(Asian Independent)
– Vaishali
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar received several complaints from Dalits, in the backdrop of the Partition of India in 1947, regarding the ill treatment, violence and discrimination which the community faced during the partition and the resettlement plan. December was decided to be the cut-off month for the evacuation of approximately 10 million refugees from Pakistan, a target which could not be fulfilled hence Ambedkar demanded to extend the time limit for the evacuation program. The complaints moved Ambedkar to resolve the problems faced by Dalits, who were first forcibly held back in newly built Pakistan from crossing the border and afterwards remained neglected in the government sponsored evacuation and rehabilitation program. He had correspondences with Jawaharlal Nehru to draw the attention towards suffering of Dalit migrants. In these letters Ambedkar advised on how to resolve and facilitate the evacuation and rehabilitation of Dalits.
On 18th December, 1947, Ambedkar wrote to the Prime Minister (PM) Nehru about the grievances of Dalits, those who were held back in Pakistan as well as those who had come over to India. He wrote, “I feel that the time has come for me to draw your attention to their sufferings. For the purpose of giving you an idea of what is happening and what is required to be done, I am setting out below the causes of their sufferings and the measures that should be adopted to remove them.”
Ambedkar raised the issue that the Pakistan Government was preventing the Dalits from migrating to India. Pakistan tried to hinder the evacuation of Dalits from its territories in order to secure cheap labour for menial works like scavenging and sweeping. The Pakistan Government, particularly anxious to impound the sweepers, declared the labour class, mostly Dalits in this case, belongs to Essential Services and hence could not leave without serving one month’s notice. It was decided that those professions which were required for securing the public safety, maintenance of public order, health or sanitation, maintaining supply and services necessary for the life of the community will be notified under Essential Service Act (ESA). The Government and concerned authorities declared that any person engaged in the professions listed under ESA would not be permitted to cross the border. If the Government found any person disobeying the act, discontinuing and abandoning job without providing adequate reasons to the concerned authorities, migrating from the specified boundaries defined in the Act without informing the authorities concerned, he would be declared guilty and could be punished in the criminal court. An employee was not allowed to abandon and discontinue his job on excuse of physical danger involved in the job. The government was allowed to regulate wages and working conditions of workers enlisted in the Act. If anyone was found guilty of disobeying the Act he would be tried in the court of law. They had to accept that they “exercised due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence, be liable to the punishment provided for the offence”.
In view of Ambedkar organisations like M.E.O (Military Evacuation Organisation) had been of help in evacuating Dalit refugees, but Pakistan denied the permission to M.E.O to directly contact Dalits hence slowing down the process of evacuation. The Military Evacuation Organisation (M.E.O) with its headquarter at Amritsar came into being on 1st September, 1947 after the closure of Punjab Boundary on 31st August, 1947. The Partition committee in order to control law and order established the Punjab Boundary Force (PBF) in July 1947. It consisted of military troops from both Pakistan and India, of which command was in the hands of Maj. General T.W Rees. Still, it failed to handle communal disturbance of such a large-scale, and both the governments decided to disband it. Hence the responsibility of internal security fell down on the shoulders of armies and police of respective dominions. P.B.F was replaced with M.E.O to evacuate those who were impounded on the other side of the border waiting for the evacuation. The primary duty of M.E.O was to evacuate as many refugees as possible in the shortest possible time with the safest means. M.E.O also rendered help in all the three stages of the evacuation program; setting up transit camps where refugees were gathered, transporting them to the other side of the border through train, motor, and foot columns popularly called Kafilas, and finally settling them in the relief camps of their desired country. By the time M.E.O constituted much of the killings, rapes, and abductions were already done. Over 12 lakh non-Muslims refugees had left West Pakistan to cross the border to enter India but still millions were still impounded in West Pakistan waiting for their evacuation. One such group was Dalits who were forcefully kept by the Pakistan government. As mentioned above, every possible means from enforcing them to accept Islam to adding them to the essential services regulation act was adopted to not let the Dalits migrate. By 26th November, 1947, MEO completed its task of evacuation with the exception of those living in the remote areas, majority of whom constituted Dalits.
In a letter to Nehru, Ambedkar pointed out that closure of M.E.O could make the evacuation of Dalits from Pakistan next to impossible. He urged Nehru to settle the issue with the Pakistan government and to allow M.E.O. to get into direct contact with Dalits. He also emphasised on the need of keeping M.E.O till the complete evacuation of Dalits who were willing to choose India as their future nation.
Ambedkar further pointed out few Dalit officers in relief work. There was only one Dalit officer in West Punjab Ministry of Relief and Rehabilitation while other provinces of Pakistan like N. W.F.P. (North-West Frontier Province), Sind and Bhawalpur had no single Dalit officer. Therefore, Ambedkar wanted the Ministry to appoint Dalit officers and also special officers who could tour Pakistan to identify the places where the Pakistan government prevented Dalits from migration.
Communal strife burst out on both sides of the border and the local situation in East Punjab was favourable for anarchy and chaos. The government could not keep the situation under control. Police were no longer reliable, the Army which was called to restore peace also got infected with a communal virus. Thrashing, slaughtering and killing people in groups was common. In order to resolve the rehabilitation problem of Dalit refugees from Pakistan, who complained to Ambedkar he emphasised on certain issues.
Ambedkar pointed out that Dalit refugees were not getting space in refugees camps due to discriminatory behaviour of officers in charge. Secondly, Dalits were denied ration, clothing and other relief facilities as the Relief and Rehabilitation Department preserved these for those living in the refugee camps. Since it was difficult to prevent the discrimination, he wanted the modification in the rules to entitle Dalits refugees, living outside the refugee camps, to relief benefits in the same manner as the refugees living inside the camps.
Ambedkar found that the caste Hindus, who had control over the administration of Eastern Punjab, discriminated with Dalits while allotting lands to the refugees. Nobody seemed interested in the rehabilitation of Dalits. The Government of India had not assigned any agency to oversee Dalit evacuees’ interests. Ambedkar asked Nehru to appoint Officers on Special Duty in East Punjab to watch allotments of land and ensure that Dalits get their ‘legitimate’ share.
Ambedkar also reported that the Sikhs and Jats, who enjoyed prominent position in Eastern Punjab, were compelling Dalit inhabitants to evacuate their lands in order to appropriate them. Dalits were unable to get any redressal of their problem as the officials were Jats or Sikhs. Ambedkar wanted the Government of East Punjab to appoint at least 300 Dalits in Civil Police so that they could help their people.
Dalits as landless labour were living on complete servitude of Zamindar. The Land Revenue system of East Punjab divided the residents of the village into two classes Zamindars and Kaminas. Zamindar was the one who held an exclusive right to own land within the village boundary and Kaminas held no right to buy or own land, even on which they were residing. The sites on which their houses were situated belong to the Zamindars. This brought Kaminas of every village at the mercy of Zamindar, who could always make them evacuate their lands.
Ambedkar wanted the government to abolish these distinctions and alter its Land Revenue system, making it similar to the Ryotwari system which puts all villagers equal in context of their capacity to buy or own the land. It was a land revenue system introduced in the 19th century by Sir Thomas Munro, Governor of Madras in 1820. It was made into practice in Madras, Bombay, Assam and Coorg province. In this system both peasants and cultivators were allowed to possess ownership over land. They could sell, mortgage or gift this land. There was no middle man like the Zamindars., The Government collected taxes directly from the peasants. However, rates of taxes were high 50 percent on dry land, 60 percent on wet land, and taxes had to be paid only in cash, which consequently submerged peasants and cultivators in big debts of moneylender. This became one the cause of failure of this land revenue system.
The East Punjab Government operated upon the land alienation act, which intended to protect the agriculturalists from money lenders. Ambedkar called this act a ‘most vicious piece of legislation’ as its definition of agriculturist was communal rather than occupational. This act identified only those who belonged to a government list of identified agrarian communities. On the other hand, Punjab government took every possible care to declare Dalits as non-agricultural community, despite the fact almost every member of Dalit was engaged either as cultivator of land or agricultural labour. This act debarred Dalits from buying and owning any landed property and thereby left them as landless labourers living on the servitude of Hindu, Sikh and Jat Zamindars. Ambedkar wanted to amend the definition of agriculture to make it more occupational so that anyone relying on agriculture for his livelihood, irrespective of caste, and creed would be entitled to get his own land. He urged the Government of India who was paying the cost of rehabilitation to enquire and put the pressure on the East Punjab Government to adopt the measures to ensure the fair and equal treatment of all the people irrespective of their caste and creed.
Author biographical note
Vaishali is a PhD scholar at Department of History, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India. She received a Post-graduate degree in Modern History from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. Her current field of research is Dalit history.
