The Vital-Vidhvansak, the first monthly journal to have the untouchable people as its target audience was published by (UPSC Prelims 2020)

Question

The correct answer is [A] Gopal Baba Walangkar. Published in 1888, Vital-Vidhvansak (Destroyer of Brahmanical Ritual Pollution) is considered the first monthly journal dedicated to the cause of the untouchable community in India.

Gopal Baba Walangkar (Statement A – Correct): A pioneer of the Dalit movement in Maharashtra and a former soldier, Walangkar founded the Anarya Dosh-Parihar Mandalak. He used Vital-Vidhvansak to challenge the position of untouchables in the Hindu caste hierarchy and argued against the religious texts that justified discrimination.
Jyotiba Phule (Statement B – Incorrect): While Phule was a mentor to Walangkar and founded the Satyashodhak Samaj in 1873, his primary literary contributions include Gulamgiri and Shetkarayacha Aasud. He influenced Walangkar’s ideology but did not publish this specific journal.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (Statement C – Incorrect): Gandhi’s primary publication concerning the untouchable community (whom he called Harijans) was the weekly journal Harijan, started much later in 1933.
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Statement D – Incorrect): Dr. Ambedkar published several influential journals such as Mooknayak (1920), Bahishkrit Bharat (1927), and Janata (1930), but these were established decades after Walangkar’s pioneering work.

Walangkar is often regarded as the first intellectual rebel from the Dalit community to use the press as a tool for social mobilization and critique of the varna system.

GKToday Admin · Accepted Answer

Gopal Baba Walangkar The correct answer is [A] Gopal Baba Walangkar. Published in 1888, Vital-Vidhvansak (Destroyer of Brahmanical Ritual Pollution) is considered the first monthly journal dedicated to the cause of the untouchable community in India.

Gopal Baba Walangkar (Statement A – Correct): A pioneer of the Dalit movement in Maharashtra and a former soldier, Walangkar founded the Anarya Dosh-Parihar Mandalak. He used Vital-Vidhvansak to challenge the position of untouchables in the Hindu caste hierarchy and argued against the religious texts that justified discrimination.
Jyotiba Phule (Statement B – Incorrect): While Phule was a mentor to Walangkar and founded the Satyashodhak Samaj in 1873, his primary literary contributions include Gulamgiri and Shetkarayacha Aasud. He influenced Walangkar’s ideology but did not publish this specific journal.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (Statement C – Incorrect): Gandhi’s primary publication concerning the untouchable community (whom he called Harijans) was the weekly journal Harijan, started much later in 1933.
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Statement D – Incorrect): Dr. Ambedkar published several influential journals such as Mooknayak (1920), Bahishkrit Bharat (1927), and Janata (1930), but these were established decades after Walangkar’s pioneering work.

Walangkar is often regarded as the first intellectual rebel from the Dalit community to use the press as a tool for social mobilization and critique of the varna system.

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