Arvind P. Nirmal

Arvind P. Nirmal, (1936–1995) was a Dalit Christian theologian and a minister of the Church of North India. He questioned the Christian conversion of the upper castes, especially the Brahmin. A major proponent of Dalit theology,

Nirmal criticised Brahminic dominance of Christian theology in India, and believed that the application of liberation theology to India should reflect the struggle of Dalits, He drew on the concept of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53 to identify Jesus himself as a Dalit – "a waiter, a dhobi, and bhangi." he was ordained a priest in the Church of North India and he served as a rural pastor for several years in the Jalna area, including at Kharpudi and Dahipuri villages. Before moving to Dahipuri, he would travel the distance on his bicycle. He was again selected to do his M.Th (Masters in Theology) at UTC Bangalore, where he then joined as a faculty, teaching systematic theology based on which the university awarded an M. Th. in the year 1969, again by Chetti Devasahayam, then Registrar. The Franciscan Friar J. A. G. Gerwin van Leeuwen, OFM was a companion of Nirmal during the period 1966-1968 and was also sent to Oxford later in 1973 to study at Keble College, where he pursued postgraduate study.

Publications (with V. Devasahayam), A Reader in Dalit Theology, Gurukul Lutheran Theological College & Research Institute, 1990, 180 pages. Nirmal, Arvind P.ed. "Towards a Common Dalit Ideology." Madras: Gurukul Lutheran Theological College & Research Institute, 1989, 132 pages.