Vol. 17, Part I · pages 156–160

131ROLE OF ......................... INDIAN DEMOCRACY advice in the matter and asking him about the possibility and possible date of the Premier’s decision on the communal issue. In another letter written during the same week, Dr. Ambedkar poured his disgust upon the Hindu Members of the Franchise Committee and said that he hated their frame of mind which allowed them to be self-centred and aggressive inside their own camp and cowardly and yielding outside. He wrote that he was utterly disgusted with their selfish and thoughtless attitude and that he would try to keep himself away from Hindu Society. He was working under mental and physical pressure. In addition, he was suffering from diarrhoea. In April the Bengal Namashudra Association held its 14th Annual Session at the Albert Institute Hall, Calcutta, under the presidentship of Dr. Kalicharan Mandal. The session unanimously endorsed Dr. Ambedkar’s demands. Denouced the newspapers which unjustly criticized Dr. Ambedkar’s stand, and declared that the Congress attitude to their problem was unsympathetic and impractical. The Franchise Committee finished its business on May 1,1932; but, as lord Lothian desired to have some discussion with him on some vital points, Dr. Ambedkar stayed for a day or two more. The Franchise Committee drafted its report giving detailed proposals on which to face the revision of Franchise, and distribution and demar cation of the constituencies for the new legislatures, Central and Provincial. As Dr. Ambedkar differed from the Hindu Members of the Comittee, he submitted to the Committee a separate note. One of the most important decisions of the Committee was on the exact definition of the term Depressed Classes. The Indian Legislature Committee in its decision in 1916, Sir Henry Sharp, the Educational Commissioner under the Government of India, and the Southborough Franchise Committee had all grouped the Depressed Classes with the aboriginals or Hill Tribes, Criminals or with others, but now the Lothian Franchise Committee said that they were of the opinion that the term should be applied only to those who were Untouchables. This was clearly Dr. Ambedkar’s victory as he had insisted in his note to the Committee that the test of Untouchability “must be applied in its notional sense as Untouchability in its literal sense has ceased to obtain.” 1 1 : Keer Pp. 196-198

132 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES On May 26 Dr. Ambedkar left for England to see the British Prime Minister and other Cabinet Ministers before the decision on the communal issue was announced. He left by the Italian steamer, ss. Conte Roso. The news about his departure was kept a closely guarded secret as he had enjoined upon his men not to divulge it to anybody. Still a representative of the Bombay Chronicle screwed it out of some source and cast a revealing light upon Dr. Ambedkar’s new move. Dr. Ambedkar travelled first class, carried very little luggage, and expected to return by the end of August 1932. It was true that the sudden change in Rajah’s attitude worried Dr. Ambedkar much, and the Lothian Committee’s findings also were not much favourable to him. He thought that this was the moment which came once in an age. He therefore resolved to do his utmost and to stake his all. He was confident that his presence in London would add weight to his demands. In the letters written home, on his way to London, he expressed poignant anxiety for the safety of his press which, he feared, the thoughtless Caste Hindus from the Congress camp might burn down. He instructed Shivtarkar to procure a new room and to remove the boxes of new books or to keep them in safety elsewhere. All the while the thought of the safety of his books haunted his mind. Dr. Ambedkar reached London on June 7, 1932. In a week he saw every big British official and all Cabinet Ministers in connection with his mission and pleaded his case with heart and soul. He presented to the British Cabinet a representation consisting of twenty-two typed pages. But he could not say anything just then about the outcome of his efforts. He said that discussions were held and decisions were taken at a very high level; and it was in the air that the Depressed Classes in the Provinces of Bombay, Madras and C.P would get Separate Electorates. By June 14 he had done everything possible to achieve his end and wanted to return. But, as some of his supporters wished him to prolong his stay, he decided to stay for a month more for convalescing in a German Sanatorium conducted by Dr. Moller at Dresden, so that he could run to London if necessary. Dr. Ambedkar was in need of money. The indefinite period of his stay was causing him worry in matters of health and expense. So he asked Shivtarkar to make some arrangements for a remittance, if possible.

133ROLE OF ......................... INDIAN DEMOCRACY By the middle of July, Dr. Ambedkar recovered his health, left Dresden, and stayed for a week in Berlin which was then witnessing the energence of Hitler. From Berlin he wrote that he would travel to Vienna and catch the steamer Gange at Venice. But this time, he said, he should not be worried with the formalities of a reception and welcome. Such is human nature. One pines for what one has not got. When Dr. Ambedkar left for foreign lands, during his student days, no one took note of his departure and arrival. But since the days of the Round Table Conference his departure and arrival had been made the occasions for public send-offs and receptions by thousands of his devotees as well as by pressmen. Dr. Ambedkar arrived in Bombay on August 17.” 1 “On the 17th August 1932 the dicision of the British Prime Minister on the communal question, was announced. That part of the decision which relates to the Untouchables is produced below :— Communal Decision by His Majesty’s Government 1932. In the statement made by the Prime Minister on 1st December last on behalf of His Majesty’s Government at the close of the second session of the Round Table Conference, which was immediately afterwards endorsed by both Houses of Parliament, it was made plain that if the communities in India were unable to reach a settlement acceptable to all parties on the communal questions which the Conference had failed to solve, His Majesty’s Government were determined that India’s contitutional advance should not on that account be frustrated, and that they would remove this obstacle by devising and applying themselves a provisional scheme. 2. On the 19th March last His Majesty’s Government, having been informed that the continued failure of the communities to reach agreement was blocking the progress of the plans for the framing of a new Constitution, stated that they were engaged upon a careful re-examination of the difficult and controversial questions which arise. They are now satisfied that without a decision of at least some aspects of the problems connected with the position of minorities under the new Constitution, no further progress can be made with the framing of the Constitution. 1 : Keer Pp. 202-204.

134 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES 3. His Majesty’s Government have accordingly decided that they will include provisions to give effect to the scheme set out below in the proposals relating to the Indian Constitution to be laid in due course before Parliament. The scope of this scheme is purposely confined to the arrangements to be made for the representation of the British Indian communities in the Provincial Legislatures, consideration of representation in the Legislature at the Centre being deferred for the reason given in paragraph 20 below. The decision to limit the scope of the scheme implies no failure to realize that the framing of the Constitution will necessitate the decision of a number of other problems of great importance to minorities, but has been taken in the hope that once a pronouncement has been made upon the basic questions of method and proportions of representation the communities themselves may find it possible to arrive at modus vivendi on other communal problems, which have not received the examination they require. 4. His Majesty’s Government wish it to be most clearly understood that they themselves can be no parties to any negotiations which may be initiated with a view to the revision of their decision, and will not be prepared to give consideration to any representation aimed at securing the modification of it which is not supported by all the parties affected. But they are most desirous to close no door to an agreed settlement should such happily be forthcoming. If, therefore, before a new Government of India Act has passed into law, they are satisfied that the communities who are concerned are mutually agreed upon a practicable alternative scheme, either in respect of any one or more of the Governors’ Provinces or in respect of the whole of the British India, they will be prepared to recommend to Parliament that the alternative should be substituted for the provisions now outlined. 5. Members of the “Depressed Classes” qualified to vote will vote in a general constituency. In view of the fact that for a considerable period these classes would be unlikely, by this means alone, to secure any adequate representation in the Legislature, a number of special seats will be assigned to them as shown in the table. These seats will be filled by election from special

135ROLE OF ......................... INDIAN DEMOCRACY constituencies in which only members of the “Depressed Classes” electorally qualified will be entitled to vote. Any person voting in such a special constituency will, as stated above, be also entitled to vote in a general constituency. It is intended that these constituencies should be formed in selected areas where the Depressed Classes are most numerous, and that, except in Madras, they should not cover the whole area of the Province. In Bengal it seems possible that in some general constituencies a majority of the voters will belong to the Depressed Classes. Accordingly, pending further investigation, no number has been fixed for the members to be returned from the Special Depressed Class Constituencies in that Province. It is intended to secure that the Depressed Classes should obtain not less than 10 seats in the Bengal Legislature. The precise definition in each Province of those who (if electorally qualified) will be entitled to vote in the Special Depressed Class Constituencies has not yet been finally determined. It will be based as a rule on the general principles advocated in the Franchise Committee’s Report. Modification may, however, be found necessary in some Provinces in Northern India where the application of the general criteria of Untouchability might result in a definition unsuitable in some respects to the special conditions of the Province. His Majesty’s Government do not consider that these Special Depressed Classes Constituencies will be required for more than limited time. They intend that the Constitution shall provide that they shall come to an end after 20 years if they have not previously been abolished under the general powers of electoral revision referred to in paragraph 6.” 1 “According to this Award, the Depressed Classes were granted separate seats in the Provincial Assemblies and the right of double vote under which they were to elect their own representatives and to vote also in the general constituencies. The next day, after his arrival, Dr. Ambedkar wrote a very important letter to Sir Samuel Hoare asking him to clear the meaning of the last part of the paragraph nine of the Award as there was some doubt about it among some of the members of the Depressed Classes. He further wrote that it was impossible for him to make the Depressed Classes accept the Award with the 1 : Writings and Speeches Vol. 9, Pp. 79-82.