Team Clarion
NEW DELHI — National president of Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) Chandra Shekhar Azad has strongly objected to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for referring to Dalits as “Harijan,” a term widely viewed as derogatory.
He also alleged that the chief minister was dividing society into “Harijans” and “non-Harijans” on social, cultural, and religious platforms.
The Lok Sabha member from Nagina Azad pointed out that “Harijan”, historically used by upper-caste Hindus to label Dalits — who represent the lowest social strata in the country — has been officially discouraged. He reminded that in 1982, the Indian government advised state administrations against using the term for Scheduled Castes. He wondered how Adityanath, who holds such an important Constitutional post, was not aware of these decisions and wondered whether he was deliberately using the word “Harijan” for insulting the community.
“Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who gave the slogan ‘If we divide, we will be divided’ in election rallies, is himself dividing the society into ‘Harijans’ and ‘non-Harijans’ on social, cultural and religious platforms. Doesn’t the use of the word ‘Harijan’ put his so-called Hindus in danger? Whereas in 1982, the Union government had issued an advisory to all the state governments asking them not to use the word ‘Harijan’ for the Scheduled Castes. In 2010, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment banned it by issuing new guidelines in this regard. Even the Hon’ble Court had banned it, calling it derogatory,” the Nagina MP wrote on X on Friday and tagged a video of the chief minister where he used the word ‘Harijan’.
