He was born on 14 April, 1891, as an untouchable, in the very small military cantonment called Mhow, in Madhya Pradesh. He was the 14th and the last child of Ramji Maloji Sakpal and Bhimabai. He learnt early on that belonging to the Mahar caste only set you up for more and more of socio-economic discrimination for life.  He was not deterred by such negative social forces. He fought these challenges with intelligence, hard work, patience, and went on to become an eminent politician, philosopher, jurist and one of the primary architects of the Indian Constitution!

Who is he?

He is Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, the first Law Minister and the Chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee of India.

Ambedkar was a champion of the downtrodden and the victims of the caste system. Labelled an “untouchable” by the upper class, Ambedkar faced severe discrimination even at the Army school where he studied. He was made to sit outside the class or separately from the Brahmins and other upper caste students. Social injustice followed wherever he went. Bhimrao valued education and he continued to study despite heavy discrimination.

He graduated from the Bombay University, and then earned a scholarship to study in the USA. He was awarded honour of D.Sc. by the London University and a Doctorate by the University of Columbia. By the time Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar came back to India, he had made a resolve to battle the caste discrimination which had plagued the Indian society. He actively worked towards creating equality for all and favoured the concept of reservations for the socio-economic weaker sections. He also started a newspaper called as “Mooknayaka” (leader of the silent). In 1936, B.R. Ambedkar founded the Independent Labor Party. Soon, he was part of the Defence Advisory Committee and the Minister for Labor for Viceroy’s Executive Council. His reputation as a scholar grew so much that he was appointed as the newly independent India’s first, Law Minister and chairman of the committee responsible to draft a constitution.

A trip to Sri Lanka in 1950 to attend a convention of Buddhist scholars and monks changed his life. Impressed by the Buddhist teachings, he adopted Buddhism and went on to write a book titled “The Buddha and His Dhamma”.Ambedkar founded the Bharatiya Bauddha Mahasabha and continued to inspire more people to follow Buddhism.

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar died on 6 December, 1956 at his home in Delhi. Thousands of activists and admirers mourned the passing away of such a great man. Many offices and institutions remain closed on his birthday known as Ambedkar Jayanti or Bhim Jayanti.

Ambedkar’s death did not let his glory end. In 1990 he was posthumously awarded the prestigious Bharat Ratna: the highest civilian honour given to any Indian. Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar’s story is an inspiration for many – it was a life full of struggle, hard work, hope and finally success. His stood for values that are important – equality and fraternity. Let’s today salute his achievements.