The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) wrote a letter to the Maharashtra Government to take control of the Ambedkar Museum in London. The Government of India (GOI) is planning to convert this museum into an autonomous unit, as per the official on June 22. The museum, located at 10 King Henry Road, London, UK, was built where Dr BR Ambedkar resided for two years in 1921-22, during his higher studies at the prestigious London School of Economics.
The officials related to this matter stated that the reason for GOI for converting the museum into an autonomous body is to “prevent hijacking of the institution by forces inimical to the national interests”. The GOI said, “disparate foreign academics claiming to be Ambedkarites were seeking control over the museum”.
According to the MEA’s letter, a director rank officer will be appointed from the GOI after the museum is converted into an autonomous body to look after the functioning of the institution. The letter states, “This will help us promote a broader understanding of Ambedkar’s work, including his views on nation-building, diversity, inclusion, institution-building, and decentralisation, among others”. The letter further states, “The museum has considerable convening power which may be utilised positively to project the ideals of Babasaheb, and London provides a huge opportunity for it”.
An official from Maharashtra’s Chief Minister Office (CMO) stated, ”The MEA has requested the state government to give consent to hand over control of Dr Ambedkar’s home in London to it”. The official further added that the file of the takeover had been submitted for approval. Notably, Ambedkar’s house was purchased by the Maharashtra Government in 2015 for 3.2 million pounds.
In 2015, the decision of the Maharashtra Government to purchase Ambedkar’s residence was cleared by the GOI, and after that, it was converted into a museum. The museum was inaugurated the same year by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 14.
The Federation of Ambedkarites and Buddhist Organisation (FABO), UK, had written a letter to GOI requesting them to buy the property as it has historical importance attached to it. The FABO’s letter played an important role in the decision to purchase this historically valuable property.
During PM Modi’s visit in 2015, he wrote in the visitor’s book at the museum that, “This is the sacred spot where Dr Ambedkar pursued his quest for knowledge, overcoming all the difficulties and the barriers placed before him”.
After visiting the London House of Ambedkar, PM Modi said, “Ambedkar’s message of equality and justice continues to resonate”. The then-Chief Minister of Maharastra, Devendra Fadnavis, accompanied the Prime Minister to London to open Ambedkar House to the public and announced that the Government would award a scholarship to two Dalit students every year to study at the London School of Economics. Fadnavis also wanted the inauguration to serve as a means of exposing some of the great works of Dr Ambedkar.
Recently on June 5, the Union Minister of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal visited the Ambedkar Museum in London and paid tribute to Dr Ambedkar.
Dr BR Ambedkar is known as the architect of the Constitution of Bharat and was a renowned politician and an eminent jurist. He sought to eliminate caste-based discrimination and fought for the rights of the Dalits and other socially backward classes. Dr Ambedkar was appointed as the nation’s first Law Minister in the Cabinet of Jawaharlal Nehru, and he was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, Bharat’s highest civilian honour, in 1990.
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