312 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
that this country should get its freedom. But any new Government, the Swaraj Government, must be a Government in which Hindus, Muslims and the Scheduled Castes are all heirs to sovereignty.
.... It seems to me the policy of Mr. Gandhi who acquires strength from the Congress, the largest party in the land, is to intimate the British Government and force it to come to terms without being obliged to grant the demands of the Scheduled Castes. Mr. Gandhi’s whole aim in his political career ever since the minority problem began to loom large, has been one and one only, to neglect the Scheduled Castes, to by-pass them. I have had very unpleasant experience of Mr. Gandhi’s tactics in this matter.
Dr. Ambedkar stated that at the Round Table Conference Gandhi tried to isolate him, to cut off every kind of support to his efforts. Every time Gandhi failed but ultimately he used a weapon, “which I am sorry to say no honest man would have used. He went to the Muslims and told them that he was prepared to concede the 14 points of Mr. Jinnah, provided the Muslims agreed not to support these dirty dogs, the Untouchables.”
Dr. Ambedkar said that he had got in his possession an agreement which was drawn up between Gandhi and the Muslims at the Round Table Conference. Fortunately, the Muslims had a certain amount of sense of shame and did not support Gandhi. ” [1]
However there were additional dimensions in the speech of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar which were covered by the Times of India. The dimensions were as under—Editors.
“He wanted to make it clear to the British Government that a real National Government would be one that was composed of Hindus, Muslims and the Depressed Classes. The Depressed Classes were not part of the Hindu community but constituted a different nation. The Depressed Classes were prepared to agitate and fight to gain their objects.
Dr. Ambedkar warned his community that great obstacles lay in their path. While Mr. Gandhi and the Hindus had accepted the demand of the Muslims for a due share in the Government, they had not accepted a similar demand made by the Depressed Classes.
1 : Hyderabad Bulletine, 20th September 1944.
Reprinted : Bharill Chandra, Pp. 63-65.