Skip to content
ModernAdvancedCollected writings

The Writings and Speeches of B. R. Ambedkar

B. R. Ambedkar

Democratic constitutionalism / anti-caste politics

It is the indispensable body of anti-caste and democratic-constitutionalist thought, central to understanding modern Indian political theory.

Synopsis

The collected works of the architect of India's constitution, attacking caste oppression and defending constitutional democracy as the path to emancipation.

Core passage idea

Paraphrase · Modern copyrighted work

Caste is not merely a division of labor but a graded inequality that must be annihilated for any real democracy or human dignity to exist.

It makes the abolition of caste a precondition of democracy, fusing social justice with constitutional and political reform.

To avoid a bubble

Pair with John Rawls, A Theory of Justice.

Reading note

Vast and varied; read by theme, pairing the constitutional arguments with the polemics against caste and Hindu orthodoxy.

Best paired with

John Rawls, A Theory of Justice

Find this book

More by B. R. Ambedkar