1144 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
for the application of that clause to the whole body of Hindus. That Bill was not proceeded with, and after long and careful discussion it was dropped. Inter-caste marriages among Arya Samajists had gone on for some decades and they had carried on their movement for a long time and when the same had become common and the time came the measure was adopted. Let us take a leaf out of that book. If social reforms have to be made, nobody can object to them, if all those who are concerned should desire to have them. Let us, therefore, adopt that course, if for nothing else, so that what you do may not remain a mere dead letter on paper without any effect whatsoever.
It has also been pointed out that because now we are only taking up the parts of the Code relating to marriage and divorce, we should consider the feasibility of making an All-India All-Community Code towards that end. I am not one of those whose argument is that if monogamy is good and is to be enforced for the Hindus, it should necessarily apply to everybody. I do not say that at all. If monogamy is good, then I want it for the Hindus whether it is applied to anybody else or not. I do not want to argue that if the rule of monogamy is good for the Hindus it should not come to them unless it comes for everybody else. That is for the others to decide and if they do not want it, let them not have it but if it is good for the Hindus let it come to them. ( An hon. Member: Is it good ?) It is good and I think it is the only good thing ; but that, however, does not mean that we should become blind to the requirements of a good thing in itself or that we should not take other relevant facts and aspects into consideration. So far as the principle of monogamy goes I have no objection to it, Nobody can have any objection to it, and I should be unhappy if anything except monogamy is found in practice anywhere...
Giani G. S. Musafir (Punjab) : There is no harm in asking for all a thing which is good in itself.
Pandit Malaviya : I do not say that it should not apply to every body ; it is for the Government and for the others to think about the others. They have now brought forward a restricted measure dealing with only marriage and divorce and if they think that it is right to apply it to the whole country, let them do it. That is another consideration which the Government should certainly take into account.
Shri Bhatt (Bombay) : But can we Members not ask the Government that we wish it should be made applicable to all ?