DR. AMBEDKAR AND THE HINDU CODE BILL 523
introducing a classless society of absolute equality. It will be the equality of poverty and indigence. But I do not complain of my system. And after all, this is not the place to discuss it. I only submit here that the whole subject must be considered deliberately by Hindu society and not merely viewed in the light of equality of brother and sister. That is too much of a slogan. We as serious legislators in this House should not be taken in by slogans. Here I have only given a slight hint on some of the aspects. There are many other matters but it is impossible for me to deal with all aspects. It may be that I have over-emphasised certain minor aspects, and left out others. But these are only a few observations which may make people think and not rush on, so far as the daughters are concerned.
And now comes the question of equality. Is not the women sometimes superior to man in certain aspects ? I believe that she is in many spheres superior. She is the mistress of the house. She is the mistress of her husband’s soul, his purse, his property, his inclinations, his whims, every thing is controlled by her. I submit, therefore, that the women should not consider herself as ignored, merely because she is not being given a share. In fact, her position is unassailable in the family. What woman is there who is not respected and loved in the family ? Does she require anything personal ? Does she require anything herself, apart from the welfare of her husband, of his brothers and of her children and the children of her brothers? That is the Hindu system. Whether it is good or bad, it is not for me to discuss.
An Honourable Member : Quite right.
Mr. Naziruddin Ahmad : It is for the Hindu community. It is for that community to say whether the system which has lasted for over four thousand years.................
Babu Ramnarayan Singh : More than that.
Mr. Naziruddin Ahmad : It is for them to say whether it is really so rotten and so rickety—to quote Dr. Ambedkar—that it requires overhauling, that it requires breaking up and resetting, in fact whether a problem akin to that Relief and Rehabilitation has arisen in Hindu society. I feel that it is nothing of that sort. The problem is merely an intellectual upheavel. It is an abstraction of legal theory. It is an unnecessarily fine question of equality that is at the root of this division, of all this discussion and so much hostility. The whole thing is a simple affairs. Are you satisfied with your family system ? Does it give you satisfaction ? Has that system saved you from the ravages of time?