196 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
Bengal, stands on a different footing from the demand for Separate Electorates by a Minority Community such as the Scheduled Castes. A demand for Separate Electorates by a Majority Community must require the consent of the Minority Community. But the demand for Separate Electorates by a Minority Community can never be made dependent upon the wishes of the Majority Community. The Electorate is primarily a mechanism devised for protecting a Minority against the Majority. That being so, whether the Electorate should be joint or separate must be left entirely to Minority to determine on the ground that the Minority knows what is best in its own interest. The Majority can have no say in the matter and must really accept the decision of the Minority. Following this up, the Hindus can have very little to say as to whether the Scheduled Castes should or should not have Separate Electorates.
The demand of the Scheduled Castes for Separate Electorates does not adversely affect any other community, not even the Hindus. That is why this demand is accepted by all other Communities. The contention of the Hindus that the Scheduled Castes are Hindus and therefore cannot have a Separate Electorates is simply purile and misses the essential point that Separate Electorates is really a mechanism for the protection of the minorities and has nothing to do with religion. If any evidence of this is necessary, one could refer to the case of Europeans, Anglo-Indians and Indian Christians who are all one by religion yet each have a Separate Electorate.
If the Cabinet Mission took these facts and arguments into consideration there would be nothing unnatural if it accepted the contention of the Scheduled Castes that the consent of the Hindus is not necessary and that it was entirely a matter for the Cabinet Mission to decide, particularly when it has been proved that Joint Electorates have made representation of the Scheduled Castes a farce.
The second demand of the Scheduled Castes that their representation in the Interim Government should be 50% of the representation granted to the Muslims is also a demand for which the consent of the Hindus is not necessary before it could be