Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has urged the government to confer the Bharat Ratna on Kanshi Ram, the Dalit icon and founder of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), describing him as a “symbol of empowerment and hope.” In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Kanshi Ram’s birth anniversary, Mr. Gandhi credited him with strengthening the foundations of Indian democracy. This is not the first time he has made such a demand.
