BJP attempts damage control after NDA appointee says Ambedkar's role in Constitution a 'myth'
IGNCA chief Ram Bahadur Rai also called for a new Constitution.
Bharatiya Janata Party leaders attempted some damage control after the publication of remarks by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts chairman Ram Bahadur Rai questioning BR Ambedkar's role in drafting the Constitution. In an interview to Outlook, Rai, a former general secretary of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarth Parishad, said BR Ambedkar's role in drafting the Indian Constitution is just a "myth" and that the Dalit and independence movement icon had simply corrected the language in the document.
The BJP's Scheduled Caste Morcha chief Dushyant Kumar Gautam told the Times of India that he had spoken to Rai, who would clarify his statement. "Rai's comments reflect his lack of awareness about Ambedkar. But it also smacks of some conspiracy," Gautam said. BJP spokesperson Shrikant Sharma also insisted that individual comments should not be attributed to the party, and claimed that the government is committed to national icons like Ambedkar.
In the interview, Rai also demanded a new constituent assembly and a fresh Constitution, claiming the first one was not representative of the whole country. He said many people had boycotted the constituent assembly and their views were not incorporated in the document.