410 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
the major Hindu and Muslim blocks than to support the just interests of the Scheduled Castes. It is not even possible for the single and solitary representative of the Scheduled Castes in the assembly to ventilate the grievances of the Scheduled Castes. I am informed that under the rules made by the President of the Legislative Assembly, the President gives the first chance to speak to those Hon’ble members who belong to a recognised party. I also understand that the President does not recognise a party unless it has the minimum strength of ten members. This means that ordinarily the representative of the Scheduled Castes has no chance of speaking in the House unless he chooses to join a party. For a representative of the Scheduled Castes to be faced with this kind of situation is not a very happy thing. To join a party means for him to subordinate the interests of the Scheduled Castes to that of a party, the principles and interests of which may be quite inconsistent with the principles and interests of the Scheduled Castes. On the other hand, not to join a party means to lose altogether the right to speak. If one may refer to what happened in the Assembly session (September 1942) in the debate that took place on the present political situation in India, the Hon’ble Rao Bahadur N. Sivaraj, the representative of the Scheduled Castes in the Central Assembly, found it difficult to obtain a chance to speak on behalf of the Scheduled Castes, although
5 or 6 Muslim members could easily speak for the Muslims.
- It is, therefore, greatly necessary that the representation of the Scheduled Castes in the Assembly should be augmented. Of course this can be done only when vacancies occur in nominated non-official seals. When they do occur, justice requires that such vacancies should go to increase the representation of the Scheduled Castes in the Assembly.
II. Inadequate representation in the Central Executive
- The Government of India has been very tardy in recognising the right of the Scheduled Castes for representation in the Central Executive. This has been a very sure point with the Scheduled Castes. For they hold that whatever may have been their political status in the past, since the Round Table Conference their political status had