Vol. 14, Part I · pages 616–620

DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES598 this is really complementary to the Constitution which we have enacted and it is in the supreme fitness of things that the same body which enacted the Constitution will also be enacting this Hindu Code into Law. I hope it will be put on the Statute Book and our descendants will say that these people not only enacted the Constitution but also reformed the Hindu law. Pandit Lakshmi Kanta Maitra : Destroyed the Constitution ! The Honourable Shri K. Santhanam : I believe our ancestors are watching and are blessing us for this. Shri Loknath Misra : On a point of information. My friend has just now sworn by the Vedanta and the Bhagvad Gita. Is he prepared to reject any provision that will go against the tenets of these ? The Honourable Shri K. Santhanam : If they are based on wrong premises, I am bound to reject them. Mr. Deputy Speaker : It is unnecessary to carry on this argument. The Honourable Shri K. Santhanam : Sir, I do not want to tire the House. I have dealt with the main points which came to my mind. I wish to appeal to those who by ancient prejudice have come to feel that it is their duty to oppose the Bill to reconsider their attitude, to have another vision—the vision of a Hindu community without caste, without distinctions, all pulling as one man. If we could convert the present disintegrated, weak and for a thousand years servile Hindu community into a very strong, healthy and great community, we would have done a work which our sons and grandsons will be proud of. Shri H. V. Pataskar (Bombay : General): Sir, we are considering a Bill which is going to revolutionise the structure of the Hindu society. That society comprises more than about 25 crores of people at the present time. It is therefore not unnatural that even the common man has begun to take interest in what is happening and it is best in the interests-of all sides, to take into account the fact that when we are revolutionising by this Bill the whole structure of Hindu society, it is not desirable that we should ignore the feelings that have been roused in the common man with respect to the provisions contained in the Bill. The common man is at the present moment ill-equipped with education. He is worried with the problem of feeding himself and his dependents. He is faced with scarcity of clothing, for want of funds if for nothing else, and he generally finds life so difficult. Even then he has begun to take interest in this legislation because he thinks that

DR. AMBEDKAR AND THE HINDU CODE BILL 599 this Bill is going to affect the structure of his Hindu society, which is the growth and product of several centuries past. Therefore it is that we must first educate him before we undertake the serious task of changing the whole structure of the society to which he belongs. I will make it first clear that I am not opposed to many of the provisions of the Bill but the time selected for the purpose, to my mind, is most inopportune. I propose to take only 20 minutes and if I am allowed to make my remarks without interruptions I will be able to finish it within that time, because I am aware that there are many members of this house who are interested either on one side or the other and who want to take part in the debate., The common man, so far as I have been able to understand his reactions to the Bill, thinks that at present the attention of the Government should be concentrated on the problems which affect him in the matter of his food, clothing, inflation and several other things. When he is worried about his day to day needs and what he requires for his sustenance he naturally asks why are the Government interested in what form his marriage should be, whether he should have one wife or more, when he cannot even sustain one. All these things may be necessary and I am not opposed to reform. It has been admitted and our leaders are also saying it that we are passing through very critical times. We know the difficulties of the people, There is scarcity of food, clothing and the other necessities of life. Compared to the common man we are living here a comfortable life. He naturally thinks that what the leaders should concentrate upon is more the solution of his day to day problems than the problems relating to marriage, inheritance, etc. These things have been there for centuries past and it would not matter if they go on in the same way for some more months or even years. If our sisters who are enthusiastic about the Bill or our other friends who are clamouring for the immediate codification and amendment of the Hindu Law, if they approach the common man in the rural areas, they will find that he is so much worried about so many other things that he is surprised why at this moment you should rush a measure of this sort through in this house. He naturally thinks that this should be stayed for the time being. There is quite a lot of discontent in the country. On account of the partition there is the problem of the refugees who have to be settled and sheltered. At this moment is it necessary to interest ourselves so intently on this question, as

DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES600 to what form our marriages should be ? The time chosen for rushing the Bill through is not very opportune and it is likely to add to the difficulties of the situation rather than do otherwise. What are the subjects dealt with under this Code ? Marriage, Inheritance and Adoption. So far as marriage is concerned there is even now the Civil Marriage Act, under which those that do not want to marry in the orthodox way can marry. Many people are as a matter of fact doing it. Therefore this measure does not look so urgent as made out. An Honourable Member : Under that Act you have to say that you do not belong to any religion. Shri H. V. Pataskar : That is gone my dear friend : It is dead and gone, long past. Under the Civil Marriage Act, any two Hindus belonging to any caste or community, without making a declaration that they do not belong to any religion, can get married and there is nothing to prevent them from doing so. There is much agitation with respect to the question of inheritance. We have laid down the equality of the sexes as a principle in our Constitution and in these days it is not possible for anyone to go back upon it. The objection raised is not with regard to the equality of the sexes. A father who has a son and a daughter loves them both equally and there cannot be any difference. But so far as inheritance is concerned it has to be looked at from a different point of view. For that you have to look at the development of the present structure of our society. This structure has been evolved through a process of evolution during the last many centuries. Hinduism is not a religion in the sense in which Christianity is a religion, Zorastrianism is a religion or Islam is a religion . . . An Honourable Member : What is religion then ? Shri H. V. Pataskar : Christianity is the religion of those who believe in Christ and follow his teachings in the Bible. The Zorastrians are the followers of Zoraster and Islam is the religion of those who believe in Mohammad the Prophet and the Koran as their sacred book. But what is Hinduism ? Hinduism includes not only the followers of the Vedas or the followers of Rama and Krishna or Shiva or of the innumerable gods in various shapes and forms but it also includes those who worship nature and those who do not believe in any God whatsoever and those who do not believe in the oneness of God also. Their places of worship, methods of worship and objects of worship

DR. AMBEDKAR AND THE HINDU CODE BILL 601 are all varied. Hinduism is a growth which has absorbed all the different currents and streams of social and religious beliefs and practices prevailing over several centuries. It is an all embracing faith consistent with the ideal of o‘Q.ooUrksfo’oek;Ze- Hinduism at present is a growth which has contrived to combine in it all these various streams of life. At present Hinduism may be a cast-iron system, but it has not always been so. Our religion is based not on the tenets of one particular man or of one particular book, but it is based on what is dharma, and /eZa % means /kj;rs vusu bfr /eZa % or /kj.kkr~ /eZae bR;knqg % Dharma is that which sustains society. That is the ideal on which our Hindu society is built, namely that which is necessary for the sustenance and advancement of society. Of course I do admit that the present state of Hindu society is not a very happy one. But it has not been all along so. Therefore I take you to this point because it will give you an idea as to why there is objection to this Bill. That which sustains society is religion and sustenance of the society is our ideal. Our society may appear stagnant at present, but it is not, has not been really so. Hinduism has undergone vast changes in the course of its evolution. I am not afraid of changes. It has undergone several changes in the past. At one time Buddhism was flourishing in this land and engulfed not only Bharat Varsha but it spread to far off countries beyond Bharat Varsha. But today there are very few Buddhists to be found here. What has happened to them ? They have been absorbed in Hinduism, they have undergone a metamorphosis, and we of the present generation are their descendants. That shows that we are not a stagnant race and that we have adapted ourselves to the changing needs of society. I for one be changed. That is not the real nature of Hinduism. And I am not one of those who say that what we now call Hindu Law should not be changed. Our Law has in fact undergone changes even during the period of the British domination. The previous speaker, the Hon. Mr. Santhanam, rightly referred to the fact that judicial interpretations by courts which were not conversant with the original tenets of various laws regarding inheritance, adoption and marriage have not only changed the course of our social and economic life but have created many anomalies also. It has certainly become desirable to remove those anomalies and bring our Law in conformity with the changing needs of society. The world is changing fast and we cannot but be affected by what is happening elsewhere. We do not wish to say that we will keep ourselves away from the

DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES602 rest of the world. That is not the idea. But the codification of the Law is one thing and amendment of it is another. This Bill seeks to do two things. We want to codify the law and amend its provisions. So far as codification is concerned, I understand it means that we want to remove the anomalies. At the present moment we have got so many systems of law prevalent. There is Dayabhaga in certain parts, there is Mitakshara in certain other parts, and the Bombay school has its own distinctive features. And there is what is called Marumakkattayam in certain parts of South India. But the areas where they are prevalent have also become well-defined, and there is a certain amount of stability. Therefore, if we proceed first with the task of codifying the law as it stands at present in these well-defined areas, that itself will not only bring about uniformity but it will also lead to a process of amendment, at a later stage. Mere codification of the law as it stands will also not evoke much controversy, because that is the existing law. Irrespective of the question that it has been modified by the courts consisting of British judges, there is a certain stability about it. Therefore, if we only confine ourselves to codification I think, much of the opposition that we see at the present moment will not be there. Not only that. If we do the codification only, we will secure the good will of the people and I believe that it will facilitate the amendment of the Hindu Code for certain other matters and by gradual stages subsequently. But the amendment of the existing law in the way it is tried to be done is another matter. Codification and amendment of the law have been hanging fire for the last so many years. In my view if we had proceeded with the codification only as a first step, the law would have been codified long ago. Ever since the Rau Committee was appointed, evidence was taken and so many Reports and so many Bills were formulated. But they tried to do two things simultaneously, namely, codification as well as amendment. Naturally, both have remained unfulfilled. If they had confined themselves to codification only, it would have been done long back and the stage would now have been reached for amendment. That is my view of the matter. The present Bill deals, as I said, with three distinct matters, namely, marriage, inheritance and succession. Let us see what the basic idea of our society is. With the impact of modem ideas, modern education and modern methods of life the question of equality of sexes has naturally been agitating the minds of people, particularly of the