DR. BHIMRAO AMBEDKAR - God of dalit.
Born : 14 April 1891 , in Mhow (Now known as Dr. Ambedkar Nagar) , Central India
Died : 5 December 1956 .
Spouse(s) : Ramabai Ambedkar(1906 - 1935) ; Savita Ambedkar (1948)
Award : Bharat Ratna in 1990 (posthumously).
Education : the University of Bombay ; Columbia University ; London School of Economics and Politics.
Profession : Jurist , politician , social reformers , economist etc.
Early Childhood :
DR . BHIMRAO AMBEDKAR , the fourteenth son of Ramji Maloji Sakpal and Bhimabai Sakpal , was born on 14 April , 1891 , in Mahow (Now known as Dr. Ambedkar Nagar) , Central India into Mahar Caste (dalit). His Father , and grandfather Maloji , were in British Army . The Government required all Army personnel and their Families to be educated and ran school for this purpose . thus the Sakpal family was fortunate to receive good education which otherwise , would have been denied to them .
Bhim began to taste the bitter reality of being born "dalit" in school . He had to sit on the floor in one corner in the classroom. Teachers would not touch his notebooks. If Bhim felt thirsty , he could only drink water if someone else poured water into his mouth . this task perform by Peon of the school , he described this situation as "no Peon , No water" . Once provided by an uncontrollable thrist , Bhim drank from the public reservoir , he was beaten by the higher caste hindus. these experienced were permanently etched onto his mind .
He realized that this was the plight of anyone born "dalit".
When he was 15 years old , he married a 9 years old girl Ramabai.
Education :
Bhim enrolled in the Elphinston High school in Bombay . Even there
one of his teacher constantly mocked him , saying that of what use was an educated Mahar . Bhim swallowed these insults and controlled his anger . He passed his Matriculation examination in 1907 . and in the following year he entered Elphinston College in Bombay for further education. After completed his intermediate course , Bhim received a scholorship from the Maharaj of Baroda , Sayaji Rao , and attained a Bachelors in Arts in 1912 . the February of next year , Bhim Father , Ramji died.
Sayaji Rao elected Bhim to sent United State on a scholarship for higher studies . In 1913, at age 22 he moved to the United State , for the first time in his life , Bhim Rao was not demeaned for being a dalit . He studies and received a degree in Master of Arts and a Doctorate in Philosophy from Columbia University . In 1916 he competed his thesis on "National Dividend for India : A Historical and Analytical Study."
In October 1916 , he moved to London study Economics and Political Science . In June 1917 , He returned to India because his Scholarship ended .
In September 1920 , he got a permission to return London to completed his Thesis . Ambedkar returned to London to complete his studies . He became a barrister and got a Doctorate in science . He now considered himself fully equipped to fight the evil of "untouchability".
Opposition to Untouchability :
As Ambedkar was educated by the princely State of Baroda. In returns , he would have to serve the State of Baroda for Ten years .
The Maharaj appointed him to the post of Military Secretary but who cared to take orders from an dalit . In the short times he left the post
and returned to Bombay in November 1917 , and took a part time job in the Sydenham College in Mumbai , although he sucessfull with the students but not with the other teacher and staff members .
With the help of Shahu Maharaj of Kolhapur , a sympathizer of the causes for the upliftment of the depressed classes , Bhim Rao started a fortnightly newspaper , the Mooknayak . on 31 January , 1920 , the Maharaj also convened many meetings and conferences of the dalit which Bhim Rao addressed .
In July 1924 , Ambedkar founded the Bahishkrut Hitkaraini Sabha . The aim of Sabha was to uplift the downtrodden socially and politically and bring them to the level of the others in the Indian society.Sabha started free school for the young and the old and ran readings rooms and libraries. now Dr. Ambedkar respectfully called as "Babasaheb".
In 1927 a conference of the depressed classes was held at Mahad . ten thousand delegates attended , workers and leaders attend . Babasaheb condemned the British for banning the recruitment of "untouchables" into the military. On the next day they began with public movements and marches to open up public drinking water resources they walked to the tank and drank from its water . higher caste Hindus attacked them. They also began a struggle for the right to enter Hindu temples. He led a satyagraha in Mahad to fight for the right of the untouchable community to draw water from the main water tank of the town.
When a separate electorate was announced for the depressed classes , Gandhiji went on a fast unto death against this decision . Leader rushed to Dr. Ambedkar to drop the demand for a separate electorate. Ambedkar held fast and did not buckled under the immense pressure . Finally on 24 September , 1932 , Ambedkar and Gandhiji signed the Poona Pact . According to the pact the separate electorate the separate electorate demand was replaced with special concession like reserved seats in the regional legislative assemblies and Central Council of States.
On 27 May , 1935 , Dr. Ambedkar's wife Ramabai died. Ambedkar could not bear the loss of his wife . On 13 October , 1935, at a conference at Nashik , he encouraged dalits to forsake the hindu religion and convert to a religion where they would be treated with equality . The nation was shocked . He would repeat his messge at various public place in India.
A bill refered to the depressed classes as "Harijans" , or son of God .
Ambedkar was strongly opposed to this title for the untouchables . But the Indian National Congress succeeded in introducing the term Harijian .
Drafting's Indian Constitution :
On 15 , july 1947 , the British parliament passed the act of Indian Independence and on 15 August , 1947 , India became free . The congress invited Dr. Ambedkar to join the cabinet as Minister of Law . The constituent Assemble of Independent India appointed as Drafting Committee with Dr. Ambedkar as its Chairman to draft the Constitution of India . In February 1948 , Dr. Ambedkar presented the Draft Constituent before the people of India . Ambedkar argued for extensive economic and social rights for the women , Freedom of Religion , Abolition of untouchability , reservation of seats in jobs , civil service , school , college etc for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes . The Constituent Assemble adopted the Draft Constitution as the Constitution of India on 26 November , 1949 .
Ambedkar opposed article 370 of the Constitution of India in which granted a special status to the State of Jammu and Kashmir . In October 1948 , Dr. Ambedkar submitted the Hindu code bill to the Constituent Assembly in an attempted to codify Hindu law . Ambedkar resigned from the cabinet in 1951 when bill was rejected.
Second Marriage :
During the Chairman of the Drafting Commite , the mammoth effort had taken its toll on Dr. Ambedkar's health . he went to Bombay for treatment and Married Dr. Sharada Kabir on 15 April , 1948 , who worked in the same hospital where he was receiving treatment .
Conversion to Buddhism :
In May 1956 , on Buddha's Anniversary, Dr. Ambedkar announced that on October 14 he would embrace Buddhism. With him his wife and some three lakhs followers also converte to the faith .
Death :
on 5 December , 1956 , Dr. Ambedkar died peacefully in his sleep or as the Buddhists would say , he attained "Nirvana".
Books by Dr. Ambedkar :
1 . Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development.
2. Mook Nayak (weekly)
3 . The Problem of the Rupee: its origin and its solution
4 . Bahishkrut Bharat (India Ostracized)
5 . Janta (weekly)
6 . The Annihilation of Caste
7 . Federation Versus Freedom
8 . Ranade, Gandhi and Jinnah
9 . Thoughts on Pakistan
10 . Mr. Gandhi and Emancipation of Untouchables
11 . What Congress and Gandhi have done to the Untouchables
12 . Pakistan Or Partition Of India
13 . State and Minorities
14 . Who were the Shudras
15 . Maharashtra as a Linguistic Province
16 . The Untouchables
17 . Buddha Or Karl Marx
18 . The Buddha and his Dhamma
19 . Riddles in Hinduism
20 . Manu and the Shudras
21 .Waiting for Visa : autobiographic of Ambedkar
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