Jagjivan Ram was one of the trusted leaders of the scheduled caster of the pre-independence era. Jagjivan Ram (5 April 1908 - 6 July 1986), known popularly as Babuji was a freedom fighter and a social reformer hailing from the backward classes of Bihar in India. He served as a minister in the Indian parliament with various portfolios for more than forty years, and also served as the Deputy Prime Minister of India.He is also well known for "forgeting" to pay his taxes for 14 years.
Early life
Jagjivan Ram was born at Chandwa near Arrah in Bihar. Jagjivan Ram passed his matriculation in the first division and joined the Banaras Hindu University where he was awarded the Birla scholarship. He received a B.Sc. degree from the University of Calcutta in 1931. When popular rule was introduced in 1935, both the nationalists and the British loyalists sought him because of his first-hand knowledge of the social and economic situation in Bihar. He chose to go with the nationalists, and was elected to the Bihar assembly in 1937. However, he resigned his membership on the issue of irrigation cess. In 1935, he contributed to the establishment of the All-India Depressed Classes League, an organization dedicated to attaining equality for untouchables. He was also drawn into the Indian National Congress, and in the early 1940s was imprisoned twice for his active participation in the Satyagraha and the Quit India Movements.
Parliamentary career
In 1946 he became the youngest minister in Jawaharlal Nehru's provisional government and, as a Labour minister, he was a part of the prestigious high profile Indian delegation that attended the International conference on labour on 16 August 1947 in Geneva along with the great Gandhian Bihar Bibhuti Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha;[1] his chief political mentor and also the then head of the delegation. He served as Labour minister until 1952. Later he also held the posts of minister for Communications (1952–56), for Transport and railways (1956–62), and for Transport and communications (1962–63).
In Indira Gandhi's government he worked as minister for Labour, employment, and rehabilitation (1966–67), minister for Food and agriculture (1967–70). When the Congress Party split in 1969, Jagjivan Ram joined the camp led by Indira Gandhi, and became the president of that faction of Congress. He worked as the minister of Defence (1970-74) making him the virtual No. 2 in the cabinet, minister for Agriculture and irrigation (1974-77). It was during his tenure as the minister of Defence that the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was fought, and Bangladesh achieved independence. While loyal to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi for most of the Indian Emergency, in 1977 he along with five other politicians resigned from the Cabinet and formed the Congress for Democracy party, within the Janata coalition.
A few days before the elections, on a Sunday, Jagjivan Ram addressed an Opposition rally at the famous Ram Lila Grounds in Delhi. The national broadcaster Doordarshan allegedly attempted to stop crowds from participating in the demonstration by telecasting the blockbuster movie Bobby. The rally still drew large crowds, and a newspaper headline the next day ran "Babu beats Bobby" . He was the Deputy Prime Minister of India when Morarji Desai was the Prime Minister, from 1977 to 1979. However, he was once again given the defence portfolio. Disillusioned with the Janata party he formed his own party, the Congress (J). He remained a member of Parliament till his death in 1986, after over forty years as a parliamentarian. His uninterrupted representation in the Parliament from 1936 to 1986 was a world record, until Tony Benn overtook him by serving 51 years (1950-2001) in the British parliament.
Scouting
He served as President of the Bharat Scouts and Guides from September 1976 to April 1983.
Legacy
The place he was cremated has been turned into the memorial Samata Sthal, and his birth anniversary is observed as Samata Diwas. His daughter, Meira Kumar, is a prominent INC leader and is the Minister for Social Justice in the Manmohan Singh government.
Recently, prime minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, has said that Babu Jagjivan Ram's legacy of struggle and service to the nation will continue to inspire us for generations to come. Speaking at the Babu Jagjivan Ram Centenary Seminar on Agriculture Revolutions, Inclusive Growth and State Policies, here today, the Prime Minister said that his life of intense struggle, great service and sacrifice will continue to guide all those who suffer deprivation and discrimination. He also said Babuji's lasting message of social equality is of critical significance for our times marked by impressive progress in the economic field. By combining his social vision with our approach to nation building, we can make our growth processes more inclusive as they must be if they are to meet the aspirations of our people, he added.
“It is indeed an honour for me to be here in your midst today and participate in a seminar associated with the birth centenary celebrations of a great national leader the Late Babu Jagjivan Ram. It is all the more relevant that the theme of the seminar being organized today is on agriculture – a sector which is heavily indebted to Babuji for his immense contributions and which is a matter of renewed concern and renewed attention today. It is appropriate that as we commemorate Babuji's centenary, we also remember his contributions across the entire breadth of our economy and polity and Indian society.
Babuji would have been a hundred years old now. Even though he is not with us in physical form, his legacy of struggle and service to the nation continue to inspire us and will continue to inspire for generations to come. A product of our freedom struggle, he was deeply influenced by Mahatma Gandhi. He continued to cherish the values of our independence movement even as he achieved remarkable success in our politics and in our public life. Coming from an extremely deprived background from a region known for its caste consciousness, he showed tremendous determination, tenacity and the will to succeed. His spectacular achievements testify to his merit, hard struggle and exceptional courage. Inspite of the social exclusion he suffered, he demonstrated an iron will in fighting against injustice of all kinds.
Rendering service to those who were on the margins of society remained central to his life and his work. He became one of the key personalities of our freedom movement around whom people gathered to serve the cause of social reform and social justice. While striving for social reform and abolition of untouchability, he stressed on both empowerment of Dalits and a change in the heart among others in the social order. It was demonstrative of an approach which Mahatma Gandhi stressed. Babuji described casteism as a dangerous evil and fervently pleaded for a revolutionary change to put an end to this age old malady. His life was a living example of a long struggle for establishing a casteless society in our country.
Apart from being a great agent of social change, Babuji was an administrator par excellence. The many portfolios he handled for three decades as a Minister in the Union Cabinet demonstrate his administrative calibre, efficiency and sound sense of judgement and leadership. Many of our progressive legislations safeguarding the interests of labour are a result of his initiatives as our Labour Minister. He made history as the Defence Minister of our country, providing remarkable leadership to our armed forces in the Bangladesh war in 1971.
It was during his tenure as the Agriculture Minister that the country achieved self-sufficiency in food grain production. It is indeed apt that, today, as we discuss the challenges confronting our agricultural sector, we once again reflect on the leadership provided by Babuji at a time of grave crisis in an earlier era. We need to understand the role played by visionary leadership in making a difference to our agricultural sector. I am very happy that our great scientist, Dr. Swaminathan is here with us to provide us guidance and support as we chart out a new course for agricultural renovation and revival. We once again need such vision and such leadership of the type provided by Babu Jagjivan Ram if our agriculture is to meet the requirements of the coming decades.
Babuji's political and administrative skills, combined with his vision for a democratic social order, make him stand tall as a crusader for social equality. It is important for us to follow in his footsteps to address the challenges faced by our society in this 21st century. While celebrating his birth centenary, let us rededicate ourselves to his ideals.
Mahatma Gandhi once referred to Babuji and wrote “My heart goes out in respectful admiration to Jagjivan Ram for his having emerged as the purest gold out of fire”. Such was the regard that Mahatma Gandhi had for Babuji. Babuji, who commanded the respect of Gandhiji, later commanded the respect of the whole nation for his role as a freedom fighter, a great statesman and a fighter for a just social order. His life of intense struggle, great service and sacrifice will continue to guide all those who suffer deprivation and discrimination. His lasting message of social equality is of critical significance for our times marked by impressive progress in the economic field. By combining his social vision with our approach to nation building, we can make our growth processes more inclusive as they must be if they are to meet the aspirations of our people. That will be our real tribute to Babu Jagjivan Ram. I join all of you in paying my homage to this great son of our country and a builder of modern India.”
Also Read: Tribute to Babu Jagjivan Ram
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