B.R.

Ambedkar(1891-1956)
Early Life and Works
• Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was born in December 1891 in the Mahar
community , an untouchable caste of Maharashtra .
• After receiving his early education at satna and Bombay , he went for
higher studies to Columbia University , U.S.A. as Gaekwar Scholar .
• He obtained his M.A. and Ph.D Degrees from Columbia University .
• On return to India he took up job as professor of Economics with
Sydenham College of Commerce Bombay .
• In 1917 he first went to Bonn and then to London . He obtained D.Sc
in Economics and Commerce from London University .
• As a member of the untouchable community he had to face lot of
humiliation and therefore took up the cause of the untouchables .
• He founded Bahishkrit Hitkarini Sabha (Untouchable Classes Welfare
League ) to fight for the rights of Untouchables .
His Famous Works
• Problem of Rupee
• Evolution of Provincial finance in British India
• Castes in India
• Small holdings and their Remedies
B. R. AMBEDKAR (1891-1956)
EARLY LIFE AND WORKS

• Bhim Rao Ramji Ambedkar was born in December 1891 in

the Mahar community , an untouchable caste of
Maharashtra .
• After receiving his early education at Satna and Bombay , he
went for higher studies to Columbia University , U.S.A. as
Gaekwar Scholar .
• He obtained his M.A. and Ph.D. Degrees from Columbia
University .
• On return to India he took up job as professor of Economics
with Sydenham College of Commerce Bombay .
• In 1917 he first went to Bonn and then to London . He
obtained D.Sc. in Economics and Commerce from London
University .
• As a member of the untouchable community he had to face lot
of humiliation and therefore took up the cause of the
untouchables .
• He founded Bahishkrit Hitkarini Sabha (Untouchable Classes
Welfare League ) to fight for the rights of Untouchables .
HIS FAMOUS WORKS

• Problem of Rupee
• Evolution of Provincial finance in British India
• Castes in India
• Small holdings and their Remedies
ANNIHILATION OF CASTE

• Annihilation of Caste is one of the foremost monographs

published by Ambedkar aimed at explaining the exploitative
nature of caste and calling for its annihilation in order to
secure a social order based on equal status and dignity for
all .
• The basic augment of Ambedkar in the Annihilation of
Caste is that caste system is the debilitating institution of
the Indian society which instead of doing any good has
wrought irreparable loss to the untouchables and ,
therefore , needs to be eradicated without any repentance .
He begins by exposing the inherent nature of the caste
system which has been found to be grounded in false
notions of division of labor in conjunction with the
gradation of laborer's as well .
• Ambedkar tries to unmask the hidden pernicious
motivations behind the idea of ‘Chaturvarnya’ , as the
foundation of caste system .He argues that as system of
social organization , ‘Chaturvarnya’ appears to be
impracticable and harmful .
• Having exposed the inherent fallacies of the caste system
and its conceptual construct Chaturvarnya , Ambedkar
exhorts people to go for transforming the Hindu social
order . He maintains that various methods have been
suggested in this regard but most of them appear
inadequate in themselves . For instance , the idea of
changing the social order by abolishing sub-castes would
not suffice as it would not necessarily lead to the abolition
of caste.
 Similarly , inter-caste dining would serve only limited purpose
as it would not succeed in killing the spirit and consciousness
of caste . The abolition of caste , thus , argues Ambedkar , can
be achieved only by intermarriage .
• Ambedkar raises the question on the chances of the success of
social reform aimed at annihilating the caste . He very
perceptibly discerns that of the various methods of bringing
out social reform , the one to suit the purpose of abolishing
caste would need to be routed through the denouncement of
fundamental religious notions.
• As he argues , ‘Caste has a divine basis . You must therefore
destroy the sacredness and divinity with which caste has
become invested .In the last analysis, this means you must
destroy the authority of Shashtras and the Vedas .’ However
, this seemingly turned out to pious wishes of Ambedkar as
he was quick enough to point out that such a task might be
well-nigh possible for certain obvious reasons.
For instance , while the Brahmans would be the most formidable
stumbling block in this context due to their vested interests in the
existing social order , the other castes might also not go for it keeping
in mind the two unique aspects of the caste system .
In one of its aspects , it divides men in to separate communities . In
its second aspect , it places these communities in a graded order one
above the other in social status . Each caste takes its pride and its
consolation in the fact that in the scale of castes it is above some
other caste .
Therefore , the path of destruction of caste needs to be treaded
carefully and dynamically.
• In conclusion , it may be argued that the Annihilation of
Caste was apparently conceptualised by Ambedkar in order
to provide for a comprehensive critique of the exploitative
and inequitable elements of the Hindu society , on the one
hand ,and suggest the ways and means of carrying out the
required level of socio religious reforms in the right
direction ,on the other .In doing so , it appeared that
Ambedkar still reposed his faith in the reformability of the
Hindu society and Hindu religion which lay at the root of
the caste system .
REFERENCES

• ‘Modern Indian Political Thought’ – Bidyut Chakrabarty ,

Rajendra Kumar Pandey
• ‘Selected Western and Indian Political Thinkers’ – Prem
Arora , Brij Grover
• https://youtu.be/mU3eADRQLSE
THANKS
GANDHI ON STATE
GANDHI ON STATE

• A Non-Violent State
• Faith in Spiritual Democracy
• More Emphasis on Duties rather than Rights
• Decentralization of Authority
• Thanks
GANDHI ON
SWADESHI
GANDHI AND SWADESHI
Religious Political Economic

• Swadeshi literally means love for one’s own country . However Gandhi applied the
concept to various spheres of viz. religious , economic and political .
GANDHI’S SCHEME OF EDUCATION :- IMPORTANT
POINTS
• Gandhi was strongly opposed to the English system of education and favoured its
replacement by an indigenous scheme . His opposition to the western system of
education was on account of number of reasons . (1) It was based on foreign
culture
• (2) It ignored the culture of heart and hand and confined itself only to the head .
• (3) It was imported through foreign medium
• Gandhi insisted on the replacement of the existing system of education by basic
education and presented his own scheme .
• Gandhi’s scheme of basic education covered the period from 7 to 14 years of age and
laid emphasis on physical drill , drawing handicrafts etc .
• It maybe noted that Gandhi’s scheme of education handicrafts were not to be taught side
by side with the liberal education , but the whole scheme of education was based on the
handicrafts and industry .
• Gandhi’s scheme of education was economically self- supporting .
• Thanks
GANDHI ON
SATYAGRAHA
 SATYAGRAHA

• Satyagraha literally means ‘holding fast to truth’.

• Satyagraha is based on soul force .
• It is the courage of dying without killing .
• No scope for cowardice .
• Gandhi preferred violence over cowardice in Satyagraha .
 PASSIVE RESISTANCE

• Weapon of the weak .

• Based on the principle of expediency .
TECHNIQUES OF SATYAGRAHA:-

• Non-Co-Operation :- Strike , Picketing , Social Ostracism or social Boycott

• Civil- Disobedience
• Fasting
• Hijrat
 GANDHI ON END AND MEANS

• Gandhi saw a very intimate relationship between the end and means
• He argued that if we take care of the means to a seed and the end to a tree and
asserted that there is just the same inviolable connection between the means and the
end as there is between the seed and the tree .
• He asserted that moral ends can be achieved through moral means
• Gandhi considered means as more important than the end because the end grew out of
the means .Further the individual could have control only over the means and not over
the ends .
• Thanks
GANDHI
(1869-1948)
• Thanks