Question

What was so special about Ayyankali's journey in Villuvandi?

• A. Back in the day, the lower castes were not allowed to use the main roads. So Ayyankali rode through the streets and roads as an act of defiance.
• B. Back in the day, there weren't good roads. So Ayyankali rode through the streets and roads as an act of demonstration.
• C. Back then oxcarts were too costly. Ayyankali was the first to buy an oxcart.
• D. Oxcarts were banned in Travancore because of their incompatibility with the road.

Answer 1

The correct option is A Back in the day, the lower castes were not allowed to use the main roads. So Ayyankali rode through the streets and roads as an act of defiance.

Villuvandi is a kind of ox-cart. In the 1800s, it was forbidden for lower caste people to use public roads that were reserved only for the upper castes. In an act of open defiance, Ayyankali rode a Villuvandi through the public roads of Venganur in 1893, opening the roads for the depressed classes.