The slogan given by the Congress – Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim – after the meeting on the working committee in Belagavi in Karnataka, doesn’t only demonstrate the change in its politics but also bridges the historical gap between two great leaders who shaped modern India’s destiny. The differences between Mahatma Gandhi and B.R. Ambedkar were not fundamental and the Congress has finally understood that the future path will be easier to traverse if the complementary roles of these political sages are understood in the right perspective.
Although the Congress slogan is coined in the context of preserving the constitution, it has come at a time when the political logic supports such an amalgamation. The merger of Gandhi and Ambedkar is the natural progression of the paradigm shift in the Congress, brought about by Rahul Gandhi, manifested most clearly through his obsessive campaign for caste census that would escalate the process of social justice in the country. Rahul has also shed the traditional hollow symbolism of the Congress and undertaken institutional reform, giving adequate representation to Dalits and backward castes in the organisation, apart from making Mallikarjun Kharge the president of the party.
It is too early to say whether the ‘Jai Bapu-Jai Bhim’ slogan will have any transformative impact on the Dalit movement which has been hostile to the Congress, it can be safely argued that this new discourse will help the secular forces in dragging the deprived sections of society away from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-Bharatiya Janata Party (RSS-BJP) Hindutva project.
Gandhi, after all, had a critical role in bringing the question of untouchability into the political mainstream and the Congress leadership’s inability to effectively counter the perception that his politics was antithetical to Ambedkar’s philosophy allowed the Dalit-backwards to step outside its fold after the early decades of the post-Independence era.
Also read: Congress Accuses Government of Disrespect at Manmohan Singh’s Funeral
The roles of Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru in making Ambedkar the head of the drafting committee of the constitution has been grossly understated. The tussle between the BJP and the Congress today for Ambedkar’s legacy will appear ridiculous if a dispassionate analysis is done on the possibility of a “Shudra” being allowed to write the constitution of independent India by the apologists of Manusmiriti. This was impossible without the grace and liberal commitments of Gandhi-Nehru.
A Dalit writing the laws for a modern nation-state is unthinkable for a person who believes in the regressive socio-religious prescriptions of Manusmriti. The contemptuous attitude of V.D. Savarkar and the RSS about Ambedkar in the initial decades before and after Independence bears testimony to this conclusion. Ambedkar also had strong reservations against the Congress and asked Dalits to stay away from the party despite his total rejection of Hindutva politics.
Rahul has now successfully demolished the perception of the Congress being a party of the Brahmins and the bourgeoisie and showed his sincerity to address structural disparities in the society and the system. This new resolve has come at a time when the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is languishing in an inexplicable political mess, the Maharashtra Dalit outfits are seen as BJP’s hidden and upfront allies and other forces of social justice are partners of the Congress.
The irresponsible statement on Ambedkar by home minister Amit Shah provided the trigger the Congress yearned for, enabling it to use the 100th year of Gandhi’s presidentship of the party as the right occasion for the launch of this new politics. Belagavi’s importance has been understated by the mainstream media but the synergy between Gandhi and Ambedkar imagined by the Congress will have far-reaching consequences.
The BJP, which possesses a unique expertise in divisive politics, would have isolated the Congress in many states if they stuck to caste census and Ambedkar symbolism alone. The Congress, after all, in not in the race to become another BSP and it cannot regain its lost glory without occupying the centrist position. The Ambedkar symbol is not enough for its politics and it soon completed the circle by restoring Gandhi as the main ingredient.
While Gandhi symbolises its core principles of equality, fraternity, secularism and non-violence, by creating space for Ambedkar on the same platform, the Congress has signalled its willingness to fight for social justice and the empowerment of the most deprived sections of society. By aggressively pursuing this agenda, the Congress can not only claw back its traditional Dalit-Muslim vote, it can also lay claim on a substantial section of OBC vote. Gandhi and Ambedkar together make a powerful symbol of equality and justice, bringing the sanctity of constitutional principles on top of the political discourse.
Also read: Amit Shah’s Remarks on Ambedkar Echo the Cultivated Contempt of Hindutva Forces for Him
The Congress working committee (CWC) reaffirmed its “unwavering commitment” to the values that defined Gandhi, arguing that his life was dedicated to both political freedom and societal transformation. The resolution passed by the CWC said:
“In our continued quest for deeper social and economic justice and growth with ecological balance he continues to be a guide and a moral compass. In our continued pursuit of communal harmony and amity, without which economic advancement will have little meaning, he remains the exemplar. The Congress believes that it is ironic, even reprehensible, that those very ideologies that bitterly opposed him during his lifetime are now hypocritically invoking him. The patronage provided to his killers and their glorification in recent years reveals the true colours of these ideologies and institutions. The politics of polarisation and divisiveness is a rejection of the very essence of Gandhian beliefs.”
The resolution expressed profound distress over the ongoing degradation of our democracy.
“Institutions such as the judiciary, the Election Commission, and the media have been politicised through executive pressure. Parliament has been gutted, as shown by the unprecedented obstruction of its proceedings by the treasury benches in the recently-concluded Winter Session of 2024. The constitution’s federal structure continues to be under attack, most recently from the government’s One Nation, One Election Bill. The CWC condemns the Centre’s amendment to the Conduct of Election Rules 1961 undertaken on the recommendation of the Election Commission of India which restricts public access to crucial sections of poll documents. This undermines the principles of transparency and accountability that form the cornerstone of free and fair elections. We have challenged these amendments in the Supreme Court. The way elections have been conducted in Haryana and Maharashtra especially, have already eroded the integrity of the electoral process.”
The CWC demanded caste census and removal of the 50% ceiling on reservations for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Castes (OBCs). It also called for MSP law and increase of daily wage to Rs 400, announcing a year-long agitation programme to mount pressure on the government. Agitations on such varied subjects like electoral malpractices and economic inequality, unemployment and agrarian distress, under the umbrella of ‘Jai Bapu-Jai Bhim’ slogan mean the Congress has significantly broadened its political canvass. It has also promised organisational revamp, an exercise that will send a firm signal towards its commitment to the politics of Gandhi-Ambedkar synergy.
Sanjay K. Jha is a political commentator.
