On the 129th Ambedkar Jayanti, the Indian political discourse is in a sinister quest for more than a hundred and twenty-nine interpretations of Ambedkar. A figure often used to justify everything from the recent policy-decision to election strategy. More than understanding the facts behind Ambedkar, the current social reality and the grapevine around him demands us to demystify the fiction around Ambedkar.
A young, educated, popular Dalit leader in a country defining his politics on the legend of Ram, identifying himself as the antagonist Raavan, and in the most decisive moments of India’s recent political history waving out the Indian Constitution from the steps of Jama Masjid in Delhi comes out as the spiritual successor of Ambedkar. On the other hand, in Hindi Prime Time News, television anchors with alleged political leanings often make desperate attempts in preaching Ambedkar demanding reservations on the basis of economic status. In between this unique dialectic, we somewhere seem to have lost Ambedkar’s legacy.
Ambedkar is a cultural icon and much like all celebrated icons has turned into an enigma. The legacy of Ambedkar today stands problematized because it never triggers an open debate in the public domain. Voted as the “The Greatest Indian” in 2012 by History TV 8 and CNN IBN, Ambedkar is never discussed as frequently and in as much detail as Gandhi, Nehru, or the newfound national hero Savarkar.
Ironically, to disagree with Ambedkar’s thought has become the new blasphemy. This spiral of silence, therefore, in effect keeps his silent critic in the system who doesn’t practise what he preached and builds his legend over his spirit which he himself tries to defeat. So much so, that the figure of Ambedkar is often used as an alibi to shield any argument.
The academic circles studying Ambedkar more often than not become gatekeepers of his intellectual legacy, while the popular heroism of Ambedkar is increasingly becoming a vehicle used by the political heavyweight to fulfil its vested interest and to lure people who are otherwise denied entry into those gates. It is interesting to note that the mention of Annihilation of Caste (an undelivered speech written in 1936 by B. R. Ambedkar) by the social elite over a cup of coffee at Starbucks with their commonly misspelt name inscribed on the cup in following this fad never finds the mention of one’s surname.
The disparity that Ambedkar addressed and fought against successfully misconstrues him, and the emphatic coffee-shop discussants very rarely bother reading him up. It is disappointing to see the current Indian tier-one city neo-liberal make Ambedkar a mere weapon to throw in debates with as much cluelessness as the uninformed, angry Hindu youth quoting the Gita and the aimless Muslim fanatic quote the Sharia (implying all religious texts with its respective followers of the dogma).
Ambedkar in the post-Mandal era, however, is the only liberal hero bereft of the scorn of the Hindu right. The mercurial rise of the Hindu-right interestingly wants to claim the legacy of Ambedkar. In this unwarranted contest, Ambedkar in popular thought ceases to remain the hero that inspired stalwarts like Kanshi Ram and Kapoori Thakur to initiate social change through electoral politics.
We have lost the spirit of Ambedkar in our attempts to paint him sacred. In a country that historically depends on its civil society for a strong opposition, it is imperative to redefine the image of Ambedkar by going beyond debates on reservation and by celebrating him as the foremost intellectual. It is important for us to reclaim and reevaluate Ambedkar’s legacy and identify the rational thinker holistically, not succumbing to temptations of worshipping the hero and staying true to his appeal for challenging the culture of hero-worship.
More than ever, it is the need of the hour to respond to detractors celebrating the cause of the abrogation of Article 370 as Ambedkar’s victory suppressing the means and the baleful consequences with his bold act of burning the Manusmriti. It’s high time that we collectively acknowledge the history of politics around the colour blue and its journey from being the colour of the royal blood to becoming the colour of caste struggle and Ambedkar’s legacy in Indian society and politics. This Ambedkar Jayanti the step forward should be to practice and teach Ambedkar and not just merely preach Babasaheb.