[Reader-list] Why I am Proud of the Statues

[anoop kumar]

*Why I am Proud of the Statues*

* Mayawati’s purpose will be defeated only when Dalits are led to believe
that the statues and the memorials were inconsequential.*

Written by Prabin Majhi & posted at Round Table
<http://blog.insightyv.com/>( a blog of Insight young voices magazine)

Is it sheer foolishness, narcissism and irresponsibility of Mayawati to
spend hundreds of crores from the state coffers on bronze and marble? The
opposition and the media seem to think so. Could it be something more than
plain self-aggrandizement? I am going to backtrack a little.

Stating his opposition to territorial constituency, Ambedkar warned, “To the
members of the Legislature it is more often than not that his class is his
skin and the constituency is a shirt, which it is unnecessary to say is one
degree removed than the skin”. Interestingly he observed that the same
wouldn’t be true for an Untouchable member of legislature if he were elected
from a reserved joint electorate.

There is no paradox here. As it turns out, the Dalit representative behaves
so because majority of the electorate who decided his fate are Hindus, not
Dalits. And, in realpolitik, he is not just a representative of the majority
to the Legislature but also of the party to the majority. Unfortunately,
since it is a Hindu majority electorate any candidate representing the Hindu
party wins. This contrivance arm-twists the Dalit representative to betray
his caste, and thereby, the purpose of reservation.

Even though the case for separate electorate was given a repelling name
“Communal Award”, nothing in the proposal barred the nationalist parties to
contest these separate constituencies. But as long as the Hindu voters and
the Untouchable voters had conflicting or even separate interests, parties
solely representing the Untouchables would win. Without separate electorate,
it would take the genius of the founders of BSP to arrive at such a
possibility, half a century later.

Even since Poona Pact, it had not been any more difficult than finding a
loyalist for Congress to appropriate Dalit political representation. Other
parties too have done that. And it continued as long as the Legislature was
dominated by a couple of political parties combined.

The votes of the Dalits in a reserved but mixed electorate, where they are
minority, would only be decisive; if 1) there were too many candidates to
divide the Hindu majority vote and 2) Dalits voted as a political block.
Emergence of Backward Castes Parties was instrumental in dividing the Hindu
majority vote block. It must have been obvious to the founders of BSP that
consolidation of Dalit votes had to be expedited.

For BSP – and for the Dalits – there was nothing more inspiring than
Ambedkar. With the caste-Hindu votes already divided, the nationalist
parties scurried for the Dalit and minority votes. Since the ease of
nominating and electing a candidate of loyalist predisposition never helped
them to create or tolerate a formidable Dalit leader of mass appeal,
Ambedkar was a fallback option.

However there was a crucial difference. While Ambedkar’s picture adorned the
walls and billboards and mouthpieces of nationalist parties, noticeably but
not prominently, BSP cadres went a step ahead and unveiled Ambedkar statues
in Dalit localities and nearest public places, often with the contribution
of the locals, notwithstanding the chagrin, objection or even resistance of
the Hindus.

This political battlefield was not imagined before. Outbidding BSP on
Ambedkar legacy would have cost the national parties the interest of the
Hindu majority and dwarfed their own idols – Nehru-Gandhis, Ram etc.

So I believe, what is disconcerting to the political parties about the
statues that Mayawati unveiling and the Memorials she is constructing is not
the wastage of precious resource - there are a lot many instances of govt.
squandering revenues and tax payers money - but the fact that by doing so
she is fortifying a political space which will be inaccessible for them for
a long time.

The space she is creating for the Dalit icons, if not opposed and embroiled
into some sort of controversy, will not only be a testimony of Dalit pride
but also an indictment of Hindu parties of their indifference to Dalits. And
by creating such grandiose structures with huge expenses Mayawati is
ensuring BSP is not outfoxed in its own political battlefield in future by
those who are crying wolf now.

Mayawati’s purpose will be defeated only when Dalits are led to believe that
the statues and the memorials were inconsequential.

*

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