RAS question
Who wrote the book 'Annihilation of Caste'?
Correct answer: (D) B.R. Ambedkar.
Dr B.R. Ambedkar wrote The Annihilation of Caste, a 1936 text originally prepared as a speech for the Jat-Pat Todak Mandal conference in Lahore.
Explanation
The Annihilation of Caste is associated with Dr B.R. Ambedkar, not with Gandhi, Periyar or Jyotiba Phule. Ambedkar wrote it in 1936, and it began as a speech prepared for the Jat-Pat Todak Mandal conference in Lahore. Press Information Bureau, Government of India lists The Annihilation of Caste among Ambedkar's books, alongside Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development, and says these works reflect his understanding of Indian sociological realities. That context explains why the title is routinely tested in modern Indian history: it connects Ambedkar's anti-caste thought with his wider role as a social reformer and public intellectual.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Mahatma Gandhi had different views on caste from Ambedkar, but Press Information Bureau, Government of India places The Annihilation of Caste among Ambedkar's books.
- (B) Periyar E.V. Ramasamy was a social reformer in Tamil Nadu, but The Annihilation of Caste is attributed to Ambedkar.
- (C) Jyotiba Phule fought caste discrimination, but Ambedkar is the writer of The Annihilation of Caste.
Concept
This tests modern Indian social reform, especially Ambedkar's anti-caste writings and their place in debates on equality. RAS repeats such author-work pairs because they link personalities, reform movements and ideological themes in one factual checkpoint.