ROLE OF ......................... INDIAN DEMOCRACY 137
Back to India Gandhi was arrested on January 4. Gandhi had not given up his fight for tying the Untouchable Hindus to the caste Hindus in politics. In early March, he informed the British Cabinet from Yeravda Jail that he would resist with his life the separation of the Untouchable Hindus from the Caste Hindus. And when the Communal Award was declared, granting Separate Electorates to the Untouchables, he declared his resolve to fast unto death if the separate electorates for the Depressed Classes were not abolished. Yet on principle, he had no word to say against Separate Electorates being conceded to the Christians, Muslims and Sikhs.
On one more count Gandhi’s resort to a fast unto death against the grant of Separate Electorates to the Depressed Classes was not justifiable either.” [1]
In this regard, Dr. Ambedkar said,
“Mr. Gandhi found that his threat had failed to have any effect. He did not care that he was a signatory to the requisition asking the Prime Minister to arbitrate. He forgot that as a signatory he was bound to accept the award. He started to undo what the Prime Minister had done. He first tried to get the terms of the Communal Award revised. Accordingly, he addressed the following letter to the Prime Minister:—
Y ERAVDA C ENTRAL P RISON,
August 18,1932.
D EAR F RIEND,
“There can be no doubt that Sir Samuel Hoare has showed you and the Cabinet my letter to him of 11th March on the question of the representation of the Depressed Classes. That letter should be treated as part of this letter and be read together with this.
“I have read the British Government’s decision on the representation of minorities and have slept over it. In pursuance of my letter to Sir Samuel Hoare and my declaration at the meeting of the Minorities Committee of the Round Table Conference on
1 : Keer, Pp. 204-05