What is in news : Death anniversary of Jayaprakash Narayan recently celebrated.

About :

• Jayaprakash Narayan
  • Was a freedom fighter and a political leader
  • Known for his pivotal role in the Quit India Movement of 1942
  • Known by his allies as JP
  • Spearheaded the opposition to Indira Gandhi during the 1970s.
  • Born on October 11, 1902 in the village of Sitabdiara in the Saran district of Bihar
  • Married Prabhavati Devi, another freedom fighter and a strong follower of Kasturba Gandhi.
  • Went to the United States to pursue a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Sociology and Politics in 1922
  • The Marxist ideology and the writings of M.N.Roy had a great influence on him during his student years.
  • In 1929, after he had finished his studies and returned to India, he received an invitation from Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to join the Indian National Congress
  • During his association with the Indian National Congress, Mahatma Gandhi became his mentor and guide.
  • Was jailed and tortured many times by the British for his active involvement in the freedom struggle.
• In 1932, when he was behind bars for his role in the Civil Disobedience Movement, he met a number of other political leaders like Ram Manohar Lohia, Yusuf Desai and Ashok Mehta.
• After his release from jail, the Congress Socialist Party was set up with Acharya Narendra Deva as the President and JP as the General Secretary.
• After the Independence and the death of Gandhi, Jai Prakash along with Acharya Narendra Deva and Basawon Singh directed the CSP out of the Congress to create a strong opposition Socialist Party. Later, it came to be known as the Praja Socialist Party.

Sarvodaya Movement and Total Revolution

• In 1954, at a meeting in Gaya, Jai Prakash announced that he was going to dedicate his life to Vinoba Bhave’s Sarvodaya movement.
• He gave up his land in the village and renounced his personal pleasures to devote the remainder of his life to the movement.
• He set up a small ashram in the village of Hazaribagh and gave a new dimension to Gandhian concepts by combining modern technology to it to uplift the village.
• Jai Prakash was of the opinion that every village should be like a small republic in itself with political independence and the ability to make their own decisions and care for themselves.
• In 1971, when the Naxals had threatened to kill the Sarvodaya workers in Muzaffarpur in Bihar, he spent a lot of time and effort to address the problems of the Naxalites. He was also instrumental in achieving the surrender of dacoits in the Chambal Valley.
• He also gave a call for a peaceful Total Revolution. Jai Prakash also inspired a student movement by raising a call for ‘Sampoorna Kranthi’ ‘ or complete revolution.

Awards and Recognition: In 1965, he was awarded the Magsaysay award for Public Service.  In 1999, he was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award, in recognition of his social work.