Gandhi valued the Bhangi’s work but not inter-caste marriage or dining

Evidence

Among the (many) reasons that criticism of Gandhi is not just frowned upon, but often censored in India, ‘secularists’ tell us, is that Hindu nationalists (from whose midst Gandhi’s assassins arose, and whose star is on the ascendant in India these days) will seize upon such criticism and turn it to their advantage. The fact is there was never much daylight between Gandhi’s views on caste and those of the Hindu right. From a Dalit point of view, Gandhi’s assassination could appear to be more a fratricidal killing than an assassination by an ideological opponent. — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 398 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

Category: Contrarian or Surprising Claims

Related

• Gandhi’s caste views differed little from those of the Hindu right. (similarity 0.92)
• Gandhi’s caste views aligned closely with Hindu nationalist views (similarity 0.91)
• Gandhi opposed non-Hindu involvement in caste struggles as an internal Hindu matter (similarity 0.90)
• Gandhi’s caste ambivalence disillusioned even his non-Hindu colleague George Joseph (similarity 0.89)
• Gandhi revered the Bhangi role but refused to break caste marriage rules (similarity 0.88)
• Gandhi accepted separate electorates for Muslims but not for Untouchables. (similarity 0.85)
• Gandhi’s moral authority cannot be separated from his caste views (similarity 0.83)
• Gandhi explicitly endorsed the caste system as control in 1921 (similarity 0.83)
• Gandhi framed caste equality as equal dignity of complementary duties (similarity 0.83)
• Gandhi sought abolition of untouchability but retention of the caste system (similarity 0.82)
• Gandhi’s demeaning views of Untouchables remained consistent across his adult life. (similarity 0.82)
• Gandhi defended an idealized varna system his entire life while criticizing caste (similarity 0.82)
• Manusmriti’s caste rules shaped even Gandhi’s ideal of the Bhangi (similarity 0.82)
• Gandhi showed Adivasis the same disdain he showed Black Africans (similarity 0.81)
• Gandhi defended varnashrama as wholesome and opposed intermarriage until the mid-1920s (similarity 0.81)

Broader Connections

• Gandhi’s caste views differed little from those of the Hindu right. #corroborates (0.60) — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 398
• Gandhi sought abolition of untouchability but retention of the caste system #expands (0.60)
• Manusmriti’s caste rules shaped even Gandhi’s ideal of the Bhangi #expands (0.50)