Gandhi now added a crucial caveat: Thus whilst I am prepared to defend, as I have always done, the division of Hindus into four castes…I consider untouchability to be a heinous crime against humanity. It is not a sign of self-restraint but an arrogant assumption of superiority. It has served no useful purpose and it has suppressed, as nothing else in Hinduism has, vast numbers of the human race who are not only every bit as good as ourselves, but are rendering in many walks of life an essential service to the country.29
