May 28, 2022 1:52:14 pm
Jaideo Gaikwad, former MLC of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)It was the desire to shed light on the unexplored facets of Dr BR Ambedkar that prompted him to publish a book on the social reformer, said advocate Jaideo Gaikwad, a former MLC of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Released recently, Gaikwad’s book ‘Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Pradnyavantacha Sangharsha’ attempts a critical analysis of Dr Ambedkar.
Gaikwad said he recently had the chance to deeply explore the writings of Dr Ambedkar which was when he came across many unknown aspects of the great man.
“During the Covid-19 lockdown, I had the chance to revisit the vast ocean of work of Dr Ambedkar and realised that whatever he did, he had a specific plan in mind. However, over the years, no attempts were made to uncover these facets or undertake a critical analysis of his life,” he told The Indian Express. The book was released by NCP chief Sharad Pawar last week.
Citing an example, Gaikwad said it is common knowledge that Dr Ambedkar received a scholarship to travel to Colombia to complete his studies. What escaped commentators is the fact that Dr Ambedkar already had a clear plan in his mind even before he left Indian shores. “During his studies, he used to spend more than 12 hours in the library trying to accumulate as much knowledge as possible. His preparations were for the revolution that he unleashed later on,” he said. Gaikwad pieced this together from the various books and essays that Dr Ambedkar wrote about the Indian caste system later on.
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Significant parts of his books, Gaikwad said, were devoted to the various problems faced by Dr Ambedkar from erstwhile freedom fighters who frowned upon his demand for separate constituencies for Dalits. “Back then, many said he was trying to fragment the freedom struggle but, in reality, Dr Ambedkar wanted nothing of that sort. His identification as a Dalit leader was unfortunate as he had the greater good before him,” he said. Similarly, Gaikwad said Dr Ambedkar was not in favour of Pakistan and expounded the same in his book ‘Thoughts on Pakistan’.
Overall, Gaikwad’s book has tried to do what he said the Dalit movement has not done before – carry out an intellectual and critical analysis of Dr Ambedkar. “We bring in emotions when we talk about Dr Ambedkar, but we need to understand the greatness of the man through his intellect,” he said.
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