January
Month in Dalit History ( Revised and Enlarged )
January the first month of year in
Christian Era has stored many memories of the Dalit History.
The following are a few such memorable
days of January which carry special significance for Dalits.
1st Of January
1-1-1818 Bhima Koregaon Vijay Divas
This battle took
place on January 1st, 1818, near the banks of Bhima River in Koregaon
(north-west of Pune) between few hundred(just
500 of them) Mahar soldiers from the British regiment of a Bombay Native
Light Infantry and the Peshwa army that constituted 20,000 horsemen and 8,000
infantry soldiers. After marching down for more than 27 miles, from Shirur to
Bhima Koregaon without food and water, the untouchable warriors fought the
Peshwas army for next 12 hours and by the end of the day defeated them
completely. It was an attempt by the untouchables of Maharashtra to break the
shackles of the age-old caste order. The saga of
the bravery of Mahar soldiers was commemorated by the British in 1851, when
they erected a Pillar (Vijay Stambh) at Koregaon inscribing the names of 22
Mahar soldiers who were martyred in this battle. The pillar still stands today
reminding all of us about the bravery of our forefathers and as an inspiration
for our struggle against caste-system. Baba Saheb Dr.B.R.Ambedkar used to visit
Koregaon every year on 1st January to pay homage to the untouchable soldiers
and to exhort Dalits to show similar courage and determination to end
Brahminism from the entire country. On 1st January, 1927, he organised a big
convention in Koregaon and brought the memories of bravery of the untouchable
soldiers in public knowledge. Baba Saheb
was against Brahminical thinking based on the division of labourers in the
disguise of division of labour.
1st Jan. 1848,
India’s ever first school for girls was
started at Bhide Wada in Poona ( NowPune) by Mahatma Jotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule. The untouchables
( Now named as OBCs,SCs,STs) were made cautious to get education Education the
third eye (Tisra Netar) of humen
.Jyotirao Phuley proclaimed that lack of education to untouchables resulted in
lack of intellect, lack of intellect resulted
in lack of motion which in turn resulted in lack of finances and lack of
finances spoiled the life of untouchables. So the lack of single factor of education
made the lives of untouchables
miserable. He said the remedy of it lies in getting educated.
January, 1908.
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar became
first Mahar who passed his Matriculation
Examination in 1907 making a history of sorts for his community. This event was celebrated in
January 1908 by organising a meeting to honour Ambedkar under the president
ship of a social activist and politician S.K.Bhole, who was Brahmin by caste.
Also present in the ceremony was a
teacher ,Marathi writer, social reformer Krishanaji Arjun Leluskar. Krishanaji
Arjun Keluskar(1860-1934) alias Dada was assistant teacher in Wilson High
School. He had met Ambedkar by chance in a garden where he used to go for an evening walk .One day he saw Ambedkar
reading under a light pole and was impressed by his keenness to his studies. There after Krishanaji Arjun
Keluskar tried to help Ambedkar in all possible means like lending him books.
He presented Ambedkar in the function his book “ Life Of
Gautam Buddha”. This book was read by Ambedkar with keen interests and it
became a source of inspiration for him
to embrace Buddhism on 14 Oct.1956. When Ambedkar was in his intermediate class
his father was unable to support his studies, so Ambedkar was in a dilemma what to do. Again Krishanaji Arjun Keluskar
appeared on scene from somewhere as God gift. On Ambedkar’s narration good
hearted Krishanaji Arjun Keluskar went to Maharaja Baroda, Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III (11 March 1863 – 6 February 1939) to
help Ambedkar in his studies. Mahajra Baroda interviewed Ambedkar and found him not only intelligent but also
keen to study further. Maharaja Baroda sanctioned Rs.25 per month scholarship
so Ambedkar continued his studies and passed his BA Examination in 1912. Again
he was Maharashtra’s first untouchable to pass BA. After the death of his
father Subedar Major Ramji Maloji
Sakhpal on 2nd February, 1913, Ambedkar lost his all hopes of
further studies. Again per chance Ambedkar met
Krishanaji Arjun Keluskar and explained him his mind to study
further but had no money or moral
support. Krishanaji Arjun Keluskar arranged a meeting of Ambedkar with Maharaja
Baroda to request him to help Ambedkar. Kind hearted Maharaja had to send four
students to foreign universities for
higher studies giving them scholarship. Maharaja Sahib asked Ambedkar to
apply. Ambedkar applied and was lucky to be
selected one of the four students. Ambedkar left for Columbia on June
4,1913 and returned as Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. His studies in the foreign land
equipped his well to cut the slavery chains of his brethren at home.
1 -1- 1918
Madam Dani Shantabai was born
She was a Mahar Republican
leader who was born in a hut on out skirts of Nasik in Maharashtra,
on 1st January 1918 to revered Shri Dhanaji Dani. Her father was a
devotional religious singer. To earn his livelihood he was engaged as the milk
seller and owned twelve buffalos. Miss
Dani Shantabai as a child was brought in a poise religious atmosphere. She was
teacher by profession and passed her teacher’s training examination from Nasik.
After passing her matriculation from Pune she got the job of a teacher in
Vinchur school of Nasik district in Maharashtra. Since she was engrossed in social work for
the upliftment of her Dalit Samaj, so she resigned from her job and became a whole timer social
activist. For devoting her full time for
the Dalit uplift she did not marry. In
Pune she came in contact with Dada sahib Gaikwad (15 October 1902- 29 December 1971) a committed activist of the Scheduled Caste
Federation (SCF). B.K. Gaikwad took her to Dr. Ambedkar. She was so influenced
by the work of both these Dalit emancipators along with their team that she
joined SFC on the day of its formation at Nagpur on 18-19 July, 1942 by Dr.
Ambedkar. Due to her dedication and
commitment for the upliftment of the Dalits, in 1943 she was elected as
President of SCF Nasik district unit. She was among the members of RPI (The Republican Party of India) when this party was launched on 3rd
November, 1957after the death of Dr. Ambedkar. Her mentor Dada Sahib B.K.
Gaikwad was made president of the new political party. She also participated in
the second conference of SCF at Kanpur in 1945 and got the unique honor of
presiding over the SCF Women’s conference held there at the same time. She
accompanied P.N. Rajbhoj to Raipur to bring Satnami Dalits to main stream of
Dalit empowerment movement. But being misunderstood both were arrested as
agents of Nizam of Hyderabad. Both were lodged in Jabalpur jail for three
months. She was also jailed in
Yarwada jail Pune in 1946 for leading a
black flag demonstration against Poona Pact( 1932).
In
her long association with Dalit leaders, Dr. Ambedkar, P.N. Rajbhoj, Madam
N.Shivraj, Dada Sahib B.K Gaikwad, Mrs Gitabai B.Gaikwad, Dada Sahib Roham, Sh.
Lalingkar, Miss Londhe, she did a remarkable work for the empowerment of the
Dalits. She got converted to Buddhism along with others in 1956 and propagated
it in Maharashtra. She passed away in 2001 at an age of 83 years. Her life was
a saga of journey of struggle for those whom even God ignored. She shall be long remembered for struggle to
achieve goals of Dalit empowerment.
1-1-1979 Mandal Commission was formed-
Brief History of Mandal Commission appointment,work
and hurdles
Baba Saheb Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar the father of
the Indian Constitution had made provisions for the welfare of the OBCs , SCs,
STs or elsewhere Shudras as continuous process under Article 340,341,342
besides other safe guards.
Art.340 made provision for Appointment of a
Commission to investigate the conditions of backward classes
(1) The President may by order appoint a
Commission consisting of such persons as he thinks fit to investigate the
conditions of socially and educationally backward classes within the territory
of India and the difficulties under which they labour and to make
recommendations as to the steps that should be taken by the Union or any State
to remove such difficulties and to improve their condition and as to the grants
that should be made for the purpose by the Union or any State the conditions
subject to which such grants should be made, and the order appointing such
Commission shall define the procedure to be followed by the Commission
(2) A Commission so appointed shall investigate
the matters referred to them and present to the President a report setting out
the facts as found by them and making such recommendations as they think proper
(3) The President shall cause a copy of the
report so presented together with a memorandum explaining the action taken
thereon to be laid before each House of Parliament.
When the then President Of India Dr. Rajindra
Prashad did not take action Under Art.340 to appoint a commission Baba Sahib
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar resigned as a protest from the Union Cabinet as Law Minister
on September 29, 1951 with the following points as the cause of his
disappointment and worries.
1) Nehru did not allocate him the post of vice
president in Planning department.
(2) Non-appointment of commission for OBC as per
Article 340.
(3) Nehru’s defective foreign policy..
(4) Hindu Code Bill.
Baba Sahib made a supreme sacrifice for the
welfare of the Indian women and OBCs the yester years Shudras.
Now the government was left with no option but
to appoint a Commission under Art.340 of the Constitution of India to arrest
open criticism. So the First Backward Classes Commission was set up by a
presidential order on 29 January 1953 under the chairmanship of Kaka Kalelkar. But
its finding were never brought before the parliament so were lost in oblivion. The
public resent for the re-appointment of the Commission under Art.340 continued
inside and out side Parliament. Finally the Mandal Commission, or the Second
Backward Classes Commission was established in India on 1st January 1979 by the Janata Party government
under Prime Minister Morarji Desai with a mandate to "Identify the
socially or educationally backward classes" of India. It was set up by a
Presidential Order (Appointment of a commission to investigate the conditions
of backward classes in India every 10 years) for the purpose of Articles 15
(Prohibition of Discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or
place of birth) and 16 (Equality of opportunity in public employment). The
commission should have been instituted immediately after adoption of the
Constitution 26 January,1950 but was delayed for over 19 years. Although Kaka
Kalerkar Commission was appointed but its recommendations never saw the sun
light due to fear of high caste leaders, who never wanted to empower the Dalits
including OBCs for fear of sharing government authority. Hindus have never
learnt to share as they take all others inferiors to them and take them as
their God designated servants and menial workers.
Mandal Commission was headed by B.P. Mandal an
Indian parliamentarian from Bihar, to consider the question of reservations for
people to redress caste discrimination, and used eleven social, economic, and
educational indicators to determine backwardness. It had five members, four
were from the OBCs; one, L.R. Naik, was the only member from the scheduled
castes in the Commission L.R. Naik later
declined to sign the Mandal Commission Report. In 1980, the Commission's report
upheld the affirmative action practice under Indian law by recommending that
members of Other Backward Classes (OBC) be granted reservations to 27 per cent
of jobs under the Central government and public sector undertakings. as the
total reservation was not to cross 50% mark as per SC of India ruling although
. However presently in Tamil Nadu, reservation works out to somewhat less than
69%. The Mandal commission estimated that 52% of the total population
(excluding SCs and STs but including non Hindu castes), belonging to 3,743 ( It
rose to 5,013 by 2006 with exclusion from many UT’s ) different castes and
communities, were ‘backward’. After being neglected for 10 years, the Report
was accepted by the National Front government led by V.P. Singh. On August 7
1990, the National Front government declared that it would provide 27 per cent reservations
to "socially and educationally backward classes" for jobs in central
services and public undertaking. Having released the Government Order on 13
August, V.P. Singh announced its legal implementation in his Independence Day
speech two days later. The anti Mandal forces joined hands against the report
and the criticism was sharp and colleges across the country held massive
protests against it. The upper castes had never upheld the principle of Sharing
the natural resources with poor and down trodden Indian masses. On 19th
September 1990, Rajiv Goswami, a student of Deshbandhu College, Delhi,
committed self-immolation in protest of the government's actions. His act made
him the face of the Anti-Mandal agitation which spread to other parts of North India,
with Southern Indian remained mostly calm.
A writ was preferred in the SC in September 1990
praying that caste cannot be taken as an indicator of backwardness and the
court stayed the implementation of the Govt. Order. till final verdict is
announced. The Constitutional Bench of SC consisting of five judges On 16
November 1992, verdict, upheld the government order, being of the opinion that
caste was an acceptable indicator of backwardness. In a writ petition The term
creamy layer was introduced by the Sattanathan Commission in 1971( Tamil-
Nadu).Again in State of Kerala v/s NM Thomas case the term creamy layer was
coined by Justice Krishna Iyer in 1975 wherein he observed that the benefits of
reservation are snatched away by the top creamy layer of the 'backward' caste
or class., The income limit of creamy layer determination has been changed from
time to time. The National Commission for Backward Classes was set up after
concurrence of the President of India on 2nd April, 1993 but unfortunately J&K
State remains excluded from the jurisdiction of the NCBC courtesy Art 370. Granting
constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC)
was still a dream caught in the government apathy tangle.
3-1-1831
Revolutionary Mata Savitribai Phuley the first woman teacher in India was born on this day.
She broke the age old practice of denying education to womenfolk by
Brahminical thought. Under the guidance
of her husband she took to teaching and so opened on 1st January
1848 first ever school for girls in Pune facing orthodox Hindu ordeal.They
opened 18 schools some co education.
They also opened first ever orphanage to help sexually exploited widows and cared their illegitimate children.
She passed away on
March 10, 1897.
5-1-1905 Dr.Bhadant Anand
Koshalayan Jyanti
Dr.
Bhadant Anand Kausalyayan was
a Buddhist monk, Scholar, Traveller and a prolific
writer from India. He is considered as one of the
great activists of Buddhism of the 20th century. He was influenced by Great
Buddhist Scholar, Social Reformer Mahapandit Rahul
Sankrityayan and Dr. Ambedkar.
He was born Harnam Das on January 5,
1905 in Sohana Village of Ambala District in Punjab. He
did B.A from National College in Lahore. His travels took him to
different parts of World for promoting Buddhism just like
his mentor Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan. He devoted his full life to
serve Buddhism. He always wanted to have experience of traveling far
distances across many countries and discover new things. His aim was to
continue the tradition started by his inspirations.He contributed a lot
to Indian Travel Literature and Hindi. He
loved Hindi as a child loves his mother and supported it in
many ways. He worked for Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, Prayag, Rastrabhasha
Prachar Samiti, Vardha etc.
5-1-1952
Dr. Ambedkar lost Parliamentary election from
Bombay. He was defeated by congress party
candidate Narayan Kajrolkar, as congress party never wanted Dr.Ambekar
to succeed in his mission. Narayan Kajrolkar a Marathi by birth but Mahar by caste, had served as a personal
assistant to Dr. Ambedkar before contesting against him in the first Lok Sabha
elections from
the Mumbai North Central constituency in 1952 and defeated
Dr.Ambedkar by over 15000 votes .
6-01-1904 Babu L.N.Hardas Jyanti
Hardas Laxmanrao Nagrale (6th
January 1904– 12th January 1939), popularly known as Babu L.N. Hardas.was a Dalit leader and social reformer in India. He
was an ardent follower of Dr. Ambedkar and was pioneer of the practice of
exchanging
the greeting Jai Bhim amongst the Dalits. He was also a
prominent labour leader in the Central Province and was the general secretary
of the Independent Labour Party in the province.
6 January 1929: -
First All Assam Depressed Classes Conference.
The conference was presided by Rai
Saheb Senapati Sonadhar Das. The conference raised the demand for separate electorate for the
Depressed Classes.
6
-01-1939: Dr. Ambedkar addressed a
big meeting of agriculturists at Mahad (Raigad district of Maharashtra) where
he impressed upon the audience that the Congress Ministry had failed to
mitigate their woes.
He
said that the Premier Kher (Pirme Minister of Bombay) was simply a figure head;
and he described the other Ministers of the Provincial Government as dogs at
the door of Sardar Patel. Referring to the boastful statement of Sardar Patel,
which he had made at a reception given to Kher in Gujarat, to the effect that
they welcomed Kher as a devotee of Gandhi and not as Premier Kher, otherwise
thet would have sent him back unceremoniously, Dr. Ambedkar said that he would wreak
vengeance on Patel for this dire insult inflicted upon a Maharashtrian. If
Patel dared insult him in this manner, he added, he would thrash him. This was
no a soliloquy; this was a public speech! It was a natural outburst of anger
sprung from a strong mind which was consitenet with its contempt for the Congress
leaders’ rude mentality, and determinied to show its superiority. The above
outburst is also a sequale to the immediate past incidents. In September 1938,
the Industrial Disputes Bill was taken up by the Bombay Legislative Assembly.
Dr. Ambedkar and Jamnadas Mehta opposed the Bill tooth and nail. Ambedkar
described Bill as bad, bloody and bloodthirsty inasmuch as it made a strike
under certain circumstances illegal and affected the right of the labourer to
strike. Ambedkar stated that according to him strike was a civil wrong and not
a crime, and making a man serve against his will was nothing less than making
him a slave. He continued that the Bill ought to have been called ‘the Worker’
“Civil Liberties Suspension Act”. Ambedkar then teased the Government by saying
that it was a Government, which claimed to be elected on labour votes; but it
did not stand by its election pledges. It was a democracy, he added, that was
enslaving the working class, and therefore it was a mockery of democracy. But
the Congress Ministry was determined to pass the Bill, which they ultimately
did despite massive rally at Kamgar Maidan (on 6 & 7 November) and strike
(on 7 November) were organized by Independent Labour Party. Also on 25
December, Swami Sahajanand, the Peasant leader from Uttar Pradesh, saw Dr.
Ambedkar at his residence in Bombay and had a talk with him about the labour
problem in Bombay and the agrarian reforms in general. He tried to persuade
Ambedkar to join the Congress to form a united front against imperialism.
6
-01-1940: Periyar met Dr. Ambedkar in
Mumbai.
By 10.00 a.m, Periyar arrived at Dadar
station with his colleagues (Justice T. A. V. Nathan, P. Balasubramaniam –
Editor of Sunday observer, the mouth piece of Justice Party, C. A. Annadurai, the
General Secretary of Justice Party, T. P. S. Ponnappan and C. Panjatcharam). He
was given a reception and taken by a decorated coach fitted with two white
horses! Evening, he met Dr. Ambedkar and latter took the former to his
residence. Both discussed on various social and political issues from 9.00 to
10.30 p.m.
6
January 1949: Dr. Ambedkar wrote to
Pune Collector to purchase land to set up a University inTalegaon
The Pune
Mirror newspaper
dated 4 August 2011reported:
Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar’s dream of setting up
a university in Talegaon remains unfulfilled to this day. Inspired by the
universities of Nalanda and Takshila, Dr, Ambedkar had bought 87 acres of land
and a bungalow at Talegaon and Wadgaon in Pune district of Maharashtra. Today,
all that remains of the dream is one plot of land and the Vishwaratna Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Smarak Samiti is struggling to
find enough land to build a memorial.
“Ambedkar held meetings with Sant Gadge Baba
and Acharya P K Atre in Talegaon. Ambedkar first purchased 65 acres of land at
Harneshwar Tekdi at a price of Rs 16,000 and later, he purchased 22 acres at
Wadgaon.”
6
January 2010:
Public interest litigation from the All
India Christian Federation (AICF) was filed with the Supreme Court of
India seeking reservations for all Dalits irrespective of their religious
faith.
The
PIL (WP Civil # 579/2009) sought reservation for converted Dalits of all faiths
on the same footing as extended to Scheduled Castes following Hinduism,
Buddhism and Sikhism.
A
Bench comprising Chief Justice K. G. Balakrishnan and Justice B. S. Chauhan
issued a notice to the Ministry of Social Justice and Ministry of Minority
Affairs for its response on the implementation of the recommendation of the
National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities (NCRLM) headed by
former Chief Justice of India Rangnath Misra.
Senior
advocate K. K. Venugopal and D. Vidyanandam submitted the recent statement by
Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid that the report of NCRLM was not made
public and there was a difference between the manifesto of Congress party and
the recommendation by the Commission was an attempt to defeat the claims of
converts.
Mr. Venugopal said the Centre had referred
the NCRLM report to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes which also
supported the reported recommendation for 15 per cent (10 per cent for Muslims
and 5 per cent for others) reservation without disturbing 50 per cent ceiling
set by the Supreme Court.
The PIL said paragraph three of the
Presidential order of 1950 under Article 341 of the Constitution, which
empowers the President to specify Scheduled Castes, was coming in the way of
extending the benefits of reservation to Dalit converts and was upheld by the
NCRLM’s seven-member committee. It sought striking down of paragraph 3 of the
Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order 1950 on the grounds that it is ultra
vires of the Constitution. The NCRLM has prepared its report after
visiting various states and among the terms of reference was to examine whether
the Scheduled Caste converts suffer from social disabilities like
untouchability even after embracing Christianity. The Ranganath Mishra
Commission earlier declared that non-inclusion of Dalit Christians and Muslims
in the SC ambit was a discrimination based on religion and goes against the
Constitution of India. After a brief hearing, the Bench tagged the petition
with other PILs on the issue which has been pending since 2004.The Centre had
in January 2008 told the apex court that it would study the report of Misra
commission which examined the issue of granting Scheduled Caste status to Dalit
Christians for extending benefits of reservation to them.
The NGO had also submitted that it was the
right time that the court should strike down the order requiring all Dalits to
belong to a particular religion if they were to avail the SC reservation
benefits as it goes beyond the mandate of Article 341(1) and violates the
fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution.
All India United Christians Movement for
Equal Rights, had said the Congress Government had in 1996 brought a Bill in
Lok Sabha to amend para three of the “Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order
1950” for extending reservation benefits to Dalit Christians. There are about
20 million dalit Christians.
The PIL had claimed social standings of Dalits even after
converting to Christianity has not changed and they have to face discrimination
in churches also.
The demand for granting Scheduled Castes
status to the Dalit Christians has been opposed in several quarters, including
the SC/ST Commission which contended that they cannot enjoy two rights – that
is of minority and SCs.
Citing a 2005 ruling of the apex court, in
which it was said even if a tribal converted to Christianity, he or she could
still avail reservation benefits as his/her status as ST remained unchanged,
PIL had said the same law should be applicable to Dalits after their
conversion.
7
Jan 1998:
Manyawar Kanshi Ram addressed a conference of
Dalits at the Roshan Ground at Hoshiarpur, Punjab
Mr. Kanshi Ram, Bahujan Samaj Party
supremo said that social transformation and
ecomonic emancipation of Dalits could only be possible through power.
Social justice alone was not required for Dalits. They could survive only if
they shared power in the country, He said the main aim of his life was social
and economic reforms of Dalits. He said that he had succeeded
in uniting the Dalits and that was why a Dalit lady, Ms. Mayawati, became the
Chief Minister of UP the largest state in the country. He said he would now
concentrate on making a person from Gujjar community a Chief Minister of Rajasthan
and an Adivasi a Chief Minister of Punjab. Mr. Romesh Dogra, Congress MLA from
Dasuya, Mr. Naresh Thakur, former Deputy Speaker of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha and
Mr. Ram Rattan, general secretary, District Congress Committee, Hoshiarpur
shared also the dais with the BSP .
12-01-1598
Jijabai Jyanti
Revered Jijabai was the
worthy mother of Shiva Ji the Great , founder of the Maratha
Empire. Jijabai was born on January 12, 1598 as the daughter
of Lakhojirao Jadhav of Deulgaon near Sindkhed in present-day Buldhana district of Maharashtra State. Her mother's name was Mhalsabai. As per the
customs of that age, Jijabai was married at an early age to Shahaji
Raje Bhonsle, son of Maloji Bhonsle of Verul
village, a military commander serving under the Adil
Shahi sultans of Bijapur
Sultanate in present-day Karnataka. The wedding was held in Sindkhed on 5 Nov 1605, when Jijabai was eight years old; her
husband was hardly twelve years old, and she was his first wife. As per custom,
Jijabai remained with her parents for several years before joining her husband.
Jijabai bore Shahaji as many as eight children, six daughters and two sons. All
the daughters died in infancy and only the two sons, Sambhaji and Shivaji, reached adulthood. In 1630, three years after Shivaji's
birth, Shahaji re-married withTukabai,
daughter of Sardar Bajirao Mohite Pongwadikar of Bijapur, who was Shahaji's
close friend and, like him, also a commander serving the sultan of Bijapur.
Jijabai was a very pious and intelligent woman with great vision for
independent kingdom. She inspired Shivaji by telling stories from Ramayana,
Mahabharata and Balaraja. Inspired by her, Shivaji took the Oath of
Independence (SWARAJYA) in the fort temple of lord Raireshwar in 1645 when he was 17. In Shivaji's impeccable,
spotless character and courage, Jijabai's contribution is enormous. She died
soon after coronation of Shivaji on June 17, 1674. Shivaji was heartbroken by
her death.
12-1-1953
Osmania University conferred on Dr. Ambedkar
honorary D.Lit. Degree.
14-01-1886
Mangu
Ram, Magowalia (14 January 1886 – 22 April 1980) known popularly as Babu Mangu Ram Chaudhry, was
born in Muggowal, Hoshiarpur district. An Indian
Dalit freedom fighter and politician
from Punjab who founded of the Adi Dharmi Samaj( Religion of aboriginals) an organisation dedicated to
attaining equality for Untouchables. He openly declared that Scheduled Castes are neither
Hindu nor Sikh. They are also neither Muslim nor Christian. They are the
original inhabitants of this ancient land called Bharat. Their real religion
(Ad Dharm) was much older than Hinduism, Christianity, Islam and Sikhism. He immigrated to Amrica in
1909 where he became associated with the Ghadar Party. on
his return to India in 1925, he became a leader of the low-caste(
Untouchable,more so Ravidasias or Chamars. He organised his people against the then existing system of hate on
caste basis. untouchability in the Hindus for low caste people existed in a big way .,. He succeeded in getting elected to the Punjab Legislative
Assembly in 1946 and in 1952 . Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia’s movement was not only
confined to Punjab. He stood like a rock with Dr. Ambedkar. During Dr.
Ambedkar’s fight with Mr. MK Gandhi at the Roundtable Conferences in London
(1930-32) Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia Ji sent telegrams in support of the former
as the leader of the untouchables in India against the latter (MK Gandhi). He
got special rights from the Britishers by adding Ad Dharm to the Census list as
a separate religion of the Depressed Classes in Punjab in 1931. He was
instrument in the winning 7 out of all
the 8 reserved seats in Punjab by the
Ad-Dharma of the Depressed class people. Babu Ji also became the pioneer of
seeking political power as a key to all the problems of the community .In 1946,
Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia was elected to
the Punjab Legislative Assembly and remained in legislature till 1952. He was awarded freedom fighter pension in recognition as freedom fighter for Indian
Independence. The award was given to him by Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1972. He was He
passed away on 22nd April,1980
15th January 1907
Roham , Prabhakar Janardan (1905-1991) was born on 15th January 1907 Shri Prabhakar Janadhan (PJ) Roham an
agriculturist Mahar was born on 15th January 1907 at Akole,
Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra. He had studied at Nasik up to
Matriculation. He was married to Shrimati Meerabali in 1931 and the couple was
blessed with six sons and three daughters.
He was introduced to Dr Ambedkar by Dada Sahib BK Giakward and was
inspired by Dr. Baba Sahib Ambedkar’s
Movement in 1927 for equality of status and opportunities. PJ Roham took part in the famous Choudar Tank
Satyagraha at Mahad in 1927and in
Kalaram Temple entry Satyagraha at
Nasikstarted on 3March 1930. In this temple entry Satyagraha besides Dr Ambedkar, Dada sahib Giakward, Subedar
Ghatge, Amritrao Rankhambe and P.J. Rohan besides many Dalit leaders
participated. He was imprisoned for two months for Satyagrahaa at Nasik He served as the General Secretary of the
Youth League, Nasik from 1931 to 1934 When Shri Dadasaheb B.K.Gaikwad was
imprisoned, PJ Roham was called upon to serve as the Secretary of the Nasik
Kalaram Temple Entry Satyagraha Committee in 1931 and he accepted the offer.
His Karam Bhumi was Ahmadanagar area and served as Superintendent Shri Shahu
Chhatrapati Boarding, Nasik from 1932 to 1935, a nominated member of the
Sangamner Municipality from 1934 to 1936 and member of the District Local
Board, Ahmednagar since 1935. He also seved as
the General Secretary of the
Youth League of Nasik from 1931 to 1934.
Being a close confidant of Dr B.R. Ambedkar, Shri Roham he was present
at Yeola in Nasik when Baba Sahib declared to leave Hinduism on13th October
1935 and got converted to Buddhism
along with his leader on14th October 1956 at Nagpur. There after he worked for
the spread of Buddhism in districts of Nasik, Ahmednagar and Pune.When Baba
Sahib formed the Independent Labour Party (ILP) on 15 August, 1936, Shri Roham
joined it and was elected President of The Independent Labor Party (ILP) or Swantra Majdoor Pakasha of Ahmadnagar
district unit. He was called to contest on ILP ticket for the Bombay Provincial
Legislative Council from Ahmadnagar (South) in 1937 and he got elected. In all
fourteen candidates of IPL won for the Mumbai Legislative council election held
on 17th February 1937 along with Dr. Ambedkar. He presented the
“Family Planning Bill” framed by Baba Sahib in the Assembly on 10th November
1938. He again contested but unsuccessfully the elections in 1946 and in 1952
from Rahurl. When Republican Party of India then under Dada Sahib B.K Giakward
launched a Satyagraha in 1964 Roham took very active part in organizing it. At
an age of 83 years this loyal son of Indian Dalit movement left his mortal body
frame on 21st February, 1990.
15-01-1929
Morter Luther King a great Liberator of Black
was born.
In
the eleven-year period between 1957 and 1968, King travelled over six million
miles and spoke over twenty-five hundred times, appearing wherever there was
injustice, protest, and action; and meanwhile he wrote five books as well as
numerous articles. In these years, he led a massive protest in Birmingham,
Alabama, that caught the attention of the entire world, providing what he
called a coalition of conscience. and inspiring his "Letter from a
Birmingham Jail", a manifesto of the Negro revolution; he planned the
drives in Alabama for the registration of Negroes as voters; he directed the
peaceful march on Washington, D.C., of 250,000 people to whom he delivered his
address, "l Have a Dream", he conferred with President John F.
Kennedy and campaigned for President Lyndon B. Johnson; he was arrested upwards
of twenty times and assaulted at least four times; he was awarded five honorary
degrees; was named Man of the Year by Time magazine in 1963; and became not only
the symbolic leader of American blacks but also a world figure.
At the age of thirty-five, Martin Luther King, Jr., was the youngest man to
have received the Nobel Peace Prize. When notified of his selection, he announced
that he would turn over the prize money of $54,123 to the furtherance of the
civil rights movement.
15-01-1956 Behan Mayavati
was born
Behan Mayawati,
a four-time Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, is chief of Bahujan Samaj Party
which is, at present, main opposition party in the Assembly of Uttar Pradesh. She is leading BSP in the UP
Vidhan Sabha elections scheduled to be held in Febuary-March in 2017.
18-1-1934
Dr.
Ambedkar delivered speech in Gokhale Institute Pune which was later
published in a book form titled
Ranade, Gandhi, Jinah.
26-1-1950
Constitution of Free India came into
force, granting equality before Law to
all its citizens irrespective of the
caste, creed, sex or place of birth
29-01-, 1904
Shri J.N.Mandal(1904-1968) was born He was First Law and
Labour Minister of Pakistan.He presided
briefly the constitution Drafting Committee of Pakistan. He single handily got Elected Dr. Ambedkar from Bengal with the support of Scheduled
Caste and Muslim members. There after
Dr. Ambedkar became a member of Constituent Assembly of India.
Subsequently Dr. Ambedkar was selected as the chairman of the Constitution
Drafting Committee, thanks to the vision of Shri Joginder Nath Mandal was a trusted lieutenant of Dr. B. R.
Ambedkar and became the first Law Minister of Pakistan and also the Chairman of
Constitution Drafting committee of Pakistan after the partition of India. Prior
to the partition of India Shri Joginder Nath Mandal gained national prominence
for winning the election in 1946 on SCF ticket and for being included in the
interim Ministry of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru with Law Portfolio. Then Babu
Jagjivan Ram was another prominent Dalit leader of Congress party and a
minister in the Interim Ministry. In free India Babu Jagjivan Ram served in
different capacities including Deputy Prime Minister .
Shri Joginder Nath Mandal was also fondly called
Mahapran. Shri J.N. Mandal was born in Namashudra caste of Scheduled Castes on
January 29th, 1904. He was born to a farmer Shri Ramdayal Mandal and Shrimati
Sandhaya Devi of village Maister Kandi in Barisal district of undivided Bengal.
He was admitted to a school when he was eight years old. He was meritorious and
passed his Matriculation examination securing First Division in 1924. After
passing his B.A. from B.M. College at Barisal in 1929 he secured admission for
M.A. in Dacca University. Due to his weak financial position, he discontinued
studies at Dacca University. However later he passed Law Degree in 1934. He was
aware of the suppression of the Scheduled Castes by the upper Caste Hindus, who
were denying them their due share in political, educational, social, religious
and economical fields. He thought that only political power can mitigate the
Shudras from their man made miseries. So he entered politics and contested his
maiden election as independent candidate for the Bengal Legislative Assembly in
1937. He defeated congress candidate, a very powerful and rich landlord.
Therefore he became the member of the Legislative assembly when he was only 33
years old. There were 20 other Independent Scheduled Caste party leaders. Shri
J.N. Mandal was elected as secretary with Shri Hem Chander Naskar as President
of the Independent Scheduled Caste Party. The joint effort of the M.L.As
succeeded in securing 15% reservation in services for Scheduled Caste candidates
in Bengal. Observing sincerity, intelligence and organizational qualities of
J.N. Mandal, Jenab Khawaja Nizamudeen, the Chief Minister of Bengal, inducted
him as a minister in his cabinet along with two others from Scheduled Castes.
So Shri J.N. Mandal became undisputed political leader of Scheduled Castes in
Bengal.
The Independent Labour Party (IPL) formed by Dr.
B. R. Ambedkar on15th August 1936 had got itself engaged in the welfare and the
struggle to secure political power for Scheduled Castes. When in 1942 Dr.
Ambedkar tried to broaden IPL’s base so changed its name to The Scheduled
Castes Federation (SCF). Units of SCF were established in several states
including Bengal. The unit in Bengal was given the name of Bengal Provincial
Scheduled Caste Federation. Meanwhile Shri J.N. Mandal started a weekly paper
called “Jagran” through which he continued the crusade to enlighten the Dalits
about their just rights. This paper could not last long. He also started
another weekly paper “The People’s Herald” in 1943 and in its inaugural
function Dr. Ambedkar was present to bless the project.On defeat of the
ministry in 1935, fresh elections were ordered in 1946. Shri J.N. Mandal
contested as a SCF party candidate from a general seat and won. After the elections,
a new ministry under Jenab H.S. Surahawardy of Muslim League was formed. Shri
J.N. Mandal was again included in the Ministry. Under Cabinet Plan in 1946, the
Muslim League also joined the interim ministry formed by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru
and Shri J.N. Mandal was included from Muslim League quota and allotted Law
portfolio . The SCF in its convention held at Agra passed a congratulatory
message to congratulate Shri Mandal on his selection to the interim ministry.
The Provincial assemblies had the right to choose their representatives to form
Constituent Assembly. Since Dr. B. R. Ambedkar had failed to win a seat from
Bombay on SCF ticket, the prospects of his election to the Constituent Assembly
were blocked. Sardar Patel said that all doors and windows of the Constituent
Assembly were closed to Dr. Ambedkar and now he cannot enter it. Here stepped
in Shri J.N. Mandal to suggest that Dr. Ambedkar should contest for Legislative
Assembly from Bengal. Dr. Ambedkar agreed and so with the support of Scheduled
Caste and Muslim members, he was elected from Bengal Legislature to be a member
of Constituent Assembly of India. Subsequently Dr. Ambedkar was selected as the
chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee, thanks to the vision of Shri
J.N. Mandal.
Shri J.N. Mandal had clear vision of the rights
of the Scheduled Castes, but declared that congress leaders were adamant not to
give any such rights to the Scheduled Castes in free India, so the rights will
have to be secured by dint of their unity. He was a strong supporter of united
Bengal. He pleaded that political turmoil of partition was temporary and shall
pass off soon.
Things changed with the formation of the new
country Pakistan on 14th August1947. Every individual was given the right to
choose the country of his or her choice to live in. Shri Mandal opted to be a
citizen of Pakistan to oversee the interests of the Scheduled Caste people left
over there. Jenab Liaquat Ali Khan became first Premier of Pakistan. Sh. J.N
Mandal was included in the first Pakistan government as the Law ,Justice and
Labour Minister. He was also the second minister of commonwealth and Kashmir
affairs. So in the divided India both countries had the first law Ministers
from among the Scheduled Castes. Shri J.N. Mandal as Law Minister had the
honour to preside over the first meeting of the Pakistan Constituent Assembly.
Since Pakistan Government was not prepared to grant constitutional rights to
scheduled casted in Pakistan, so Shri J.N. Mandal decided to come back to
India. He resigned on October 8, 1950 as Law Minister and as President of
Pakistan's Constitution Drafting Committee. He came back to India in 1950 to
continue his struggle for the rights of Dalits.
After returning back to India he continued his
work for the up liftment of Dalits. He played an important role in Dr.
Ambedkar’s dream project of establishing the Republican Party of India (RPI).
Shri J.N. Mandal contested for Lok Saba as an RPI Candidate from a general
constituency in West Bengal in 1967 but lost.
This son of the soil, one of the important and
brave soldiers of Dalit cause passed away in Calcutta (now Kolkata) on
5thOctober, 1968. He shall be long remembered for his life long fight for the
Dalit cause
30—01--1944: All India Scheduled Castes Federation
Conference was held at Kanpur under the chairperson-ship of N Shivraj. This was the second
such conference of the federation and it went on till the next day i.e. 31
January 1944.
30
January 2000: Press release by Manyawar Kanshi Ram on the review of
constitution.
The press release was on the backdrop of
the Warning given by the President of India (K R Narayananan) to the Nation and
Government while speaking in the Central Hall of Parliament on 27 January
2000, the 50 year of framing of Indian Constitution.
He had advised the Government of India not to go in for a review of the
Constitution, but to study and analyse the way the successive Governments were
working to implement the Constitution and various provisions there in. The
Government of India was headed by A B Vajpayee (Bhartiya Janta Party). The
press release by Manyawar Kanshi Ram (Bahujan Samaj Party) is as follows:“I
welcome the warning sounded by the President about the Government’s move to
Review the Constitution.
It is strange that instead of clearly identifying the areas where Review
or Amendment is needed, the Government is keeping everything under the cloak of
secrecy, by proposing a Review of the whole Constitution.
The Constitution of India as drafted by Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, although not fully
accepted still, reflected the aspirations and hopes of the vast millions, who
were made to live degraded sub human lives for centuries. As a
result of the change in the Political and Social Scenario brought by the
Constitution, the shackles of the old social system have weakened, and now
there is tremendous awareness and awakening in the Bahujan Samaj. In
fact, the political instability which has been witnessed in the last few years
is the result of social mobility and dynamism of the Weaker Sections which has
been generated by the constitutional framework. The political
stability of yester years, was the result of not strong popular base of the
political parties, but the strict political control exercised by the socially
dominant groups over the Bahujan Samaj.
31
-01-,1920 Mooknayak Fortnight news paper launched by Baba Sahib. For this
paper
Shatarpati Sahu J Maharaj donated Rs 2500/-
January 1909 Choudhary Sadhu Ram was born
Sadhu
Ram later known as Choudhary Sadhu Ram
Mastere, a Punjabi Dalit leader was born to a well known (Chamar) Shri Jawahar Mal of Village Domeli in Kapurthala in January
1909. As a child Sadhu Ram was admitted
in the Khalasa High School Domeli. On achieving adulthood Shri Sadhu Ram
established his good business. From the very childhood Sadhu Ram decided to
work for the welfare of his community. The condition of the Dalits in those
days was no good and majority of them worked as farm labour for Land holders at
minimum wages. These poor Dalits were under age-old debt of the local Banias (Business men and money lenders).
Poverty, illiteracy and hate were forced upon them by manmade religious norms.
So Sadhu Ram decided to dedicate his life to remove these manmade miseries and
free his brethren from the centuries old slur. Later he prefixed his surname as
“Choudhary” meaning village headman,
landlord, Local leader, Chieftain or foreman. He worked with Mangoram Magowalia
for establishment of Ad-Dharam in 1926. To put this movement on the firm
footing its aims and objectives were to establish a separate religious identity
for untouchables other than Hindus on the Philosophy of Dalit Saints
particularly Guru Ravidas. Discrimination on account of castes was discarded
saying it was manmade as God created every one equal. Sikh way of worship was
adopted declaring following of the Hindu religious books likes Shastri,
Spiritless, Prams and Vedas as sin. Jai
Guru Dev was adopted as a wish for greeting. Later he broke away from Ad Dharma
and joined Dr.Ambedkar’s movement SCF. Again Master Sadhu Ram broke away from
SCF and joined Indian National Congress in 1946. He met Babu Jagjivan Ram, who
was a prominent Congress leader with nearness to Mahatma Gandhi. Babu Jagjivan
Ram and other Dalit leaders had established in 1935, a pro-Congress Dalit
organization named “All India Depressed Classes League”. Master Sadhu Ram
joined this organization and was made convener of PEPSU State in 1954. Master
Sadhu Ram was nominated by Congress Party in 1952 for General Election to
contest his first election from Phagwara (G and SC) constituency for the PEPSU
Legislative Assembly and got elected. He was made Deputy Home Minister for
PEPSU. This opened the destiny doors for Master Sadhu Ram. In the second
general elections held in 1957 he got elected in Lok Sabha from Jallandhar (G
and SC) constituency. He got elected in 1962, 1967 and1971 for the Lok Sabha
from Phillaur (R) constituency. Master Sadhu Ram continued serving in different
capacities till he expired on 1st August, 1975. He shall be long remembered for
his good work for the welfare of his people. Although he broke away from Dr.
Ambedkar politically, but he continued to keep his ideals as his guide.
17 January 2016 Rohith
Chakravarti Vemula suicide
Rohith
Chakravarti Vemula was an Indian PhD student at the University of Hyderabad and author of the book Caste is Not a Rumour. An
activist with the Ambedkar Students' Association (ASA), he committed suicide on
17 January 2016 following a controversy that had begun in July 2015 when the
university reportedly stopped paying him a fellowship of Rs25,000 per month because an enquiry found he
had been "Raising issues under the banner of Ambedkar Students
Association". Rohith
Vemula killed himself after being expelled from the university following a complaint made by one of the leaders of
India’s ruling Bharatiya Jananta Party (BJP). Along with four other Dalit
students, Vemula was protesting against the capital sentence given to a
suspected terrorist, which angered the BJP. Vemula and the other four students
were suspended by university authorities in August 2015. The galvanising force
has been a statement in Vemula’s suicide note – “My birth is my fatal accident”
– drawing attention to the status of many other rural Dalit students. His
death sparked protests and outrage across India and gained widespread media
attention as an alleged case of discrimination against Dalits.
Vemula’s death and has admitted the four other students back
into the university. After Vemula’s death the university has admitted the four other students back
into the university. As per one report Vemula’s
death has once again exposed the deep-seated caste discrimination in higher
education institutions – both among students and teachers. In similar higher education institutions
in India, there have been 23 deaths of students from
Dalit backgrounds. Educational institutions that are supposed to be centres of
excellence and social transformation instead perpetuate
social segregation and caste-based discrimination. Elite educational institutions have been purportedly seen as
hotbeds of caste-based discrimination against students belonging to lower castes. A quote from Chennai based Writer Meena
Kandasamy ‘s note in the conversation web site:
“Education has now become a disciplining
enterprise working against Dalit students: they are constantly under threat of
rustication, expulsion, defamation, discontinuation. In a society where
students have waged massive struggles to ensure their right to access higher
educational institutions through the protective, enabling concept of the
reservation policy, no one has dared to shed light on how many of these
students are allowed to leave these institutions with degrees, how many become
dropouts, become permanent victims of depression, how many end up dead”.
Words 8178 Compiled By:- Er.H. R. Phonsa Jammu
The
writer can be contacted on hrphonsa @ gmail.com or zenithrs@yahoo.com
M-09419134060
References:-
[1]
Bhakta Das, A Glimpse of Scheduled Castes
in Assam, book p 26. 1986
[2]
Kshirsagar R K, Dalit Movement in India and Its
Leaders, 1857-1956, book page 384-385. 1994
[3]
Dhananjay Keer, Dr. Ambedkar: Life and Mission book, Pg 318
[4] K V Ramakrishna
Rao, The Historic Meeting of Ambedkar, Jinnah and Periyar, A paper presented
during the 21st session of South Indian History Congress held at Madurai
Kamaraj University from 18 to 20 January 2001 and published in the proceedings, pp.128-136
[5]
Nitin Brahme, Pune Mirror,
Newspaper dated 4 August 2011
[6] The Hindu,
Newspaper
7) The Pune Mirror newspaper dated 4 August 2011
8)
Dr.Ambedkar and His Associates by Er.H.R.Phonsa
Jammu
9)
Chamarjati Ka Goravshali Etihas by Satnam Singh
10) Bharat Main Dalit Jagaran aur Uskey
Agardoot By Mata Prashad( Former Governor Arnuchal
Pradesh)
11)
the conversation web site
12) Dr Ambrdkar and His
Associates by “ Er.H.R.Phonsa”.Jammu
