Long Live Ambedkarism

Long Live Ambedkarism

Dr.P.Kesava Kumar

Attack on Ambedkar statues in Coastal Andhra is a symbolic attack on dalit consciousness. This has to be understood in a social context of Andhra and emerging forces. The attacks are not spntaneous or emotional but systematically planned. It seems there is a conspiracy to get the political milege.In Andhra political situation is very unstable.Every political par...ty is uncertain about future elections . CM is already working out strategies to eliminate potential threats within his party. Jagan is putting all his efforts to consolidate dalit and reddy vote bank.He thought that only way to escape from multi crore scams is to get more visibility in public. Chandrababu wants to take advantage from the political unstable situation and preparing for elections with new image.All the political parties have an eye on dalit vote .Dalits are at cross roads.They lost even the bargaining capacity with mainstream political parties long back.The consciousness is fragmented to subcastes.The conscious in the line of subcastes helps them to conslidate community with reference to other community but lost the capacity to push any issue further or to kep pressure on ruling parties. The attacks are happening when dalits are not in a position to emerge as an autonomos political force.The situation demands that dalit is the better identity to inaugurate dalit self rather mala or madiga identity.By identification with a category 'dalit' their energies will be consolidated and provides the political direction.The installation of rajasekarreddy statues in dalit village rather in reddy locality or in the other public places reflects the submerged comnsciousness of dalits under hegemonic forces. This is one kind of surrender to dominant hegemonic ruling communities.Keeping the statue of Rajasekhar reddy along with Ambedkar, dalits lost the direction.They carried with a popularism that has constructed artificially.The need of the hour is to assertion of dalits in public space by protecting their symbols and at the same time differentiating from other imposed symbols.Interstngly dalits are responding to the cultural symbols emotionally but the same emotion is missing on many issues relating to dalit exploitation.Dalit masses are identified with Ambedkar statues but at the same we fail to see the same carrying further the spirit of Ambedkar's philosophy .Ambedkar is a symbol of protest that questining the upper caste hegermony in all forms.Rajasehkarreddy is a symbol of surrender to the caste hegemony.Organising politics in the line of Ambedkar will definetely keep check on these kinds of attacks on Ambedkar statues.We have to take up our struggles from symbolic to real life situations.Condemn the attacks on Dalit Consciousness.Long Live Ambedkarism!See More