**** Report on the Nov 4, 2001 Dalit Rally ****
by "Dr. Joseph D'Souza"
Dr. D'Souza wrote:
ALL INDIA CHRISTIAN COUNCIL (aicc) COMMUNIQUE Vol. 3, No. 3
5th November 2001
Dear Friends:
At the end of the day it seemed that the event of November 4th played to a Divine script. The anticipated violence did not take place. The Dalits once again displayed their tremendous peaceful and good nature. There were no untoward incidents. No one tried to aggravate an already very tense and difficult situation. Nevertheless several things happened both for praise and prayer and serious concern:
BLATANT SUPPRESSION OF DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS:
For all it's efforts to create a positive image in international circles and media, the BJP/Sangh Parivar used all the powers of the State to suppress and restrict the gathering of Dalits. The Delhi police which is under the Home Ministry has a lot to answer for in revoking the permissions at the last minute and then blocking the entry of Dalits at all major road entry points into Delhi. One had to just ask any Dalit who managed to get in to the Ambedkar Bhavan about the difficulties they had to cross to come to the premises.
The collusion of the National Commission on Minorities, the Delhi police and the VHP was in full evidence. Go to our website www.indianchristians.org to get a fuller picture.
The aicc leaders are simply amazed how the Dalits are crushed even by the machinery of the State. If the State could blatantly do it in the capital city of Delhi what on earth is going on in the villages and towns?
TRUE GRIT:
The broken people demonstrated that they were made of steel in meeting together in defiance of the orders and going ahead with the conversions in a makeshift arrangement literally done at the last hour.
Tens of thousands of Dalits flowed to the Ambedkar Bhavan (inspite of all the official attempts to prevent them) to reject the caste system and the Hindu system that imposed this inhuman social and spiritual system on them for over 3 millenia. The amazing thing about the crowds was that so many women turned up for the conversion ceremony.
All through the day, Ram Raj was heard calling different police officers to release his people at the outskirts of Delhi who were being prevented from coming in. A few media agencies deliberately spread disinformation early in the morning saying that only 3000 people had gathered at the venue. The national and international media were there to see the tens of thousands within and outside the venue (on the roads) who were participating in the conversion ceremony.
It is difficult to come to a correct figure about how many people came to the venue through the day. Figures vary: BBC quoted 60,000. Jain TV quoted 100,000. The disinformation brigade said 3000 and 8000. As an overall figure for the day right up to the evening when Dalits were still coming it would be safe to say that approximately 100,000 people came to the venue through the day and joined in for the conversions. Added to that, as one Hindi paper reported, more people were prevented from entering into Delhi than those who finally managed to get in even as late as midnight on the 4th.
RAM RAJ BECOMES UDIT RAJ:
For those of us who were guests on the dais the conversion ceremony was a revelation. The symbolism of it was powerful. First a dalit Indian Buddhist monk shaved the head of Ram Raj and administered the oaths. Such religious rites can only be performed by Brahmins according to the caste system. Next a series of vows were read out and agreed to. Some of them were developed by Ambedkar. In the vows was the rejection of the gods that had failed the dalits and the system that had oppressed them. A series of vows revolved around a moral code.
The Dalits who had names of gods - announced the change of their names. Ram was dropped and he took on the name UDIT- meaning 'risen'- and to the utter jubilation of the crowd the Buddhist monk presented UDIT RAJ to the crowd. Then Udit Raj led the crowds in the repetition of vows and the conversion ceremony with a monk presiding over the function. This mass conversion will have major impact on the nation socially, politically and spiritually.
UDIT RAJ SPEECH:
The main speech had a few major themes: the rejection of Hinduism and the caste system, the oppression of the Sangh Parivar and the BJP, some political stance towards those who had not given open support to the movement and for the first time in many, many decades the Christian Church was defended openly from a public platform in the glare of international media and the right of the Dalits to seek solidarity with Christians.
This represents a major breakaway from the political correctness of Indian politics to always accuse the Christian Church and the Christian west for all kinds of things. Udit Raj also called the bluff of the upper castes who themselves freely associate with Christians, English education and queue up to migrate to the West that they so eagerly denounce at home. This was against the backdrop of the VHP accusation that this event was a Christian conspiracy. There was huge applause to this solidarity between Christians and Dalits:
THE CHRISTIAN PRESENCE AND PARTICIPATION:
Many hundreds of Christian leaders from India and some from the West were present to witness the event and express solidarity with the Dalits as they sought liberation. Three aicc leaders were given the opportunity to speak and the following themes emerged:
1. We were there as invitees and guests to their function, (this was not as some wide publicity had announced a Christian convention)
2. We were there to support their freedom of conscience and choice in the face of severe opposition.
3. That the whole Indian Church had expressed public support for the Dalits right to choose. The ncci and the cbci had issued supportive statements just in time for the event.
4. That the Dalit-Christian solidarity declared in Hyderabad would continue solidly in the days ahead.
5. That we were there because Jesus loved them and that we were committed day and night in the years ahead to bring to them the incredible love of Jesus both in action and word.
The spontaneous applause and the warmth of the Dalits to the presentation told us that the Church's courageous stand in standing with the dalits at this time was indeed from God. And now the whole Church was faced with the incredible challenge of doing what it said it would do because the Dalits want us to come among them. The public nature of these pronouncements cannot be underestimated.
CHRISTIAN ACTIVITY:
Christians were wise during the event. Some Christians provided some food packets for some people but most of all there was interaction and brotherhood as human beings. Christian love was demonstrated in whatever way possible. We followed the directions given by the Dalit leaders since it was their event on which they had worked so hard.
Christian courage was in full display because each one there knew that they could end up being targets of the VHP and the State.
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