C HAPTER 27
AWAY FROM THE HINDUS
A large majority of Untouchables who have reached a capacity to think out their problem believe that one way to solve the problem of the Untouchables is for them to abandon Hinduism and be converted to some other religion. At a Conference of the Mahars held in Bombay on 31st May 1936 a resolution to this effect was unanimously passed. Although the Conference was a Conference of the Mahars [1], the resolution had the support of a very large body of Untouchables throughout India. No resolution had created such a stir. The Hindu community was shaken to its foundation and curses imprecations and threats were uttered against the Untouchables who were behind this move.
Four principal objections have been urged by the opponents against the conversion of the Untouchables:
(1) What can the Untouchables gain by conversion ? Conversion can make no change in the status of the Untouchables.
(2) All religions are true, all religions are good. To change religion is a futility.
(3) The conversion of the Untouchables is political in its nature.
(4) The conversion of the Untouchables is not genuine as it is not based on faith.
It cannot take much argument to demonstrate that the objections are puerile and inconsequential.
To take the last objection first. History abounds with cases where conversion has taken place without any religious motive. What was the
1 The Conference was confined to Mahars because the intention was to test the intensity of feeling communitywise and to take soundings from each community.
The typed pages with Sr. Nos. from 279 to 342 have been found in this script which is titled as Chapter XX under the heading ‘Away from the Hindus’. The whole script consists of 64 pages.—Ed.