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ALL MY ATTENTION IS CONCENTRATED ON BUILDING OF HALL FOR FEDERATION
“It was decided to hold a gathering of ‘Untouchables’ on Sunday, the 28th September 1952 at 4 p.m. on Nare Park Ground at Bombay. (Opposit to GIPR work shop). It was also decided that Dr. Ambedkar would address it. Accordingly a hand bill was issued jointly duly signed by J. G. Bhatankar, Secretary Scheduled Castes Federation and Mumbai Municipal Kamgar Sangh; L. F. Hindlekar, General Secretary Mahar Dnyati Panchayat Sangh Mumbai; S. A. Upshyam, Secretary Scheduled Castes Improvement Trust and M. M. Sasalekar, J.O.C. Samata Sainik Dal.
The ground was overcrowded by the ‘Untochables’. Exactly at 5.30 p.m. Dr. B. R. Ambedkar came to attend the gathering. The ‘Untouchables’ greeted him with thunderous applause.
After introductory remarks, Upshyam requested Dr. Ambedkar to address the gathering.” [1]
At present Dr. Ambedkar said, all his attention was concentrated on the building of a hall for the Federation. He was leaving for Delhi next week and would not return for some days. He had a fear that his absence from Bombay, the work of swelling the fund would not progress.
While making an appeal for generous donations from members of his community, Dr. Ambedkar said that the common people would support him in the case.
In the last few months, a sum of Rs. 22,000/- had been collected. Dr. Ambedkar had once thought that a hall had to be built even if it necessitated raising a loan. Now, he had changed his mind and the hall had to be constructed out of the funds donated by members themselves.” [2]
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1 : Janata, 4th October 1952.
2 : The Times of India, dated 29th September 1952.