On 29th November 1948, at the Constituent Assembly, Mr. Nazeeruddin Ahmed [West Bengal Muslim] moved an Amendment in Article 11:
“Sir, I move that for Article 11, the following Article be substituted—
[1] No one shall on account of his religion or caste be treated or regarded as untouchable; and if observer in any form may be made punishable by law.
I submit that the Original Article 11 is little vague, the word untouchability has no legal meaning, although politically we are all well aware of it; but it may lead to a considerable amount of misunderstanding has in a legal expression. The word untouchable can be applied to so many variety of thing that we cannot leave it at that. It may be a man suffering from an epidemic or contagious disease is an untouchable; then certain kinds of foods are untouchable to Hindus and Muslims. According to certain ideas women of other families are untouchable. Then according to Pandit Thakurdas Bhargava, a wife below 15 would be untouchable to her loving husband on the grounds that it be a marital misbehaviour. I beg to submit Sir that the word untouchable rather loose. That is why I have attempted to give it a better shape; that no one on account of his religion or caste be regarded as untouchable. Untouchability on the ground of religion or caste is what is prohibited.”
Comment: Untouchability shall be better understood in terms of varnasharama dharma it is peculiar to the Hindu birth doctrine.