Dr. B.R. Ambedkar was born Bhimrao Ramji Sakpal. That was the name his family boreβthey were of the Mahar caste, who were "untouchables" during that time. Now here's where it turns around: When Bhimrao was at school in Satara, a Brahmin teacher named Krishna Keshav Ambedkar befriended him. But as caRead more
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar was born Bhimrao Ramji Sakpal. That was the name his family boreβthey were of the Mahar caste, who were “untouchables” during that time. Now here’s where it turns around:
When Bhimrao was at school in Satara, a Brahmin teacher named Krishna Keshav Ambedkar befriended him. But as caste society was doing the most, Bhimrao’s own earliest surname, Sakpal, branded him instantly as “lower caste.” So this teacher, perhaps attempting to ‘assist’ or perhaps merely desiring to distance Bhimrao from the baggage of caste, enrolled him for school using his own surname, “Ambedkar.”.
And that’s the name that accompanied Bhimrao into history. Consider this: an entire legacy tied to a name he did not even choose for himself. But what is poetic is how Bhimrao reversed that name and rewrote the narrative. He transformed Ambedkar into a badge of resistance, of intellect, of equality, of liberation.
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Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's interactions with the British colonial regime were compounded and calculated. Instead of joining the mainstream nationalist struggles, he believed in dealing with the colonial government to plead the cause of the underprivileged, especially the Dalits.β During World War II, AmbedRead more
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s interactions with the British colonial regime were compounded and calculated. Instead of joining the mainstream nationalist struggles, he believed in dealing with the colonial government to plead the cause of the underprivileged, especially the Dalits.β
During World War II, Ambedkar became a member of the Viceroy’s Executive Council as Labour Member, a place where he could lobby for labor reforms and social justice measures. He felt that participation within the system would bring certain gains to the downtrodden classes.
Ambedkar’s support for the British was not unwavering. He was critical of their policies when they did not seek to address social inequality and caste discrimination. His first loyalty was to the cause of social justice, and he used every platform available to him to advance the cause.β
In reality, Ambedkar’s engagement with the British was motivated by pragmatism in order to deliver social reform. He was not a loyalist in the conventional sense but a reformer who wanted to leverage available structures in order to implement change.
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