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Indian pol thought

AI-generated Abstract

The paper discusses the evolution of political thought in India, particularly focusing on Jayaprakash Narayan's critique of the Bhoodan Movement led by Vinoba Bhave. It explores Narayan's belief in the necessity of a more assertive form of Satyagraha, contrasting it with Bhave's non-violent approach. The text delves into the practical challenges faced by the Bhoodan Movement and highlights Narayan's strategies for mobilizing youth and addressing political corruption through grassroots democracy. The conclusion drawn is the need for a new political framework that integrates Gandhian principles with proactive resistance against systemic issues.

CHAPTER - IV JAYAPRAKASH NARAYAN AND TOTAL REVOLUTION J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan's concept of Total Revolution' is one of his most important contributions to m o d e m Indian political thought. His reflections on Total Revolution crystallized out of his experiences during the sarvodaya phase of his life. It was also a reaction to the contemporary socio-economic a n d political situation of the country. The aim of this chapter is to: a) analyze the historical and political context of Total Revolution, b) J.P.'s own vision about it and c) its theoretical implications. As far as the context of Total Revolution is concerned, J.P. was dissatisfied with 1) the strategy and outcome of the sarvodaya movement and 2) the policies of the central and state governments in response to the Naxalite movement^. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan had set u p a n ashram^ at Sokhodeora on the land donated to him by Mr. J.R.D Tata, in 1954. It was at this a s h r a m that J.P. first came across a few practical problems associated with the sarvodaya movement. Following the Gandhian precedent of using a n 'ashram' for political, social and spiritual development, J.P. used this new institution for a series of experiments. He keenly felt t h a t these experiments were necessary to explore the different avenues of.idevelopment in India after independence. The aim was to strike a balance between spiritual and socio-economic development, in keeping with the essence of sarvodaya. He expected t h a t the members of the 'ashram', having experienced the advantages of perfect communal living, would spread the message of sarvodaya to the 144 other parts of the country. The members, fortified with spiritual strength cind some practical training in social work, were expected to remake society according to the Gandhiem ideal.3 Sokhodeora became a vibrant human laboratory for him. However, Jayaprakash Narayan's major problem lay in resolving the conflict between theoretical assumptions and practical implementation at Sokhodeora. He found it difficult to reconcile two different yet related aspects: sarvodaya and community living required changes in the attitudes of the people and attitudes could not be transformed overnight. His experiment soon ran into trouble over trivial issues. His biographers, Allan and Wendy Scarfe, have narrated an interesting anecdote in this context. Since the Ashram was located at a remote area and communication was difficult, J.P. provided the members with a Jeep (Mr. Mahindra had gifted this vehicle to him). Jayaprakash had to face complaints from the inmates of the Ashram about the misuse of the vehicle by the office bearers for personal benefits and ultimately decided to "sell the ashram jeep. It has always caused so much trouble."^ The authors also noted that J.P. expected the members of the ashram to rise above their personal concerns but could not offer any practical remedy when problems of inter personal relationships arose. These inherent conflicts rooted in human relationships at the ashram made him realize that mere persuasion at the individual level was not enough. A major struggle was needed to change the values and attitudes of the people. 145 At the same time, the gradually widening differences with Vinoba Bhave's policies and the weaknesses of the sarvodaya movement made him impatient. J.P. was now compelled to look for a new strategy to bring comprehensive change aind development in the Indian society. The Sarvodaya movement, as mentioned in the previous chapter, veered around four elements: a) Belief in politics as the process of achieving consensus rather than conflict b) Development of an attitude of love and sacrifice among the members of the society; bhoodan and gramdan were utilized to encourage the spirit of sacrifice and sharing among the people. c) Accepting the dictum that the moral and material development of all can be achieved through community development and decentralization at the grass roots level, d) Belief in non-violence to be the crowning principle in every activity. Both Jayaprakash Narayan and Vtnoba Bhave rejected the^jdea of politics as rajniti or politics of the state that was based on power and insisted on politics as consensus that ensured maximum participation of the people. The sarvodaya leaders organized a bsind of constructive workers through organizations like the 'Sarv Seva Sangh' and the 'Shanti Sena' and these organizations were expected to work with the people. 146 The workers associated with these organizations would u s e the Gandhian concept of 'satyagraha' to c a n y out the programmes of Bhoodan and Gramdan. The concept of 'satyagraha's has been a unique contribution of Mahatma Gandhi. Satyagraha is the method of peaceful resistance Satyagraha offered based on truth and a new revolutionary non violence. technique. Before Gandhi had preached this concept, there were very limited m e a n s of peaceful agitation which the oppressed could adopt against the oppressor. The Gandhian concept of satyagraha was based on truth, respect (and not hatred for opponent) a n d a code of morality to be followed by the participants. Gandhi emphasized on 'soul force' or recognition of the power of soul; hence the satyagrahi (one who follows this method) knew no defeat and was not deterred by the fear of death. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan thought t h a t Vinoba Bhave only followed one meaning of satyagraha: the idea of non-violent assistance in right thinking a n d ignored the other aspect, i.e. non-violent resistance to evil. Hence the members of the Shcinti Sena and other followers of the Bhoodan Movement could not deal effectively with the people who opposed Bhoodan at the village level. In Prison Diary J . P . wrote, "Vinobaji did something miraculous for some years....But after his stormy Bhoodan experiment, not even a mild breeze blew...Later he withdrew into his inner self and started a n experiment in action in the form of 'inaction'."6 147 J . p . hoped that Vinoba would review the shortcomings of the Bhoodan Movement to make it more aggressive. Echoing this opinion he mentioned in a n interview given to B r a h m a n a n d in J u n e 1976, "...there were several mistakes committed by Vinoba and all of u s who followed him....We accepted whatever kind of land whether cultivable or uncultivable....the task of actual redistribution of the collected land was left over to a later date or delegated to political parties...."^ As soon a s the euphoria over initial contribution of land in the state of Bihar settled down, it became apparent t h a t the foundations of Bhoodan h a d not been truly laid or were crumbling down. The success of the Bhoodan Movement depended on the bureaucracy as far a s the transfer of land on paper was concerned. J.P. felt t h a t the bureaucracy h a d no faith in the philosophy; t h u s the exploitation of the poor continued unabated. There were many cases of fraud in transfer of land. In some cases the land gifted was unsuitable for cultivation. In a nutshell, the major problem of the sarvodaya movement lay in its inability to transform the ideals into practice. The transition from bhoodcin to gramdan beccime even more difficult as it "...represented a move from a basically individualist program to a basically socialist program. "^ Bhoodan stUl involved Individual ownership b u t in gramdan land was to be owned by the community through the institutions of democratic decentralization. Hence people from all walks of life, still nurturing traditional Vcdues about the sanctity of ownership of land, found it difficult to accept gramdan. There were criticisms 148 from different quarters especially from those people who saw the movement as a threat to their authority. However, J.P. did not loose faith in man's unlimited potential for goodness; he only realized t h a t both good a n d evil often existed side by side. Any society m u s t prepare for both or else with the . greatest philosophy of goodness in the world the poor will go to the wall and the weak will be persecuted. "9 The sarvodaya movement h a d to be reinforced by a dynamic strategy that could encourage the popular participation in the movement itself a n d at the same time minimize the resistance against it. He decided to integrate sarvodaya to Total Revolution (or s a m p u m kranti) in the twilight of his life and t h u s again entered the domain of politics which he had renounced two decades ago. On September 1973, at the half yearly meeting of the Sarvodaya workers, a small minority led by Vinoba Bhave advocated 'spiritualization of politics' while the majority led by J.P. firmly stood for 'politicization of sarvodaya'. lo In 'Prison Diary', J.P. wrote how he was bitten by the bug of revolution during his high school days.ii This indomitable spirit continued to inspire him during the sarvodaya p h a s e and even later. This 'bug of revolution' took him to Marxism and through the national freedom movement' to democratic socialism and to "Vinobaji's non violent revolution through love...total transformation of m a n and society...social revolution a n d h u m a n revolution." 12 He left the a r e n a of party politics in 149 order to spread the message of sacrifice, love and cooperation but indicated that he would not hesitate to return to public life; "I should also add that though all my energies would be bent towards developing lokniti I shall not shut my eyes to what happens in the sphere of rajniti. For good or ill, rajniti does to some extent influence the life of the people. It shall be my concern from the outside to see that the influence is as salutary as possible." 13 He went on to add in this article that there cannot be any question of hostility between the two and they could not be kept apart. Lx)kniti, he believed was the child of rajniti and between the two there must be constant contact and cooperation. He continued to take keen interest in domestic and international political issues; the problems related to human rights did not escape his attention. Hence he could not but express his concern when any state tried to restrict human freedom within and outside the country. So when Hungary was overrun by the Russians in 1956, he raised his voice against it. In 1960, he campaigned for the Tibetan cause and spoke against Chinese aggression. In the mid sixties he felt the need to intervene in the Nagaland question. His causes were far flung indeed including "peace marchers in Northern Rhodesia, political prisoners in Indonesia, panchayats in Nepal £ind police firing in Patna and above all the salvation of mankind." i4 From 1969 btiwards, there was a subtle change in J.P.'s speeches and writings that indicated an aggressive stand taken by him. In his address to the National Conference of Voluntary Agencies held in New Delhi in 1969, he referred to the dismal socio economic situation in India and the solution, he believed, was a non violent social revolution, is In an article published in 150 The Times, London on 13 October, 1969, he for the first time used the word Total Revolution', "Gandhi's non violence was not j u s t a plea for law and order, or a cover for s t a t u s quo, b u t a revolutionary philosophy. It is indeed a philosophy of a total revolution, because it embraces personal and social ethics and values of life as m u c h as economic political and social institutions and processes."'6 In this statement, he makes it clear t h a t his theory of revolution was more akin to the Gandhian philosophy t h a n to any other theory propagating revolution. If Sarvodaya was his aim. Total Revolution was the m e a n s to achieve it. However the change in his thinking a n d action originated after his analysis of the social and economic condition in India. His experience of public life in independent India, first as a socialist leader a n d t h e n as a sarvodaya leader, had convinced him that piecemeal economic reforms could not improve the lot of the masses in India. He recognized t h a t in spite of land reforms, the village life was still dominated by big and medium land owners belonging to the upper and middle castes. The condition of the small and marginal farmers, Harijans and the tribals h a d hardly changed. They were yet to be freed from the caucus of b u r e a u c r a t s , politicians and moneylenders. In the Urban areas too, the condition of the u r b a n poor h a d hardly improved. The wheels of progress h a d seen the rise of industries both in the private and public sector b u t state ownership and control could not reduce inefficiency and corruption. The common m a n continued to suffer. 151 As a result of certain political developments, particularly the spread of the Naxalite movement, J.P. perceived t h a t public order and democracy could be threatened by violence in India. He believed that the Naxalite movement was not j u s t a law and order issue. He accepted the Naxalite insurgency to be a political, social and economic problem that arose because a large section of the Indian society was deprived of the benefits of development. Both the Central and the State Governments however took it to be a law order problem a n d adopted short term measures to deal with it. The movement spread to other p a r t s of the country and the threat of violence loomed large over large areas of the country in the early 1970s. In m a n y other p a r t s of the country the Naxalites were waiting in the wings to capture m a s s support. J.P. apprehended that unless corrective m e a s u r e s were taken, the common m a n could t u r n to violence in order to escape poverty and hunger. His experiences at Musahari Block in Muzzafarpur district of Bihar helped him to analyse the causes of the Naxalite movement. In J u n e 1971, two prominent sarvodaya workers were served with death notices by the Naxalites. J.P. r u s h e d to Mushahari, ignoring the danger to his own life. "At Mushahari, it was a struggle between Naxalism and sarvodaya for the souls of the people. Sarvodaya and J a y a p r a k a s h h a d the stronger, more moral and more compelling appeal, but the Naxalites....had only to wait, for it was not philosophy and ideals which would dispel the shadow of violence b u t land and food." 17 The failure of the economic policies of the central and state governments coupled with bureaucratic apathy at all levels forced people to adopt violent methods or follow those 152 groups t h a t thrived on violence. J.P realized how poverty a n d destitution drove the poor people to choose violent m e a n s to survive in a hostile environment. J.P. spoke to the villagers a n d requested them to reject any idea of violence. He blamed the Central Government for the failure of economic development. Gradually he continued to find flaw in the existing political structure. Mushahari was the centre of his attempt to salvage the sarvodaya method. He realized t h a t the threat posed by the Naxalites could be challenged by positive action aimed at social change. At the same time, it was necessary to expose the bureaucratic-politician nexus t h a t was responsible for the failure of socio-economic reform. He blamed the politicians and administrators for misusing their power and position. The State aind its machinery used force against the poor villagers. That could not guarantee t h e m freedom and equality for which t h o u s a n d s h a d sacrificed their lives in the struggle for independence. In the face of dreadful rural discontent and despair, J.P. tried to establish village cooperatives and at the same time, he prepared the villagers psychologically for selfless cooperation. He wrote, "Ours is not a trade union approach. Our aim is not to divide the community and set one part against the other b u t to integrate it by creating community consciousness and sense of mutual responsibility...mutual adjustment leading to a j u s t and better social order...."18 Time and again he had insisted that cooperation and not conflict could solve India's problems. This Herculean effort to offer a non violent method of change from the grass roots level encouraged J.P. to place his 153 ideas into a wider perspective: to look beyond Mushahari a n d spread the message to other parts of the country. Ever since his high school days, J.P. had lived by ideals and h a d always believed t h a t given a new ideal to live by and new moral values a n d m e a n s to follow, people in this country will accept it, rejecting any other violent method. His concept of Total Revolution fulfilled the above requirements. Jayaprakash Narayan n u r t u r e d the concept of Total revolution with two objectives: First to bring a change in every sphere of society through non violence a n d public education. He h a d closely watched how the 'Bhoodan' movement was being paralyzed by bureaucratic apathy (the paper work, legalizing the gift of land h a d to be processed by the bureaucrats). The sarvodaya movement w a s about to be split into rival groups; J a y a p r a k a s h felt t h a t a new positive attitude a n d a n intensive m a s s struggle could Scdvage the movement. In Face to Face, published in December 1970, J . P . provided a clear hint of what could be the major elements in his revised strategy. "To find a way, we will have to go back to Gandhiji...conditions seem to be ripening in the context of our present programme that may necessitate large scaile Satyagraha."i9 j . p . was here adding a new dimension to Vinoba Bhave's concept of Satyagraha (non violent assistance to right thinking). He believed that the political situation in India demanded large scale non violent 'resistance' to evil, a s used by Gandhiji in the struggle to oust the British.20 154 In his speeches and writings during 1970-73, J.P. cilso pointed out to the need to include students, youth and the politically uncommitted citizens, especially the middleclass in the movement. His 'Appeal to Youth Power' was issued in December 1973. The Forum of 'Citizens for Democracy' was established in April, 1974. In December, 1973, he put forward a 'Program of Immediate Socio political Action' to build a structure of people's democracy to carryout his programme and these structures would spread from the villages to the urban areas.21 Around this time he realized the need to spread the movement to the urban areas. Second, in the political sphere, he wanted to challenge the r£impant misuse of political power by a single dominant party. He felt the need to raise an organized protest against corruption and abuse of freedom. He became the leading architect of a political alliance that provided an alternative to the Congress Party. This is where he entered the sphere of rajniti to challenge the power of the state controlled by a party that tended to be totalitarian. Biju Paitnaik, founder of the Utkal Congress, met him in 1973, requesting him to lead an All India Front against the ruling Congress Party at the centre, he initially refused because he was more interested in leading mass movements rather than entering the domain of party politics, he offered consultation, advice and moral support for any such move. In July, 1973, J.P. started an English weekly, Everyman's, which he said was "not wedded to any isms-left, right, or centre."22 He advised the politicians of the day to forge an alliance that would be based on principles and not on opportunities. He wanted the opposition parties to provide a concrete and 155 time-bound programme of action. Yet ultimately, he could not turn a blind eye to the increasing instances of political oppression and violation of civil liberties. Finally he responded to the national crisis and despair and stepped out of his personal grief and tragedy (his wife, Prabhavati, had breathed her last on 15 April, 1973, after prolonged illness). He vowed to spend the remaining years of his life fighting again for freedom, equality and change. His resurrection at the age of 72 left an indelible impact on India's social and political life. The genesis of the revolution lay in the movement which was started by the students of Gujrat who came out in the streets protesting against fee hike in 1973. The Gujrat Navanirman Samiti was formed with the support of many opposition parties and soon the agitation became a wider protest against other social issues. The Samiti demanded the resignation of the state government. J.P. visited Ahmedabad and asked the students to put moral pressure on the MLAs to force them to resign. After a series of strikes and agitation the Chief Minister resigned. The students of Bihar started a similar movement with twelve initial demands including educational reforms, removal of corruption, bringing down prices and removal of unemployment. Started in eairly 1974, the Bihar Movement soon snowballed in to the largest mass movement after independence. J.P.'s involvement in the movement added a new dimension to it; the movement turned out to be a crusade against corruption and other evils and a crusade for the moral regeneration of society. Addressing the sarvodaya workers he 156 had observed, "If democracy were to be in peril, if there was a dainger of political chaos of dictatorship, shall we sit back smugly.,..on the ground t h a t we have ndthing to do with politics?"23 He was once again prepared to lead the country against attempts to impede freedom and democracy. On March 18, 1974, more t h a n 10,000 s t u d e n t s laid a siege on the Bihar Assembly demanding the resignation of the government. As the agitation gathered momentum, the government came down heavily on the agitators. In August, J . P . raised the pitch by calling for a no-tax campaign. On August 15, t h a t year, agitators organized people's Independence Day in contrast to the official celebration organized by the government. J.P. visited Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Rajasthan. By early 1975, J.P. explained his movement a s Total Revolution*; he declared t h a t his aim was not change of power b u t change in the system. As the leaders of the opposition parties united u n d e r J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan's leadership, the movement soon shifted to Delhi and was transformed into a n agitation against the antidemocratic policies of the central government. On J u n e 25, 1975, the opposition parties organized a massive rally in Delhi and the rally was addressed by J.P. a n d other leaders. On the midnight of J u n e 25, 1975, internal 'Emergency' w a s clamped on India and J.P. and other opposition leaders were arrested. J.P.'s health showed signs of failing and the Government released him on 15 November 1975. On J a n u a r y 18, 1977, General Elections were announced. Under J.P.'s persuasion, 157 several opposition parties came under one b a n n e r a n d the J a n a t a Party was formed. He was not tied down by his ill h e a t h (he h a d to undergo dialysis every other day) and toured the different constituencies campaigning for the J a n a t a Pairty. In 1977, March, the Congress Party suffered the first electoral defeat at the centre after independence. J a y a p r a k s h Narayan's battle against the anti democratic forces was successful b u t his job was half done; a larger mobilization was required to bring socio-economic changes in this country. Foregoing discussion m a k e s it more relevant now to discuss the salient features of the philosophy of Total Revolution of J P . In many of Gandhiji's writings a n d speeches the concept of Total Revolution was implicit indicating significant change in the material conditions a n d the moral character of individuals.24 Vinoba Bhave expanded the idea of revolution when he wrote t h a t his aim was to bring about a threefold revolution through Bhoodan. The first revolution was to bring a change in people's hearts. The second revolution would bring changes in their lives and the third would change the social structure.^s J.P.'s concept of Total Revolution was a n attempt to p u t non-violent revolution through 'bhoodan' and 'gramdan' to a wider perspective. He wanted to link the movement to a m a s s movement for social justice. Vinobaji's forte was his deep sense of spirituality. J.P.'s strength w a s his scientific temper, knowledge of social science a n d history of social movements. His experiences with political movements made him aware of the fact t h a t the sarvodaya Movement m u s t achieve tangible rather t h a n symbolic results. Total Revolution was necessary to challenge the intricacies of the existing power 158 structure and the s6cio-economic conditions; it would thus plug the loopholes that threatened the sarvodaya movement. Vinoba Bhave's strategy was based on 'gentle persuasion'. Many land lords made pledges to gift land but when the time came to redeem these pledges, various problems came up. J.P. was quick to point out that the gentle persuasion should be replaced with a far more aggressive strategy involving the youth and politically non committed citizens. He criticized Vinoba Bhave on a number of occasions for refusing to initiate direct struggle against the power holders. Toted Revolution would thus salvage the sarvodaya movement. Here one can refer to what J.P. himself had remarked on one occasion, "There is hardly any difference between Sarvodaya and Total Revolution ... Sarvodaya is the goal and Total Revolution is the means....there cannot be any Sarvodaya without this."26 The three major steps of Total Revolution were: a) The creation and organization of people's power, b) Total and revolutionary change in all aspects of public life and c) Development of people's government from the lower level. 27 The major features of Jayaprakash Narayan's concept of Total Revolution include: First, the concept of Total Revolution was based on non violence. In My Concept of Total Revolution, J.P. admitted that on his return from the U.S.A., he had advocated the path of violence against the British. But later on he realized the importance of non- violence. He had told 159 Gandhiji that there was no need of violent social change in India. In this article, J.P. referred to five reasons for rejecting violent revolutions ; these reasons point out how the common people are left in the lurch and forced to suffer after any violent revolution's, Jayaprakash Narayan argued, "1 don't believe that you can change a man with violence....illusion of success created by the fact that a 'successful' violent revolution does succeed in destroying the foundations or the old power structure...But...the building up of a new social order in accordance with the revolutionary ideals gets lost in the new power structure that comes into being."29 He explained that violence always led to further violence and to control the out break of mass violence, an instrument of organized violence is required. He referred to the role of the Red Army in China; and whoever controlled that instrument of organized violence controlled power. J.P. also refuted the idea that violent revolutions could lead to 'swift and sure' result. "It takes a long time, sometimes centuries, for a violent revolution to succeed and when it does the aims of the revolution are thrust into the distant future to be achieved no one knows when. Witness France or Russia...."3° With this example he was trying to prove that violence cannot yield proper results. If the French Revolution sought to strengthen the people the out break of violence during the 'Reign of Terror' defeated that aim. It took many centuries for the French people to ultimately establish their power. 160 Political violence, he believed, could be both revolutionary a n d reactionary. He referred to the rise of Fascism to prove that a n apparently revolutionary movement could strengthen the reactionary and non democratic forces in a country. Even if a violent revolution succeeds after a long period of incubation, what would success mean? Many radical thinkers would argue that it meant the destruction of the old order. But, J.P, h a s a very pertinent question: Is destruction a n end in itself? Revolutions are not remembered for what they destroy b u t for what they build. Quoting a n example from the Soviet political system, he argued that the post revolutionary power struggle, stemming out of the efforts to destroy the old order, finally kept people away from power, J.P, felt that revolutions were carried out in the n a m e of 'power to the people' b u t "when power comes out of the barrel of a gun and the gun is not in the h a n d s of the common people.,,,To alter slightly Tolstoy's famous remark, the revolutionaries have done everything for the people b u t to get off their backs."31 J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan agreed to Tolstoy's famous remark which showed that at times the revolutionaries tend to exploit people in the n a m e of revolution itself. The second major feature of J.P.'s concept of Total Revolution includes his idea that one of the objectives of the revolution would be to maintain the democratic s t r u c t u r e of the state. In his notes penned down on 23 August, 1975, while still in prison, he remarked, "Total Revolution h a s to be peacefully brought about without impairing the democratic structure of society and affecting the democratic way of life of the people,"32 161 He also explained t h a t the functioning of democracy was not restricted to elections, legislation planning a n d administration. There m u s t also be people's direct action which would include civil disobedience, non cooperation a n d peaceful resistance, in short satyagraha in its widest sense.33 in response to Chandrashekhar's question, J.P. added that the aim of the Bihar Movement and that of Total Revolution was not j u s t the removal of the Government. The movement would go on a n d would keep the opposition government (the new government t h a t came to power when the old one had resigned) on its toes a n d t h a t it would go on faster and smoother because the new government would give its full cooperation.3^ It should be noted here t h a t J.P. also felt t h a t the movement or struggle need n o t be always against the government. It was for the government to decide whether it would support the movement for all round social change. Thirdly by his total revolution, J.P. meant a transformation in the internal life of individuals a s well a s in the entire social structure. To Fred Bloom, the meaning t h a t J a y a p r a k a s h gave to Total Revolution was very simple: a transformation which makes what is truly h u m a n the centre of life. "We j u s t become h u m a n beings. I would like t h a t kind of world to grow. "35. His reference to both h u m a n a n d social transformation becomes clear when one goes through the combination of seven revolutions: political, social, economic, cultural, ideological or intellectual, educational and spiritual, life is a combination of all these aspects and any revolution t h a t seeks to change life in all these aspects at the same time is total revolution.36 162 However the various dimensions of the revolution as mentioned above could vary according to the situation in a peirticular society. The greatness of Jayaprakash Naraysin lay in the fact that he never prescribed any rigid concept or method for future generations. Hence, with regard to the content of Total Revolution, he had mentioned that, at different periods total revolution might assume different forms^^ depending on the needs of time and place and on the forces that are contending for power. Unfortunately this attitude of a great leader has been often interpreted as his weakness! J.P. could not spell out the different aspects of the seven revolutions in detail but one can draw a picture of what he wanted to achieve from several of his articles that he had written. In the political sphere the revolution would remove all vestiges of centralization. In an interview with Professor Bimcd Prasad in 1977 he mentioned that the socio-political structure would be based on what he had mentioned in his articles "A Plea for Reconstruction of Indian Polity"38, and "SwEiraj for the People".39 In these articles he had rejected the western concept of democracy. His concept was that of communitarian democracy where people at the grass roots level would administer their own affairs; to reach this ideal J.P. had to traverse through the ancient Indian concept of 'panchayats', Gandhiji's concept of 'gram swaraj', and M.N. Roy's concept of 'Radical Democracy'. All these thinkers have criticized the western concept of democracy and the trend of centralization in the modem state. 163 Gandhiji advocated that the decentrgdization of power to be the true basis of democracy. In the Harijan, Gandhi referred to democracy as the art and science of mobilizing the entire physical, economic and spiritual resources of various sections of the people in the interest of common good of all.^o He advocated decentralization because there should be reduction of state interference in the activities of the village community. He favoured the idea of self governing village communities where decisions on local issues would be taken by consensus or near unanimity; the emphasis was on the development of people's ability to r u n their affairs with minimum governmental control. M.N. Roy was also highly critical of Western Parliamentary democracy. Political parties were at the root of the major problems of Parliamentary democracy. He argued t h a t with the development of the party system, indirect democracy h a s been reduced to a game of n u m b e r s and counting of heads. In a Parliamentary system, the importance of individuals is judged not in terms of their talent or qualities b u t in terms of the n u m b e r s they add to. Roy also referred to the need to do away with the myth of centralization. He believed t h a t his idea of organized local democracies, otherwise Ccdled 'Radical Democracy' would be achieved by dissolving political parties and ensuring maximum freedom and participation by the people. J.P's concept of democracy is logically a theory of decentralized power and t h a t of a party less administration. At the root of J.P.'s contempt for political parties w a s his analysis of the Soviet situation (where the party was s3nionymous with 164 bureaucratic elitism), and the Indian scenario (where the parties were the haven of self seeking politicians). At the base of the new political organization will be the local or primary communities, neither so small that a balanced development of communal life and culture become difficult, nor so large t h a t life in them becomes impersonalized. He always insisted t h a t such communities will be neither industrial' based on a rural balance nor urban between but 'agro- agriculture and industry. The economic base of Total Revolution was laid on "Marx's exploitation free society, Gandhian values of greedless society and appropriate technology which should come from possible scientific research, "^i As chapters, J.P. was attracted mentioned in best previous to socialism because of its insistence on equality and social justice. But the call for social justice had to be linked to the need of moral development of individuals. Material progress alone cannot lead to social justice. The greed of material prosperity in a individualist and consumerist society had to be curtailed by upholding the values of simplicity and cooperation. J. P. was agaiinst the strategy of large scale industrialization and state capitalism, (introduced in the guise of nationalization of industries). Industrial development should be based on small scale industries and labor intensive enterprises. In the economic sphere also J.P. emphasized on economic decentralization and balanced regional development. At the centre of economic development should be 'man' and hence every adult or head of a family should be given work and 165 a minimum standard of living should be adopted. This obviously required moral and spiritual development of the people. Individuals m u s t be taught to rise above the desire of material satisfaction. Referring to the moral and spiritual revolution, J.P. wrote: "I do not have asceticism in mind. That is for the spiritual seekers. For the average man, for all of u s ....a full material satisfaction is itself a spiritual life. Craving excess, bad m e a n s to gather wealth, these are anti spiritual.""^2 He was a deeply moral person a n d felt that people m u s t be t a u g h t to t u r n away from the consumerist way of life. This leads to the importance of value-based education. Education m u s t ensure t h a t the members of the community are well prepared to accept new ideas. During emphasis on the the period of 1974-79, transformation of J.P. social laid profound customs and institutions. In particular h e pleaded for the abolition of the caste system and spoke vehemently against the custom of dowry offered during marriages. In the cultural sphere, he advocated a cultural resurgence based on a re evaluation of existing values including freedom, equality and brotherhood. The cultural aspect of Total revolution emphasized on a change in our way of living and thinking. His obvious aim was to bring change that will improve the quality of life a n d m a k e "man more human.^^a Fourthj^ J.P. believed t h a t the Total Revolution was a permanent revolution. It would continue always a n d keep on changing our personal a n d social lives. As he p u t in 1976, "It will always go on and on...this revolution knows no respite, no 166 halt and certainly not a complete halt."'*'* But he continued to add t h a t the goals of the Toted Revolution would keep on changing according to the requirements of contemporary society. Fifth, he assigned the role of leadership to the students. He felt that the students were better equipped to spearhead the revolution because they were neither swayed by power politics nor were they burdened by the day to day struggle for survival. Moreover the students are always inspired by the spirit of self sacrifice for the betterment of society. He formed the StudentYouth Struggle Brigade or the 'Chatra Yuva Sangharsh Vahini'in 1974-75. As for the organizational aspect, he preferred to give responsibility to the ' J a n Sangharsh Samiti' (People's Struggle committees) and *Janata Sarkars' (People's Government) at the village level to spread the gospel of revolution among the villagers. Although he was against the involvement of political parties b u t later on he admitted that it was difficult to keep political parties at bay. In Prison Diary, he recalled t h a t the existing government had taken a confrontationist stand in Bihar. It was a signal for the opposition pairties to j u m p in the fray b u t he felt t h a t it lent strength to the movement He expected t h a t the parties would undergo a sea-change in the process. All the parties involved were committed to Total Revolution and to the dynamics of change.^s Unfortunately, J.P.'s optimistic evaluation of the role of the opposition parties was shattered after the victory of the 167 Janata Party in the elections. He had expected that the political parties would emerge out of petty power politics. The politicians continued to fight over narrow individual interests. A few days before his death, J.P. was visited by Achyut Pattawardhan and J.P. told him that he was lingering, waiting for death. Pattawardhan could not hide his anguish and told him, "You had also renounced power politics but you continued to work for political transformation in your own way...I have to hang my head in shame when I see the moral fall of Janata men who rode to power with your support and blessings...What you called Total Revolution was inclusive of moral and spiritual revolution."'^6 indeed, it was in the sphere of moral revolution that the politicians had failed J.P. Sixths Jayaprakash Narayam also mentioned the difference between class struggle and Total Revolution. In Class Organization, Class Struggle and Social Change^'^, he wrote that during his association with the Sarvodaya movement, he admitted the view that class organizations and class struggle would lead to violence. Sarvodaya prohibited class struggle or any class organization. As he witnessed the exploitation that continued in the Indian society, he felt that the downtrodden must develop a capacity for resistance. The Sarvodaya leaders had tried to change the heart of the economically stronger sections of the society. Vinoba Bhave never appreciated the need for struggle against the vested interests in the government and in society. He felt that after independence, a social revolution could be brought about by changing the consciousness of the people through the power of thought. Hence while addressing a meeting of the Sarv Seva Sangh in 168 December 1973, Vinobaji observed, "Iri Gandhi's days there was no freedom of thought and expression...But in India today we enjoy the highest measure of freedom in the world satyagraha as practiced by Gandhi h a s become quite irrelevant in India."-^s J.P.'s experience of village life in India forced him to disagree with Vinoba. Indeed the so-called freedom of thought and expression did not benefit the underprivileged. TTie attempts to change the attitude of the rich could not reduce the misery of the poor and they continued to suffer; b u t the struggle a n d resistance of the poor do not represent what the Marxists refer to a s 'class struggle'. In his scheme of resistance there was no question of violence. Moreover, he felt that the contemporary working class in India was not a revolutionary class. "Generally the youth constitutes the revolutionary force in India. But to m e the working class h a s no significant role to play I consider it to be a part of the petty bourgeoisie."'^9 Total Revolution was conceived to be a movement spearheaded by the s t u d e n t s who would lead the weaker sections of the society for a j u s t social order. J.P. considered it to be a struggle to be achieved through 'satyagraha'. The history of revolutions h a s often revealed a saga of the betrayal of vast m a s s e s of humanity because the revolutionary forces frequently become involved in struggle for power. Political power only changed h a n d s from one group to another a n d the common m a n continued to be pawns in the power struggle. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan had keenly observed that the French Revolution started with the mission of realizing 'liberty and 169 equality' but ended in 'Reign of Terror' and finally in Bonapartism. He was also highly critical of the fallout of the Russian Revolution. Hence he wanted to develop a new strategy of revolution adding a moral and spiritual dimension to it. If the moral fabric of the revolutionaries is strengthened, they would not indulge into petty power politics. As discussed earlier, Sarvodaya was his aim a n d Total Revolution was the m e a n s to achieve it. Total Revolution was the ultimate expression of the power of the people (lok shakti); the common m a n who would rise u p in revolt against blatant misuse of authority. Unfortunately, his failing health did not permit him to elaborate his ideas into a coherent theory; he was on the verge of proposing a new theory integrating the concepts of liberty, equality a n d change with Sarvodaya a n d Total Revolution b u t he could not complete it. In a nutshell, J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan's concept of Total Revolution was significant for three reasons: 1) His idea t h a t political and social revolution m u s t continue simultaneously with moral and educational revolution. Unless the people are prepared to accept and stand for change, no movement could be successful. 2). He insisted t h a t the revolution should be carried out by the people involving all the sections of society including students, peasants, workers and middle classes. His revolution was not to be restricted to any particular class. 3) J.P.'s movement challenged the existing party system in India and paved the p a t h for the formation of a coalition or a n alternative to the one party dominant system in India. 170 The Marxists refer to revolution as permanent and a continuous process. "It is our interest and our task to make the revolution permanent, until all more or less possessing classes have been forced out of their position of dominance, until the proletariat h a s conquered state power and the association of proletarians, not only in one country b u t in all dominant countries of the world....abolition of classes, not the improvement of existing society b u t the foundation of a new one." 50 The Marxist concept of 'permanent revolution' clearly has two implications: one, the application of continuous pressure and creating the conditions for revolutionary break with the bourgeois democratic regime; two, fostering and supporting revolutions abroad in all major countries of the world. The Marxist scholars feel t h a t J.P. h a d failed to u n d e r s t a n d the real n a t u r e of the i n s t r u m e n t s of power; political parties, police, bureaucracy and judiciary. According to them J.P. ignored the fact that these institutions were controlled directly or indirectiy by the class t h a t controlled power. In fact the i n s t r u m e n t s of democratic decentralization like the Panchayati Raj, operate to consolidate the power of the rich landlords in the villages. These critics have also ridiculed J.P.'s arguments against violence. E.M.S. Namboodiripad wrote t h a t it was a pseudo revolution that completely ignored the class structure of the Indian society.si J.P.'s arguments against violence h a s been often interpreted by critics a s the reflection of inadequate knowledge about the source of violence in a capitalist country. 52 V.M. Tarkunde attempts a comparative ancdysis of political revolutions and Total Revolution.^3 He pointed out that 171 a communist revolution is 'statist' because it seeks to seize state power and then this power is used to bring changes in the structure of society. In this case there is always a veiled threatstate power could be monopolized by a minority, t h u s defeating the objectives of the revolution. Total Revolution is based on people's power, based on cultural resurgence and re evaluation of current values. Bimal Prasad h a s observed t h a t his concept of Total Revolution was a *s)mthesis' of Marxist and Gandhian concepts along with the principles of Western Democracy.54 His emphasis on m a s s uprising to uproot the old order and establish a new one, the need of revolutionary leadership, a n d his reference to economic changes reveal the Marxist influence. His concept of social change resemble'd the Gandhian upholding the reconstruction through Total concept of social importance of spiritual Revolution transformation aspect of social t h u s breaking the barriers between ethics, politics and economics. He tried to portray how a social revolution could be both a struggle against the vested interests of the rich and powerful, and an attempt at social reconstruction without any violence. Finally, through his concept of Total Revolution, J.P. outlined the contours of a new politics based on m u t u a l respect, trust and cooperation. Yet the question t h a t he left unanswered was whether a nation wide struggle could be achieved without a well knit cadre-based organization. Is it possible for university or college s t u d e n t s only to lead the movement to its logical conclusion? While the movement t h a t he led from 1974-77 was 172 significant in uniting the opposition parties against the threat to democracy, these parties soon lost interest in the long-term objectives of the movement. They were soon involved in a bitter power struggle over the spoils gained through electoral victory. J.P.'s concept of Total Revolution aimed at the creation of a new man and a new consciousness through far reaching changes in the social political and economic life of the country. Its success should not be evaluated in the context of party and electoral politics. 173 NOT£S AND REFERENCES 1. The Naxalite movement started a s a peasant uprising in the Naxalbari village in West Bengal on May 25, 1967. Led by leaders like Kanu Sgmyal and Charu Majumdar, it protested against the exploitation perpetrated by the landlords and money lenders in the villages. Later on it spread to some u r b a n areas and was joined by s t u d e n t s . It propagated a policy of destruction of class enemies. 2. An Ashram is a traditional Indian institution where the teacher passed on to his disciples ideas and concepts of social existence and knowledge. Gradually this became ain institution where people from all walks of life could live permEinently or temporarily, sharing all the requirements of community living. 3. Allan and Wendy Scarfe, J.P. His Biographyf (New Delhi: Orient Longman Publications, 1975), p.333. 4. Ibid,, p.342. 5. A brief b u t illuminating discussion on Gandhi's concept of satyagraha Political can be Thinking found in the in A. Appadorai, Twentieth Century, Indian (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1971), pp. 36-39. 6. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan,, Prison Diary, (Bombay: Popular Prakashan , 1977), p.83. 7. J a y a p r a k a s h , Narayan, 'Towards Total Revolution", in Brahmanand, ed.. Total Revolution^ Vol. 4, (Bombay: Popular Prakashan, 1978), p. 190. 8. M.S Wadhavekar, Political Narayan, Thought of Jayaprakash (Bombay :Himalaya Publishing House, 1997), p. 162. 174 9. Allan and Wendy Scarfe, op cit, 10. Nitis Dasgupta, The Social Jayaprakash Narayan, p.376. and Political (New Theory Delhi: South of Asia Publishers, 1997), p. 106. 11. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan, Prison Diary, op cit., p .25. 12. Ibid., p.25. 13. Jayaprakash, Narayan, "From Socialism To Sarvodaya", in Sandip Das, ed., Jayaprakash Narayan- A Centenary Volume, (New Delhi: Mittal Publications, 2005), p . 3 3 . 14. George K. Verghese, Jayaprakash Narayan, The Eternal Rebel, (New Delhi: Rupa & Co, 2002), p.38. 15. Nitis Dasgupta, op cit, p. 104. 16. Bimal Prasad, "J.P's concept of Total Revolution'*, in Sandip Das, ed., op cit., p. 266. 17. Allan and Wendy Scarfe, J.P.: His Biographyt_ op cit., p.370. 18. Quoted in Scarfe, op cit., p.373. 19. Cited in David Selboume, ed.. In Theory Essays and on The Politicks of Jayaprakash_Narayanj_ Practice(New Delhi : Oxford University Press, 1985), p. 161. 20. Geoffeiy Ostegard, 'The Ambiguous Strategy of J . P .in the last Phase'" in Ibid, p. 161-162. 21. Ibid., p. 162-63. 22. George K. Verghese, op cit., p. 4 3 . 23. Sandip Das, T o w a r d s a reevaluation of the LokNayak", in Sandip Das, ed., Jayaprakash Narayan, A centenary Volume, op cit., p.369. 24. B.N. Ganguli, Gandhi's Social Vikas, 1973), p. 145-261. 175 Philosophy^ (New Delhi: 25. Vishwanath Tandon, Selections From Vinoba, (Varanasi: Sarv Seva Sang, 1981), p . 9 1 . 26. Geoffery Ostegaard, Non-Violent Revolutions in ImLia, (New Delhi: Gandhi Peace Foundation, 1985.), p.404. 27. Ibid., p. 117. 28. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan, "My Concept of Total Revolution", in Sandip Das, ed., op cit., p. 48. 29. Ibid., p.49. 30. Ibid., p.49. 31. Ibid., p.5 32. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan, Prison Diary, op cit., p . 3 3 . 33. Ibid., p.34-35. 34. Ibid., p.35. 35. Fred Blum, "Self Realization and Social Order", in David Selboume, ed., op cit., p.59. 36. Rabindranath Bhattacharya, "Social Capital through Participatory Democracy", in Sandip Das, ed., op cit., p.335. 37. Narayan, Jayaprakash, Clarifications, Revolution^ Total in Brahmhanand, Revolution: Some ed.. Towards Total (Bombay: Popular Prakashan, 1978.), vol.4, p. 197. 38. This article have been published in Bimal Prasad, ed, Jayaprakash Narayan: Quest and legacy, (NewnDelhi: Vikas Publishing House, 1992), p. 193. 39. Ibid., p.40. 40. Quoted in A. Appadorai, Indian the Twentieth century from Political Naoroji to Nehru, Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1979), p.98. 176 Thinking in (New 41. Sandip Das, 'Towards a Re-evaluation of Lok Nayak", in Das, ed., op cit., p.370. 42. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan, Prison Diary^ op cit., p. 62. 43. Brahmanand, ed.. Towards Total Revolution^ Vol. 4 , (New Delhi : Oxford University Press, 1980), p. 182. 44. Bimal Prasad, ed., A Revolutionary's writings of Jayaprakash Quest: Selected Narayan^, (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1980.), p.369. 45. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan, Prison Diary, op cit., p. 58. 46. Sandip Das, 'Towards a Re evaluation of the Loknayak", op cit., p.373. 47. J a y a p r a k a s h Narayan, "Class Organization, Class struggle and Social Change", in Das, ed., op cit., 48. pp. 63-67. Bimal Prasad, "J.P.'s concept of Total Revolution", in Das, ed., op cit., p.272 49. Ibid., p.273. 50. Ralph Miliband, Marxism and Politics, (Lx)ndon: Oxford University Press, 1977), p. 158. 51. Mentioned in Nitis Dasgupta, op cit., p. 122. 52. Moin, Shakir, Total Revolution, Myth and Reality, in Das Gupta, S, ed.. Total Revolution, (Calcutta: Naya Prakash, 1978.), p. 2 3 . 53. Tarkunde, V.M., "Two Ways of Revolution", in Das Gupta, ed., op cit., p. 107-110. - 54. Bimal Prasad, "J.P.'s concept of Total Revolution" in Das, ed., op cit., p.280. 177