Fifteen organisations of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes have come together to form Pattikajathi-Pattikavarga Mahasakhyam, the formal announcement of which will be made on April 14, the birth anniversary of Dr B.R. Ambedkar.
“The grand alliance has been formed to make strong interventions in the fields of education, land, employment and power. It will eventually evolve into a major political force and as of now more and more organisations are getting in touch with us expressing their willingness to join,” said Kerala Dalit Federation president P.Ramabhadran, patron of the new organisation, here on Friday.
Major constituents
The Kerala Dalit Federation, Sidhanar Service Society, All Kerala Pulayar Mahasabha, Kerala Thandan Mahasabha, Aikya Mala Araya Maha Sabha, Kerala Sambava Sabha and Kerala Vedar Samajam are among the organisations that will be part of the alliance. “We will be working for Dalit-Adviasi empowerment without creating any avarana-savarna polarisation. Apart from protecting Renaissance values, we want to take it forward,” said Mr. Ramabhadran.
The entry to the alliance is restricted to organisations with a minimum membership of thousand. “While all the Dalit collectives in Kerala are led by prominent communities, this alliance is headed by someone who belongs to the tribal community. Also, we will ensure maximum women’s representation in the alliance and if any organisation is against listing women they will not be included.”
The decision to form the Mahasakhyam was taken at a high-level conference of the organisations held in Kollam on Thursday.
A 51-member State executive committee was elected at the meeting along with the office-bearers who include P.K.Sajeev (president), Neyyattinkara Sathyaseelan (general secretary), M.Sreedharan, M.K.Vasudevan, Rajapuram Chellappan (working presidents), and Manchayil Vikraman, V.K.Gopi, P.G.Prakash, Babu Pattomthuruthu, S.P.Manju and Manjusha Suresh (secretaries).
Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac will make the formal announcement of the Pattikajathi-Pattikavarga Mahasakhyam and inaugurate the 128th birth anniversary of celebrations Baba Saheb Ambedkar on April 14 at a function at Kollam Public Library Hall.