L K Advani
Why Hindu society needs reform
“A
subject of utmost importance for India’s all-round development and
national resurgence is the reform and self-renewal of the Hindu society.
Hinduism is the repository of the most exalted teachings about human
evolution and realisation of God. Its philosophy is profound and the
relevance of its principles is both universal and eternal. Its
distinguishing feature is its lack of dogma, its readiness to accept
truth in all its manifestations, without putting the seal of finality on
any of them, and its emphasis on the need to climb higher on the ladder
of human evolution through righteous living. The freedom of thought and
expression that it provides in all intellectual, theological and
philosophical matters is unmatched. So much so that even Charvaka, who
denied the existence of God, was respected as a rishi (seer)
because of his erudition. Since Hinduism teaches us to see the divine in
every animate and inanimate creation of God, the concept of equality of
human beings is in-built in its belief system. The Bhagavad Gita states emphatically that a man’s greatness is determined by his karma and not by his birth.
Nevertheless,
due to many historical factors the Hindu society acquired certain
negative, regressive and thoroughly indefensible features, which it has
still not fully got rid of. The concept of high and low among castes
and, in particular, the practice of treating certain castes as
‘untouchables’ is the most debilitating among these drawbacks. The
injustice in many forms that is often meted to women is another. These
cannot be tolerated or rationalised on any grounds. They violate the
ideals enshrined in the Indian Constitution and run contrary to the
spiritual principles that have guided the Hindu way of life for several
millennia. Hindu society cannot regain its full vigour or progress to
its full potential unless it fights the ills within.”
‘Sab jaati mahaan, Sab jaati samaan’
“Two
points need to be emphasised here. Firstly, time and again the Hindu
society has demonstrated both its willingness and capacity to reform
itself by rediscovering its own foundational principles as well as by
learning from other constituents of humanity. Secondly, considerable
progress has indeed been achieved in the modern era, both during the
freedom movement and the decades that followed. This is due to the
effors of many modern-day saints and social reformers such as Swami
Vivekananda, Swami Dayananda, Raja Ram Mohun Roy, Mahatma Jyotiba Phule
and his wife Savitribai Phule, Narayan Guru and, of course, Mahatma
Gandhi and Dr B.R. Ambedkar. In this context, I would like to specially
commend the work of the RSS and the various organisations inspired by
it, all of which emphasise the message of social equality in their
mission for Hindu unity and Hindu renaissance. Balasaheb Deoras, the
third Sarsanghchalak of the RSS, used to say: ‘If untouchability is not a sin, then nothing in the world is a sin.’
This
progress towards social equality should be further accelerated. The
policy of reservations, combined with the scope that electoral politics
provides for representation in the power structure at all levels, has
considerably enhanced the social, economic and political empowerment of
the disadvantaged sections of our society. This is nothing short of a
silent social revolution, brought about by our democratic system. This,
too, needs to be strengthened. Since quality education has become a key
of socio-economic advancement, India’s focus in the coming years should
be more on educational and economic empowerment of SCs, STs, OBCs and
other weaker sections. Castes may still remain as markers of social
identity, but casteism must be rooted out of India of the future. In
this context, the one slogan that needs to be popularised more and more
in times to come is: ‘Sab jaati mahaan, Sab jaati samaan’ (All castes are great and all castes are equal).”
Tribute to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, a great social revolutionary
“Today is Ambedkar Jayanti. I feel a sense of dhanya (spiritually uplifted) by coming to the birthplace of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar on his birth anniversary.
We have a long and hallowed tradition in India of viewing the place of birth or mahanirvaan
of a great soul as a sacred place. India has three places that have
been made holy by their association with the life of this Maha Maanav.
The first is Mhow, which is Dr. Ambedkar’s Janmabhoomi. The second is
Deekshabhoomi in Nagpur, where Dr. Ambedkar embraced Buddhism along with
tens of thousands of his followers. The third is Chaityabhoomi at Dadar
Beach in Mumbai, where his Samadhi has been erected.
According to me, all the three places — Janmabhoomi, Deekshabhoomi and Chaityabhoomi — are worthy of being considered as pilgrimage centres.
Of
these three, Mhow has somehow not received the kind of national and
international visibility that the other two places have got. I therefore
congratulate the Government of Madhya Pradesh and Chief Minister Shri
Shivraj Singh Chauhan for having erected this impressive memorial to
honour the legacy of Dr. Ambedkar at his birthplace.
Dr. Ambedkar is by far the best example in modern times that a man attains greatness through his karma (work) and not through his janma
(birth). His personality was a combination of colossal scholarship and
equally colossal social activism. Indeed, this is how the great social
reformers of all time have been. If we study the lives of the great men
and women of India who were born in different ages, we find that they
belonged to different schools of thought. Nevertheless, what was common
among them was their deep concern for humanity and their espousal of
certain universal and eternal values. Each of them enlightened the path
for the society in which they lived.
Dr.
Ambedkar, too, did the same by spiritedly fighting for Equality,
Dignity and Justice for all. Let me cite a seminal thought expressed by
Dr. Ambedkar:
"A
democratic form of Government presupposes a democratic form of society.
The formal framework of democracy is of no value and would indeed be a
misfit if there was no social democracy."
Dr. Ambedkar had also rightly
said that political freedom is incomplete without social and economic
freedom. He thereby added the important dimension of social liberation
of the depressed classes to India’s struggle for political independence
from British rule.
Mahatma
Gandhi, too, did the same from his own perspective. Those who pit
Gandhiji against Dr. Ambedkar are doing disservice to the memories of
both these great men. Their paths were different, but their goal was the
same.
From a
different perspective, the RSS also has been contributing to the same
effort towards eradicating the evil of untouchability and caste
discrimination in our society. The late Balasaheb Deoras once said, “If untouchability is not a sin, then nothing in the world is a sin.”
This
mission for social equality and social justice is still incomplete. It
must be continued with commitment and vigour until the goal is achieved.
In doing so, we must not lose sight of the need for social harmony (samajik samarasata).
The
Bhopal Declaration, which the previous Congress government in Madhya
Pradesh had unveiled in 2002, was a document that sought to promote
division and disharmony in society in the name of social justice.
Indeed, this was an anti-Hindu document insofar as it openly propagated
prejudice against Hinduism. As far as the BJP is concerned, we are
equally committed to the three inter-related ideals — samata, samajik nyay and samajik samarasata.
Indeed, samata-yukt and shoshan-mukt samaj (a society based on equality and free from exploitation) is one of the five foundational principles of the BJP.
Friends, we should recognize that the struggle for achieving this noble goal requires sustained and multi-pronged efforts.
The
Constitution of India, whose principal author was Dr. Ambedkar, has
enshrined many important guiding principles and many liberative
provisions. These must be scrupulously followed.
Therefore,
all such measures of affirmative action aimed at social, economic and
educational empowerment of those sections of society, which have
remained backward for historical reasons, should be welcomed. This is
the reason why the BJP has welcomed the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on
providing 27 % reservation for OBCs in central educational
institutions.
Nevertheless,
it is important to see that such measures are only a partial, albeit
necessary, step forward towards the goal of an egalitarian and just
society. A lot of sustained effort is required in the social, economic
and primary education fields to liberate crores of marginalized people
from the shackles of poverty, want and backwardness.
In
the social field, we must unhesitatingly and untiringly struggle
against every vestige of discrimination based on caste. The slogan we
should popularize, and the slogan which we should follow in practice, in
order to promote Dr. Ambedkar’s vision of Social Democracy is: Sab Jaati Samaan, Sab Jaati Mahaan (All castes are equal and all castes are great.)
In
the economic field, we must vastly enhance opportunities for gainful
employment, focus on rejuvenation of agriculture and other traditional
vocations on which crores of SCs, STs and OBCs still depend, and
simultaneously open up new avenues of prosperity linked to the thrust
areas of India’s development.
Education
is quite simply the key to unlock the doors of progress for all
sections of society, but more especially for those who have lagged
behind. Hence, the time has come to achieve a quantum increase in the
opportunities for quality education at all levels — from primary to
post-graduation level — and for all sections of society, with a
preference for those who have lagged behind.
These objectives in the social, economic and educational fields cannot achieved without Good Governance and Good Politics.
After
all, the Congress party has ruled India for more than five decades. Why
hasn’t it brought about a significant change in the developmental
profile of the SCs, STs and the poor in general?
If
the leadership is not honest and upright, if the government does not
adopt the right policies and programmes, if the machinery whose task it
is implement those policies and programmes is corrupt and
people-unfriendly, and if people are not motivated by a sense of
participation in the working of the government, we cannot expect the lot
of the poor and the downtrodden to change much.
Therefore,
the time has come for the SCs, STs and the poor belonging to other
sections of society to reject the Congress completely — both at the
Centre and in states.
Today,
on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti, let me reiterate that the BJP has
an integral vision of the development of Indian society. Indeed, ours is
the only party that has an integral vision of development, which is
rooted in our national values and progressive national traditions. I
wish to state emphatically that our Party shall pursue this integral
vision of development with devotion and determination by:
- Reaching out to our brethren belonging to the SCs, STs and OBCs more than ever before;
- Orienting, more than ever before, the policies, schemes and programmes of our state governments towards maximizing benefits for the SCs, STs and OBCs;
- Caring, more than ever before, for the poor and needy among all the other sections of society, including the upper castes and religious minorities;
- Focusing, more than ever before, on Good Governance and Good Politics, since these are critical for making a clean break from the Congress party’s sordid record of poor governance; slow and skewed development; and politics of corruption, opportunism and appeasement.”
— From the address by Shri L.K. Advani at a function in Mhow (Madhya Pradesh) on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti; 14 April 2008
No comments:
Post a Comment