THE ASIAN INDEPENDENT UK
Ramesh Chander
The writer is A Retired Career Diplomat.
My family friend, Ram Lal Dass, passed away on March 3, after a brief hospitalization in the wake of some heart-ailment. For the last of couple of years, he was weathering the old age infirmities with courage and fortitude through his social intermingling and keeping himself busy in household and family matters. In one line, I would say that he was an intellectual face of the community while trying his best to remain humane as good human being. With the demise of Ram Lal, I have lost a friend; guide and philosopher at one go. Ram Lal was an asset of the community as a staunch Ambedkarite, devout Buddhist and a selfless social activist of standing.
My association with him dates back to our formative years in school and college in 1960s. His father, Karam Chand came back with family from Patna where he was engaged in leather business and settled in our extended neighbourhood in Bootan Mandi, my native place in Jalandhar. We became friends in the process in our school days and later we both joined DAV College for higher education. As young students in our formative years, we joined hands to do some community service both in our native place, Bootan Mandi but also to engage the student community to watch and guard interests of the SC students through association of SC students in Jalandhar and beyond, Babasaheb Ambedkar as our icon and aspiration. Ram Lal was emotionally charged and even, consciously or otherwise, joined the Jail Bharo agitation of the RPI in 1964 and went to jail which costed him loss of a scholastic year. Unlike me, 
Ram Lal was a keen player of football and a health freak with long walks and jogging etc. On the lighter side, in our college days, we were regulars in relishing Sodian Di Jalebees, Samosas of Kesri Restaurant and Khoya Burfi (Plung Tod) of a sweet shop in Model Town and quick tea in the DAV College Canteen. I left for Delhi in the pursuit of bread and butter to join IFS at the lowest rung in March, 1970, the year we graduated (BA). Ram Lal continued and did MA in political science. He was not an ordinary student of bookish knowledge but a dynamic one with real and enlightened approach. It was amply appreciated and recognized by the teachers like; Prof. K.K. Ghai and Prof. K.C. Mahindru with whom I could revive relationship on my retirement and return to Jalandhar in 2011 on re-introduction by Ram Lal. Ram Lal tried his luck at the Civil Services Examination but later joined a bank as an executive. In the run up to our respective careers, we lost regular touch. I progressed as a faceless diplomat and Ram Lal as a banker and a community activist; as a bank employee’s unionist, joining other enthusiasts and his associates in throwing ‘pamphlet bomb’ in the Punjab Legislative Assembly, setting up Ambedkar Study Circle and publishing materials to spread the mission and legacy of Babasaheb Ambedkar, starting and running employment classes for the young aspirants, establishing Buddh Vihar in Sidharath Nagar (Bootan Mandi) as one of the founder trustees, working closely with Ambedkar Bhawan Trust, Ambedkar Mission Society among other outfits in the area.
We picked up threads and revived our old association as good friends in our second innings on our retirement in the decade of 2010. It was gratifying to note that Ram Lal had earned recognition as an intellectual face of the community. He was a voracious reader of current affairs particularly of pertaining to weaker sections of the society and relevant literature. He was a proud processor of rare books and assorted articles on the subjects of socio-political relevance to the dalits communities. Ram Lal was my informal consultant and adviser and also one of the critics on my socio- educational and cultural involvement in my second innings including my ill-advised and ill-conceived adventure in starting Jalandhar School of Careers and Opportunities and my lectures in educational institutions and also writing of my blogs. Thoughtfully and in line with his refined thinking to
spread the mission and legacy of Babasaheb Ambedkar, he donated books and almirahs to DAV College Jalandhar which adorn the library of the college as ‘Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Study Corner’ and also a good collection of books to Babasaeb Ambedkar Government College in Bootan Mandi in addition to his similar gesture to an organization in Nagpur. I was happy that he associated me with these activities as a good friend. Ram Lal was much impressed by yet another fellow BootanMandian, Pritam Ramdasspuri. He translated edited and published Pritam Ramdasspuri’s small pamphlet ‘Mala Ke Teen Moti’ a thought-provoking publication on Mahatma Buddha, Guru Ravidass and Babasaheb Ambedkar. If I put in Babasaheb Ambedkar’s jargon, Ram Lal Dass was really an ‘agitate soul’. One can imagine his predicament as to why and how the suffix ‘Dass’ added to his name. As Ram Lal was a dalit, when he was enrolled in the school in Patna, the teacher himself added ‘Dass’ to his name to identify him as a servant of the society. But Ram Lal was not a ‘Dass’ but a ‘Liberated’ soul as a true follower of Lord Buddha and Babasaheb Ambedkar. Ram Lal, to his credit, was not a goody-goody friend alone. At times, he was frank and true to his salt to call spade a spade without fear.
In his last months in the fag end of his active life, he cornered himself as a somewhat tired and dejected man partially due to his and her wife, Shindo’s failing health and partially due his family matters. He was regular to visit me quite often even without notice. We will sit and talk with cups of black coffee and nuts/biscuits. With mischief in his eyes, he will often say that you visit your “Hum Piala’ friends and not him as he did not drink alcoholic beverages. But very thoughtfully, during one of my recent visits to his home, he gifted me a bottle of scotch – Black Label and a bottle of French wine which he possessed. I have not opened the bottle of scotch as yet. I will do so on some celebratory occasion in the coming months to remember a close friend. I close this informal tribute to Ram Lal with a heavy heart. We will miss you Ram Lal; we will miss you.
Na Hath Pakad Sake; Na Tham Sake Daman,
Bahut Nazdik Se Uthkar Chala Gya Koi
