Karnataka’s Minister for Information Technology and Biotechnology, Priyank Kharge, on Monday, March 17, called for the resignation of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs in the state after sharing a letter purportedly showing that Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the ideologue of right-wing Hindu nationalism, worked to defeat Dr. B.R. Ambedkar in the 1952 elections.
Kharge shared a letter dated January 18, 1952, attributed to Dr. Ambedkar reportedly sourced from the National Archives. In the correspondence, Ambedkar refers to Savarkar and Communist leader S.A. Dange for their role in his defeat.
Kharge stated that BJP legislators had previously pledged to resign if proof emerged of Savarkar’s role in opposing Ambedkar. “BJP MLAs declared on the floor of the House that they would resign if we presented a document proving that Savarkar had acted against Babasaheb Ambedkar during his elections,” he said on X (formerly Twitter).
On Monday, the Karnataka Legislative Assembly witnessed heated exchanges after the BJP accused the Congress of being responsible for Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s defeat in the 1952 Lok Sabha elections. Minister Priyank Kharge countered the claim, asserting that Hindutva ideologue V.D. Savarkar played a role in Ambedkar’s loss. Kharge cited evidence from a letter attributed to Ambedkar and challenged the BJP to a debate on the matter. BJP MLA Basangouda Patil Yatnal accepted the challenge. The uproar prompted Speaker U T Khader to schedule a discussion on the issue for Friday afternoon.
Taking to Twitter, Kharge said, “On January 18, 1952, Babasaheb Ambedkar wrote to his acquaintance, expressing his views on how Vinayak Damodar Savarkar played a role in his electoral defeat. In his letter, Dr. Ambedkar detailed the factors he believed contributed to his loss, highlighting Savarkar’s influence and political maneuvers that worked against him.”
“When are the @BJP4Karnataka MLAs resigning?” the minister asked.
The letter shared by Kharge read: “(illegible)… who was here recently told me that the plot to defeat me was hatched by Dange and Savarkar, who were inflamed by my proposal to partition Kashmir. He said that was revealed to him by (illegible).”