Gandhinagar: Dalit organisations in Gujarat have succeeded in stalling the move of the govt. sponsored Ambedkar Centenary Celebrations Committee to confer its award on a Congressman who had actively opposed the late leader in his lifetime.
The govt. was forced to cancel the function in which Narasinh Makwana, the Congressman, and V.P. Parmar, president of the Gujarat unit of the Republican Party of India, were to be presented the Ambedkar awards by the Governor. The function was also to mark the 60th anniversary of the Poona Pact.
Parmar had rejected the award when it was announced stating that he could not accept it if it was also being given to Makwana who was opposed to Dr. Ambedkar. Other Dalit leaders, Valjibhai Patel, secretary of the Council for Social Justice and Naranbhai Solanki, vice-president of the RPI, ha also moved the Gujarat High Court challenging the Government’s decision.
Naresh Revar of the Gujarat Dalit Youth Sangathana said Makwana had held a black flag demonstration against Dr. Ambedkar in 1965 and had even attacked a rally of the Scheduled Caste Federation. (Hindu Sept. 26).
