58 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
Some might think that this description of the Established Order and the rules made thereunder are matters of ancient past. This is a complete mistake. The Established Order subsists even today and the rules are as operative today as they were when they were made. This will be evident from the two following statements on the condition of the Untouchables which have appeared in the ‘ Hindustan Times ’ . The first appeared in the issue of 8th March 1945. The first one is written by one Kesarilalji Bordia, Headmaster of a school called Vidya Bhuwan in Udaipur. It reads as follows:
“Many are the disabilities under which the Harijans in Mewar live. They cannot enter temples, nor can they draw water from public wells. They cannot join the caste Hindus in festivals and processions. They have to take out their Rath Yatra or Doll procession through a different route and on a different day. And they cannot ride through the village.
Even silver ornaments, let alone gold ones on their person are resented by the caste Hindus. The result is , they have to content themselves with tin and brass articles. Age-old usage prevents them from using butter or gur in wedding feasts.
In Schools and other public places, Harijan boys cannot sit with the children of caste Hindus. They are asked to absent themselves on the inspection day in order to save the Inspector from embarrassment.
A memorandum has been submitted to the State Government. If the Government chooses to declare in unequivocal terms the disapproval of these disabilities, the hands of non-official bodies which are fighting untouchability will be strengthened.”
The second is in the form of a statement issued by the President of the Harijan Sevak Sangh and refers to the condition of the Untouchables in the State of Mewar. It reads as under:
“The Mewar Harijan Sevak Sangh has sent a Memorandum to the Mewar Government drawing their attention to the various disabilities of Harijans in the State and their consequent hardships. The Memorandum brings out how civil liberties of Harijans are curtailed in several ways by the orthodoxy and prejudices of caste Hindus.
I enumerate below some of the unjust practices which still persist in the State and for the rectification of which the State has taken no effective measures. They are as follows:
- Harijans have no liberty in the selection of clothes to wear. The form of dress must follow the age-long pattern; personal tastes and desires have no place in the choice of the dress.