Mysuru: Dr B R Ambedkar is not only the leader for Dalits but also a model for everybody exploited from different sections of the society, said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Speaking after inaugurating a state-level conference on “Bouddha Samaja Nirmana Sankalpa Dina” organised by Karnataka Rajya Dalita Sangharsha Samiti at MMCRI Golden Jubilee Auditorium here on Saturday, he said, “Ambedkar is one of the greatest leaders our country has ever had. He dedicated himself for equality in the society till his last breath. Everybody talks about him converting to Buddhism but we all need to know why he took that step. He tried really hard to bring about changes and transformation in the caste structure of Hinduism but he failed. Only after realising that he could not succeed in that, he converted to Buddhism which preaches equality among individuals. We need to encourage inter-caste marriage in order to bring equality in our society and only then it is possible to make Dr Ambedkar’s ideology a reality”.
He also mentioned that the government had introduced many schemes for promoting inter-caste marriage. Highlighting 12th century social reformer Basavanna’s efforts to root out casteism in the society, Siddaramaiah hit out at BJP, RSS, Bajarang Dal and other Hindu outfits for attempting to divide the society on caste, creed and community lines. In an apparent reference to former minister V Sreenivasa Prasad, he said it was unfortunate that some leaders who chanted the name of Ambedkar were joining the BJP and that they could not be trusted.
