Remembering an unsung Dalit hero of the Gadar movement
 
 
As the centenary of the Gadar Party draw closer, those organizing the centennial festivities need to highlight the role played by many unsung heroes of the freedom struggle. Among them was Mangu Ram Muggowal, a prominent Dalit icon of Punjab. He was a part of the Gadar party that was launched in US on November 1, 1913 and believed in an armed struggle against the British occupation of India.
Although historians sometimes do injustice to many individual participants of the historical struggles and their contributions are sometimes overshadowed by the role played by a few dominant leaders, but the followers of Muggowal believe that his role in the Gadar movement may have been deliberately ignored because of caste prejudice. While this allegation is debatable, but Muggowal’s role should be acknowledged by the authors of the Gadar history especially when the Dalits are celebrating his 125th birth anniversary. 
Born in Punjab in 1886, Muggowal like other members of the Gadar Party immigrated to US for economical reasons and became involved in the freedom struggle following a realization of racism and discrimination in the foreign land. The members of the Gadar Party believed that their sufferings are the result of slavery back home and resolved to fight against imperialism. A person like Muggowal endured double discrimination for being a person of colour and a Dalit. Being born in a so called low caste Chamaar family, he began facing caste based discrimination from his childhood.  Thankfully, the Gadar Party believed in secularism and kept religion and politics apart yet he faced such prejudice even in US.
Muggowal not only worked for the Gadar newsletter but also went to Java to help in collecting and sending arms to India. He escaped near death sentence at the hands of the British allies. Thinking that he has died, his family remarried his widow to his brother. 
On coming back to India he was disillusioned by the continued oppression of the Dalits, who were considered untouchables by the orthodox Hindus and the Sikhs. He was partly upset with the popular leaders of the freedom struggle who failed to address the issue of casteism. He resigned from the Gadar Party in order to mobilize Dalits against the systemic caste based discrimination and eventually launched Aadi Dharam movement in Punjab. Since this movement was in conflict with the interest of the freedom struggle, his cause was not dear to the popular leadership of India. Rather, Muggowal was branded as a tool of the British Empire that was playing a divide and rule game to prolong its rule in India. Whereas the British Empire was happy to give concessions to the Dalits, leaders like Muggowal felt deceived by the mainstream nationalist leaders of India. Despite such differences, it goes to the credit of Muggowal that he did not support a religion based partition of India in 1947.
Talking from a critical point of view, since Muggowal’s real legacy was his Aadi Dharam movement and not his contribution to the freedom movement one can understand why his role may have been neglected, but that said some other individuals who enjoy a place in the Gadar Hall of Fame also became controversial in coming years. Some became communalists and tried to damage the secular fabric of the Indian society. If they can be pardoned, why Muggowal’s role in the Gadar party should not be recognized? If he was playing into the hands of the British, so were the leaders of the other communities to get short term gains such as a status of martial race for the purpose of army recruitment.
Besides, it must be acknowledged that the oppression against Dailts has continued and our nationalist leadership never honestly made it a priority to eradicate the menace. Let Muggowal be remembered both as a Gadar and a Dalit activist. Let the readers of the history make their own judgment.
 Ends