Ambedkar: awakening India's social conscience Jadhav, Narendra

Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar was a great social reformer, a valiant champion of human rights and an emancipator of the downtrodden masses of India, who dedicated all his life to waken the social conscience of modern India. No wonder there are more statues of Dr Ambedkar in India than any other leader in the history of our nation. It is hardly surprising that every year, on December 6 (his death anniversary), around 2 million Ambedkarites throng to Chaitya Bhoomi in Mumbai to pay homage to the hero they worship as their saviour. It is also not surprising that Dr Ambedkar was voted recently (August 2012) as the "Greatest Indian after Gandhi" in a nation-wide e-poll with an overwhelming majority.

This book is the first ever intellectual biography of Dr Ambedkar. While a fair amount of writings by Dr Ambedkar is available, there is only one English biography-the one by Dhananjay Keer, first published in 1954. Two other notable biographies of Dr Ambedkar are in Marathi and were written in 1960s. All the three biographers were close associates of Dr Ambedkar and had great advantage of being able to interact with him in person. On the other hand, these biographers did not have the benefit of accessing all writings and speeches of Dr Ambedkar, which became available only in the subsequent period.

This intellectual biography incorporates all of Dr Ambedkars writings and most important speeches that he delivered. Deviating from the conventional style of biography writing, this book focuses primarily on Dr Ambedkars intellectual making, evolution of his thinking and thought processes and the strategic stance that he took from time to time, over his momentous public life.

Responding to the long standing demand, this intellectual biography of Dr Ambedkar has been written in the belief that understanding Dr Ambedkar, in his true spirit, is indeed a need of the hour. It is hoped that this intellectual biography will help people understand this intellectual colossus and will give them an opportunity to correct their misguided impression confining Dr Ambedkar only as a leader of Untouchables. The biography will be of use to scholars, researchers, students, political activists, civil society members and lay readers.