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DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
This was the first occasion in its life-time that the Congress came down to fight an election. It was also the first time that the Untouchables got the privilege to elect their own representatives. Some leaders of the Untouchables, who were siding with the Congress when the Poona Pact was being forged—such as the late Dewan Bahadur M. C. Raja—cherished the fond hope that the Congress will not inter-meddle in the elections of the Untouchables to the seats reserved for them. But this hope was dashed to pieces. The Congress had a double purpose to play its part in the election to the reserved seats of the Untouchables. In the first place, it was out to capture in order to build up its majority which was essential for enabling it to form a Government. In the second place, it had to prove the statement of Mr. Gandhi that the Congress represented the Untouchables and that the Untouchables believed in the Congress. The Congress, therefore, did not hesitate to play a full, mighty and, I may say so, a malevolent part in the election of the Untouchables by putting up Untouchable candidates on Congress ticket pledged to Congress programme for seats reserved for the Untouchables. With the financial resources of the Congress it made a distinct gain.
The total number of seats allotted to the Untouchables under the Government of India Act, 1935 are 151 [1] . The following table shows how many were captured by Untouchable candidates who stood on the Congress Ticket.
Table 5
Total Seats Province Reserved for the Untouchables
Total Seats Captured by the Congress
United Provinces … … … 20 16
Madras … … … … … 30 26
Bengal … … … … … 30 6
Central Provinces … … … 20 7
Bombay … … … … … 15 4
Bihar … … … … … 15 11
Punjab … … … … … 8 Nil
Assam … … … … … 7 4
Orissa … … … … … 6 4
Total … … … 151 78
- This number of 148 seats was raised to 151 in making adjustments of seats for Bihar and Orissa.