Bapu Chandrasen Kamble (15 July 1919 – 6 November 2006) was an Indian politician, writer, editor, jurist, and social activist. He is also an Ambedkarite thinker, translator and biographer. Kamble was the leader of

Republican Party of India (Kamble) The Republican Party of India (Kamble) is a political party in India, a splinter group of the old Ambedkarite Republican Party of India. The leader of the party is B. C. Kamble. Its presence is limited to Maharashtra among Dalits. Recently, al ...

. He is from

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

. He has written a

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India **Marathi people (Uttar Pradesh), the Marathi people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Mar ...

biography of

B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Bhīmrāo Rāmjī Āmbēḍkar; 14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who chaired the committee that drafted the Constitution of India based on t ...

called "Samagra Ambedkar Charitra" (Vol. 1–24). Kamble helped Ambedkar while drafting the

Constitution of India The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India, legal document of India, and the longest written national constitution in the world. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures ...

. For nearly 50 years after Ambedkar's death, Kamble led the

Republican Party of India The Republican Party of India (RPI, often called the Republican Party or simply Republican) was a political party in India. It had its roots in the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation led by N. Sivaraj and B. R. Ambedkar. The Party was e ...

but there was later a split in the party and he became the president of the

faction.

Journalism and educational career

started a

satyagraha Satyāgraha (from ; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone who practises satyagraha is ...

demanding the cancellation of the

Poona Pact The Poona Pact of 1932 was a negotiated settlement between Mahatma Gandhi and B. R. Ambedkar that increased the political representation of the depressed classes, now known as Scheduled Castes (SC). The Poona Pact was an agreement between nom ...

in Pune on 18 July 1946, because the Cabinet Mission to India rejected the independent political existence of untouchables in 1946. This is called 'Pune Satyagraha'. For support this Satyagraha, student Kamble wrote an article "Dalit Satyagrahinchi Kaifiyat" (Pleading of the Dalit Satyagrahies) in ''Kirloskar'', a leading journal at that time. This article was published in the November 1946 issue of ''Kirloskar''. After that, Ambedkar himself read the article and appointed him as editor of ''Janata'' weekly. From 1948 to 1954, Kamble served as the editor of the ''Janata'' weekly. From 1956 to 1958, he served as the editor of the ''

Prabuddha Bharata ''Prabuddha Bharata Or Awakened India'' is an English-language monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order, in publication since July 1896. It carries articles and translations by monks, scholars, and other writers on humanities and social science ...

'' weekly. From 1959 to 1975, he served as the editor of the ''Republic'' weekly. The ''Janata'' and the ''Prabuddha Bharat'' were started by Ambedkar. Kamble was a follower of Ambedkar and due to his influence, converted to

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

in 1956. During 1956–57, he served as a Professor of

Constitutional Law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in ...

in Siddharth College of Law, Mumbai.

Political career

In 1952 Bombay Legislative Assembly election, Kamble was the MLA of the

Scheduled Caste Federation The Republican Party of India (RPI, often called the Republican Party or simply Republican) was a political party in India. It had its roots in the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation led by N. Sivaraj and B. R. Ambedkar. The Party was est ...

party in the

Bombay Legislative Assembly Bombay Legislative Assembly came into existence in 1937, as the legislature of Bombay Presidency, a Provinces of India, province of India. It functioned until 1960, when separate states of Maharashtra and Gujarat were formed. History The first se ...

from 1952 to 1957. During this time, he fought alone on the issue of " Samyukta Maharashtra" (United Maharashtra) in the legislature. He was twice a member of the

in the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...

from 1957 to 1962 and 1977 to 1979. In the parliament, he opposed the Emergency and 44th Amendment of the constitution. He was a wise and learned leader of the Republican Party of India.

Books

List of following Books written by B. C. Kamble: * ''Samagra Ambedkar Charitra'' (Vol. 1–24) * ''Asprushya Mulche Kon Ani Te Asprushya Kase Banale?'' (Marathi translation of ''The Untouchables: Who Were They are Why The Become Untouchables'') * ''Aikyach Ka?'' * ''Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkaranche Akherche Sansadiy Vichar'' (Last thoughts of Dr. Ambedkar on Parliamentary Affairs) * ''Raja Milindche Prashna'' (Questions of kind Milind) * ''Legislature Vs. High Court'' * ''Thoughts on 44th Constitution Amendment Bill'' * ''Dr. Ambedkar on Indian Constitution'' * ''Questions of King Milind'' * ''Tripitak'' (Volume Nos. 1 to 4) * ''Dr. Ambedkar as Parliamentarian'' * ''Last thoughts of Dr. Ambedkar on Parliamentary Affairs'' * ''Uprooting the famine''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamble, B. C. 1919 births 2006 deaths Marathi politicians Republican Party of India politicians Marathi-language writers Scholars from Mumbai Navayana Buddhists 20th-century Indian Buddhists 21st-century Indian Buddhists Social workers from Maharashtra Converts to Buddhism from Hinduism Dalit activists Activists from Maharashtra 20th-century Indian lawyers 21st-century Indian lawyers 20th-century Indian jurists 21st-century jurists Indian newspaper editors 21st-century Indian politicians 20th-century Indian biographers 21st-century Indian biographers Lok Sabha members from Maharashtra India MPs 1957–1962 India MPs 1977–1979 Bombay State MLAs 1952–1957 Bombay State politicians People from Sangli district