Untouchables lacked civil, economic, religious and status rights making a bare vote useless

Evidence

Since the Untouchables did not enjoy civil, economic or religious rights on a par with the caste Hindus, and they were widely and routinely stigmatised, Ambedkar believed that a mere right to vote would do them no good, and that they would be subject to the manipulations and machinations of Hindus. The double vote, with the right to exclusively elect their own representatives, would ensure that the savarnas and the rest of society came to regard Untouchables as worthy of respect and dignity. — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 1303

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to contemporary representation dilemmas for stigmatised minorities everywhere—how bare franchise fails without status equality.