Bharat Ratna Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, well known as Babasaheb, was an Indian political leader, jurist, philosopher, historian, orator, prolific writer and great scholar. He was the chief architect of the Indian Constitution. Born into a poor family, Ambedkar spent his whole life fighting against social discrimination and the Hindu caste system.

Early life and Education:- Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was born on April 14, 1891 at Mhow in the Central Provinces (now in Madhya Pradesh). He was the 14th and last child of Ramji Maloji Sakpal and Bhimabai. Ambedkar’s father served in the Indian Army. His family was a Marathi background Hindu of Mahar caste, who were treated as untouchables and subjected to intense socio-economic discrimination. At that time, the children of untouchable communities were not allowed to study in some schools. Ramji Sakpal admitted his children to study at the government school. Although able to attend school, Ambedkar and other untouchable children were not allowed to sit inside the class. They were segregated and given no attention or assistance by the teachers. Even, in order to drink water, they had to depend upon somebody from a higher caste who would have to pour that water from a height.  As his father retired in 1894 and the family moved to Satara two years later. Shortly after their move, Ambedkar’s mother died. The children were cared for by their paternal aunt, and lived in difficult circumstances.

Ambedkar’s father remarried in 1898, and the family moved to Bombay (now Mumbai).  At Bombay, Ambedkar became the first untouchable student at the Government High School near Elphinstone Road. While in school, in 1906, Ambedkar, at the age of 15, married to Ramabai, a 9 years old girl as per the tradition of his caste. Ambedkar passed his matriculation examination in 1907 and entered the University of Bombay, becoming the first persons of untouchable origin to enter a college in India. In 1908, he entered Elphinstone College and obtained a scholarship of 25 rupees a month. By 1912, he obtained his degree in economics and political science from Bombay University. His wife gave birth to his first son in the same year. Ambedkar started working with the Baroda state government.

In 1913 Ambedkar received Baroda State Scholarship of 11.50 British pounds a month for three years to join the Political Department of the Columbia University as a Post Graduate Student. He passed his M.A. exam in 1913, majoring in Economics, with Sociology, History, Philosophy, and Anthropology as other subjects of study. In 1916 he was admitted to Gray’s Inn for Law and to the London School of Economics and Political Science for Economics where he started work on a Doctoral thesis. In 1917 he returned to India.

Career:- After returning to India, Ambedkar was appointed as Military Secretary of Baroda. But very soon he left the job and worked as private tutor, as an accountant, investment consulting business. In 1918 he became Professor of Political Economy in the Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics in Bombay. But due to his caste discrimination he resigned from his teaching position and returned to the London School of Economics, and to Gray’s Inn to read for the Bar. In 1922, Ambedkar once again completed his M.Sc. (Economics) degree at London School of Economics. He was called to the bar, and submitted a Ph.D. thesis in economics to the University of London. Ambedkar established a successful legal practice there.

But Ambedkar returned to India to work for removing social discrimination. He was appointed to the Bombay Presidency Committee to work with the all-European Simon Commission in 1925. By 1927 Dr. Ambedkar decided to launch active movements against untouchability. He began public movements to share public drinking water resources and also the right to enter Hindu temples. He became one of the most prominent political figures of the time. Due to his prominence and popular support amongst the untouchable community, he was invited to attend the Second Round Table Conference in London in 1932. There he demanded separate electorates for the castes, called untouchables and the British agreed with him and announced the awarding of separate electorates. But, Gandhiji began a fast-unto-death while imprisoned in the Yerwada Central Jail of Pune in 1932 against the separate electorate for untouchables only, asking for the political unity of Hindus. Fearing a communal reprisal and killings of untouchables in the event of Gandhi’s death, Ambedkar withdrew his demand, which saw Gandhiji ending his fast.

Political career:- In 1935, Ambedkar was appointed principal of the Government Law College, Mumbai, a position he held for two years. His wife Ramabai died after a long illness in the same year. It had been a long-standing wish of his wife to go on a pilgrimage, but Ambedkar refused as they were restricted to enter into the temples. Disgusted by the evil Hindu custome, Ambedkar, at a conference near Nasik announced his followers to leave Hinduism. In 1936, Ambedkar founded the Independent Labour Party, which won 15 seats in the 1937 elections to the Central Legislative Assembly. He served on the Defence Advisory Committee and the Viceroy’s Executive Council as minister for labour.

Father of India’s Constitution:- With India’s independence on August 15, 1947, Ambedkar served as the nation’s first law minister. On August 29, Ambedkar was appointed as Chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee, to write free India’s new Constitution. Ambedkar finally drafted the Indian Constitution, making it a milestone and got great praise from his colleagues and contemporary observers for his marvelous work. The text prepared by Ambedkar provided constitutional guarantees and protections for a wide range of civil liberties for individual citizens, including freedom of religion, the abolition of untouchability and the outlawing of all forms of discrimination. Ambedkar introduced a system of reservations of jobs in the civil services, schools and colleges for members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. The Constitution was adopted on November 26, 1949 by the Constituent Assembly. Ambedkar due to some difference of opinion resigned from the cabinet in 1951. He was again selected to the upper house, of parliament, the Rajya Sabha in 1952.

Conversion to Buddhism:- In 1955, Babasaheb Ambedkar founded the Bharatiya Bauddha Mahasabha, or the Buddhist Society of India. After meetings with the Sri Lankan Buddhist monk, Ambedkar organised a formal public ceremony for himself and his supporters in Nagpur on October 14, 1956. Ambedkar completed his own conversion and then converted an estimated 5 lakhs of his supporters.

Ambedkar was bedridden from June to October in 1954 owing to clinical depression and failing eyesight. His health worsened as he furiously worked through 1955. Ambedkar died in his sleep on December 6, 1956 at his home in Delhi. He was posthumously awarded India’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna in 1990.