Dalit ‘hero’ Azad on wedding cards, calendars

BAREILLY: The moustache-twirling Chandrashekhar Azad, chief of the Bhim Army, is gaining iconic status among a section of Dalits in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, with some young couples going so far as to have his picture on their wedding cards. Azad’s incarceration on NSA charges, which many in the community see as unfair, seems to have added to his growing popularity.Some of the people who used his photo on their wedding invitations told TOI that Azad was no less than a “messiah” to them and they felt “strengthened” being associated with him.
Saharanpur-based Pavan Gautam, 27, who is set to get married on March 10, said that he may never have met Azad but the latter is his idol. “His appearance, the way he connects with the youth is remarkable. Even at such a young age, he has done so much for the community. Bhim Army runs over 300 coaching centres for Dalit kids in rural areas so that they can compete with children from other communities when they grow up. Besides, Azad has educated scores of labourers about their rights and has helped them in gaining self-belief,” he said,
Gautam, a graduate currently employed with a finance company, said Azad had nothing to do with caste clashes in Saharanpur last year. “Police have wrongly booked him under such a stringent law,” he said.
Not only wedding cards, a section of the community has also been using calendars with pictures of the Bhim Army chief.
Rakesh Kumar Nautial, a resident of Ghadkoli, Azad’s native village in Saharanpur, said that the latter was a “messiah”. Nautial’s son Gulshan got married on February 17 and his wedding card had a picture of Azad alongside BR Ambedkar. “Every Dalit sees him as a hero. He has sacrificed a lot for society. He was thrown in jail because he stood and fought for our rights. Some of my relatives and friends initially had reservations about his picture on our invitation card but I didn’t pay heed to them. Azad has no hidden political agenda,” Nautial told TOI.
Haridwar-based Amardeep Baudh will be getting married on March 18 and is proud to have Azad’s picture on his wedding card. “He is a true Dalit leader. After Kanshi Ram, we have had Dalit political leaders but they have always used the community as a vote bank. Azad is a ray of hope for us and we strongly believe that he will bring reform in our society. For me, he is as important as BR Ambedkar or Gautam Buddha,” Baudh said.