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Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (April 14, 1891 — December 6, 1956) was a Buddhist revivalist, an Indian jurist, scholar and Bahujan political leader who is the chief architect of the Indian constitution. Born in Hindu Untouchable community also known as Dalit now-a-days; he spent his life fighting against the discrimination system of Hindu untouchability and the Indian Caste System. He is also credited for having sparked a revival of Buddhism in India, known as the Indian Buddhist movement.

Overcoming numeous social and financial obstacles, Ambedkar became one of the first untouchables to obtain college education in India. He went on to pursue higher studies in the United States and England, where he earned law degrees and multiple doctorates for his studies and works in law, economics and political science. A famous scholar, Ambedkar practised law for a few years before he began publishing journals advocating political rights and social freedom for India's untouchables. Leading numerous public agitations, he would become a fierce critic of Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian National Congress.

Ambedkar organized untouchable political parties and social organizations, and served in the legislative councils of British India. He would intensify his criticism of orthodox Hindu society and would oppose nationalist rebellions. Despite this, his reputation as a scholar led to his appointment as free India's first law minister, and chairman of the committee responsible to draft a constitution. Ambedkar's work would guarantee political, economic and social freedoms for untouchables and other ethnic, social and religious communities of India. His polemical condemnation of Hinduism and attacks on Islam would make him unpopular and controversial, although his conversion to Buddhism sparked a revival in interest of Buddhist philosophy in India.

Early life

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was born in the British-founded town and military cantonment of Mhow in the Central Provinces (now in Madhya Pradesh). He was the 14th and last child of Ramji Maloji Sakpal and Bhimabai Murbadkar. His family was of Marathi background from the town of Ambavade in the Ratnagiri district of modern-day Maharashtra. They belonged to the Hindu Mahar caste, who were treated as untouchables and subjected to intense socio-economic discrimination. Ambedkar's ancestors had for long been in the employ of the army of the British East India Company, and his father served in the Indian Army at the Mhow cantonment, rising to the rank of Subedar. He had received a degree of formal education in Marathi and English, and encouraged his children to learn and work hard at school.

Belonging to the Kabir Panth, Ramji Sakpal encouraged his children to read the Hindu classics, especially the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. He used his position in the army to lobby for his children to study at the government school, as they faced resistance owing to their caste. Although able to attend school, Ambedkar and other Untouchable children were segregated and given no attention or assistance from the teachers. Ramji Sakpal retired in 1894 and the family moved to Satara two years later. Shortly after their move, Ambedkar's mother died. The children were cared for by their paternal aunt, and lived in difficult circumstances. Only three sons — Balaram, Anandrao and Bhimrao — and two daughters — Manjula and Tulasa — of the Ambedkars would go on to survive them. Of his brothers and sisters, only Ambedkar succeeded in passing his examinations and graduate to a bigger school. His native village name was "Ambavade" in Ratnagiri District so he changed his name from "Sakpal" to "Ambedkar" with the recommendation and faith of a Brahmin teacher that believed in Bhimrao.

Ramji Sakpal remarried in 1898, and the family moved to Mumbai (then Bombay), where Ambedkar became the first untouchable student at the Government High School near Elphinstone Road. Although excelling in his studies, Ambedkar was increasingly disturbed by his segregation and discrimination. In 1907, he passed his matriculation examination and entered the University of Mumbai, becoming one of the first persons of untouchable origin to enter college in India. This success provoked celebrations amongst his community, and after a public ceremony, he was given a biography of the Buddha by his teacher Krishnaji Arjun Keluskar also known as Dada Keluskar a Maratha caste scholar. Ambedkar's marriage had been arranged the previous year as per Hindu custom, to Ramabai, a nine-year old girl from Dapoli. In 1908, he entered the Elphinstone College and obtained a scholarship of Rs. 25 a month from the Gaekwad ruler of Baroda, Sahyaji Rao III for higher studies in USA. By 1912, he obtained his degree in economics and political science, and prepared to take up employment with the Baroda state government. His wife gave birth to his first son, Yashwant in the same year. Ambedkar had just moved his young family and started work, when he dashed back to Mumbai to see his ailing father, who died on February 2, 1913.

Pursuit of education

A few months later, Ambedkar was selected by the Gaekwad ruler to travel to the United States and enroll at Columbia University, with a scholarship of $11.5 pounds per month. Arriving in New York City, Ambedkar was admitted for graduate studies at the political science department. After a brief stay at the dormitory, he moved to a housing club run by Indian students and took up rooms with a Parsi friend, Naval Bhathena. In 1916, he was awarded a Ph.D. for a thesis which he eventually published in book form as The Evolution of Provincial Finance in British India. His first published work, however, was a paper on Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development. Winning his degree and doctorate, he travelled to London and enrolled at Gray's Inn and the London School of Economics, studying law and preparing a doctoral thesis in economics. The expiration of his scholarship the following year forced him to temporarily abandon his studies and return to India amidst World War I.

Returning to work as military secretary for Baroda state, Ambedkar was distressed by the sudden reappearance of discrimination in his life, and left his job to work as a private tutor and accountant, even starting his own consultancy business that failed owing to his social status. With the help of an English acquaintance, the former Bombay Governor Lord Syndenham, he won a post as professor of political economy at the Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics in Mumbai. He was able to return to England in 1920 with the support of the Maharaja of Kolhapur, his Parsi friend and his own savings. By 1923 he completed a thesis on The Problem of the Rupee. He was awarded a D.Sc. by the University of London, and finishing his law studies, he was simultaneously admitted to British Bar as a barrister. On his way back to India, Ambedkar spent three months in Germany, where he conducted further studies in economics at the University of Bonn. He would be formally awarded a Ph.D. by the Columbia University on June 8, 1927.

Fight against untouchability

As a leading Dalit scholar, Ambedkar had been invited to testify before the Southborough Committee, which was preparing the Government of India Act 1919. At this hearing, Ambedkar argued for creating separate electorates and reservations for Dalits and different religious communities. In 1920, he began the publication of the weekly Mooknayak (Leader of the Dumb) in Mumbai. Attaining popularity, Ambedkar used this journal to criticize orthodox Hindu politicians and a perceived reticence in the Indian political community to fight caste discrimination. His speech at a Depressed Classes Conference in Kolhapur impressed the local state ruler, who shocked orthodox society by dining with Ambekdar and his untouchable colleagues. Ambekdar exhorted his Mahar community to abandon the idea of sub-castes, and held a joint communal dinner in which the principle of segregation was abandoned. Upon his return from Europe, Ambedkar established a successful legal practise, and also organised the Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha (Group for the Wellbeing of the Excluded) to promote education and socio-economic upliftment of the depressed classes.

In 1926, he became a nominated member of the Bombay Legislative Council, and led a satyagraha — non-violent protest and civil disobedience as pioneered by Mahatma Gandhi — in Madh to fight for the right of the untouchable community to draw water from the main water tank of the town. On January 1, 1927 Ambedkar organised a ceremony at the Koregaon Victory Memorial near Pune, which commemorated the Indian soldiers who died during World War I. Here he inscripted the names of the soldiers from his Mahar community on a marble tablet. In a Depressed Classes Conference on December 24, he condemned the ancient Hindu classical text, the Manusmriti (Laws of Manu). Condemning it for justifying the system of caste discrimination and untouchability, Ambedkar and his supporters burned copies of the texts. In 1927, he would begin his second journal, the Bahiskrit Bharat (Excluded India), later rechristened as Janata (The People). He would be appointed to the Bombay Presidency Committee to work with the all-European Simon Commission in 1928. This commission had sparked great protests across India, and while its report was ignored by most Indians, Ambedkar himself wrote a separate set of recommendations for future constitutional reforms. He was injured in an accident that occurred during a visit to Chalisgaon on October 23, 1929. Hoping to help the untouchable community, which was facing a social boycott from orthodox Hindus, he was confined in bed there till the end of the year.

Poona act

Ambedkar had become one of the most prominent untouchable political figures of the time. He had grown increasingly critical of mainstream Indian political parties for their perceived lack of emphasis for the elimination of the caste system. Ambedkar criticized the Indian National Congress and its leader Mahatma Gandhi, whom he accused of reducing the untouchable community to a figure of pathos. Ambedkar was also dissatisfied with the failures of British rule, and advocated a political identity for untouchables separate from both the Congress and the British. At a Depressed Classes Conference on August 8, 1930 Ambedkar outlined his political vision:

"...Safety of the Depressed Classes hinged on their being independent of the Government and the Congress" both: "We must shape our course ourselves and by ourselves... Political power cannot be a panacea for the ills of the Depressed Classes. Their salvation lies in their social elevation. They must cleanse their evil habits. They must improve their bad ways of living.... They must be educated.... There is a great necessity to disturb their pathetic contentment and to instill into them that divine discontent which is the spring of all elevation."

In this speech, Ambedkar criticized the Salt Satyagraha launched by Gandhi and the Congress. Ambedkar's criticisms and political work had made him very unpopular with orthodox Hindus, as well as many Congress politicians who had condemned untouchability and worked against discrimination across India. His prominence and popular support amongst the untouchable community had increased, and he was invited to attend the Second Round Table Conference in London in 1931. Here he sparred verbally with Gandhi on the question of awarding separate electorates to untouchables. A fierce opponent of separate electorates on religious and sectarian lines, Gandhi feared that separate electorates for untouchables would divide Hindu society for future generations.

When the British agreed with Ambedkar and announced the awarding of separate electorates, Gandhi began a fast-unto-death while imprisoned in the Yeravada Central Jail of Pune in 1932. Exhorting orthodox Hindu society to eliminate discrimination and untouchability, Gandhi asked for the political and social unity of Hindus. Gandhi's fast provoked great public support across India, and orthodox Hindu leaders, Congress politicians and activists such as Madan Mohan Malaviya and Pawlankar Baloo organized joint meetings with Ambedkar and his supporters at Yeravada. Fearing a communal reprisal and killings of untouchables, had Gandhi died, Ambedkar agreed to drop the demand for separate electorates, under massive coercion from the supporters of Gandhi, and settled for a reservation of seats. Ambedkar was to criticise the fast of Gandhi as a gimmick to deny political rights to the untouchables and the coercion he faced to give up the demand of separate electorates, in all his writings later.

Political career

In 1935, Ambedkar was appointed principal of the Government Law College, a position he held for two years. Settling in Mumbai, Ambedkar oversaw the construction of a large house, and stocked his personal library with more than 50,000 books. His wife Ramabai died after a long illness in the same year. It had been her long-standing wish to go on a pilgrimage to Pandharpur, but Ambedkar refused to let her go, telling her that he will create new Pandharpur for her instead of going to Hinduism's Pandharpur which treated them as untouchable. His own views and attitudes had hardened against orthodox Hindus, despite a significant increase in momentum across India for the fight against untouchability. and he began criticizing them even as he was criticized himself by large numbers of Hindu activists. Speaking at the Yeola Conversion Conference on October 13 near Nasik, Ambedkar announced his intention to convert to a different religion and exhorted his followers to leave Hinduism. He would repeat his message at numerous public meetings across India.

In 1936, Ambedkar founded the Independent Labour Party, which won 15 seats in the 1937 elections to the Central Legislative Assembly. He published his book The Annihilation of Caste in the same year, based on the thesis he had written in New York. Attaining immense popular success, Ambedkar's work strongly criticized Hindu religious leaders and the caste system in general. He protested the Congress decision to call the untouchable community Harijans (Children of God), a moniker coined by Gandhi.. Ambedkar would be named to serve on the Defence Advisory Committee and the Viceroy's Executive Council as minister for labour.

Between 1941 and 1945, he published a large number of highly controversial books and pamphlets, including Thoughts on Pakistan, in which he criticized the Muslim League's demand for a separate Muslims state of Pakistan. With What Congress and Gandhi have Done to the Untouchables, Ambedkar intensified his attacks on Gandhi and the Congress, charging them with hypocrisy. In his work Who were the Shudras?, Ambedkar attempted to explain the formation of the Shudras i.e. non-Brahmin Hindus. He also emphasised that how Shudras are separate from Untouchables. Ambedkar oversaw the transition of his political party into the All India Scheduled Castes Federation, although it performed poorly in the elections held in 1946 for the Constituent Assembly of India. In writing a sequel to Who were the Shudras? in 1948, Ambedkar lambasted Hinduism in the The Untouchables: a Thesis on the Origins of Untouchability:

"The Hindu Civilisation.... is a diabolical contrivance to suppress and enslave humanity. Its proper name would be infamy. What else can be said of a civilisation which has produced a mass of people... who are treated as an entity beyond human intercourse and whose mere touch is enough to cause pollution?"

Ambedkar was also critical of Islam and it's practices in South Asia. While justifying the Partition of India, he condemned practices of Child-Marriage in Muslim society, as well as the mistreatment of women. He also condemned the Caste practices carried out by Muslims in South Asia. He was also critical of slavery in Muslim communities. He said

"No words can adequately express the great and many evils of polygamy and concubinage, and especially as a source of misery to a Muslim woman." "Take the caste system. Islam speaks of brotherhood. Everybody infers that Islam must be free from slavery and caste. Regarding slavery nothing needs to be said. It stands abolished now by law. But while it existed, much of its support was derived from Islam and Islamic countries.While the prescriptions by the Prophet regarding the just and humane treatment of slaves contained in the Koran are praiseworthy, there is nothing whatever in Islam that lends support to the abolition of this curse." "But if slavery has gone, caste among Musalmans has remained"

Architect of India's constitution

Despite his increasing unpopularity, controversial views and intense criticism of Gandhi and the Congress, Ambedkar was by reputation an exemplary jurist and scholar. Upon India's independence on August 15, 1947, the new Congress-led government invited Ambedkar to serve as the nation's first law minister, which he accepted. On August 29, Ambedkar was appointed chairman of the constitution drafting committee, charged by the Assembly to write free India's constitution. Ambedkar won great praise from his colleagues and contemporary observers for his drafting work.

The text prepared by Ambedkar provided constitutional guarantees and protections for a wide range of civil liberties for individual citizens, including freedom of religion, the abolition of untouchability and the outlawing of all forms of discrimination. Ambedkar argued for extensive economic and social rights for women, and also won the Assembly's support for introducing a system of reservations of jobs in the civil services, schools and colleges for members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, a system akin to affirmative action. India's lawmakers hoped to eradicate the socio-economic inequalities and lack of opportunities for India's depressed classes through this measure, which had been originally envisioned as temporary on a need basis. The constitution was adopted on November 26, 1949 by the Constituent Assembly. Speaking after the completion of his work, Ambedkar said:

"I feel that the Constitution is workable; it is flexible and it is strong enough to hold the country together both in peace time and in war time. Indeed, if I may say so, if things go wrong under the new Constitution the reason will not be that we had a bad Constitution. What we will have to say is that Man was vile."

Ambedkar resigned from the cabinet in 1951 following the stalling in parliament of his draft of the Hindu Code Bill, which sought to expound gender equality in the laws of inheritance, marriage and the economy. Although supported by Prime Minister Nehru, the cabinet and many other Congress leaders, it received criticism from a large number of parliament members. Ambedkar independently contested an election in 1952 to the lower house of parliament, the Lok Sabha but was defeated. He was appointed to the upper house of parliament, the Rajya Sabha in March 1952 and would remain its member until his death.

Conversion to Buddhism

In the 1950s, Ambedkar turned his attention to Buddhism and travelled to Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) to attend a convention of Buddhist scholars and monks. While dedicating a new Buddhist vihara near Pune, Ambedkar announced that he was writing a book on Buddhism, and that as soon as it was finished, he planned to make a formal conversion to Buddhism. Ambedkar twice visited Burma in 1954; the second time in order to attend the third conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists in Rangoon. In 1955, he founded the Bharatiya Bauddha Mahasabha, or the Buddhist Society of India. He would complete his manuscript and final work The Buddha and his Dhamma to completion in 1956, although it would be published posthomously.

Ambedkar organised a formal public ceremony for himself and his supporters in Nagpur on October 14, 1956. Accepting the Three Refuges and Five Precepts from a Buddhist monk in the traditional manner, Ambedkar completed his own conversion. He then proceeded to convert an estimated 380,000 of his supporters who were gathered around him. Administering the "22 Vows," Ambedkar and his supporters explicitly condemned and rejected Hinduism and Hindu philosophy. He would soon travel to Kathmandu in Nepal to attend the Fourth World Buddhist Conference. He completed his final manuscript, The Buddha or Karl Marx on December 2, 1956.

Death

Since 1948, Ambedkar had been suffering from diabetes. He was bed-ridden from June to October in 1954 owing to clinical depression and failing eyesight. He had been increasingly embittered by political issues, which took a toll on his health. His health worsened as he furiously worked through 1955. Just three days after completing his final manuscript 'Buddha And His Dhamma', it is said that Ambedkar died in his sleep on December 6, 1956 at his home in Delhi but still there is a controversy about his death. His supporters blamed Caste Brahmins, among one who murdered Mahatma Gandhi in 1948. A Buddhist-style cremation was organised for him at Chowpatty beach on December 7, attended by hundreds of thousands of supporters, activists and admirers. Ambedkar was survived by his second wife Savita Ambedkar, born as a Caste Brahmin and converted to Buddhism with him. His wife's name before marriage was Sharda Kabir. Savita Ambedkar died as Buddhist in 2002. Ambedkar's grandson, Prakash Yaswant Ambedkar leads the Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangha and has served in both houses of the Indian Parliament.

A number of unfinished typescripts and handwritten drafts were found among Ambedkar's notes and papers and gradually made available. Among these were Waiting for a Visa, which probably dates from 1935-36 and is an autobiographical work, and the Untouchables, or the Children of India's Ghetto, which refers to the census of 1951. A memorial for Ambedkar was established in his Delhi house at 26 Alipur Road. His birthdate is celebrated as a public holiday known as Ambedkar Jayanti. He was posthumously awarded India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna in 1990. He is the namesake of many public institutions, such as the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Open University in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. A large official portrait of Ambedkar is on display in the Parliament building. Jabbar Patel directed the Hindi-language movie "Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar" about the life of Ambedkar, released in 2000, starring South Indian actor Mammootty as Ambedkar. Sponsored by India's National Film Development Corporation and Ministry of Social Justice, the film was released after a long and controversial gestation period.

Criticism and legacy

Ambedkar is a controversial and polarizing figure in Indian politics. He was criticized by his contemporaries and modern scholars for his opposition to Mahatma Gandhi, who had been one of the first Indian leaders to call for the abolition of untouchability and discrimination. While Ambedkar's supporters argue that he was working to secure Dalit and Backward Caste political rights. Contemporary and modern scholars also criticize Ambedkar's works on researching the caste system and racial theories, and his mass conversion of Buddhism as a political stunt. Ambedkar was criticised for his intensely anti-Hindu views, though his supporters argue that he was only opposed to "Orthodox Brahminism" rather than to all Hindus. His contributions to the Indian Independence struggle have also been questioned by writers like Arun Shourie. His attacks on Islam and Islamic society in India would make him unpopular among many Muslims.

Ambedkar's legacy has been long-lasting on modern India. He is widely regarded as the "father of the Indian constitution" for his role in creating the document. His political philosophy has given rise to a large number of Dalit political parties, publications and workers unions that remain active across India, especially in Maharashtra. His promotion of the Indian Buddhist Movement has rejuvenated interest in Buddhist philosophy in many parts of India. Mass conversion ceremonies have been organized by Dalit activists in modern times, emulating Ambedkar's Nagpur ceremony of 1956. However, frequent violent clashes between Dalit groups and orthodox Hindus have occurred over the years. When in 1994 a garland of shoes was hung around a statue of Ambedkar in Mumbai, sectarian violence and strikes paralyzed the city for over a week. When the following year similar disturbances occurred, a statue of Ambedkar was destroyed. In addition, some Dalits who converted to Buddhism have rioted against Hindus and desecrated Hindu temples, often incited into doing so by anti-Hindu elements and replacing deities with pictures of Ambedkar.

References

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1. ^ Pritchett, Frances (2006-08-02). "Columbia University" (PHP). Retrieved 2006-08-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
2. ^ Pritchett, Frances (2006-08-02). "Columbia University" (PHP). Retrieved 2006-08-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
3. ^ Pritchett, Frances (2006-08-02). "Columbia University" (PHP). Retrieved 2006-08-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
4. ^ Pritchett, Frances (2006-08-02). "Columbia University" (PHP). Retrieved 2006-08-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
5. ^ Pritchett, Frances (2006-08-02). "Columbia University" (PHP). Retrieved 2006-08-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
6. ^ Pritchett, Frances (2006-08-02). "Columbia University" (PHP). Retrieved 2006-08-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
7. Ambedkar, Bhimrao. Pakistan or the Partition of India. Thackers Publishers.
8. Web resource for Pakistan or the Partition of India
9. ^ Pritchett, Frances (2006-08-02). "Columbia University" (PHP). Retrieved 2006-08-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

Further reading

• Dr. Ambedkar and Untouchability: Analyzing and Fighting Caste by Christophe Jaffrelot (2005) ISBN 0-231-13602-1
• Ambedkar and Buddhism by Urgyen Sangharakshita ISBN 0-904766-28-4
• Ambedkar: Towards an Enlightened India by Gail Omvedt ISBN 0-670-04991-3
• Life of Babasaheb Ambedkar by C. Gautam, Published by Ambedkar Memorial Trust, London, Milan House, 8 Kingsland Road, London E2 8DA Second Edition, May 2000
• Thus Spoke Ambedkar Vol-I* (Selected Speeches of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar) Compiled and edited by Bhagwan Das, published by Dalit Today Parkashan,18/455,Indira Nagar, Lucknow (U.P.)India-226016
• Revival of Buddhism in India and Role of Dr. BabaSaheb B.R. Ambedkar by Bhagwan Das, published by Dalit Today Parkashan,18/455,Indira Nagar, Lucknow (U.P.)India-226016
• Dr. Ambedkar: A Critical Study by W.N. Kuber, published by People's Publishing House, New Delhi, India.
• Dr. Ambedkar: Life and Mission by Dhananjay Keer published by Popular Prakashan, Bombay, India.
• Economic Philosophy of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar by M.L. Kasare published by B.I. Publications Pvt. Ltd.,New Delhi, India.
• The Legacy Of Dr. Ambedkar by D.C. Ahir published by B.R.Publishing Coporation, Delhi-110007,India. (ISBN 81-7018-603-X Code No. L00522)

External links

• Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and His People
• Ambedkar Center for Justice and Peace
• Dr. Ambedkar International Mission
• Columbia University
• Ambedkar's statue at Columbia University
• University of Heidelberg
• "The Buddha and His Dhamma" with unpublished preface
• Writer Arun Shourie questions BR Ambedkar's contribution to India's independence
• Article on Ambedkar's Neo-Buddhism by Koenraad Elst

See also

• Caste
• Dalit

Template:IndiaFreedom

• First Nehru ministry
• 1891 births
• 1956 deaths
• First Indian Cabinet
• Buddhists
• Buddhist philosophers
• Philosophers by religion
• Indian activists
• Bharat Ratna recipients
• Indian politicians
• Caste
• Alumni of the London School of Economics
• People from Maharashtra