Meet Jogendranath Mandal, Pakistan’s first Minister or Law and Labour. He was Pakistan’s second Minister of Commonwealth and Kashmir Affairs. Mohammad Ali Jinnah personally handpicked the Hindu Jogendranath Mandal for his loyalty towards Muslim League.
This man belonged to the Namasudra community, a backward or outcaste community of the colonial Bengal. He believed that Dalits, Scheduled Castes, Outcastes, Untouchables and other backward communities would live a better life in Muslim dominated Pakistan rather than Hindu-majority India where Brahmins and other upper castes will also live. This man supported Muslims League’s demand of a separate Islamic country and migrated to Pakistan when Jinnah decided to reward him for his “breaking-India” stance. However, within a very short span of time, he realized the strong anti-Hindu bias in Pakistan when he witnessed numerous anti-Hindu atrocities in the country. After tendering resignation from his post, he fled to India and started living among the upper caste Hindus whom he once labeled as oppressors.
Even after 70 years of Indian independence, there are numerous Jogendranath Mandals living inside and outside India, who cannot distinguish between the “struggle for Dalit rights” and “anti-India attitude”. This is evident from the recent Dalits March that took place in London where the champions of Dalit rights started a rally from the Parliament Square, Westminster with protestors from different organizations in the London marching to the Indian High Commission to present a memorandum for the President of India Ram Nath Kovind.
The Dalits March, London Memorandum was brought on the light of recent Bhima-Koregaon violence that took place on January 1, 2018. The key points of the Dalits London memorandum were:-
1.) The accused Sambhaji Bhide of Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan and Milind Ebute of Samast Hindu Aghadi must be punished for orchestrating the Bhima-Koregaon violence. The protestors claimed that the Indian government is trying to defend the two persons because they are Hindutva leaders.
2.) Release the accused Dalits arrested in Maharashtra in the first fortnight of January immediately and drop the charges against them along with launching a transparent public inquiry into the events of January 1st and 2nd.
3.) Immediately release Chandrashekhar Azad, the leader of the Bhim Army, the Uttar Pradesh based Dalit Human Rights organization.
4.) UK’s Dalits and progressive South Asians condemned Union Minister Anant Kumar Hegde’s statement that the BJP is in government to change the Constitution, which Dr. BR. Ambedkar framed. The protestors were angry that neither the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, nor President Ram Nath Kovind have condemned these remarks or rebuked Anant Kumar Hegde.
Mr Keval Bharadia of South Asia Solidarity Group is one of co-organizers of the London demonstration who called India a republic of violence where Hindu supremacists are causing atrocities on Dalits and backward communities and the President is silent despite being from the backward community.
The London memorandum is clear evidence that the highly educated Liberal class are leaving no stones unturned to taint the violence an act of Brahminical oppression on the Dalits and hence, defaming the Hindu and Indian culture by terming it anti-Dalit or anti-backward communities. While the memorandum demanded actions against the upper caste Hindu leaders, it remained surprisingly silent on the Jignesh Mewani and Umar Khalid duo who played a great role in mobilizing masses in celebrating the British victory over native powers by terming it “Dalit victory over Brahminical oppressions”. Back in 2017, these guys demeaned Indian Independence Day by carrying out a similar rally at London on 15th August and for the first time, called India a “Republic of Fear”. That was a good way to send a message- India was better under the British regime and we deteriorated after gaining independence.
The London memorandum sought actions against people who protested against the celebration of British victory and slaughter of their own native ancestors. The memorandum, which demands release of the Dalits lodged in Jail and seeks action against accused from upper castes is so disturbingly biased. It demands difference in justice based on the caste of the alleged persons. The memorandum’s main motto was to break the unity in India, which is evident from the point that it demands release of Dalit leader Chandrasekhar Azad of Bhim Sena who is the main accused of the infamous Saharanpur violence. It was even suspected that illegal mining king Haji Iqbal also had lent Azad his support. Chandrasekhar poses a threat to the state and he is detained as per NSA. The memorandum aims at instigating insecurity and fear among the Dalits and backward communities, which often encourages some Dalit activists like Mr. Harohalli Ravindra from Mysuru or L Hanumanthaiah to demand separate country for the Dalits and backwards. In fact, according to an article published by IndianExpress, the idea of separate country was first encouraged by B.R. Ambedkar when he gave a statement in 1939- “Whenever there is any conflict of interest between the country and the untouchables, so far as I am concerned, the untouchables’ interests will take precedence over the interests of the country”.
This year marked the 200th anniversary of Bhima-Koregaon battle in which a small British troop defeated the Peshwas. Though the actual stats and facts are much different, the British version of the history states that a smaller British troops comprised of soldiers from the backward Mahar community defeated a much larger Maratha troop led by Peshwa forces, which included Gosains, Arabs and Marathas. The so-called humanitarian leaders, who term the battle of Koregaon as victory of the backwards, should realize that Brahmin Shivaji Maharaj kept an open-status for people of any community to join his army. The Mahars were valued for their marital skills and many Mahars rose up to the post of commanders during Shivaji’s rule. In fact, when 1857 revolt took place, soldiers from all communities took part in the revolt and the British, whom the current political luminaries worship as protector of “Dalit rights” sacked and executed rebel soldiers, which included soldiers of Mahar community too.
In the garb of fight against “casteist oppression”, the liberal forces are acting strategically to break the unity of India by selectively highlighting the incidents and raising the fear and sense of insecurity among the Dalit and backward communities.