WRT: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mukto-mona/message/49904
1. I fully agree with Yogi Sikand when he says that Baba Saheb Ambedkar was one of the greatest Indians ever produced. One should also agree that a citizen should have complete freedom in choosing his religion and as such countrywide Hindutvabadi crusade (wherever it is oppressive, suppressive, and coercive) against conversions is nothing but gross violation of basic human rights.
2. I have however a few comments on this great man and his 1936 speech in Mahar Conference held in Mumbai. In my opinion this speech was a product of his utmost frustration in dealing with the then orthodox higher caste Hindu leaders. Given the situation prevailing now 72 years after his speech, this speech also reflects, in my opinion, his blurred vision (caused by the most severe form of segregation he went through and the negative attitudes of the caste Hindus around him and his people) about the future. He made an appeal to his people to convert in 1936, although he took about two decades to convert (to Buddhism) himself. He was made the Union Law Minister in 1947. He was made the chief architect of the Indian constitution which has made unlawful any thing and every thing racially discriminatory that he fought against throughout his life. He always had a vast section of the then political leaders including Gandhi on his side in his struggle
against casteism, although he always doubted Gandhi's sincerity. He also got immense support from some caste Hindus in building his career.
3. In his speech he suggested that conversion to any religion like Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, etc. would give the Dalits freedom. He contradicted his own suggestion as to conversion to Islam by subsequently pointing out that Islam had also casteism and that Islam persecuted women. Although he praised the kind of unity the Muslims would tend to show whenever their fellow coreligionists would be under threat from caste Hindus and saw this as a positive factor determining freedom for the Dalits, surprisingly he for himself chose Buddhism.
4. I wonder why he, a vastly learned man taught in the best schools of the world, gave more weight to spiritual status than to economic status in achieving freedom. He could easily find comrades from among the caste Hindus on his side to support his cause. But he chose a path that these potential comrades had nothing to do with.
5. I wonder if the Dalits who converted to Buddhism (or Islam or Christianity) are better off today than the Hindu Dalits. I wonder because as we look around we see that with education and economic independence casteism among the Hindus is going away--although not as fast as it should have been.
-SC
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