1052 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
Mr. Deputy Speaker: He has not said so.
Shri Bhatt: I was saying that Dr. Ambedkar may hold certain views and ray views may be different. After 1947 this Bill was sent to a Select Committee, which presented its report in August 1948. After that this bill again came up for discussion. As you are aware sir, our Government does not want to hurt anybody, nor does it want to do anything which might create a sensation among the people. So our Government consulted Pandits. Dr. Ambedkar also listened to what certain Pandits had to say. He gave them an opportunity to put forward their views, though not to their heart’s content, but they were given an opportunity all right. I do not know whether he accommodated their viewpoint or not, but after that he put forward something new and amended it. Now he is bringing forward new amendments every day and that is good ; there is nothing wrong in it. He wants that he should bring round his opponents, and taking their grievances into consideration, put forward an agreed legislation. With this idea in mind the Government have introduced this Bill and we are discussing clause 2 of the same. This Bill contains many different things, but if I have rightly understood, for the time being only two parts, viz., those relating to marriage and divorce are to be taken up. If we are going to take up only one thing as suggested by Shri Gadgil, who has expressed the hope that it would demonstrate our might. I would request them to stop there if they have any idea of what is practicable. I repeat what I said in an earlier speech ; and that is the Government should wait till the next House is elected within four or five months. Those who will get elected to the next House, will put this question before their electorate, before the people. This has become a burning question and it will remain before them. Put it before the people and the members of the next Parliament will get a mandate from them on this question or will tell their electorates what they would do when they sit in the new House. While speaking on the Child Marriage Restraint Bill in 1929, Qaid-e-Azam Jinnah had said, “It is necessary that children under
14 should not be allowed to marry. If my electorate does not agree to this, I will resign from the House, and they may elect somebody else to represent them”. We should be definite about what we want. The idea that we should not antagonise anybody, now that we have reached the last stage, should not enter our calculations. The best possible draft of the Bill should be put forward before us and we should clearly know as to how far we are to go. Why should you put only one thing before us ? We have to scrutinise every