370 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
Looking at the situation, I am, indeed, very happy to see that the Scheduled Castes all over India have now become so conscious of their disabilities and are now so well organised and so determined to achieve the fullness of their life that no man need despair of the future. As I told the Viceroy the other day, I do not mind telling it to you. I said to him ‘‘I would not have come to see you if you had not called me. I have no desire to run after the British.” The British at one time had taken the responsibility of looking after the welfare of the Scheduled Castes. I had thought that they would take special steps to see that responsibility is carried out. If the British are going, I don’t mind. But they are going without taking any special steps for securing such safeguards as we want in the constitution. It is for them to decide whether their action is right or not. It is not for me. Hundred times I had to persuade them that they ought to do something for the welfare of the Untouchables. I said, I am confident enough that the fate of the 60 million Untouchables will not be sealed simply because the British refuse to do their duty. I have no doubt in my mind that the 60 million Untouchables, without any support and without any power, would achieve what they want even if the Labour Government do not want to give them their due rights.
We, certainly today, are not the same old people, led by others with no consciousness and no organization. Everybody in this country knows that we are now quite different people. We, therefore, must cultivate more strength and power. Both the Congress and the Muslims League want our support and are making terms for that. This would have never happened if we were not so well organised. And I wanted to tell you this that unfortunately our issue has been completely clouded by the announcement of the British to quit India by June 1948. I have no idea what is going to happen. I have made some calculations, but I do not want to announce at present.
It may be that the British may have to stay here under circumstances quite different. But the decision of the British to quit has brought before the public some problems, which have, to some extent, obscured our demand for constitutional safeguards. I do hope that notwithstanding this clouding of the issue we shall succeed, if not wholly, to a very great extent in getting such political safeguards as are necessary for us.