Vol. 17, Part II · pages 446–450

421INDEPENDENT . . . . . . . . . WIDE SUPPORT Fundamental Differences There were two fundamental differences between the programme and the policy of the Congress and that of the Independent Labour Party. The Congress wanted to capture the legislatures with a view to destroying the new constitution. The Independent Labour Party, on the other hand, wished to enter the legislatures in order to work that constitution for what it was worth. The Congress claimed to safeguard the interests of the masses, so did the Independent Labour Party. But, added Dr. Ambedkar, the Independent Labour Party feels that by its very composition the Congress is not free to serve the masses. The Congress is a heterogeneous body composed of the exploiters as well as exploited, and it is quite certain that the exploiters in the Congress will not allow the organisation to work for the massess. A combination of the exploiters and exploited might be necessary for the purposes of achieving political freedom, but to seek to form a common party consisting of exploited and exploiters for purposes of social reconstruction was to deceive the masses, continued the leader of the Depressed Classes. Membership of Party The Independent Labour Party, in Dr. Ambedkar’s opinion did not want to increase its strength in the legislature by admitting anybody and everybody in its fold. The Party wanted to avoid being a collection of heterogeneous elements. “Confining its membership to persons who accept its programme without reservation and who have on other affiliations,” said Dr. Ambedkar, “the Party has decided to put up fewer candidates for the ensuring elections than it was possible for the party to do.” Although there was work to be done in the legislatures, in the view of his party there was much more important work to be done outside the legislatures in educating the masses, placing before them the correct ideology and organising them for political action through the legislatures.

422 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES Appeal to Public Dr. B. R. Ambedkar thought that a party like the Independent Labour Party was necessary and appealed to all workers, peasants and the lower, middle classes to join it in large numbers and thus make it a mass organisation. He also stated that for the purpose of educating the masses and carrying on propaganda a committee consisting of eight persons had been appointed. In addition to the candidates nominated to seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes, the Independent Labour Party has decided to put up for the present the following candidates for election to the Bombay legislature :—Mr. A. V. Chitre (Ratnagiri North), Mr. S. V. Parulekar (Ratnagiri South), Mr. S. G. Tipnis (Kolaba), Mr. V. A. Gadkari (Poona East), Mr. C. T. Ranadive (Thana South), and Mr. B. V. Pradhan (Khandesh East).” 1 zz The Times of India, Thursday, 12th November 1936 1: Reprinted : Khairmode, Vol. 7, Pp. 50-53.

5 I HAVE CHOSEN BOMBAY AS A PLACE FOR THE COLLEGE FOR THREE REASONS Dr. B. R. Ambedkar submitted an application to the Government of India for a loan for setting up a college in Bombay. This is the text of the application—Editors To, The Hon’ble Sardar Sir Jogendra Singh, Member-in-Charge of the Department of Education, Health and Lands, New Delhi. Sir, I beg to submit this application to the Government of India for a loan without interest Rs. 6,00,000 (Rupees Six Lakhs) for setting up College in Bombay for the promotion of Education among the Scheduled Castes and pray that it may be favourably considered. 2. The Hartog Committee which was appointed in 1930 to examine the condition of education in India and its spread among the various communities summarized the position regarding the spread of education among the Scheduled Castes which were then called the Depressed Classes in the two following tables which are taken from its Report (page 220):— TABLE—XCIV Number of depressed classes (boys and girls) under instruction by stages and by provinces Province Primary stage Middle stage High stage Collegiate stage (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Madras .. .. 224.873 (a) 2,647 (b) .. 47 Bombay .. .. 58,651 (a) 730 (c) .. 9 *Bengal .. .. 310,398 8,787 5,996 1,670 United Provinces .. 88,383 1,367 42 10 Panjab .. .. 14,284 914 110 Nil Bihar & Orissa .. 24,574 52 7 Nil Central Provinces .. 33,123 1,022 59 16 (a) Number in primary schools only. (b) Number in middle and high stages. (c) Number in primary , middle and high stages of secondary schools. *In taking these figures for Bengal the Committee drew attention to the fact that they included class not ‘depressed’.

424 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES TABLE—XCV Pupils of the depressed classes in institution for girls by stages and provinces Province Primary stage Middle stage High stage Collegiate stage (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Madras .. .. 7,276 230 14 2 Bombay .. .. 5,739 (a) 159 (a) 1 (a) Nil *Bengal .. .. 28,086 49 (b) 5 (b) 3 (b) United Provinces .. 2,204 8 1 Nil Panjab .. .. 398 2 Nil Nil Bihar & Orissa .. 2,210 (c) Nil Nil Nil Central Provinces .. 521 (c) 3 (c) Nil Nil (a) Includes aborigines, Hill and Criminal Tribes. (b) Includes all backward classes. (c) Number of girls in boy’s school and Girl’s schools. 3. This is a most deplorable state of affairs. Between 1929 and now some inprovement might have taken place although there is no exact data to measure the progress. But the fact that the Departments in the Government of India have not been able to fill the quota of the 8 1/2 p.c. of the vacancies reserved for the Scheduled Castes by the Government of India by its Resolution of 1943 due to insufficiency of qualified candidates is an indication that the condition of education among the Scheduled Castes reproted to be existing in 1929 has not materially altered during the interval. 4. From the point of view of raising the status of the Scheduled Castes and from the point of view of giving them social security from those elements in Indian Society which are hostile to them higher education particularly College education is more important to them than primary education. The welfare of the Scheduled Castes depends entirely upon a sympathetic public

425I HAVE . . . . . . . . . THREE REASONS service and that the public service if it is to be sympathetic must be representative of the different element in the national life of the country, and particularly of the Scheduled Castes. Further the representation of the Scheduled Castes in Public Services if it is confined to ministerial post can be of no use to the community in its struggle for uplift no matter how numerous are the posts that are given to them. Primary and Secondary education for a Scheduled Caste student may be good from the standpoint of providing a career for an individual. But it cannot raise the condition of the Scheduled Castes. The status and condition of the Scheduled Castes will be improved only when the representatives of the Scheduled Castes come to occupy executive posts as distinguished from ministerial posts. Executive Posts are strategic posts, posts from which a new direction can be given to the affairs of the State. The attainment of Executive post, it is obvious, requires a high degree of education. Consequently the primary aim in the education of the Scheduled Castes should be to make provision for those students who reach the College stage so that they may be able to complete it and thereby fit themselves for Executive posts. 5. There are a number of reasons why the Scheduled Castes students drop out when they have reached the College statge. The first and foremost reasons is their poverty, second is difficulty in getting admission in a College, third is absence of freeships and fourth is want of hostel accommodation. Some of these difficulties can of course be overcome by financial aid from Government. But there is one difficulty that cannot be solved by financial aid. It relates to admission in Colleges. Admission in Colleges are fixed in number either by University or by Government. Only a certain number of boys can be admitted. This creates a great difficulty in the way of the Scheduled Castes students who wish to pursue College education. This appears to be a general difficulty. But it hits hard the Scheduled Castes students far more than it does students of other Communities. This is due to the fact that College education is in Private hands, and most of the Colleges are run by private bodies which are communal in their organization and in