SGPC built its first college for Dr Ambedkar in Mumbai
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in
A little-known fact is, Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar was an admirer of the Sikh Gurus. He even decided to adopt the Sikh religion along with millions of his followers. Dr Ambedkar respected the Sikh ethics of equality. He was an admirer of the Sikh Gurus who used to call these Dalits as “Rangrete Guru Ke Bete” i.e. Dalits are the Sons of the Guru.
His ultimate desire was to join the Khalsa, a caste less order. He also desired that the Dalits, who suffer so much injustice under their religion and its caste system, should seek refuge in Sikhism, which will give them protection against suffering and oppression.
As this news filtered to the leaders of that time, they were very upset and to protest this, one of the top leaders started a fast unto death. He conveyed to Dr Ambedkar through other top leaders that it would be acceptable to convert as a Christian or Muslim, but no adoption of the Sikh faith, not at any cost.
History tells us that Dr Ambedkar remained adamant to opt Sikhism as his religion, as there was no caste system amongst the Sikhs. Around 1935-36, Dr Ambedkar envisioned establishing a college for Mumbai’s underprivileged. “This was the same time Dr Ambedkar had expressed his desire to embrace Sikhism. He wanted to set up a college for those neo-Sikhs in Mumbai (then Bombay). So, he met the Sikh religious leaders in Amritsar (Punjab).”
It may be mentioned that the Sikh leadership took the first steps. The SGPC took steps to establish the Mumbai based Guru Nanak Khalsa College in 1937, which was meant to serve as a centre for Dr. Ambedkar to teach the ideals of Sikhism to his followers.
The Sikh leaders, especially Sarab-Hind Sikh Mission of Amritsar, agreed to come together and in 1935-36, a plot of 27,642 sq yards was purchased by Dr Ambedkar from the Bombay Municipal Corporation on lease. To erect the building, Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), the apex Sikh body at Amritsar, transferred the funds from Gurdwara Nanakana Sahib (now in Pakistan), the birth place of Guru Nanak, as per Section 127 of Sikhs Gurdwara Act of 1925.
Sensing the situation going out of hands, those leaders played a treacherous game. They took the then Sikh leaders (Master Tara Singh, Giani Kartar Singh and industrialist Baldev Singh) into their confidence. Their minds were poisoned in such a manner that if millions of Harijans are converted as Sikhs, who will be the leaders of the Sikhs?
In connivance with those top leaders, the Sikh leaders called the ‘Sarbat Khalsa’ at Amritsar, in order to diffuse Dr Ambedkar’s Sikh conversion plans.
This was a great loss to Sikhism. The Sikhs had one chance to expand their religion out of Punjab to the rest of India, and they have lost that chance.
Later Dr Ambedkar and his followers adopted Buddhism in 1956. Dr Ambedkar was heart-broken and remarked in his book that “if such is the present day leaders of the Sikhs, whose Gurus called Dalits as “Rangrete Guru he Bete” then this religion is endangered.”
April 14,2021
