WHAT WAY EMANCIPATION ? 115
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar spoke elaborately in Marathi on 31st May 1936. He delivered a prepared speech.—Editors
He said, Ladies and Gentlemen,
You must have come to know by now that this conference has been purposefully called upon to ponder over the declaration of conversion which I made recently. The Subject of conversion is very dear to me. Not so only, I feel the whole of your future depends upon this subject. I have no hesitation in saying that you have clearly understood the gravity of this problem. Had it not been so, you would not have assembled here in such a large number. I am very happy to see this mammoth gathering.
Need for the Conversion
Since the time of my declaration of the conversion, our men conducted several meetings at various places and expressed their views and opinions, which I hope must have reached you. But so far we had no opportunity to gather to discuss and decide the problem of the conversion. I was very much concerned for such an opportunity. You will all agree that planning is very necessary for making the movement of conversion a success. A conversion is not a child play. It is not a subject of entertainment. It deals with, how to make man’s life successful. Just as a boatman has to make all necessary preparations before he starts for voyage, so also we have to make such preparations. Without this, it will not be possible to reach the other shore. But as the boatman does not load the luggage unless he gets an idea of the number of passengers boarding the boat, so also, my position is like him and I cannot proceed without definite facts. Unless I get an idea as to how many persons are willing to leave the Hindu fold, I cannot start preparation for the conversion. When I expressed the idea before some workers in Bombay that I would not be able to judge the public opinion unless we meet in a conference, they voluntarily shouldered the responsibility of calling this conference without putting up any excuse about expenses and labour. What pains they had to take has already been described by our revered leader and the President of the Reception Committee, Shri Rewji Dagduji Dolas in his speech. I am extremely indebted to the Reception Committee of the Conference for arranging the meeting after making such strenuous efforts.