Question

Bring out the attitude of congress towards dalits

Answer 1

The INC(Indian National Congress) was not at all ready to accept Dalits in its folds. This was because it feared the anger of the upper class Brahmins.However, Gandhiji stated that freedom would'nt be achieved in a hundred years if the Dalits did'nt get their rights.He called them Harijan, the children of God, and organised satyagraha so that they could enter the temples.He himself cleaned toilets to glorify the work of the bhangi, the sweepers.

Answer 2

In the pre-independence era, the leaders in the Congress party were from the upper castes and mostly from the higher economic strata of society. As a reason of this, these leaders were averse to the idea of members from the lower castes joining the party. It was Mahatma Gandhi who brought about a mental change by impressing upon them that freedom can be won only if the vast majority of lower castes were allowed into the movement and the party.