Vol. 17, Part I · pages 36–40

13MAHAD SATYAGRAHA Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha in Bombay. It was declared that the satyagraha struggle was to be launched under the auspices of the said institution.” 1 Police Report of Agitational Programme of Dr. Ambedkar : I “The Depressed Classes at Mahad : Protest of Bombay Untouchables against the atrocities inflicted on….. Bombay City S. B., July 4, 1927. —Under the auspices of the Bahishkrit Hitakarani Sabha, a public meeting of the Depressed Classes was held at the Cowasji Jehangir Hall on the evening of July 3 to protest against the hardships inflicted on the Untouchables of Mahad in Kolaba District. Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, Bar-at-Law, presided over an audience of about 1,000 people. Speeches were made by the president, Ragoba Narayan Vanmali, Mahadeo Abaji Kamli, Sitaram Namdeo Shivtarkar, Nirmal Limbaji Gangavane, Gitanand Brahmachari and Samant Nanji Marwari, condemning the treatment meted out to their brethren in Mahad by the Higher Classes. They decided, in order to carry on a peaceful agitation against this treatment, to enlist volunteers and collect funds. They would first have a conference at Mahad after the Diwali holidays and then it would be decided to start Satyagraha in order to enforce their rights as citizens. A resolution to this effect was passed. Another resolution was passed requesting the Government to establish a separate department to deal with the grievances of the Depressed Classes as was done in Madras. An appeal for funds was made by the speakers and about Rs. 350 were collected. A dozen people consented to become volunteers for the Satyagraha movement when it is started.” 2 1 : Keer. Pp. 77, 79, 89-90. 2 : Bombay Secret Abstract, dated 16th July 1927.

14 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES II “Satyagraha of Untouchables at Mahad “At a conference of Mahars, Mangs, Bhangis, etc., held at Mahad in Kolaba District in March last, the delegates were prohibited by orthodox people from using the water of the village tank and the prohibition is reported to have resulted in a criminal case against those who took the law into their own hands. Since this incident there has been some excitement among the Untouchables of Bombay in which Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, Bar-at-Law, has been taking the lead. In connection with this, a meeting of about a thousand Untouchables was held at Sir Cowasji Jehangir Hall under the presidency of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar on the afternoon of October 30. The president explained the facts which led to the incident at Mahad and which compelled the Untouchables to stand up for the protection of their rights. A resolution was passed by which it was decided to hold a conference at Mahad on December 25 in order to establish their right of using water at the public tank and in the event of any prohibition to launch a Satyagraha movement. About Rs. 570 were collected at the meeting. There was also a suggestion from the audience to launch a similar compaign in connection with a temple at Amravati in the middle of November.” 1 1 : Source Material Vol. I, P. 13.

15MAHAD SATYAGRAHA III No. H/3447 dated 22nd December 1927. “To, The D. S. P., Kolaba, Alibag. Sir, Reference.—Para 868 of the B. S. A. current. In this connection a meeting of the Depressed Classes was held on the night of 21st instant when Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Bar-at-Law presided over an audience of about 250 people. The President, Sambhaji Santoji Waghmare, Nimandarkar, Kholwadekar and Junnarkar made speeches advising the people to join the Satyagraha Movement which is coming off on the 25th instant at Mahad in connection with the prohibition against the Untouchables’ use of the water tank. I have & c. (Sd.) D. C. P., S. B. 22nd December 1927.” 1 “Meantime, the Mahad Municipality revoked on August 4, 1927, its resolution of 1924 under which it had declared the Chawdar Tank open to the Depressed Classes. Dr. Ambedkar accepted the challenge and on September 11, at a public meeting in Damodar Hall, Bombay, a committee was formed to devise ways and means to make the struggle for re-establishing the right of the Depressed Classes to the Mahad Tank a success, and to fix the dates and details. Four days afterwards the committee met at Dr. Ambedkar’s office and announced December 25 and 26, 1927, as the dates for offering the satyagraha. The day of the proposed Conference and the satyagraha at Mahad was drawing near. Mahad began to stir again. The opponents of the struggle held a meeting on November 27, 1927, at the Veereshwar Temple to formulate a plan to flout the attempts of Dr. Ambedkar and the Depressed Classes to take water from 1 : Source Material, Vol. I, Pp. 13-14.

16 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES the Chawdar Tank. But owing to the presence of the sympathisers of the Depressed Classes the meeting ended in pandemonium. Some Poona Hindu leaders tried to dissuade the caste Hindus from opposing the struggle, but to no purpose. The District Magistrate visited Mahad on December 7, and the leaders of both the sides discussed the question with him. He asked the caste Hindus to have recourse to law and refused to issue an order prohibiting the Untouchables from taking water from the Chawdar Tank. The leaders of the orthodox section. therefore, filed a suit against Dr. Ambedkar, Shivtarkar and Krishnaji S. Kadam and Ganya Malu Chambhar of Mahad— leaders of the Depressed Classes—on December 12, 1927, in the Civil Court at Mahad and asked for the issue of a temporary injunction. The Court issued a temporary injunction on December 14, against the defendants pending the decision of the suit. Accordingly notices were served on Dr. Ambedkar, Shivtarkar and Krishnaji S. Kadam, prohibiting them and all the Depressed Classes or on their behalf these three leaders from going to the Chawdar Tank or from taking water from the Tank until further orders. The orthodox and reactionary forces shrewdly enough forced on Dr. Ambedkar a fight on two fronts. On the one side was standing an indifferent foreign Government and on the other was the caste Hindu section headed by the Orthodox Brahmins.” 1 Text of Temporary Injunction in Chawdar Tank Case ORDER “This is an application asking the Court to grant to the applicants a temporary injunction restraining the opponents from going to the Chawdar Tank or taking water therefrom. The applicants have, on 12th 1927, filed in this Court, Regular Suit No. 405 of 1927, for obtaining a Declaration that the said Chawdar Tank is of the nature of private property of the touchable classes only and that the Untouchable Classes have no right to go to that tank nor take water therefrom and also for obtaining a perpetual injunction restraining the Defendants from doing any of these acts. 1 :Keer, Pp. 90 and 97-98.

17MAHAD SATYAGRAHA The applicants, by this application pray that pending the disposal the suit, a temporary injunction may be issued against the Defendants. The application states, among other things, that hundreds of years since the tank has been in the exclusive enjoyment of the touchable classes only, that on 19th March 1927. a number of persons of the Untouchable classes led by Defendant, all of a sudden entered the tank, washed their hands and faces with the water and thus contaminated it, that in consequence of this contamination the touchable classes could not take water from the tank for over 24/25 hours i.e. until the water was purified, at a great cost, by performing ceremonies laid down by the Hindu Shastras, that great hardship was thus caused to the touchable classes, that the Untouchable classes have issued a manifesto proclaiming their intention of again entering the Tank and taking water therefrom, that if they are allowed to do that, the touchable classes will be debarred by the Shastras, from using the water of the Tank, that serious hardship would thus result to them and that if a temporary injunction as asked for is not granted and the Defendants allowed to contaminate the water of plaintiffs even if they finally succeed in the suit would not reap the benefit of the decree. The application is supported by the affidavits of several persons besides Plaintiff No. 1. Plaintiffs have also produced with exhibit 4, a notice issued by the Municipality against one Divakar Joshi (one of the persons making an affidavit) calling upon him to repair his stone Dhakkas (dams) which adjoined the side of the Chawdar Tank, and also a deed of partition of Dharap family alleged to be more than a hundred years old. This deed contains a reference to the Pal of the tank as being one of the properties partitioned. Both these documents raise a ‘Prima facie’ presumption of the tank being private property. The question now is, whether it would be more just to grant a temporary injunction to refuse it. The law regarding temporary injunctions is contained in order 39 of the Civil Procedure Code. Rule of this order is as follows :—Where in any suit it is proved by affidavit or otherwise (a) that any property in dispute in suit, is in danger of being wasted, damaged or alienated by any party to the suit, or wrongfully said in execution of a decree or (b) that the