A week after his resignation, former Delhi minister Rajendra Pal Gautam is flexing muscles as he tries to portray himself as the poster boy of Dalit politics.
After holding a peaceful march against ‘Brahminism’ along with thousands of his supporters in the national capital, Gautam is now planning to spread his wings as he announced the start of the Jaati Unmoolan Sankalp Yatra during which he will visit across the country for the upliftment of Dalits, Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes.
Speaking to The New Indian, Rajendra Pal Gautam said, “Babasaheb was once invited to Lahore, where he had to speak on the annihilation of caste. He was asked for a written lecture. He submitted it. After reading the speech, the Jati Todak Mandal – Arya Samaj people – asked him to change it saying they could not allow this. Babasaheb then said that ‘changing it is a far-fetched thought. I won’t change even a comma, full stop’.”
Gautam also said that casteism in India is making a hole in the soul of India. “It is ruining the country,” Gautam said, adding, “What Babasaheb Ambedkar had written in Annihilation of Caste showed that he gave his whole life to ending caste. But caste has not ended in India.”
“Even our President, Ramnath Kovind, was not allowed inside Jagannathpuri Mandir, saying that you may be a president but you are a Dalit. Sometimes people are killed for touching idols of Hindu Gods,” he exclaimed.
“The beliefs that keep us in the dark and create differences keep us away from scientific thinking. We will not follow any such belief. We will fight the anti-social elements and, with the fire of casteism–free India in our hearts, we will march across the country,” Gautam said.
Gautam and his supporters will go to Nagpur Diksha Bhoomi, where Babasaheb was baptized. There they will repeat the slogan “Brahmanism and casteism-free India”. From there they are going to Chandrapur.
“We have a target for our India March. We want to end casteism in India. Our politicians today don’t want to end casteism. I am happy that the RSS has taken this stand. Whether it was a lie or not, we will shape this idea of anti-casteism,” he said.