A member of the Depressed Classes–I do not know what the difference is between Depressed Classes and Scheduled Castes–has pleaded that one Depressed Member should be in this Committee. As far as I am concerned, I have no quarrel with the names that have been suggested by the authors of this Resolution at all. They are eminent men, they are men who have worked in the States and they know the States. But, Sir, I humbly submit that I do not think they know much of the Eastern States. The Indian States People’s Conference has dealt generally with States in Northern India. Southern India and a part of Western and Central India. They have had hardly anything whatever to do with the Orissa States Agency or the Agencies of Bengal and the North East Frontier. The House must forgive me if I blow my trump a bit. Ever since my return from British West Africa, I have been traversing a lot amongst the Adibasis in the Adibasi Tracts and, in the last 9 years, I have traversed 1,14,000 miles and it has given me an idea of what the Adibasis need and what this House is expected to do for them. There are, in Indian India, in Rajasthan, the Princely India, where you have a population of a little of 90 million people, you have 17 million Adibasis, 17 million tribes. Sir. I suggest that with such a large population, there should be an Adibasi in this Negotiating Committee. I think he will be able to help the Committee. I am not obstructing the work of the Committee but I want that an Adibasi should be there to fight for the Adibasis. You need an Adibasi when you fight for Adibasis and he will fight along with the Negotiating Committee. Sir, I would suggest to the Movers and the authors of this Resolution that they do include an Adibasi and make it ‘We Are Seven‘.
