Another Ambedkar kin hopes to revive RPI in Maharashtra, save political career

Mumbai: Keen to resurrect his lacklusture political career, 42-year-old Rajratna Ashok Ambedkar, the great grandson of BR Ambedkar’s elder brother Anandrao Ambedkar, has staked claim to reviving the Republican Party of India (RPI) as envisioned by his illustrious ancestor before his death on December 6, 1956.
Rajratna has approached the election commission with an application to register a party named Republican Party of India – 30 September 1956. The date refers to the day when BR Ambedkar announced his plans to establish RPI, and its inclusion in the name is a bid to both claim his legacy and distinguish the new outfit from at least 12 other RPI factions. “Babasaheb envisioned RPI as the united voice of people from various sections of society,” Rajratna told HT. “Although he did not want the party to confined to Dalits, all existing factions of RPI have become nothing but that. So we have decided to revive the RPI based on the party constitution drafted by him.”
Though BR Ambedkar declared his intent to establish the RPI in September 1956, he passed away before the party was formally registered in 1957. It began splintering due to ideological and personal differences among its top leaders within a year of its formation, leading to the birth of at least 12 breakaway factions.
“We have now submitted an application to the election commission for registering ‘Republican Party of India – 30 September 1956’ under section 29A of the Representation of People Act,” said Rajratna, president of the Buddhist Society of India founded by BR Ambedkar. The commission has received the application and it is being scrutinised, he added.
Rajratna was earlier associated with prominent Dalit activist and Bahujan Kranti Morcha leader Waman Meshram. He contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Nanded as a candidate of the Bahujan Mukti Party but polled only 28,447 votes.
If things go according to plan, the new party will stitch up an alliance with Maratha and Muslim organisations in the state ahead of the assembly polls. “Discussions are on with (Maratha quota activist) Manoj Jarange-Patil and an alliance will be formalised once the election commission recognises our party,” said Rajratna.
He also took a swipe at Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) chief Prakash Ambedkar, BR Ambedkar’s grandson, who he said was helping the BJP “directly and indirectly” while failing to get any candidates elected to the state legislature or the parliament. VBA had garnered significant vote share during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, which resulted in losses for the Congress-led Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in at least 8-9 seats. In the 2024 Lok Sabha poll, VBA failed to elicit much response from voters as most Dalits and Muslims shifted allegience to the MVA.
Rajendra Gawai, general secretary of RPI and son of BR Ambedkar’s deceased associate RS Gawai, said the registration of a new party under Rajratna would have little impact on its fortunes.
“The party name RPI is with us. So he will have to add a subtitle after RPI to register the party,” he said. The RPI contested the recent Lok Sabha elections and will be fielding candidates in the Haryana assembly poll, he added.