Ambedkar Jayanti 2023: Ambedkar Jayanti is celebrated on April 14 every year on account of the birth anniversary of 'Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar', famously known as 'Babasaheb Ambedkar', who was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer, and politician and is best known as the chief architect of the Indian Constitution. On this day, people remember the contributions of Babasaheb Ambedkar and pay respect by laying flowers, lighting candles, and holding cultural events.

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

It is a public holiday in many states of India where government offices, schools, and colleges are closed. Babasaheb Ambedkar is known to stand up for Dalit rights and for constructing the Indian Constitution.

Who was Babasaheb Ambedkar?

Ambedkar was an accomplished law and economics student and practitioner. He had doctorates in Economics from Columbia University and the London School of Economics. He used his economic understanding to liberate India from old beliefs and ideals. He was opposed to the idea of creating separate electorates for untouchables and advocated for equal rights for all.

After studying Buddhism for years, Ambedkar, who belonged to the Mahar caste, which was deemed untouchable in Hinduism, converted to Buddhism on October 14, 1956, in Nagpur with 500,000 supporters. He is well-known not just for his significant contribution to the abolition of the social plague of untouchability in India, but also for having led a campaign for the upliftment and empowerment of Dalits in the country.

By writing the Indian Constitution, he not only broke social conventions intended for Hindu Shudras to emulate caste supremacists, changed their mindsets and urged them to educate, and fight for their rights, but he also ended the monopoly of Hindu Brahmins, Kshatriyas, and Vaishyas - in education, military, trade, and social standards - who regarded themselves as superior to Shudras or untouchables.

Here are some inspirational quotes curated by Zee Biz on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti

1. I like the religion that teaches liberty, equality, and fraternity

2. If I find the Constitution being misused, I shall be the first to burn it.

3. So long as you do not achieve social liberty, whatever freedom is provided by the law is of no avail to you.

4. Law and order are the medicine of the body politic and when the body politic gets sick, medicine must be administered.

5. I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women have achieved.

6. Men are mortal. So are ideas. An idea needs propagation as much as a plant needs watering. Otherwise, both will wither and die.

7. We must stand on our own feet and fight as best as we can for our rights. So, carry on your agitation and organise your forces. Power and prestige will come to you through struggle.

Catch the latest stock market updates here. For more news on sports, politics follow Zee Business