Uttar Pradesh's state capital, Lucknow, has been witnessing significant political drama, stirred up by the controversy surrounding the celebrations of the birth anniversary of the iconic leader and freedom fighter Jayaprakash Narayan. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, who was scheduled to visit the Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre on the occasion, to pay tributes to the great leader's statue housed inside the complex, was stopped by state authorities, citing security concerns. The state have even sealed the museum with tin sheets while heavy police forces were deployed outside the former Chief Minister's residence.
Significantly, it is from here only, the controversy escalated as SP supporters broke through police barricades outside their party chief’s residence and held demonstrations against the state's actions. The situation intensified when both sides refused to back down, and Yadav garlanded a bust of Jayaprakash Narayan mounted atop a vehicle outside his residence, where hundreds of party workers had gathered.
Speaking at the event, Akhilesh Yadav criticized the Yogi government for preventing him from paying tribute to JP, the socialist leader and fierce critic of the Emergency. He also called on Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, whose political career was shaped by the JP Movement, to withdraw his support from the NDA in protest of the day's events. "The chief minister of Bihar (Nitish Kumar) also keeps talking about Jayaprakash Narayan ji from time to time, in fact, he has emerged (as a politician) from JP's movement itself. This is a chance that he has got to withdraw support from a government which is stopping Samajwadis from remembering Jayaprakash on his anniversary," Yadav said. "JP was a socialist ideologue who participated in the freedom movement and contributed to it along with Mahatma Gandhi. Samajwadis have given respect to him (JP) and will continue to do so," Yadav added.
It is pertinent to note that this has not been the first instance that the SP and the BJP locked horns over the celebrations of the birth anniversary of JP Narayan. Earlier, last year too during Yadav's visit to the Centre, he had to climb over the gate of JPNIC in Gomti Nagar to garland a statue of Jayaprakash Narayan on the premises.
Now, as the political controversy continues to grow, with attacks and counterattacks between the parties, it is important to reflect on the contributions of the great freedom fighter and about the JP Movement, which brought about a wave of change in society.
About Jayaprakash Narayan
Born on 11 October 1902 in Sitab Diara, Saran district, Jayaprakash Narayan demonstrated an unwavering commitment to nation-building from an early age. Popularly referred to as JP or Lok Nayak (People's Hero), he left his village at the age of 9 to enroll in class 7 at the Collegiate School in Patna. In 1918, he passed the 'State Public Matriculation Examination' and earned a district merit scholarship to Patna College. However, he gave up the scholarship after being influenced by Maulana Azad’s call to reject English education.
Taking Maulana Azad’s words to heart, JP left Patna College just days before his exams and joined Bihar Vidyapeeth, a Congress-run institution.
At the age of 20, Jayaprakash Narayan traveled to California in 1922 and was admitted to Berkeley in January 1923. There, he was introduced to Karl Marx's Das Kapital. He returned to India in 1929 as a Marxist and, upon his return, joined the Indian National Congress at the invitation of Jawaharlal Nehru, actively participating in the independence movement.
Narayan was jailed and tortured multiple times by the British during his involvement in the movement.
Return to Bihar Politics
In the 1960s, Jayaprakash Narayan re-entered state politics. On 8 April 1974, at the age of 72, he led a silent procession in Patna to protest against inflation, unemployment, and the shortage of essential commodities. The procession was met with police lathi charges. On 5 June 1974, he addressed a massive gathering at Gandhi Maidan in Patna, galvanizing public support.
Narayan’s leadership of the 1974 students' movement in Bihar gradually evolved into a larger people's movement, now known as the 'Bihar Movement' or 'JP Movement.'
The Emergency
Following the Allahabad High Court’s ruling that found Indira Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractice, Jayaprakash Narayan launched a campaign for Sampoorna Kranti (Total Revolution).
In response, Indira Gandhi declared a national Emergency on the night of 25 June 1975. Narayan, along with opposition leaders and dissidents within Gandhi’s party, was arrested immediately.
The Emergency was lifted on 18 January 1977. Under Narayan’s guidance, the Janata Party was formed and went on to become the first non-Congress party to form a government at the Centre. He died in Patna on 8 October, 1979 due to prolonged illness.
