Jayaprakash Narayan
Template:Short description Template:Redirect Template:Use Indian English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox person
Jayaprakash Narayan Srivastava ({{#if:Jayaprakash Narayan.ogg|{{#ifexist:Media:Jayaprakash Narayan.ogg|<phonos file="Jayaprakash Narayan.ogg">listen</phonos>|{{errorTemplate:Main other|Audio file "Jayaprakash Narayan.ogg" not found}}Template:Category handler}}}}; 11 October 1902 – 8 October 1979), also known as JP and Lok Nayak (Hindi for "People's leader"), was an Indian politician, theorist and independence activist. He is mainly remembered for leading the mid-1970s opposition against Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and calling for her overthrow in a "total revolution". In 1999, Narayan was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in recognition of his social service. His other awards include the Ramon Magsaysay Award for public service in 1965.
Early lifeEdit
Jayaprakash Narayan Srivastava was born on 11 October 1902<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Devasahayam"/> in the village of Sitab Diara, Chhapra district, Bengal Presidency, British India (present-day Ballia district, Uttar Pradesh, India).<ref name="Birthplace">The village, Sitabdiara, where J.P. was born is situated beside the confluence of the river Ghaghra with the Ganga, and its site has been changing with changes in the course of the rivers. When he was born, this village lay in the Chapra district of Bihar, it now belongs to the Ballia district of Uttar Pradesh Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Efn His house was near the banks of the flood-prone Ghaghara river; every time the river swelled, the house would be slightly damaged, eventually forcing the family to move a few kilometres away to a settlement that is now known as Jayaprakash Nagar, Uttar Pradesh.Template:Cn
Narayan came from a Kayastha family of Srivastava clan.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Devasahayam">Template:Cite book</ref> He was the fourth child of Harsu Dayal and Phul Rani Devi. His father was a junior official in the canal department of the state government and often toured the region. When Narayan was nine years old, he left his village to enrol in the seventh class of the collegiate school at Patna.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This was his first break from village life. Narayan stayed at Saraswati Bhawan, a student hostel in which most of the boys were older than him and included some of Bihar's future leaders, such as its first chief minister Krishna Singh, his deputy Anugrah Narayan Sinha and several others who became politicians and academics.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In October 1918, Narayan married Braj Kishore Prasad's elder daughter and independence activist Prabhavati Devi.<ref name=Das2005p239 /> After their wedding, because Narayan was working in Patna and it was difficult for his wife to stay with him, Mahatma Gandhi invited Prabhavati to become an inmate at Sabarmati Ashram (Ahmedabad).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Jayaprakash, along with some friends, went to listen to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad speak about Gandhi's non-cooperation movement against the passing of the Rowlatt Act of 1919. Azad was a brilliant orator and his call to give up English education was "like leaves before a storm: Jayaprakash has swept away and momentarily lifted up to the skies. That brief experience of soaring up with the winds of a great idea left imprints on his inner being".Template:Cn Inspired by Azad's words, Jayaprakash left Bihar National College with just 20 days remaining to his examinations. Jayaprakash joined the Bihar Vidyapeeth, a college founded by Rajendra Prasad, and became among the first students of Gandhian Anugraha Narayan Sinha.Template:Citation needed
Higher education in the United StatesEdit
After exhausting the courses at the Vidyapeeth, Narayan decided to continue his studies in the United States.<ref name=Das2005p239>Template:Cite book</ref> At age 20, Jayaprakash sailed aboard the cargo ship Janus while Prabhavati remained at Sabarmati. Jayaprakash reached California on 8 October 1922, and was admitted to the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) in January 1923 as a chemistry undergraduate.<ref name="ie">Template:Cite news</ref> To pay for his education, Narayan picked grapes, packed fruits at a canning factory, washed dishes, and worked as a garage mechanic. These jobs gave Narayan an insight into the difficulties of the working class.<ref name="indiatimes1"/><ref name="nytimes1975"/><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> While at Berkeley, Narayan, then one of 45 students from India, joined the university's Hindustan Club.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Free access</ref> At the end of the semester, however, his fees doubled and he was forced to transfer to The University of Iowa, where he continued his studies in applied science and his activities with the Hindustan Association of America, a national association of Indian students studying in the United States.<ref name="Narayan_chairman">Template:Cite newsTemplate:Free access</ref><ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Free access</ref> Narayan chaired the association's 1923 national convention, which was held at the university at the end of December 1923.<ref name="Narayan_chairman"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In Wisconsin, Narayan was introduced to Karl Marx's book Das Kapital. News of the success of the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War made Narayan conclude Marxism was the way to alleviate the suffering of the masses. He studied books by Indian intellectuals and Communist theoreticians M. N. Roy. Narayan's paper on sociology Cultural Variation<ref>Narayan, JP. Cultural variation. Diss. The Ohio State University, 1929.</ref> was declared the best of the year.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Narayan graduated from University of Wisconsin with a MA in Sociology, and from Ohio State University with a BA in behavioural science.<ref name="indiatimes1">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nytimes1975">Template:Cite news</ref> While in the United States, he met K. B. Menon, then teaching at Harvard, ultimately persuading him to return to India and join the independence movement there.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
PoliticsEdit
Having become a Marxist, Narayan returned from the US to India in late 1929.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The same year, he joined the Indian National Congress (INC or Congress) on the invitation of Jawaharlal Nehru; Mahatma Gandhi became Narayan's mentor in the Congress. Narayan shared a house at Kadam Kuan in Patna with his close friend and nationalist Ganga Sharan Singh (Sinha)<ref name="Ralhan 2002 17998 at pages 73–74">Template:Cite book</ref> with whom he shared a lasting friendship.<ref name="Ralhan 2002 17998 at pages 73–74"/>
After being jailed in 1930 for civil disobedience against British rule, Narayan was imprisoned in Nasik Jail, where he met Rammanohar Lohia, Minoo Masani, Achyut Patwardhan, Asoka Mehta, Basawon Singh, Yusuf Desai, C K Narayanaswami and other national leaders. After his release, the Congress Socialist Party (CSP), a left-wing group within the Congress, was formed with Acharya Narendra Deva as president and Narayan as general secretary.Template:Citation needed
When Mahatma Gandhi launched the Quit India Movement in August 1942, Narayan, along with Yogendra Shukla, Suraj Narayan Singh, Gulab Chand Gupta, Pandit Ramnandan Mishra, Shaligram Singh and Shyam Barthwar, scaled the wall of Hazaribagh Central Jail with a goal of starting an underground movement for freedom.<ref name="Srivastava 1988">Template:Cite book</ref> Many young socialist leaders like Rammanohar Lohia, Chhotubhai Puranik and Aruna Asaf Ali took part in the movement. Because Narayan was ill, Yogendra Shukla walked to Gaya with Narayan on his shoulders,<ref name="Srivastava 1988"/> a distance of about Template:Cvt.<ref>Distance between Hazaribagh Central Jail and Gaya. Maps.google.co.in. Retrieved on 20 November 2018.</ref> Narayan also served as the<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> chairman of Anugrah Smarak Nidhi (Anugrah Narayan Memorial Fund).
After IndependenceEdit
Between 1947 and 1953, Jayaprakash Narayan was President of All India Railwaymen's Federation, the largest labour union in Indian Railways.<ref name="Bear">Template:Cite book</ref>
EmergencyEdit
In 1975, Allahabad High Court found Indira Gandhi guilty of violating electoral laws.<ref name="A">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="LOC">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="UK">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="ING">Template:Cite book</ref> Narayan called for Gandhi and the CMs to resign, and the military and police to disregard unconstitutional and immoral orders.Template:Cn He advocated a program of social transformation, which he termed Sampoorna kraanti (total revolution).Template:Cn Immediately afterwards, Gandhi proclaimed a national Emergency on the midnight of 25 June 1975.<ref name="KS">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Desai, opposition leaders, and dissenting members of Gandhi's own party were arrested that day.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Jayaprakash Narayan gathered a crowd of 100,000 people at Ramlila grounds and recited Rashtrakavi Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar'Template:'s poem Singhasan Khaali Karo Ke Janata Aaati Hai.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Narayan was detained at Chandigarh; he asked for one month of parole to mobilise relief in flooded parts of Bihar. His health suddenly deteriorated on 24 October 1975, and he was released on 12 November the same year.Template:Cn At Jaslok Hospital, Bombay, Narayan was diagnosed with kidney failure; he would be on kidney dialysis for the rest of his life.Template:Cn
In the UK, Surur Hoda launched "Free JP", a campaign for the release of Jayaprakash Narayan that was chaired by Nobel Peace Prize winner Philip Noel-Baker.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 18 January 1977, Indira Gandhi revoked the emergency and announced elections. The Janata Party, a vehicle for the broad spectrum of the opposition to Gandhi, was formed under JP's guidance.Template:Citation needed The Janata Party was voted into power and became the first non-Congress party to form a central government.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In the 1977 Indian presidential election, Narayan was proposed as President of India by Janata Party leaders but he refused and Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, then Speaker of the Lok Sabha, became president.Template:Cn
Private lifeEdit
At the age of 17, Jayaprakash was married to Prabhavati Devi, daughter of lawyer and nationalist Brij Kishore Prasad in October 1919. Prabhavati was very independent and on Gandhi's invitation, went to stay at his ashram while Jayaprakash continued his studies.<ref name="Vaidya">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Prabhavati Devi died on 15 April 1973 after a long battle with cancer.Template:Cn
DeathEdit
In March 1979, while he was in the hospital, Narayan's death was erroneously announced by the Indian prime minister Morarji Desai, causing a wave of national mourning, including the suspension of parliament and regular radio broadcasting, and the closure of schools and shops. When he was told about the mistake a few weeks later, Narayan smiled.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Narayan died in Patna, Bihar,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Not in source</ref> on 8 October 1979, three days before his 77th birthday, due to the effects of diabetes and heart disease.Template:Cn
AwardsEdit
- Bharat Ratna, 1999 (Posthumous) for Public Affairs: It is India's highest civilian award.<ref name=nd>Template:Cite news</ref>
- Rashtrabhushan Award of FIE Foundation, Ichalkaranji<ref name="Vaidya"/>
- Ramon Magsaysay Award, 1965 for Public Service.
Sites named after Jayaprakash NarayanEdit
- Jay Prakash Narayan Airport in Patna
- On 1 August 2015, the Chhapra-Delhi-Chhapra Weekly Express was renamed as Loknayak Express in his honour.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- JP Setu the Digha-Sonpur Bridge, a rail-road bridge across river Ganga in Bihar
- Jayaprakash Nagar (JP Nagar) a residential area in Bangalore.
- Jayaprakash Nagar (JP Nagar) a residential area in Mysore.
- Lok Nayak Hospital (hospital in New Delhi)
- Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan National Institute of Criminology & Forensic Science (college in New Delhi)
Artistic depictions of Jayaprakash NarayanEdit
- Prakash Jha directed a 112-minute film "Loknayak", based on the life of Jayaprakash Narayan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref> Chetan Pandit played the role of JP in that film.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- Achyut Potdar played Narayan in ABP News show Pradhanmantri and Aaj Tak Aandolan.
- Anupam Kher portrayed Narayan in the 2025 film Emergency directed by Kangana Ranaut.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
See alsoEdit
FootnotesEdit
ReferencesEdit
Further reading and bibliographyEdit
- Braja Kishore Prasad: The Hero of Many Battles by Sachidanand Sinha; National Book Trust, India, New Delhi; 2018; Template:ISBN
- Red Fugitive: Jayaprakash Narayan by H L Singh Dewans Publications Lahore 1946
- Life and Time of Jayaprakash Narayan by J S Bright Dewans Publications Lahore 1946
- J.P: His Biography, Allan and Wendy Scarfe, Orient Longmans New Delhi 1975
- Jayaprakash Narayan - Jankranti Ke Loknayak by Dr. Riteshwar Nath Tiwari, Rajmangal Prakashan, April 2023
- Jayaprakash: Rebel Extraordinary, by Lakshmi Narayan Lal, Indian Book Company New Delhi 1975
- Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan, by Suresh Ram Macmillan Co. Delhi 1974
- Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan by Farooq Argali Janata Pocket Books Delhi 1977.
- Bimal Prasad (editor). 1980. A Revolutionary's Quest: Selected Writings of Jayaprakash Narayan. Oxford University Press, Delhi Template:ISBN
- Jai Prakash Narain, Jayaprakash Narayan, Essential Writings, 1929–1979: A Centenary Volume, 1902–2002, Konark Publishers (2002) Template:ISBN
- Dr. Kawaljeet, J.P.'s Total Revolution and Humanism (Patna: Buddhiwadi Foundation, 2002). Template:ISBN
- Dr. Ramendra (editor), Jayaprakash Vichar Sankalan [Hindi] (Patna: Rajendra Prakashan, 1986).
- Satyabrata Rai Chowdhuri, Leftism in India: 1917–1947 (London and New Delhi: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008).
- Radhakanta Barik, Politics of the JP Movement (Radiant Publications, Delhi, 1977)
- MG Devashayam, JP Movement Emergency and India's Second Freedom (Vitasta Publishing Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 2012). Template:ISBN
- Why Socialism, 1936
- War Circulars, 1–4 CSP, Lucknow
- Inside Lahore Fort, Sahityalaya Patna 1947
- Nation Building in India – JP Narayan
- Three Basic Problems of India. From Socialism to Sarvodaya, Sarva Seva Sangh Prakashan, Varansi 1957
- A Plea for Reconstruction of Indian Polity, Sarva Seva Sangh Prakashan, Varanasi 1959
- Swaraj for the People, Sarva Seva Sangh Prakashan, Varansi 1961
- Sarvodaya Answer to Chinese Aggression, Sarvodaya Prachuralaya Tanjore 1963
- Face to Face, Navchetna Prakashan, Varansi 1970
- Prison Diary, Samajwadi Yuvjan Sabha Calcutta 1976 and Popular Prakashan, Bombay 1977.
- Towards Struggle, edited by Yusuf Meherally, Padma Publications, Bombay 1946, 47
- Socialism, Sarvodaya and Democracy edited by Bimal Prasad, Asia Publishing House Bombay 1964
- Communitarian Society and Panchayati Raj, edited by Brahmanand Navchetna Prakashan Varanasi 1970
- Nation-Building in India, edited by Brahmanand Navchetna Prakashan Varanasi 1974
- Towards Revolution, edited by Bhargava and Phadnis, Arnold-Heinemann New Delhi 1975
- J.P's Jail Life (A Collection of Personal Letters) translated by G S Bhargava, Arnold-Heinemann New Delhi 1977
- Towards Total Revolution, edited by Brahmanand Popular Prakashan Bombay 1978
- J P:Profile of a non-conformist, Interviews by Bhola Chatterji, Minerva Associates, Calcutta, 1979
- To All Fighters of Freedom II, A Revolutionary's Quest-selected writings of Jayprakash Narayan, edited by Bimal Prasad Oxford University Press New Delhi 1980
- Concept of Total Revolution: An Introductory Essay(JP and social change) by Bimal Prasad
External linksEdit
Template:Sister project Template:Sister project
Template:Bharat Ratna Template:RMA winners of India Template:Ramon Magsaysay Award Winners