Babasaheb : A man beyond hatred - A linguistic approach

 

Babasaheb: A man beyond hatred - A linguistic approach

Babasaheb, a man of huge spiritual, social, judicial, and philosophical magnitude also known to the mass as - Dr. B. R. Ambedkar has been always an epicenter of pride, prejudice and partiality. Both the political and so-called apolitical mobs have been leading or discussing Babasaheb as a rebel against the Indian culture and faith ending up in a quagmire of indecisiveness in the minds of young and old eventually painting hatred amongst the mass. Let us analyze another aspect of Babasaheb’s life and personality today in a more impartial, linguistic, apolitical yet astringent to many for the same reasons. On his day of Jati (Birth in Pali), let us offer him an impartial offering by bringing out the linguistic mind behind this great personality...
Being the fourteenth child in the Sakpal family (Born on 14 April 1891 in Madhya Pradesh) Babasaheb was passionate about studies from the earliest of his age. His father Ramji Sakpal was a Subedar in the Indian Army and posted at Mhow cantonment, MP, which brought another advantage of sowing nationality and the idea of unity in his young tender heart and mind.
Establishing himself as a political leader, eminent jurist, Buddhist activist, philosopher, anthropologist, historian, orator, writer, economist, scholar and editor, Babasaheb fought to eradicate social evils like untouchability and for the rights of the Dalits and other socially backward classes throughout his life. But is this all? I think now the political propagandas will redirect your mind towards the exaggerated narrative of Anti-Brahmanism leading to the pseudo theory of Aryan invasion and finally landing at Indian culture as an imposition with alien components. Then let us rethink our bases bolstered with evidence and impartial deduction.
The narrative of Babasaheb’s life from decades has been hijacked or can be said manipulated as a device for political fortification to accumulate support and to manifest and stagnate the idea of division for future ramifications.
There are many dividing forces about which even Babasaheb warned the nation about, who tries and paints every aspect of our national life as oppressive, unjust, and evil. Unfortunately, many gullible Hindus fall into this trap. It is true that Ambedkar was incisive in his criticism on some aspects of our national life but at the same time, he believed they were anomalies and had faith in the innate genius of our nation and its base.

              

Linguistic vision towards unity

“Ambedkar consistently argued that the proposed linguistic states would become socially more homogeneous and politically democratic in due course of time. His proposals about the formation of linguistic states emanated from his the democratic impulse to accord political and cultural recognition to the term the region, otherwise defined predominantly in a geographical spatial sense.” – Economic and Political Weekly.
In his treatise – “Thoughts on the Linguistic States” published on 23rd December 1955 Babasaheb clearly analyzed the pros and cons of being a united nation and the value of language to unify the same by focusing light on the idea of “one state, one language”.
Mapping back to the roots of language and linguistic origin he also suggested Sanskrit as the national language being the base of all the original Indian languages.
Being a jurist himself he surely would not have suggested the same without evidence.
Babasaheb knew that Indian languages ​​and dialects flow through Sanskrit. There will be no dispute in the name of adopting Sanskrit.
In the Constituent Assembly of 1949, 10 September, Babasaheb suggested Sanskrit as a national language, although, accepted that English could be retained as the official language of the country for at least 15 years later on due to the opposition of many young misguided students. Babasaheb also suggested formulating the Council of National Language immediately after the independence of the country to make Sanskrit the official language of the Union of India.
Babasaheb knew that there is a possibility in Sanskrit which is the mother of all Indian languages.
On September 11, 1949, a news report appeared in the newspaper ‘National Herald,’ ‘Ambedkar with Sanskrit.’ According to this news, Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar, Law Minister of India was among those who were advocating to make Sanskrit the official language of the Indian Union. In this proposal, he will be accompanied by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. B.V. Nasiruddin Ahmad, MP from Keskar and Bengal were also there.
On Baba Saheb Ambedkar, when asked about this question, he told the PTI correspondent, “Why? What is the fault in Sanskrit? ‘Ambedkar said that the Legislative Council would also consider this amendment while considering the official language. In addition to Ambedkar, in addition to Ambedkar, Pandit Laxmikant Mitra (Bengal), T. T. There were 15 people, including Krishnamachari (Madras). The names are – G.S. Guha (Tripura-Manipur), CM Poonch (Kashi), V. Ramayya (Pudukottah), V.I. Muniswamy Pillai (Madras), Kallur Subbarao (Madras), V.C. Keshav Rao (Madras), D. Govind Das (Madras), P. Subbarao (Madras), V. Subramanyam (Madras), Smt. Durga Bai (Madras) and Smt. Dyakshayani Velayudhan (Madras).

Paper cuttings from 1949

Babasaheb had 3 points in the proposal which was entrusted to the Jawaharlal Nehru government.


The first was –
1. Sanskrit should be the language of the Indian Union.
The second proposal was-
2. For the first 15 years of independence, English could be used as an official language, but Sanskrit should be used as its parallel official language. After 15 years, Sanskrit has been made the official language of the Union.
The third proposal was -
3. The Parliament should make the law of taking English to work for only 15 years.


Babasaheb’s suggestion was for the amendment of that proposal, in which the National Language System Council had given its three proposals to the government in August 1949. In his proposals, the Council had decided that Hindi should be distinguished in place of English, which does not take more than ten years. Different territories of the Indian Union will be free to use their regional languages. However, the teaching of 2 Indian languages ​​in the teaching method of these provinces will be necessary. The Council also decides that the Indian Union should use Sanskrit in the places of ideal sentences, titles, and as a Motto.

He also advocated against the Arya and Dravid concept and supported the idea of their original descendancy. It was also believed by Maharishi Arvind, Swami Vivekananda, and Dayanand Saraswati. Ambedkar wanted to break these misconceptions.


The distorted history and lost identity, manipulated scriptures and broken faiths are now the basis of what we see and say today. But though being in mid of remnants and convoluted faiths, we have to stand together united against all the hatred and prejudice of the profit-hungry political groups to bring back the forgotten glory of our nation with the vision of Babasaheb.

Written by - Dipankar Bhattacharya (Founder, The Hope)