On the approach, outlook of Tamil Nadu’s Scheduled Caste leaders in late 1940s

The years instantly aft the Second World War’s extremity successful 1945 marked a play of events and excitement not lone astatine the macro level but besides among the Scheduled Castes (SC) of Tamil Nadu. With the prospects of the state gaining state becoming bright, representatives of the SC assemblage were intensely progressive successful the speech of views connected assorted issues that would impact a caller nation, including those relating to the community’s payment and future. 

At the all-India level, the Congress, 1 of the main governmental players, had its stock of leaders from the assemblage and this included Jagjivan Ram. In Tamil Nadu, determination were leaders specified arsenic V.I. Munuswami Pillai, J. Sivashanmugam Pillai and P. Kakkan. The different broadside of the governmental spectrum was led by B.R. Ambedkar, who had founded the Scheduled Castes Federation (SCF) successful 1942. In the State, the SCF’s look was N. Sivaraj who had occupied the station of Chennai Mayor.

In the 1946 elections to assorted provinces, the Congress demonstrated its superiority implicit the SCF. In the erstwhile Madras Presidency, the enactment bagged 27 retired of 30 seats allotted to SCs. Even successful the remaining 3 places, the SCF did not marque it. It was against this backdrop that Ambedkar and his workfellow Sivaraj criticised the Congress for not having fixed owed designation to the community.

V.I. Munuswami Pillai, who served arsenic a Minister successful the Council of Ministers headed by C. Rajagopalachari during 1937-39, issued a statement, giving an relationship of the “overwhelming” enactment that the Congress enactment had secured successful the elections and pointed retired that Sivashanmugam Pillai had been made Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, according to The Hindu connected July 23, 1946.

Three months later, the Assembly Speaker, portion addressing the West Godavari Harijan (a word wide utilized past to mean the SCs) Congress Convention successful Eluru, came down connected Ambedkar for his enactment of going to England to spot the grievances of the assemblage earlier the British Cabinet.

Sensing that it was lone a substance of clip that the state would summation Independence and alluding to the enactment of the interim authorities led by Jawaharlal Nehru successful September 1946, Sivashanmugam Pillai observed that “power has been fixed to Indians present and it is the work of the Harijans to articulation the enactment present successful powerfulness and combat wrong the enactment for their owed stock of specified power.”

Commenting connected differences betwixt Ambedkar and the Tamil Nadu’s salient leaders of the Scheduled Caste, D. Ravikumar, the incumbent Member of Parliament from Villupuram representing the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), says determination is thing to beryllium amazed connected this aspect. In fact, erstwhile Ambedkar, successful 1935, gave a telephone for conversion, galore leaders from the State had opposed him, arsenic their attack towards Hinduism was based connected philosophical and spiritual lines, not connected the spiritual lines. Rettamalai Srinivasan, 1 of the towering leaders of the community, responded by saying that “Depressed Classes (another word past utilized for the SCs) are not successful the Hindu fold. They are afloat blooded Dravidian successful race”.

About a week aft the announcement by the past British Viceroy Louis Mountbatten, connected June 3, 1947 that state would beryllium fixed by mid-August to 2 units — India and Pakistan, the Assembly Speaker wrote to Nehru connected the problems of the community. He mentioned that the SCs were ignorant of important laws — the Temple Entry Authorisation Act and the Civil Disabilities Removal Act.

He called for the contented of location tract pattas to the SCs, who were “at the mercy of caste Hindus” successful presumption of the second owning plots connected which the community’s settlements were mostly located. Pillai brought to the announcement of Nehru however the conception of ‘Adimai Sasanam,’ a signifier of slavery, was successful practice. Under the concept, the SCs, portion borrowing wealth from lenders, who were invariably caste Hindus, would springiness it successful penning that they and their descendants would service the lenders till their loans were settled, according to a study of this paper connected June 14, 1947.

As the days approached the archetypal Independence Day (August 15), the assemblage began demanding that not lone 1 of its representatives beryllium included successful the archetypal escaped Indian Cabinet but besides a state beryllium created for the SCs. On July 9, the Madras Provincial Harijan Convention, attended by lawmakers of the State legislature and the Constituent Assembly, met astatine the Banqueting Hall (now called Rajaji Hall) connected the Omandurar Government Estate with Munuswami Pillai successful the chair. Among the participants were Sivashanmugam Pillai, Kakkan and B. Parameswaran, who aboriginal became Chennai Mayor and Minister successful Kamaraj’s archetypal Cabinet. 

The Hindu reported connected July 10, 1947 that “the Convention looked with apprehension upon the agitation successful South India for the instauration of provinces connected communal and radical ground specified arsenic ‘Dravidasthan.’ If, successful immoderate event, specified provinces were to beryllium formed, the Harijans should beryllium allowed to person a abstracted ‘Adi-Dravidasthan.’

Other demands made astatine the conscionable were that successful the assignment of envoys to Sri Lanka, Myanmar, South Africa and Malaysia, penchant should beryllium fixed to the community. A period later, astatine different gathering successful the metropolis which was presided by spiritual person Swami Sahajananda, an unfastened entreaty was made to the Congress precocious bid that Munuswami Pillai beryllium included successful the Cabinet.

The SCF, which continued its governmental enactment successful the post-Independence years, was captious of some the Congress and the Dravidar Kazhagam (DK). At a league of the Federation’s South Arcot territory (now encompassing Cuddalore, Villupuram and Kallakurichi districts) portion successful Nellikuppam which was attended by Sivaraj, speakers expressed their views that the advent of Independence did not “materially heighten the prosperity” of the community. The DK aiso did not enactment for the payment of the SCs, a study of this regular stated connected April 28, 1949. The Federation, which affirmed its loyalty successful the enactment of Ambedkar, had pleaded for escaped acquisition of SC children and duty of “poromboke” lands escaped of outgo to the assemblage for cultivation.

When the Constituent Assembly adopted an Article connected August 25, 1949 to supply 10-year-long stipulation for preservation of seats successful Parliament and State legislature for the SCs and Scheduled Tribes, Munuswami Pillai had adjacent past floated the thought of providing a longer period.

The Article acrophobic continues to beryllium successful operation, arsenic Parliament, each 10 years, keeps connected amending it to widen the quota. Last time, this was done successful December 2019. Two months later, the SC members successful the Constituent Assembly had urged the Union authorities to make an exclusive Ministry to look aft the interests of SCs, STs and Other Backward Classes, a relation that the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is doing now.

In the past 30-odd years, the full SC assemblage successful Tamil Nadu, careless of intra-caste differences, has been regarding Ambedkar arsenic its guiding light. It is unfortunate that statues of Ambedkar, particularly successful bluish districts, person to beryllium kept successful cages successful galore places for the reasons of safety.