14 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
hope of reconciliation is left. Power and authority are sometimes bought by kindness; but they can never be begged as alms by an impoverished and defeated violence……
“A further objection to force is, that you impair the object by your very endeavours to preserve it. The thing you fought for is not the thing which you recover ; but depreciated, sunk, wasted and consumed in the contest”.
These are weighty words which it would be perilous to ignore. If there is anybody who has in his mind the project of solving the Hindu-Muslim problem by force, which is another name of solving it by war, in order that the Muslims may be subjugated and made to surrender to the Constitution that might be prepared without their consent, this country would be involved in perpetually conquering them. The conquest would not be once and for ever. I do not wish to take more time than I have taken and I will conclude by again referring to Burke. Burke has said somewhere that it is easy to give power, it is difficult to give wisdom. Let us prove by our conduct that if this Assembly has arrogated to itself sovereign powers it is prepared to exercise them with wisdom. That is the only way by which we can carry with us all sections of the country. There is no other way that can lead us to unity. Let us have no doubt on that point.
Interim Report on Fundamental Rights
*The Hon’ble Pandit Hirday Nath Kunzru : ... That Government is faced with an extraordinary difficult problem and clause 8( e ) shows a strange disregard of the existing state of things there. I think, Sir, that this right can be conferred only under certain conditions which have to be clearly defined.
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar (Bengal : General) : I do not wish to interrupt the speaker; but in dealing with clause 8( e )†, he is rather giving a wrong impression of the whole clause.
Dr. B. Pattabhi Sitaramayya (Madras : General) : Instead of giving illustrations to make his points clear, he is going into a discussion of the merits.
The Hon’ble Pandit Hirday Nath Kunzru : As a parliamentarian, Sir, you understand what I am doing. As regards Dr. Ambedkar’s objection, I may say—and I am sure you will bear me out,—I read out the entire clause including the proviso.
Mr. President : I would request the Member to confine himself to the point which he wants to illustrate and not go into the merits of the proposal.
*CAD, Vol. Ill, 29th April 1947, p. 402.
† Clause (e) read as under ;—“ Provision may be made by law to impose such reasonable restrictions as may be necessary in the public interest including the protection of minority groups and tribes.”. —Ed.