502 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
atrocities committed in P.E.P.S.U. and Punjab by Sikhs on the scheduled castes. I am afraid my hon. Friend Sardar Hukam Singh wants some communities to remain as scheduled castes in order that persecutions may continue to be committed on them. Therefore, I would request him to withdraw his amendments and get all these people into his fold and bring them up to his level and in that way end the scheduled castes among the Sikhs.
Shri Deshbandhu Gupta: Before you put the amendments to vote, I would like to know whether Dr. Ambedkar has satisfied himself that the Kabirpanthis in Delhi are members of the scheduled castes ? To my knowledge, there are no Mazhabis in Delhi and I do not object to their being included in the list as some Mazhabis might have migrated here. But about Kabirpathis, so far as I know, they are not termed as members of the scheduled castes. If Dr. Ambedkar has satisfied himself about this I have no objection, but if he has not satisfied himself, merely for the reason that they are so in the Punjab and P.E.P.S.U., they should not be treated as such in Delhi.
Sardar Hukam Singh: I have not put down anywhere whether these would be Sikhs or Hindus. I do not see why such an obsession should be there and certain hon. Members should bring up such an objection. I deliberately refrained from saying anything on the order that had already been passed and when I learned that the Hon. Minister was accepting I did not make a speech. But now a discussion is being initiated, may I be allowed to say certain things? I never said it has to be done here. It is also in the order of the President that these castes shall be included in the Scheduled castes so far as the Punjab and P.E.P.S.U. are concerned. I have stuck to that whether they are Hindus or Sikhs, they shall be scheduled castes. Whether they are Hindus or Sikhs, it has been admitted that they are backward classes. Now, to bring…..
Mr. Chairman: The Hon. Minister is accepting the amendment.
The question is :
(i) In clause 3 in the proposed Sixth Schedule, under the heading ‘Delhi’, at the end add new entries:
“ 40. Kabirpanthi.
- Mazhabi”.