A Book review — My Tributes to Socialist Leaders – Dr. Prem Singh,
Hyderabad: Southern Springs Publishers Pvt. Ltd.
June 2024, pages 125, price, Rs. 250.
THE ASIAN INDEPENDENT UK-
Dr. Ramjilal, Social Scientist, Former Principal, Dyal Singh College, Karnal (Haryana-India)
Email. [email protected]
Karl Marx propounded the theory of ‘scientific socialism’ in the 19th century. Since then, from England to Russia, from America to Mexico, and from Cuba to Africa, different brands of socialism have been propagated across the world, keeping in mind the social, economic, and political conditions of the countries. An independent theory was created by the socialists during the freedom movement to suit the Indian conditions. According to the chronology, India has its different brands of socialism in the colonial and post-colonial eras. In the colonial era, the Congress Socialist Party (CSP) was established in India in 1934. The main founders of the Congress Socialist Party were Acharya Narendra Dev, Jayaprakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia, Yusuf Meherali and Basawan Singh (Sinha). In CSP, Acharya Narendra Dev used to lay emphasis on non-violence for political struggle, whereas Jayaprakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia, etc. did not hesitate to use violent means to end British imperialism. The goal of CSP was to create a decentralized socialist society in which economic power should be shared by cooperatives, trade unions, independent farmers and local authorities. The Congress Socialist Party was dissolved in 1948. Chandrashekhar launched Jan Chetna Abhiyan against the Dunkel proposals to create mass awareness and on August Revolution Day in 2000, he launched the Alternative Campaign against the second phase of globalisation, but he did not get much success.
In chronological order, during the colonial and post-colonial periods, the main socialist parties were the Congress Social Party (1934), the Praja Socialist Party and the Samyukta Socialist Party. During the colonial era, the main objective of the socialist movement in India was to achieve freedom from British imperialism. During the freedom movement, socialist leaders fought not only for political freedom, but also for social and economic freedom. The goals of socialist leaders are to establish an egalitarian society free from poverty, hunger, unemployment, and illiteracy, social, economic, and political justice; individual liberty, decentralisation of wealth, and empowerment of the marginalised sections of society.
The Socialist leaders are well aware that complete individual liberty and equality are not possible. That is why they advocate a synthesis of individual liberty and social equality. In other words, they emphasised that the objectives of democratic socialism are based on individual liberty, equality, and social and economic justice, as described in the Preamble of the Constitution of India. Keeping in view, the social and religious diversity of India, socialist leaders want to strengthen secular democracy so that the principle of unity in diversity can be implemented and a strong nation can be built on goodwill, cooperation, and integration. Socialist ideology is against allegiance to narrow-mindedness. This is why socialists like Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar also wanted to abolish the caste system and advocate inter-caste marriages so that real democracy can be established. In independent India, socialists have advocated coming to power through elections. The Soviet Union was officially dissolved on 26 December 1991. As a result, the hegemony of the United States was established, and the world became unipolar. The third -world countries, which were dependent on the Soviet Union in finance, military, and trade, now became dependent on the USA. The United States started imposing the policies of neoliberalism in the world. The tsunami waves of neoliberalism swept away every country in the world, and India was no exception. Neoliberalism is a synthesis of the policies of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation. In a nutshell, it is Americanism or Corporatism. It is in this background that the book {My Tributes to Socialist Leaders, Hyderabad: Southern Springs Publishers Pvt. Ltd., June 2024, pages 125, price, Rs. 250) written by Dr. Prem Singh has 16 tributes and one chapter on the Sachar Committee Report (2006)] is most relevant. Dr. Prem Singh is a renowned teacher, eminent scholar, socialist thinker, seminarian, and outstanding political activist. He has been associated with the socialist movement since his college days and has been working with Samajwadi Jan Parishad from 1995 to 2009 and the Socialist Party (India) since 2011. Great personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, Jayaprakash Narayan, Acharya Narendra Dev, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, Madhu Limaye, and Sachidanand Sinha inspired him to join the socialist movement. After the official announcement of the dissolution of the USSR on 26 December 1991, neoliberalism dominated the social, economic, and political spheres of life.
It is in this background that the book ‘My Tributes to Socialist Leaders’ written by Dr. Prem Singh. As a social thinker and political activist, Dr. Prem Singh has very perceptively exposed the dangerous effects of neoliberalism in his writings in Hindi as well as English in various newspapers, magazines, and books published in India and abroad and has successfully presented an alternative path of development. Dr Prem Singh started his career as a lecturer of Hindi literature at Delhi University and retired as a professor in 2021. He has written about a dozen books, and has been associated with the editorial boards of reputed journals published in Hindi as well as English. Apart from this, he has also been a visiting professor of Hindi literature at various universities in Lithuania and Bulgaria. He is a widely travelled person and has visited about two dozen countries around the world.
The book, ’My Tributes to Socialist Leaders’ has 16 tributes and one chapter on the Sachar Committee Report (2006)] is most relevant. In my opinion, some socialist leaders are known among the people, and some are unsung heroes. The socialist leaders who are known among the people include Madhu Limaye, Chandra Shekhar, Surendra Mohan, Mrinal Gore, Justice Sachar, George Fernandez and Karpoori Thakur. The category of unsung heroes includes Krishna Patnaik, Brijmohan Toofan, Professor Vinod Prasad Singh, Comrade Sunil, Kesla, Bhai Vaidya, Professor Keshav Rao Jadhav, and Raghuvansh Prasad.
The first tribute is written about Madhu Limaye (1 May 1922–8 January 1995). Dr. Prem Singh himself has admitted that he got acquainted with the socialist movement and its ideology after the first glimpse of Madhu Limaye at a function. Madhu Limaye was a very simple and straightforward person. As a socialist leader, he was a great critic of the Congress and preferred an alternative ideology and movement. But due to the growing influence of the political forces of communalism, Madhu Limaye advocated its revival, although his idea of abandoning the path of an alternative Congress party was not liked by many socialists. In other words, according to Dr. Prem Singh, he started advocating the revival of the Congress party.
The intelligentsia is not playing the role of the harbinger of change or development in the country. Dr. Prem Singh, while paying tribute to Krishna Patnaik (30 July 1930—27 September 2004), has very rightly written that intellectuals do not play any role in the ‘progress, problems, and plights’ of the country. In fact, at present, most of the intellectuals in India are like ‘caged parrots’ and have a ‘slave mentality.’. The class of Indian intellectuals is indifferent towards civil society and the common man. In fact, this class is self-centred and supports TINA (There is No Alternative); it only advocates salary packages and has made itself a slave; as a result, it never cares for alternative policies and remains isolated in civil society. Paying tribute to Kishan Patnaik, Dr. Prem Singh has very correctly examined the role of intellectuals.
Chandra Shekhar (1 July 1927–8 July 2007) started his political career by joining the socialist movement and was elected as the District General Secretary of the Praja Socialist Party. Later, he joined the Indian National Congress. He is also known as ‘Jan Nayak’ and ‘Young Turk.’.
He was against the partisan policies of the Congress Party and he had to speak against the leadership; he was not a hypocrite. During the emergency, he was among the Congressmen who were sent to jail. After the fall of VP Singh’s coalition government, he was the Prime Minister of India for 4 months (10 November 1990-21 June 1991). Although, as the President of the Janata Party, he was a national-level leader and an alternative to the leaders of the Congress Party, when he became Prime Minister, he had the support of the Congress Party. The withdrawal of support by the Congress led to the fall of his government. According to Dr. Prem Singh, Chandra shekhar was against the market economy entering India under the guise of neoliberalism. But Chandra shekhar’s views were not given much importance by the media. As prime minister, he opposed the pressure being exerted on India by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.
Influenced by the ideas of Mahatma Gandhi, he started emphasising’ swadeshi ‘and self-reliance’ as an alternative to neoliberalism. Chandra shekhar had undertaken a 4,000 km India tour from Tamil Nadu to Delhi, covering 350 backward districts of the country. During this tour, he came to know about the problems of the common people. In his autobiography, he has written that the main five problems of the common man are lack of proper food and drinking water, primary education, basic health facilities, and social harmony. Chandra shekhar launched the Jan Chetna Abhiyan against the Dunkel proposal to create public awareness, and on the day of the August Revolution in 2000, he launched an alternative campaign against the second phase of globalisation, but he did not get much success. Apart from this, Chandra shekhar planned a tour from Puri (Odisha) to Porbandar (Gujarat). Dr. Prem Singh has rightly written that Chandra shekhar’s arguments against globalisation were not only verbal, but he also made ‘concrete efforts’ to awaken the public. Prem Singh wrote that Chandra Sekhar believed that India’s large poor population would ‘bear the brunt of globalisation, and would not benefit from it.’ In short, we can say that Chandra shekhar was a political activist and socialist thinker. But Dr. Prem Singh has very rightly written, ‘He was not a theoretician of socialism, and he never claimed to be so.’
Brij Mohan Toofan (11 July 1920–14 December 2010) was proficient in Hindi, English, and Urdu languages. He has played the role of a socialist through his writings. Toofan has worked in socialist groups in England for some years. After returning to the country, Toofan’s workplace has been Delhi. Paying tribute to Toofan saheb, Dr. Prem Singh has rightly written that he was involved in ‘diverse activities,’ and in his writings, he ‘highlighted the decline in the politics of the country, especially the politics of socialism.’ Toofan saheb was also against Neo-liberalism. As a prolific writer, he tried to awaken people in his own way. Dr. Prem’s ‘Toofan ka Chirag Bujh Gaya’ is a true tribute to Toofan sahab.
Surendra Mohan (4 December 1928–17 December 2010) was a freedom fighter, prolific writer in Hindi and English, parliamentarian, and, above all, an advocate of the interests of marginalised groups of society: Dalits, women, Adivasis, minorities, and peasants. As a socialist political leader, like other socialists of India, he was opposed to neoliberalism. In his tribute, Dr. Prem Singh has very aptly written that Surendra Mohan ‘indeed extended and intensified the scope of socialist thought.’
Mrinal Gore (24 June 1928–17 July 2012) was a woman socialist activist. In the pre-independence era, Mrinal Gore joined the Quit India Movement (1942), and in the post-independence era, she participated in the Socialist Movement, Goa Liberation Movement, and Samyukta Maharashtra Movement. She was also imprisoned along with other stalwarts during the emergency. Her long career in politics spanned 70 years; she started her career as a municipal councilor in Mumbai [1961]. Apart from being a councillor, Gore has also been a successful MLA and MP. Her political aim was not to gain power but to serve the people. That is why when the Prime Minister of India, Morarji Desai, offered her to become the Health Minister of India Emergency, she politely declined. You will not find such politicians in today’s times. Due to her social service, she was popular among the people as ‘Mrinal Tai’ and ‘Pani Wali Bai.’. She had clarity in her mind that ‘democracy, socialism, and secularism’ were her main priorities. Prem Singh has rightly said that she worked for the ‘poor and the deprived.’
Professor Vinod Prasad Singh (10 June 1940 – 8 February 2013) was a socialist leader, scholar, excellent teacher, and editor of journals and books. Dr. Prem Singh knew him very closely, and he told about his personality traits and relations with people and his students. He was popularly known as ‘Vinod ji’ or ‘Vinod Babu.’ He was always ready to help people. He had also built a good library. Dr. Singh believes that his political and socialist thinking really took shape while reading books in this library. Like other socialist leaders and leaders of opposition parties, he too was imprisoned during the emergency. Professor Vinod was a companion of national leaders like Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, George Fernandez, etc. He was one of the founders of Samajwadi Jan Parishad (SJP). Vinod ji suffered from arthritis in the last phase of his life, and also lost his eyesight. He died on 8 February 2013 due to ill health. His demise was very sad and deeply saddening for his colleagues.
Comrade Sunil [4 November 1959–21 April 2014] was a scholar, economist, editor, and realist, not an idealist. He was influenced by the ideas of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia. Paying tribute to Comrade Sunil, Dr. Prem Singh has stated that we had different views on many issues, but sometimes they agreed after discussions. In fact, both Comrade Sunil and Dr. Prem Singh were against the anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare because they could see that it was sponsored and supported by the RSS and the BJP, which did not offer any alternative economic and political system to the people living on the margins of society. Whereas many socialists, communists, and others were swept away in the anti-corruption movement. Sunil was against capitalism and Neo-imperialism. Dr. Prem is absolutely convinced that corporate capitalism not only plunders national resources but also takes away ‘independence, self-reliance, and native talent’.’. Sunil spread public awareness through his magazine, ‘Samayik Varta.’. He exposed the Dunkel proposals and the disastrous consequences of corruption and wrote continuously against neoliberalism and its challenges. Advocating the right to education, Sunil was in favour of equal, free, and quality education throughout India. Dr. Prem Singh writes that the true tribute to comrade Sunil would be to thwart the attack of neoimperialism on education.’
‘Kesla: Assertion of localism and universalism’ is also connected to ‘Sunil.’ Dr. Prem Singh writes that the seeds of Sunil’s ‘thought and action’ started germinating and flourishing in Kesla village itself. In fact, capitalism, or corporate capitalism, is called universalism or globalisation. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, globalisation, or universalism, engulfed all the countries of the world, irrespective of their local conditions. This concept advocates that in a political system, decisions are taken at the top and imposed on the people so that natural resources, self-reliance, freedom, talent, and the labour force of the people can be looted and people can be enslaved. This is also called modern or Neo-liberal slavery. Due to corporate control over the media system, it is propagated that there is no alternative to universalism. Localism is an alternative to universalism. During the freedom movement, this concept of localism was advocated by Mahatma Gandhi, who wanted to empower local people through local bodies, which he called Gram Swaraj. The concept of empowerment of local bodies was furthered by socialist leaders like Dr Ram Manohar Lohia.
Balchand Bhai Vaidya (22 June 1928–2 April 2018), popularly known as ‘Bhai Vaidya,’ was a fatherly figure, a studious person, a good organiser, and a freedom fighter from his teenage years. He was a legislator, a State Home Minister of Maharashtra (1978 to 1980), and a mayor of Poona (1974-1975). He participated in a number of political movements, including the Quit India Movement (1942–1946), when he was barely at the age of 14, the Goa Liberation Movement (1955–1961), and the JP movement (1974). His political ideas were formulated and shaped by the influence of the ideologies of Jyotiba Phule, Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar, and Jaiprakash Narayan. It is a historical fact that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the wave of liberalism, privatisation, and globalisation swept throughout the world. The new economic policy (1991) was formulated and implemented by the then Prime Minister of India, Narasimha Rao, and Dr. Manmohan Singh, the then Finance Minister and later on the Prime Minister of India (2004 to 2014). It was propagated that this policy would ensure economic stability, reduce poverty, increase economic growth, and generate employment. It was against the principles of socialism enshrined in the Constitution of India. As a matter of fact, subsequent years proved that it has increased corporate capitalism and unemployment, inequality, and insecurity.
Justice Rajindar Sachar (22 December 1923–20 April 2018) Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court) was a justice par excellence, a secular, socialist, democrat, champion of human rights and civil liberty, and a classically multifaceted, unique personality and a great critic of Neo-imperialism and corporatization. In the words of Dr. Prem Singh, he was like ‘a masterpiece, epic in its dimensions.’ His socialist vision was ignited by Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, a leading socialist thinker and leader of the 20th century. He has joined the socialist party of India since its formation in 1948, and he followed the principle. He has joined the socialist party of India since its formation in 1948, and he followed the principle, ‘Once a socialist is always a socialist’. Consequently, ‘Sachar Saheb’was also one of the important leaders who reinstated the socialist party in 2011. And he was a critic of neo-imperialism and corporatization of the economy and the resulting misery.
On 9 March 2005, the Prime Minister issued an official notification for the formation of a seven-member high-level committee headed by Justice Rajinder Sachar to prepare a report on the social, economic, and educational status of the Muslim community in India. This committee is called the Sachar Committee. The Sachar Committee submitted a 403-page report on “Social, Economic, and Educational Status of the Muslim Community in India” to Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on November 17, 2006, and it was presented in the Lok Sabha on November 30, 2006. The report is like a mirror, showing the true face of the growing social insecurity, economic inequality, and alienation of 138 million Muslims (General Census 2001) since independence. According to the Sachar Committee report, Muslims are underrepresented in the civil services, police, military, and politics. Dr. Prem Singh wrote that Muslims are more likely to be poor, uneducated, unhealthy, and in trouble with the law than other Indians. He rightly writes that the report has exposed the myth of ‘policy of appeasement of Muslims’ as well as the hollowness of the ‘vote bank theory’ propagated by the BJP and its allies.
The Sachar Committee enlisted a number of recommendations to address the status of the Muslim community in India, including: setting up an Equal Opportunity Commission to look into grievances of deprived groups like minorities, Create a nomination procedure to increase participation of minorities in public bodies, Establish a delimitation procedure that does not reserve constituencies with high minority population for SCs Increase the employment share of Muslims, particularly where there is a great deal of publicity. Work out mechanisms to link madrasas with higher secondary school board., Recognise degrees from madrasas for eligibility in defence, civil, and banking examinations. The Committee further suggested that policies should “sharply focus on inclusive development and ‘mainstreaming’ of the community while respecting diversity.” But with the advent of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, no political party has mentioned the recommendation of the Sachar committee in the election manifestos of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, writes Dr. Prem Sigh. It would not be out of place to mention that even after partition, when the first general election was held in the year1951-52, the Muslim representation in the Lok Sabha was 5.11%, whereas in the year 2024 it is merely 4.42%. There is no Muslim representation in the Union Council of Ministers of India because no Muslim candidate from the BJP-led NDA was elected to 18th Lok Sabha (2024). It is strange but true that there is no Muslim Chief Minister in India except Jammu & Kashmir. Therefore, the slogan of Sab ka Sath, Sab Ka Vikas (‘Everyone’s support, everyone’s development’) is hollow. If Sachar Saheb, ‘a unique personality with socialist vision’, ‘had been alive today, he would have felt very upset about this development’. Dr. Prem Singh has very rightly inked the tribute to the socialist revolutionary hero.
Professor Keshav Rao Jadhav (27 January 1933–18 June 2018) was a prominent socialist thinker and leader. He was professor of English at Osmania University. He was highly influenced by the political philosophy of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia and joined the socialist movement as a student and was elected president of the socialist Yuvjana Sabha, affiliated with the socialist party. As a student leader, he came close to Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia and other socialist leaders. As a jailbird, he was imprisoned during emergency (1975–1977), and in the movement of separate Telangana, he was arrested 17 times and was jailed for two years. He was a champion of civil liberties, secularism, and socialism. He worked for a marginalised section of society and was an advocate of peaceful and nonviolent change. Like other socialists, he too was against communalism. As a man of dreams and ideas’, he opposed the new economic policy of neoliberalism.
George Mathew Fernandez (3 June 1930 – 29 January 2019) was a fiery trade union leader, socialist politician, great parliamentarian, successful minister, outstanding organiser and orator, proof-reader, editor, and journalist, and a socialist revolutionary leader of the marginalised sections of society. His journey from sleeping on benches of Chowpatty Sands to the convener of the 24-party National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is the story of his strong-willed, simple, and struggling life. Like other contemporary socialists, he was highly influenced by the ideas, ideals, and visions of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia’s towering leadership of the socialist movement in India. As a socialist leader, he was president of the socialist party, which he merged with the Janata Party. As a socialist leader, he was president of the socialist party, which he merged with the Janata Party. The newly formed Janata Party—an alternative to the Congress Party—was a congregation of different parties and leaders of conflicting ideologies, from socialism to the rightist ideology of erstwhile the Jan Sangh and the R.S.S. After the collapse of the Janata Party, which was born in the womb of the emergency (1975–1977), return to renew the socialist moment and form the Samta Party in 1996. His alliance with the BJP was the second mistake committed by George Fernandez, while the first was the merger of the socialist party in the newly formed Janata Party in 1977. It was the Himalyan blunder and proved detrimental for the socialist movement in India. Dr. Prem Singh has rightly penned that George Fernandez has moved away from socialist politics and completely moved towards a communal and capitalist path.
He has feathers on his cap also. First, as a fiery socialist labour leader, he led the Railway Employees Strike (1974), in which about 1.4 million Railway Employees participated and railway services were completely closed. It was the biggest railway strike in the history of railways. Second, Dr. Prem Singh, while highlighting his brilliant role as a fiery socialist leader in the era of corporate politics, succeeded in forcing giant multinational companies—Coca-Cola and ABM—to quit India. Third, when he was Defence Minister of India, the Indian Army was victorious in the Kargil war (May–July 1999) by defeating Pakistan’s army, and about 18 times, he went to the Kargil sector to meet the soldiers. Though Kargil Vijay Diwas (‘Kargil Victory Day’) is celebrated every year on 26 July in India, unfortunately there is no mention of the role of George Fernandez on this day.
Raghuvansh Prasad Singh (6 June 1946–13 September 2020), popularly known as Raghuvansh Babu, was a committed socialist. He was anti-corporatization, capitalism, and Neoliberalism due to the influence of the ideas, ideals, and visions of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, and Karpuri Thakur. According to Dr. Prem Singh, though he belonged to a privileged caste and had a Phd degree in mathematics, he dedicated himself to the cause of backward castes or the politics of backward castes. This was due to the influence of the ideology of socialism pioneer Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, who advocated that socialist workers should strive for the upliftment of backward castes and marginalised sections of society. While paying tribute, Dr. Singh has rightly said that Raghuvansh Babu was committed against feudalism, casteism, dynasty rule, family rule, and communalism. His most important contribution is that he crafted the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MANREGA) for the benefit of the poor rural masses.
Jagdish Tirodkar (23 March 1937—29 October 2022) was a very humble, socialist and labour-oriented person from the bottom of his heart. Dr. Prem Singh’s first meeting with Jagdish Tirodkar happened in 1989 through an introductory letter from George Fernandes, when he and his wife Kumkum Yadav went to King Edward George Memorial Hospital, Mumbai (then Bombay) for some work. Dr. Prem Singh writes that his ‘simplicity and gentleness’ had a deep impact on both of them. Jagdish Tirodkar was not only active in the socialist and labour movements, but he was also given the status of a freedom fighter for participating in the Goa Liberation Satyagraha in 1954-1955 under the leadership of the socialist movement. Paying his tribute to Jagdish Tirodkar, Dr. Prem Singh writes that the comrades of the socialist movement will continue to feel the emptiness created by his departure ‘without drums and trumpets’ for a long time.
Jananayak Karpoori Thakur (24 January 1924 – 12 February 1988) was born on 24 January 1924 in the house (hut) of father Gokul Thakur and mother Mrs. Rajdulari Devi in Pitaulia village (Bihar). The journey of Karpuri Thakur’s mixed thinking has ranged from socialism to Ambedkarism. His socialist thinking was influenced by socialist thinkers Acharya Narendra Dev, Loknayak Jaiprakash Narayan, and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia. This is the reason why he became a member of the Congress Socialist Party. The aim is to establish an exploitation-free society—a society where human beings are not exploited. His thinking was also influenced by the thoughts of social reformer Jyotiba Phule, South India’s progressive thinker Periyar, and Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar. People’s poverty, unemployment, hunger, lack of basic facilities, and the “marginalised” status of his family greatly influenced Karpuri’s life and thinking. Due to this influence, his life was simple and like an ordinary person. And because of this background, he always fought for the deprived, oppressed, and exploited class. According to Dr. Prem Singh, the simplicity of Karpoori Thakur, while as Chief Minister, reflexed his linkage with the ‘Gandhian socialist stream’ and was always surrounded by crowds. Dr. Prem cites that poem ‘A man surrounded by the crowds’ (Bheed Se Ghira Aadami), by Jabir Husain. If his gurus—Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia announced “Seven Revolutions” (Sapta Kranti) and Jayaprakash Narayan announced ’complete revolution, Thakur announced three revolutions—cultural revolution, economic revolution, and social revolution—so that social, economic, and political justice could be established. On the basis of this thinking, Karpoori Thakur was against the three C’s – caste, corruption and capitalism—and favoured the three D’s – democracies, debate and discussion. The essence of his thinking was that 90% of the people were exploited. Therefore, their participation in money, land, and political power should also be 90%. He started his political career by joining the Quit India Movement in 1942 and left studies. As a committed socialist leader, he won the Bihar legislative assembly elections in 1952; from then till his death, he continuously won the assembly elections. He was also elected to the Lok Sabha in 1977 and lost the elections in 1984. He was leader of opposition in Bihar Legislative Assembly for a long time and twice at chief minister: 22 December 1970–2 June 1971 and 24 June 1977–21 April 1979. As per the recommendations of the Mungerilal Commission (December 1971), in 1978 there were 79 castes. As Chief Minister, he gave 12% reservation to the backward classes. As per the Mungerilal Commission, 27% of the total population of Bihar is backward, and 36% is extremely backward. In Bihar, backward classes constitute 63% of the total number of voters. . In October-November 1990, the Bharatiya Janata Party started the Ram Rath Yatra, and this was the beginning of Mandal vs. Kamandal politics. But by giving Bharat Ratna to Karpoori Thakur, the politics of Mandal plus Kamandal started rather than Mandal vs. Kamandal politics. After the announcement of giving Bharat Ratna to Karpoori Thakur, many targets were hit with one arrow. The main objective of Thakur was to ‘bring the marginalised group forward,’ but he never resorted himself to ‘communal casteist and casteism identifyism.’ In brief, Dr. Prem Singh has rightly remarked that he emerged as leader of the people—Jannayak, not a leader of any caste.
In brief, the book inked by wordsmith Dr. Prem Singh, a committed socialist thinker, is an excellent and most relevant scholarly work. The book conveys about the simple lifestyle of the socialist leaders and their struggle for life to advocate for the cause of marginalised sections of society. All these socialist leaders emphasise the alternative to neoliberalism and corporatism. In the current scenario of techno-fascism, the present book will be helpful to students, teachers, and research scholars, as well as society at large.
