03-2004). A brief reminder on the case can also be found below.

Party games
YOGENDRA YADAVPosted online: Wednesday, March 21, 2007 at 0000 hrs Print EmailBetween Nandigram and a party that swears by human rights and lofty democratic ideals lies vast hypocrisy


Nandigram did not surprise me. I was anguished and angry but not surprised. I had heard the story of Alipurduar from Jugal Kishore Raybir.

This dalit activist, a believer in Gandhian non-violence, was the founder of UTJAS, (Uttar Bango Tapsili Jati O Adibasi Sangathan) an organisation of dalits and adivasis of north Bengal. Through the 1980s it demanded greater regional autonomy and justice for sons of the soil. Not only did the government turn a deaf ear, the ruling party launched an offensive against them, branding them ‘separatist’ or ‘bichhinatabadi’.

The story of Alipurduar goes back to January 10 1987, twenty years before Nandigram. On that day, UTJAS had organised a rally of what they estimated to be about 50,000 people in Alipurduar, the headquarters of Cooch Behar district. As the rally started, they noticed something unusual: The police was nowhere in sight. Soon the rallyists found themselves surrounded by and under attack from the armed cadre of the CPM. The rally was dispersed as unarmed protesters were beaten and chased. The police surfaced, only to arrest the victims, once the party cadre had finished their job.

http://www.indianexpress.com/story/26169.html

builder
YOGENDRA YADAVPosted online: Tuesday, October 10, 2006 at 0000 hrs Print EmailKanshi Ram doesn’t leave behind a surefooted BSP, but he gave Dalit politics a bold new script


I remembered that election rally as I heard the news of Kanshi Ram’s passing away. It was ten years ago, somewhere in eastern UP, just before the assembly elections. I can still see thousands of faces of the visibly poor and hundreds of bicycles that dotted the rally venue. I remember speaking to this man who had cycled — with two children on the bar, wife on the carrier — for nearly 40 km to have a ‘darshan’ of ‘saheb’. This, I learnt, was not uncommon. Kanshi Ram spoke for a few minutes and did not say anything I remember now. No rabble rousing, no outlandish promises. He did what he often used to do: he took out his pen, held it vertically and said this is what our society was like. Then he turned it horizontal and said this is what he wants society to be like. These simple words empowered the audience. Like all great political leaders in our country, his charisma did not depend upon his speech. He communicated before he spoke.
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/14344.html

In his letter to the AHRC, R. N. Sengupta, the chairman of the IRCS in the state of West Bengal, says that

"any human distress is of concern to the Red Cross Society...But, since in West Bengal, there is an organization for looking into the violation of human rights in any form viz the West Bengal Human Rights Commission, we have thought it desirable to send the papers to the Chairman, West Bengal Human Rights Commission for taking necessary action in the matter...".

In a letter to the chairman, the AHRC has replied that clearly the IRCS is evading its responsibility in a matter of direct concern to it as a member of an international network aiming to promote "humanitarian principles and values" and "health and care in the community". In fact, these very words were taken from the IRCS website. It added that the West Bengal Human Rights Commission has for a long time been informed about the case but done nothing.

The AHRC also made a press release expressing its disappointment at the response of the Red Cross to the urgent need for its intervention to assist the victims of the Bellilious Park eviction (AHRC-PL-106-2004).?
http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2004/891/

History of Bangla
The ancient, medieval, and colonial history of Bangladesh covers a period from antiquity to 1947, when India was partitioned. So the history of Bangladesh prior to 1947 is a history of India of which Bangladesh was a part. In fact, the history of India is a history of Bengal for the large part. Today Bangladesh is an independent nation within the Indian subcontinent, but is less than half of the old Bengal or Bangla.

A Lost History


Many assume that South India and Bengal were backwaters because of the lack of interest of the Aryan scriptures in them. They were not backwaters but simply they were non-Aryans. Since Bangla and South India were not Aryan, they are not highlighted in the history of the Aryans or North India. However, since there were powerful kingdoms and cities in Bangla that were in close proximity to the Aryans, Bangla is mentioned somewhat. Also because of Buddha's travellings, there are some more references. (Note: the earliest references are mostly disdainful. If anyone travelled to the Drabir land, then their would be pennances and ritual sacrifices). Dance forms seem to have originated in Drabir India. South Indians have given us several unique dance forms and Gaur of Bangla has also given us unique dance forms. From the ruins of ancient Indus civilization we find dancing girl figurines which indicate the origin of the dances of India.

Even the ancient texts, however, whether intentionally or not, reveal the greatness of Bangla. In Bhishma-parban, the Bangalee kings heroically face attacks from the Pandus or conquerors of Upper India. There is a description of the encounters between the Pandus and the mighty ruler of the Bangas. While some of the Bangalee kings fought on elephants, others rode on ocean-bred steeds of the hue of the moon. What were these ocean bred steeds of the hue of the moon? Were they ships? In the very ancient times, Pundra, Gaur (Gaud or Garh), Rarh (Radha, Ladha), Sumha, Bajra (Brahma), Tamralipti, Samatata, Banga and Anga comprised Bangla. At one time Gaur was the name used for the Bangla region but the name Banga later became popular. This might reflect the prominence of the regions in a period whose history is lost. Banga is first mentioned in the Aiterya Aranyaka, a Hindu scripture. The book mentions Banga as a non-Aryan (Drabir) nation. In the Aitareya Brahma, the people of Pundra tribe (along with Andhra, Shabara, Mulinda and Mutiba tribes) is called dasyu, clearly non-Aryan or Drabir.
Bangla is also mentioned in the Mahabharat, one of the four great epics. In the great war of Kurukshetra described in the Mahabharat, a Bangalee king fought for the Kaurabs (Kaurabs are supposed to be the villains. They are most probably Aryans and so this might show the beginings of Aryan-Drabir alliance makings.). In another instance, King Basudeb of Gaur (old name for Bangla) fought with Krishna in Dwarka, a port city in Gujarat on the western part of India. The Mahabharat also mentions three Bangalee princes who try for the hand of princess Draupadi. In this epic, some Bangalees are mentioned as untouchables. These were the coastal tribes of Bangla who were called Mlechchha. All the tribes in Bangla (and Kalinga, a South East Indian empire and even Magadh and Anga (Bangla) were considered non-Aryan. Banga and Kalinga were Drabir even in Mahabir's time and Aryanization only began with Ashok when part of it was under the Mauryan empire. As Aryanization penetrated into Manu classified Bangla (Pundra), Shaka and Drabira as fallen Kshatryias (Kshatriyas were the warior or ruling caste). This was an attempt to incorporate them into the Aryan caste system. Towards Arjun's time, Mahabharat and the Bayu and Matsyapuranas also call Bangalees (Pundra and Banga, Sumhas) Kshatriyas. And later the Jaina Pragyapana calls Bangaless (Banga and Rarh) Aryans signifying the beginning of absorption. It was probably then that the caste system became rigid and oppressive to maintain segregation.

"The Culture of India is pre-Aryan in origin. As in Greece, the conquered countries civilized the conquerors. The Aryan Indian owed his civilization and his degeneration to the Dravidians as the Aryan Greek to the Mycaeneans." -- Hall: Ancient History of the Near East

It was only during the Gupta rule around the 4th century period that Aryanization fully penetrates Bangla. The caste structure is instilled and Brahmans (highest caste) are mentioned. Batsyan in his Kamsutra (the bible of sex) mentions Brahmans in Bengal. Vatsayana talks about handsome Bangalees who painted their nails to attract girls. Ancient Bangalee men painted their nails to attract girls. This is the earliest mention of coloring nails. In the ancient Indus, girls used lipstick which is also another first use.


Prehistory: Introduction

The modern state of Bangladesh officially came into existence through a people's liberation war in 1971. Bangladesh is the eastern part of Bangla. Bangladesh (East Bangla) and West Bangla (India) are the same nation and together they once formed the major part of Bangla (Banga or Gaur). There were some other parts of Bangla though that are no longer within East or West Bangla. Bangla was divided into East and West parts by the British, first in 1905, but it proved unpopular and was reversed in 1911. Later during the partition of India, rich Muslim landlords in the East supported the division. So again since 1947, Bangla is divided into at least two parts. Bangla was ultimately ruined by this division and today there are even those who have
been culturally so much derooted that they feel that the people of the other Bangla are foreigners! That is one of the greatest achievement of British imperialism. Bangla was one of the most important centres of India and now it is a ruined nation no longer a potential threat to the west. Its long and great history is forgotten by the world and also many Bangalees today. Even though Bangladesh is a modern state, her history can be traced back to about 1000 BC. There are many theories about the origin of the name Banga or Bangla. Some linguists believe that the name originates from the Tibetan word, "Bans" which means wet or moist and Banga (Bengal) is a wet country crisscrossed by a thousand rivers and washed by monsoons and floods from the Himalayas. Some others believe that the name originated from the Bodo (original Asamese in North Eastern India) "Bang La" which means wide plains. This theory is extremely plausible. Another school suggests the name comes from the name of Prince Banga. According to legend, Prince Banga, the son of King Bali and Queen Sudeshna of the Lunar dynasty was the first to colonise Bangla. What is probably the real root is from the name of the original people of Bangla. This also is taken from legend. One of the tribes who according to a claim emerged from the Indus Civilization after its demise had entered the plains of Bengal while others went elsewhere. They were called the Bong tribe and spoke Dravidian. We know from many ancient Aryan texts of a tribe called Banga that existed in that region.

Read Full story:
http://www.muktadhara.net/page50.html

Jogendra Nath Mandal
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Jogendra Nath Mandal (Bangla: ???????????? ?????) (1906–1956) was a Pakistani and Indian politician of Hindu Scheduled Caste and Bengali background, and a close follower of Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, a senior Dalit politician.

[edit] Political career
Mandal became a strong critic of mainstream political parties such as the Indian National Congress, which he saw as lukewarm in its commitment to secure Dalit political rights. He strongly supported the British proposal made in 1934 to grant separate electorate voting system for Dalits - a plan widely criticized for creating political divisions within Hindu society. Mandal attacked the Congress for its opposition, as well as the Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi's fast-unto-death in opposition to the plan, which he believed was inherently divisive and would create conflicts between Hindus. When Dr. Ambedkar agreed with Gandhi, the Congress and Hindu community leaders to reject the plan in favour of intensified social reform and increased representation within the Congress, Mandal was disillusioned.

A critic of the Congress, Mandal grew close to Muslim politician Muhammad Ali Jinnah and his Muslim League. Mandal increasingly subscribed to Jinnah's views and leadership, which he believed would secure extensive rights for religious and ethnic minorities, as well as socially depressed classes across India. In 1936, he was elected to the Bengal Legislative Assembly as a leader of a Dalit bloc and linked with the League. Mandal continued to support Jinnah and the League despite its adoption of a demand in 1940 for a separate Muslim state called Pakistan, and its Direct Action Day agitation in 1946, which degenerated into widespread communal violence. Mandal agreed with the League's rejection of the plans proposed by the British Cabinet Mission to transfer power to Indians, citing insufficient power for the League and minorities. When the League later agreed to enter the interim government in a coalition with the Congress, Mandal was nominated by the League to head the law ministry. This nomination of a Hindu by an avowedly Muslim party was strongly criticized across the political spectrum as a devious reaction to the rejection of Jinnah's demand for the exclusive right to appoint Muslims.


[edit] Political career in Pakistan
Following the partition of India on August 15, 1947 Mandal became a member and temporary chairman of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, and agreed to serve as the new state's first Minister for Law and Labour - becoming the highest-ranking Hindu member of the government. From 1947 to 1950 he would live in the port city of Karachi, which became Pakistan's capital. Mandal strongly supported Jinnah's ideal of a secular state in Pakistan.

However, Mandal grew increasingly disillusioned with Pakistan following the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 and a communal crisis in East Pakistan, where his origins lay, and where close to 4 million Hindus were forced to flee into India within the space of a few years. When Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan publicly supported a proposal to make Islam the official state religion, Mandal denounced it as a rejection of Jinnah's secular vision for Pakistan. Mandal continued to attack the proposed Objectives Resolution, which outlined an Islamic state as completely disregarding the rights of religious and ethnic minorities. He grew increasingly isolated, and came increasingly under verbal and physical attack; fleeing to Kolkata, he sent his letter of resignation in October 1950. In his resignation letter, he openly assailed Pakistani politicians for disregarding the rights and future of minorities, as well as the vision of Pakistan's founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah. [1]


[edit] Criticism
Mandal returned to India in 1950 and spent his final years in the state of West Bengal. He is intensely criticized by contemporary historians and scholars for supporting Jinnah, a politician avowed solely to Muslim interests, and for supporting the creation of Pakistan, where non-Muslim communities were disenfranchised and discriminated against. Without Mandal's carrying of the significant Scheduled Caste Hindu votes in Bengal in the 1946 elections, it is unlikely that Pakistan would have come into being in the form that it did in 1947. His harshest critics include both secular and Hindutva politicians who assail him for acting as a stooge for Jinnah's divisive communal politics. However, Mandal is respected by many segments of the Dalit community for his work and firm commitment to securing Dalit political rights and representation.




THUS SPAKE AMBEDKAR
Golden words : Gandhi's treachery against Dalits
This will show why I insist that there is no use of discussing the question until the actual proposals of the Mahatma are put forth.

I must, however, point out that I cannot accept the assurances of the Mahatma that he and his Congress will do the needful. I cannot leave so important a question as the protection of my people to conventions and understandings. The Mahatma is not an immortal person, and the Congress, assuming it is not a malevolent force, is not to have an abiding existence. There have been many Mahatmas in India whose sole object was to remove Untouchability and to elevate and absorb the Depressed Classes; but every one of them has failed in his mission. Mahatmas have come and Mahatmas have gone. But the Untouchables have remained as Untouchables.

I have enough experience of the pace of reform and the faith of Hindu reformers in the conflicts that have taken place at Mahad and Nasik, to say that no well-wisher of the Depressed Classes will ever consent to allow the uplift of the Depressed Classes to rest upon such treacherous shoulders. Reformers who in moments of crisis prefer to sacrifice their principles rather than hurt the feelings of their kindred, can be of no use to the Depressed Classes.

I am, therefore, bound to insist upon a Statutory Guarantee for the protection of my people. If Mr. Gandhi wishes to have the Communal Award altered, it is for him to put forth his proposals and to prove that they give a better guarantee than has been given to us under the Award.

I hope that the Mahatma will desist from carrying out the extreme step contemplated by him. We mean no harm to the Hindu society when we demand Separate Electorates. If we choose Separate Electorates we do so in order to avoid the total dependence on the sweet will of the caste Hindus in matters affecting our destiny. Like the Mahatma we also claim our right to err, and we expect him not to deprive us of that right. His determination to fast himself unto death is worthy of a far better cause. I could have understood the propriety of the Mahatma contemplating such extreme step for stopping riots between Hindus and Mohammedans or between the Depressed Classes and the Hindus or for any other national cause. It certainly cannot improve the lot of the Depressed Classes. Whether he knows it or not the Mahatma's act will result in nothing but terrorism by his followers against the Depressed Classes all over the country.

Coercion of this sort will not win the Depressed Classes to the Hindu fold if they are determined to go out. And if the Mahatma chooses to ask the Depressed Classes to make a choice between Hindu faith and possession of political power I am quite sure that the Depressed Classes will choose political power.