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India.com
2 hours ago
- Politics
- India.com
The Dalit Leader Who Chose Pakistan, Became Law Minister, Then Returned To India: Jogendra Nath Mandals Story
With India marking its 79th Independence Day, the tale of Jogendra Nath Mandal, the eminent Dalit leader who opted for Pakistan over India during Partition, presents a heart-wrenching and lesser-known page from the history of the subcontinent. Disillusioned with India's social order and initially attracted by the promises of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Mandal became the first Law Minister of Pakistan. But his expectations were thwarted as religiosity did a rapid turnaround, eventually forcing him back to India. A Dalit Leader's Journey To Pakistan Born into a farmer's family belonging to the Namasudra community (a Dalit group) from Barisal, British India, Jogendra Nath Mandal overcame odds to seek education, eventually graduating with a law degree in 1934. Far from practicing law, he spent his life fighting against injustice and striving for the betterment of Dalits. Mandal's political life started with Barisal municipal elections, where he worked relentlessly to enhance the lives of marginalized people. During the 1937 provincial election, he defeated the Congress district committee president and secured the Bakarganj North-East assembly seat as an independent candidate. Under the initial influence of Subhas Chandra Bose, Mandal was eventually drawn towards the Muslim League when Bose quit Congress. Mandal was also highly impressed by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. Mandal was pivotal in making Ambedkar win the 1946 Constituent Assembly polls from Bengal when Ambedkar lost from Bombay. Mandal was a member of the Constituent Assembly himself and played a significant role in formulating the Indian Constitution through his deliberations and suggestions to Ambedkar. Influenced By Jinnah, Warned By Ambedkar In the 1946 riots, Jogendra Nath Mandal went through East Bengal, advising Dalits not to retaliate against Muslims but to consider both groups as victims of oppression by Hindu upper castes. It was then that he sided with the Muslim League and became a close associate of Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Although he was not the first to favor India's partition, he eventually became convinced that the condition of Dalits would never change in an upper-caste dominated Hindu-majority country and Pakistan could provide a better alternative. In October 1946, Jinnah selected Mandal as one of the five representatives of the Muslim League in the interim Indian government. When Mandal opted to immigrate to Pakistan after Jinnah's assurances, he was cautioned by his peer and India's leading Dalit leader, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. However, influenced by Jinnah, Mandal opted for Pakistan. Pakistan's First Law Minister And Later Disillusionment On Partition, Jogendra Nath Mandal shifted to Pakistan and became its Constituent Assembly member and temporary chairman. Jinnah assigned him the responsibility of chairing the first session of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. By a stroke of fate, while Dr. Ambedkar was made India's first Law Minister, Jogendra Nath Mandal was made Pakistan's first Law Minister and Labour Minister. Yet, Mandal's dreams started to fall apart soon after Jinnah's demise in September 1948. He saw firsthand the worst kind of discrimination inflicted upon Dalits and was shook to the core by the growing violence against Hindus in Pakistan. His political stock declined sharply after Jinnah's death. Even though he made sincere appeals to Pakistan's first Prime Minister, Liaquat Ali Khan, regarding the issues faced by Hindus and Dalits, his appeals came to naught. Mandal had dreamed about Pakistan being a country where Dalit emancipation could bloom, but the open discrimination against Hindu minorities crushed all his dreams. Religious extremists started oppressing Hindus, and Mandal felt more and more alone in Pakistani politics. The Painful Return To India A chain of events following the death of Jinnah disillusioned Mandal, who felt that there was no one remaining in the government that would ensure promises to minorities were kept. He witnessed the emergence of people who were bent on putting religion into the state. Things became so tough for Mandal in Pakistan that he was forced to escape. In 1950, Pakistan enacted the controversial 'Objectives Resolution,' which was favored by nearly all Muslim members of the Constituent Assembly (with the exception of Mian Iftikharuddin) but opposed by nearly all minority members. Even one of the minority members had the following to say: If Jinnah were alive, this resolution would never have been passed." Mandal stayed in Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan's cabinet until 1950, even grumbling all along about atrocities committed on Dalits in East Pakistan. Jogendra Nath Mandal eventually put in his resignation on October 8, 1950. In his letter of resignation, he showed deep despair regarding the future of the minorities and listed the reasons why he had lost faith. He mentioned hundreds of Dalit killings in Bengal by the army, police, and Muslim League activists, which hurt him deeply and totally severed his attachment to Pakistan. Upon resigning from the Pakistani government, Mandal's re-entry into India, or more precisely West Bengal, caused a political commotion. He migrated to India in 1950. Ironically, in India too he was suspicious of his own kind because of his Pakistani background. Though he had been a close confidant of Dr. Ambedkar, India's leading Dalit leader prior to Partition, Mandal now had no political backing. He spent his later years in a highly backward section of Calcutta until his death in 1968. Mandal tried to revive his political life by repairing his Congress connections, running elections in North Calcutta in 1952 and 1957, a Dalit reserved constituency, but lost both times. He died in 1968 from a heart attack while he was crossing a river by a boat. The reason for his death is still uncertain since no post-mortem was carried out. ALSO READ | 79th Independence Day 2025: PM Modi Highlights India's Journey, Constitution's Guiding Light | WATCH
News18
2 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Forgotten Betrayal: Partition's Dalit Victims Warn Against ‘Jai Meem Jai Bheem' Politics
The architect of history's first systematic Dalit-Muslim political alliance was Jogendra Nath Mandal, who became Pakistan's inaugural Law and Labour Minister As India observes Partition Horrors Remembrance Day on August 14, the nation must confront an uncomfortable truth long buried beneath conventional narratives of Hindu-Muslim discord: the systematic betrayal and persecution of India's Scheduled Castes during the traumatic division of 1947. This overlooked tragedy offers profound lessons for contemporary politics, particularly regarding the dangerous revival of the 'Jai Meem Jai Bheem' formula, a slogan that embodies the very alliance politics that led to catastrophic suffering for Dalits nearly eight decades ago. The architect of history's first systematic Dalit-Muslim political alliance was Jogendra Nath Mandal, who became Pakistan's inaugural Law and Labour Minister. A prominent advocate for Scheduled Castes, Mandal made what would prove to be a catastrophic miscalculation: believing that Muslims and Dalits, both perceived as oppressed minorities, could forge a natural partnership against Hindu social dominance. This ideological foundation that shared minority status automatically translates into mutual solidarity forms the conceptual bedrock of today's 'Jai Meem Jai Bheem' movement. During the tumultuous partition period, Mandal emerged as a key Muslim League leader, instructing his Scheduled Caste followers to vote for Pakistan's creation. When communal violence erupted across Bengal, Mandal toured extensively, urging Dalits to refrain from retaliating against Muslims, arguing that both communities were equally victimized by oppression. His rhetoric of unity and brotherhood convinced hundreds of thousands of Dalit Hindus to remain in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), trusting in the Muslim League's promises of equality and protection. The Muslim League's courting of Dalit support was strategically calculated. Recognizing that Scheduled Castes comprised significant voting blocs in Bengal and other regions, Muslim leaders crafted elaborate promises of social equality, economic opportunity, and political representation. They painted Pakistan as a progressive state where caste hierarchies would dissolve and merit would triumph over birth-based discrimination. These assurances proved to be sophisticated political deceptions designed exclusively for electoral gain. The Brutal Reality of Betrayal The promised land of equality swiftly transformed into a nightmare of persecution. By 1950, Mandal found himself compelled to resign from his ministerial position and flee to India. His resignation letter to Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan, dated October 8, 1950, documents horrors that constitute one of the 20th century's most underreported genocides.2 The systematic nature of the atrocities was particularly chilling. In Sylhet district alone, Mandal reported that of 350 Dalit settlements, merely three survived intact, the remainder had been reduced to ash. Armed police and military personnel perpetrated calculated brutalities against Innocent Hindus, particularly Scheduled Castes. Men faced torture, women endured mass rape, homes were plundered, and hundreds of temples and gurdwaras were desecrated before being converted into slaughterhouses, meat shops, and hotels serving non-vegetarian food, a calculated assault on Hindu religious sensibilities. Specific incidents revealed the organized nature of persecution: in Gopalganj's Digharkul, armed police destroyed an entire Namasudra village on fabricated charges; in Parisal's Gournadi, Scheduled Caste settlements faced assault under political pretexts; during Dhaka riots, jewelry shops were looted and burned while police officials watched passively. The violence wasn't spontaneous communal frenzy but systematic ethnic cleansing targeting those who had trusted Muslim League assurances. Mandal's documentation reveals the psychological torture accompanying physical violence. Dalits who had supported Pakistan's creation found themselves branded as traitors by fellow Hindus while simultaneously facing persecution as 'kafirs" 'jimmi" by Muslims. This double alienation created profound identity crises within communities that had genuinely believed in secular, inclusive Pakistani nationalism. Between 1947 and 1950, approximately 2.5 million refugees fled East Pakistan for India, with Scheduled Castes comprising a disproportionate majority. These statistics represent more than mere displacement; they constitute evidence that the Muslim League's pledges of security and equality for Scheduled Castes were calculated deceptions designed solely to secure electoral support before partition. Ambedkar's Prescient Warnings Dr. B.R. Ambedkar had anticipated this catastrophe with remarkable clarity. In seminal works including 'Pakistan or the Partition of India" and 'Thoughts on Pakistan," he explicitly warned that Muslim politics was fundamentally communal in character, willing to accommodate Scheduled Castes only as long as they provided political advantage. Ambedkar's analysis proved tragically prescient, aligning perfectly with Mandal's eventual experiences. Ambedkar understood what Mandal fatally overlooked: the religious and cultural values of Dalit and Muslim communities were so fundamentally divergent that genuine equality and coexistence represented nothing more than dangerous political illusion. He cautioned Hindu Dalits that regardless of how extensively Muslim leadership performed brotherhood theatrics, they would ultimately treat Dalits as 'kafirs" or 'jimmi" (infidels) deserving no consideration in an Islamic political framework. The constitutional architect's warnings extended beyond religious incompatibility to structural political analysis. Ambedkar recognized that Muslim communalism, disguised as minority solidarity, would inevitably prioritize religious identity over social justice concerns central to Dalit aspirations. Contemporary Echoes of Historical Folly Today's resurrection of this failed formula demands urgent scrutiny. The 'Jal Meem Jal Bheem" slogan, combining Muslim solidarity ('Meem" referencing the Urdu letter) with Dalit empowerment ('Bheem" honoring Dr. Ambedkar), represents the precise ideological framework that Mandal employed during partition. Though this exact phraseology wasn't popular then, its conceptual foundation permeated the Muslim League-Mandal alliance, the belief that Muslims and Scheduled Castes, both minorities, could become natural collaborators. Unfortunately, contemporary Indian politics witnesses several parties attempting to revive this demonstrably failed strategy. Maharashtra sees growing proximity between Asaduddin Owaisi and Prakash Ambedkar; Uttar Pradesh experienced the Bahujan Samaj Party's unsuccessful attempts at forging alliances between Scheduled Castes and Muslims; the Samajwadi Party's PDA (Pichda-Dalit-Alpsankhyak) formula seeks to harness both communities merely as vote banks. Recent electoral evidence reinforces historical patterns. The 2019 BSP-SP alliance in Uttar Pradesh collapsed primarily due to asymmetrical vote transfers. While Dalit voters supported Muslim candidates, reciprocal support proved largely illusory. Similarly, the Owaisi-Prakash Ambedkar partnership in Maharashtra fractured over seat-sharing disputes, revealing the same power dynamics that characterized Muslim League treatment of Mandal. These examples echo historical mistakes, demonstrating that when politics abandons public welfare for narrow caste and communal calculations, the inevitable result is betrayal and social disintegration. Structural Incompatibilities Persist The fundamental contradictions that destroyed Mandal's experiment remain unresolved. Power dynamics in every attempted alliance consistently favor Muslim parties, reducing Dalit partners to subordinate positions. Vote transfer patterns reveal systematic asymmetry: while Dalit voters may support Muslim candidates, reciprocal support rarely materializes. Religious identity-based Muslim political consciousness conflicts with caste-focused Dalit aspirations for social justice within Hindu civilizational frameworks. Moreover, ideological contradictions create insurmountable barriers. Muslim parties' emphasis on religious orthodoxy clashes with Dalit movements' goals of social reform, gender equality, and educational modernization. These philosophical differences, rooted in fundamentally different worldviews about individual rights, social progress, and cultural values, make genuine partnership impossible. The Path Forward Contemporary India must acknowledge that sustainable Dalit progress and security will emerge through self-reliance, education, political awareness, and organizational power, not through alliances that history has repeatedly proven catastrophic. The 'Jal Meem Jal Bheem" concept and its practical applications have historically manifested as Scheduled Caste humiliation, identity destruction, and existential annihilation. Therefore, as we commemorate partition's suffering, let us resolve to make decisions based on historical facts and collective experiences, remaining free from emotional sloganeering and vote bank-driven narrow politics. Jogendra Nath Mandal's experiences and Dr. Ambedkar's warnings teach us that Scheduled Castes will never achieve security, social justice, and dignity from hands that have historically deceived them through religious fanaticism, appeasement, and vote bank politics. top videos View all This represents not merely historical interpretation but guidance for present and future generations. Those who ignore history's lessons are condemned to repeat its most tragic chapters. Dharampal Singh is state general secretary, organisation, of the BJP Uttar Pradesh. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. Click here to add News18 as your preferred news source on Google. view comments Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: August 13, 2025, 19:44 IST News opinion Opinion | Forgotten Betrayal: Partition's Dalit Victims Warn Against 'Jai Meem Jai Bheem' Politics Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
