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Similarly, describing a truly socialist way of life, quite
distinct from the blind belief in the materialistic pursuit of
goals, JP wrote in 1957: "Disciplining of the bodily
appetites is essential for a moral life and the growth of the
human personality and the blossoming of all human qualities and
values…The socialist way of life is a way of sharing together
the good things that common endeavour may make available…I
believe that unless members of society learn to keep their wants
under control, willing sharing of things may be difficult, if
not impossible." This is the sine qua non of true
socialism that JP preached and in fact lived in his own life.
Perhaps very few people know that this stalwart of the freedom
struggle, who had studied at three prestigious universities in
the USA (the land of the superlatives) and seen affluence from
close quarters, himself lived in a two-room apartment on the
first floor of a primary school in Patna’s Kadam Kuan.
The present
anthologist has given evidence of his wide-ranging study as also
his judicious judgement in selecting these passages from the
great leader’s numerous speeches and writings. These speeches,
which include two convocation addresses to the students of
Mysore and Benaras universities, were not written by ghost
speechwriters that are often employed by present-day leaders;
they are the outpourings of JP himself. They are a mirror to his
mind and soul. Referring to Gandhiji’s South African satyagraha,
JP writes: "It was then that freedom became one of the
beacon lights of my life, and it has remained so ever since.
Freedom, with the passing of years, transcended the mere freedom
of my country and embraced freedom of man everywhere and from
every sort of trammel—above all it meant freedom of the human
personality, freedom of the spirit." These cardinal beliefs
became an abiding agenda of his life and he never compromised
with them in spite of Jawaharlal Nehru’s initial blandishments
(Nehru once called him the future Prime Minister of India but
later, because of JP’s outspoken criticism of his government’s
policies, tried to belittle his contribution) and Indira Gandhi’s
thoughtless accusations and threats which he brushed aside with
disdain.
When Indira Gandhi
was at the zenith of her power, and there was danger of using
the police and the Army to quell people’s uprising, JP
appealed to these forces not to obey illegal orders. When told
by a journalist that his views had been described as
"treasonable" by the Home Minister, JP said: "The
loyalty of the Army is to the country, its flag and to the
Constitution…If any party or party leader intends to use the
Army as a means to further their party and power interests, it
is the clear duty, to my mind, of the Army not to be so
used."
About his appeal
to the police, he candidly stated: "1 consider my duty to
explain to the police that I am not asking them to rebel. They
must do their duty. But they must not obey orders that are
illegal or against their conscience. I do not think it
dangerous. But if it is, it is a part of the peaceful total
revolution."
Anybody keen to
know JP and his mind will find the book absorbing.
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THIS
select anthology of Lok Nayak Jayapraksh Narayan’s writings and
utterances, compiled and presented by veteran journalist Ajit
Bhattacharjea, is an extremely useful introduction to the great
revolutionary’s well-considered views and beliefs expressed during
the last 50 years of his chequered career on social, political and
economic issues that concern India and the world at large.
