New Delhi: A collection of 3 audio cassettes on the ‘Mandal Commission Report is brought out to educate the masses on reservations (human rights) for the {liberation of Backward Castes. The cassettes are produced by Manoj Yadav, a senior research scholar at JNU and Director Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Institute of African Studies, New Delhi.
1: Cassette – 1 90 minutes.
Side-A: Mandal programme (Hindi) – BC lists of Delhi, Bihar, Assam, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and Mizoram. Side-B: BC list for Jammu _ and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Punjab Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, “West Bengal, and Orissa.
2. Cassette 90 minutes
Side-A: Mandal Programme (Hindi) Tamil Programme: BC list of Tamil Nadu. Side-B: BC list of Pondicherry, Kannada programe, Karnataka list of BCs, Telugu programme- Andhra Pradesh BC list. Malayalam programme, Kerala BC list Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Dadra, Nagar Haveli BC list.
3: Cassette 3 – 60 minutes
Side A: Mandal Programme (Hindi)
Side B: BC list of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa, Daman, Dieu and Dadra Nagar Haveli. 4 The Mandal Programme in cassette 1 and 3 is in ~ Hindi alone while n cassette 2 is in Hindi and 4 major “South Indian languages. It dramatically starts with a Dalit Voice series of loud shrieks representing the sacrifice of Ekalavya’s thumb under the orders of the Brahmin Dron Acharya who could not reconcile himself to the fact of a mere Shudra excelling a Savarna in the field of archery. Then begins a heated debate between the modern-day Eklavya and Drona, in which Ekalavya finally declares that he is no longer willing to sacrifice his thumb, or like Shambhuka sacrifice his head, merely to serve the brahminical social order.
The cassette is interspersed with folk revolutionary songs. VP Singh’s historic speech of Aug. 7, 1990 and Dr. R.M. Lohia’s and Dr. Ambedkar’s prophetic statements are also highlighted. The programme also deals with issues like pro-reservation rallies, the backlash by the Hindu students, the reactionary and ‘the cunning role played by the “national” napkin papers, the extent of brahminical domination in the public, private and cultural spheres. It also calls upon the SC/ST/BC/minority masses to unite to fight the divisive forces unleashed by the upper castes in the name of Rama’s Rath yatra and the temple-mosque controversy. Being conveniently divided into 3 cassettes, one for each region of India, those who desire to purchase a cassette would need to only order that one particular cassette the BCs of the State in which one is interested. Thus, if one lives in North, one need not buy all three cassettes, but only one particular cassette. Price Rs.25 each, postage Rs.10. It- can be obtained from Manoj Yadav, No.9, Akbar Road, New Delhi – 110 001.
