Shahuji Maharaj was born when Brahmins were regarded as sacrosanct, and the kings drew their legitimacy from keeping them happy. He not only saw through the charade of the Brahmins who had only contempt for all other castes but also actively tried to challenge their hegemony by policy decisions that the Brahmins opposed. In 1902,
only eight years into his reign, he made the pathbreaking law for 50% reservations for Dalit and backward castes in educational institutions and government jobs in the state. Prior to this, brahmins occupied 60 of the 71 senior administrative positions in the Kolhapur administration. By 1912, 60 out of 95 administrative officers came from Non-Brahmin castes.
He made primary education free and compulsory for all his subjects and opened schools in all villages in Kolhapur. He also opened hostels for students belonging to different castes. During his reign, all temples – hitherto tightly controlled by Chitpavan Brahmins – were brought under the government’s jurisdiction, and the tradition of assigning villages to brahmins for revenue extraction was abolished. He also established a school to train students from all castes to learn Sanskrit and understand scriptures.
His government banned the practice of untouchability and opened access to wells, ponds and hospitals, which was till then disallowed to backward castes. Shahuji Maharaj was far ahead of his time in taking legal steps to ameliorate the oppressive condition of women in society. He enacted laws that legalised inter-caste, interfaith marriages as well as widow remarriage and increased the marriageable age for women from 10 to 14. It was a step that was vociferously opposed by brahmins. He promulgated the Prevention of cruelty to women act and the Kolhapur divorce act in 1919. In 1920, he promulgated the Hindu code bill, which abolished restrictions on women to inherit the property of their families.
Dr Krishnabai Kelavkar – the first practising lady doctor of the country – was able to pursue higher medical education abroad based on the financial support provided by Shahuji Maharaj. Shahuji was an important influence on Ambedkar and was in constant touch with him from 1917 when Ambedkar returned from London. He personally admired Ambedkar and helped him financially to set up Mooknayak. Shahuji Maharaj breathed his last on 6th May 1922 at the young age of 48..
*दलित टाइम्स उन करोड़ो लोगो की आवाज़ है जिन्हें हाशिए पर रखा गया है। *
महिला, दलित और आदिवासियों के मुद्दों पर केंद्रित पत्रकारिता करने और मुख्यधारा की मीडिया में इनका प्रतिनिधित्व करने के लिए हमें आर्थिक सहयोग करें।
