[Book Review – “Gandhi, Ambedkar and The Extirpation of Untouchability”, by Hiren Mukherjee, Peoples Publishing House, Rani Jhansi Rd., New Delhi – 110055, Price Rs.8.]
The book under review is the third in the series of Dr. Ambedkar Memorial Lectures sponsored by the Institute of Constitutional and Parliamentary Studies, New Delhi. The lectures were delivered by Hiren Mukherjee, a Marxist scholar and a distinguished parliamentarian. He has done his homework well when he refers to Ambedkar’s attitude towards the freedom struggle – “Ambedkar knew how perfidious and oppressive was British rule, but for many years, facing hideous, sometimes hell-bent Hindu hostility, he could not bring himself to seek entry into the mainstream of the struggle because he had a lively, well-founded suspicion of its bona fides on the issue of caste. What is more interesting is the voice from the Left paying a solemn tribute to the morning star of India’s second freedom struggle. The Leftists in India would take all the trouble of analysing the urban problem or Chinese history but when it comes to India they are either apologetic or ignore it. In a few cases where they have made a study, worn-out cliches and jargons are substituted instead of examining and explaining the complexities of our unequal society. By doing this they more often misinterpreted Marxism by ignoring the social realities. Marxism no doubt is the system of scientific thinking and analysis for the liberation of all societies, ancient or modern, rich or poor, but it is another matter either to supplant textbook Marxism or success achieved from another country.
India has a unique, complex society. The social setup of India has too many roots and hence a multi-dimensional problem which can be broadly divided into social and economic. Religion in India is the be all and end all of existence. It is not just spiritualism and going to heaven but it has taken roots in the ethos and psyche of the personality. Even Judaism, the most ancient of all religions, pales into insignificance before the Hindu imperialism. The human mechanism is subjugated to jati. Is any religion in the world connected to discrimination and inequality as Hinduism? Caste and Hinduism are the two sides of the same coin. The roots of Marxism are primarily of European civilisation, and it could be adapted to India only if the Indian reality is recognised in its entirety. Until this is recognised the talk of revolution will be only a fashion and nothing beyond that and Hiren Mukherjee does refer to it (although briefly). As this is not a thesis or a work written in contemplative atmosphere, many a point is given a touch-and-go reference. Nevertheless Mukherjee has given an impression of a job well done. It looks as if the view held by the Left parties about Ambedkar and his movement has undergone a change, nearer to truth than ever before.
