India’s only golden age coincided with the annihilation of caste.

Evidence

There is only one period in Indian history which is a period of freedom, greatness and glory. That is the period of the Maurya empire. At all other times the country suffered from defeat and darkness. But the Maurya period was a period when the caste system was completely annihilated—when the Shudras, who constituted the mass of the people, came into their own and became the rulers of the country. The period of defeat and darkness is the period when the caste system flourished, to the damnation of the greater part of the people of the country. — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 929

Categorization

• QUESTION: Ambedkar claims the Maurya era saw caste ‘completely annihilated’ — historians would dispute this; worth checking the historiographical basis.
• XREF: Feeds directly into the reader’s question of how caste annihilation was implemented — the Maurya example is Ambedkar’s own historical proof of feasibility. — connects to: Ambedkar framed caste as a sickness endangering all Indians beyond Hindus — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 754
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 929

Broader Connections

• Ambedkar framed caste as a sickness endangering all Indians beyond Hindus #expands (0.60) — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 754