The death place of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar should be treated at par with Gandhi Samadhi at Raj Ghat and maintained in a similar fashion, Dr. Ambedkar Samarak Nirvan Bhoomi Karyakram Samiti national coordinator Indresh Gajive said here on Thursday .
“Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Ambedkar did not see eye to eye on certain issues and occasionally found themselves on the path of confrontation,” said Dr. Gajive, adding that it did not justify the negligence of the Ambedkar National Memoriam at 26, Alipur Road in the Capital.
Stating that the Central Government had made plans in 2003 for revival and maintenance of the spot, Dr. Gajive said: “However nothing was done in this regard and the location continues to lies in a state of dirt and neglect.”
A memorandum submitted to the Central Government in 2007 too had not yielded positive results, he added.
“Since we are determined to make ourselves heard on the issue, we are organising a Dalit Mahapanchayat in the Capital on December 6 which is the day Dr. Ambedkar passed away. Dalits from all over the country will participate in this gathering, respects will be paid to Dr. Ambedkar and a memorandum of our demands would be submitted to the Government,” Dr. Gajive said.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Dalit leader Mayawati’s participation too would be elicited, he added.
Elaborating on other demands that would be put forward, Dr. Gajive said: “We will demand that candidates from the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes category standing for elections from reserved constituencies should be elected only by the SC/ST electorate and not by the general category electorate.” He added that the move had also been proposed by Dr. Ambedkar and that it should be implemented as it had been found that the votes of the general category swung election results even in reserved constituencies.
Dr. Ambedkar Samarak Nirvan Bhoomi Karyakram Samiti advisor, Dr. Udit Raj, said: “SC/ST individuals migrating to a State often do not get work because of their migrant status. This should be altered so that they can gain employment anywhere in the country. Caste divisions hinder the progress of the country and Dr. Ambedkar played an important role in mitigating these divisions.”
