Ramdas Athawale proposes Rahul Gandhi marry a Dalit girl

Mumbai: Union minister Ramdas Athawale has come up with a solution to end casteism in the country. The RPI leader has suggested that Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi should marry a Dalit woman to abolish casteism. Merely having meals with the Dalit community will not help, Mr Athawale said. 

Mr Athavale’s proposal comes close on the heels of Mr Gandhi’s recent response to a question on his marriage. The Congress leader said that he believed in destiny when it came to marriage. “This is an old question. I believe in destiny. ‘Jab hogi, tab hogi’,” Mr Gandhi had said. 

Reacting to Mr Athavale’s proposal, the Congress said that marriage is a personal issue. “Marriage is a personal matter and it should not be brought into politics,” said Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant.

The Dalit leader who heads the Republican Party of India (Athavale), an ally of the BJP-led NDA, said he could help find a match for the Congress scion. “He (Gandhi) goes to houses of Dalit people occasionally and eats with them. I think he should marry a Dalit woman. If needed, I will help find one (match) for him,” the minister of state for social justice told reporters in Akola in east Maharashtra.

Mr Athawale said he that it was not his intention to insult Mr Gandhi. “I have no intention of insulting him, but I’m proposing it (inter-caste marriage), so as to present a model before the country. I have personally married a Brahmin girl, which is in line with B.R. Ambedkar’s solution to dismantling caste barriers. It (uprooting casteism) cannot be achieved only by eating together,” the minister said.

Responding to a query, Mr Athawale said the Mr Gandhi had changed recently as far as his leadership calibre was concerned. “He is not ‘Pappu’ anymore. He looks confident and hopefully can be a good leader,” the Dalit leader said, referring to the nickname with which the Congress leader was often mocked on social media.