Writer Banjagere Jayaprakash at a seminar on the thoughts of BR Ambedkar and youth at Sahyadri Science College in Shivamogga on Tuesday. | Photo credit: SK DINESH
After inaugurating a seminar on BR Ambedkar’s thoughts and youth in Shivamogga on Tuesday, writer Banjagere Jayaprakash lamented that the youth has been inactive when it comes to electoral politics, thus contributing to the weakening of democracy, a system meant to ensure political equality.
Many youths, Mr. Jayaprakash said, hardly cast their votes during the elections. They rarely think about political parties and candidates or elect a leader who could ensure human dignity for all, he added. “Most of the youth are busy deciding who is the best actor or busy discussing who is trending among Bollywood actresses. Questions like who should be prime minister or chief minister have become topics outside the prescribed curriculum,” he noted.
According to the writer, this indifferent attitude of the youth would indicate that they were not serious about the political equality promoted by the Constitution. Youth should contribute to strengthening democracy by actively participating in electoral politics; similarly, they should strive to achieve social equality, which ruling governments alone cannot ensure, he said. “With the freedom of the country, the government has changed, but the society has remained the same. To change this, each individual should treat the other as a fellow traveler and give up age-old sectarian or caste views towards each other. This is possible by understanding Ambedkar’s thoughts,” he added.
Further, Mr. Jayaprakash said that central to Ambedkar’s thought was that one human being. He considered each individual as a unit and framed his views on democracy, anti-casteism, nation-state and other issues based on this, the writer said. “Ambedkar argued that an individual should not be seen as a part of a community because the prevailing social hierarchy of a particular community discriminates. Therefore, the constitution gave the highest importance to the individual being. As an individual, one can choose his religion, choose his political ideology and also find a companion he likes,” he said.
Kuvempu University Registrar AL Manjunath, BR Ambedkar Study Center Principal Nallikatte Siddesh, Sahyadri Science College Principal N. Rajeshwari and others were present. The one-day seminar was jointly organized by BR Ambedkar Study Center of Kuvempu University, BR Ambedkar Research and Training Center in Bengaluru and Sahyadri Science College in Shivamogga.
Published – 28 Oct 2025 20:51 IST
