A letter to one of the founding fathers of India on his birth anniversary

Respected Babasaheb,

First of all, a very happy birthday to you! Do you believe in this social construct called birthday? I don't know whether you do, but I do, and I feel one should do. It is the day that makes us realise that we exist; not merely as a part of this society, but also as an individual. Each of us is different and unique. This is the day we become privy to this very fact. So, birthdays ARE important. Especially, the birthday of someone like you is imperative for the society to move forward. Personalities like you ignite the individualism within us.

Babasaheb, you know, India as a country has witnessed major changes. Maybe you can see everything, maybe you can't. Maybe you will not even be able to recognise the India we are living in today. Given the lacunae of space, I'm certainly not going to write about everything in a single letter, I'll just write about two things that everyone associates you with. While the one has undergone a plethora of changes, the other has remained intact. Yes, you have guessed it correctly; I'm referring to the constitution and caste.

The constitution; something that we as Indians wanted to draft for ourselves since long. So many people fought for it. Lala Lajpat Rai had to die for it, for we couldn't let an all-British commission draft our constitution. Finally, we got the chance in 1946, through the establishment of the Constituent Assembly. 

This holy book that was given life by you, has gone through 104 amendments so far. It was misused, amended to cater to the whims and fancies of the legislators many times. It was also protected by the hon'ble Supreme Court several times to prevent despotism. You know, in 1973, the hon'ble Supreme Court in His Holiness Kesavananda Bharti Sripadagalvaru and Ors. v. State of Kerala and Anr., introduced the doctrine of basic features of the constitution; which curtails the power of parliament to amend the constitution as and when it pleases to cater to the parliamentarians' whims. Any provision of the constitution can be amended, provided it doesn't alter any of the basic features. The basic features are to be decided by the Supreme court from time to time. Say for example, the Supreme Court declared in S. R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994) that federalism is a basic feature of the constitution. The constitution can be amended without causing any harm to the provisions that deal with federalism. 

You must be feeling happy reading that, right? I can feel how exactly you were feeling when the draft you(or rather the committee chaired by you) made was passed in the constituent assembly. The way you defended your decisions proves how proud you were about it! It is like your own child; Is there any father who will not be happy hearing about the safeguards of one's own child? 

A lot of things have also changed. There's no country called East Pakistan now. It is called Bangladesh, a sovereign country that got separated from West Pakistan(now called only Pakistan) in 1971. India fought several wars till now.  If I start writing about each of the things, it will become a book instead of a letter. Let's bunk it for now. Let's talk about the things that haven't changed.

Contrary to the number of changes, things that remained unchanged are a fistful. And, as the fate would have it, most of it are curses. Communalism. Terrorism. Casteism. I will not be discussing them all as well for the same aforementioned reason.

Casteism. Reservation; upliftment of the marginalised; something you devoted all your life to. Babasaheb, people can never be enough grateful for your contribution. But could you ever imagine that the sword you are going to give us are double-edged, and sometimes, the other edge is blunt? Yes.

Reservation may have benefitted a lot of people. I agree. But a lot of them are from the already privileged class. Those who don't need it, get it and those who do, don't get it; most of them live in a condition where they can't even avail it. How can a poor villager who's deemed as 'untouchable' go and redeem his/her needs? Probably he/she isn't aware of the thing called reservation. Probably he/she doesn't even know something alike exists. The only thing he/she knows that he/she is an untouchable and it is a curse inflicted on him/her for his/her deeds in previous birth. What you'd envisaged, didn't bear any fruit in most of the cases; rather, in many cases, it took a wrong turn. I have seen people hating the ones using reservation. I have seen Rohit Vemula hanging himself to death for casteism. How does that bear a fruit? If we can't keep hatred out of the mind, what's the point of mere reservation and constitutional safeguard? Okay, there are punishments for the wrongdoers. What about the person who loses his/her confidence at all? What about the person ending him/herself? People forge their certificates. People who are in no way 'backward' - be it educationally, socially or economically - use their certificates just because they are entitled. And the ones who really need it, either don't get or even if they do, are mocked and bullied and insulted on a regular basis for 'stealing' a seat from the 'upper castes'.

This reservation policy, although a much-needed step, has become a tool for classifying and attacking the oppressed classes more. Yes, there has been upliftment compared to what you and dalits in your times and also in earlier times faced; but, in the rural areas mostly and in the urban areas, the scene hasn't changed much. We still have manual scavengers. We still don't want to consult a doctor belonging to scheduled caste/tribe. Is that what you envisaged Babasaheb?

Babasaheb, thankfully you are not here to see all these. We don't deserve you. We deserve this hatred, violence that degrade ourselves more and more. Humanity has long died. Whatever remains, is the shadow.

Stay well, Babasaheb. Thanks for giving us the opportunity to bear the same nationality as yours.

From,
An 'unreserved' guy who hasn't read any of your works but respects you and believes that caste is a curse that must be done away with while uplifting the marginalised (once a critic of you).