Jayaprakash Narayan was one of India's leading nationalist and social reform leaders in the 20th century. He was born in 1902 in a village in Bihar and showed an early interest in nationalism. As a young man, he studied in the US and was influenced by leftist ideas. He helped establish the Congress Socialist Party within the Indian National Congress and worked to direct the independence movement. After independence, JP left formal politics and focused on rural development causes, promoting self-sufficient villages. During the Emergency period in 1975, he led opposition to Indira Gandhi's authoritarian rule and was imprisoned. Known as "Loknayak," or leader of the masses, JP dedicated his life to serving the Indian people.

1. Jaya Prakash Narayan
Selfless leader of the masses
One of India’s leading nationalist and social reform leaders was
Jayaprakash Narayan (1902-1979), better known as JP. Although he was
hailed as Loknayak (leader of the masses), he opted to be a humble servant of the
masses without assuming the trappings of power.
Jayaprakash was born on October 11, 1902 in Sitabdiara a remote village in Bihar, as
the fourth child of an official in the public works department. He studied in the village
primary school until the age of 9, when he was admitted to the Collegiate School in Patna.
A quiet and studious boy, he cleared his matriculation examination with flying colours in
1918, winning a district merit scholarship.
It was the time when a wave of nationalism was sweeping the country, and this had
its influence on the teenager. He gave up using British products and took to wearing hand-spun
clothes and handmade shoes.
In 1920, at the age of 18, JP was married to Prabhavati, the daughter of a leading
nationalist lawyer. An ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi, Prabhavati went to stay in
Sabarmati Ashram after the wedding, while her husband continued his studies. Although the
couple’s ideologies differed (Prabhavati was a committed Gandhian while JP was a
socialist), JP always respected his wife’s individuality and let her pursue her goals. In 1922,
JP went to the United States to study political science and economics. For the next seven
years, he put himself through university by working at various jobs including fruit picking,

2. jam packing, waiting at tables and sales. This left a deep impression on him, as he learnt at
firsthand about the dignity of labour. While in the US, he met many leftist intellectuals and
became a convert to the concept of communism.
In 1932, after the arrest of Gandhiji, Nehru and other important leaders, JP became
the active general secretary of the Congress and directed the struggle in various parts of the
country. In September 1932, he too was arrested and sent to Nasik Central jail. Here he had
the opportunity to meet and interact with a number of young Congress leaders who, like
him, were communist sympathizers. Together they founded the Congress Socialist Party
(CSP), which would work both within and outside the INC.
In 1942, when Gandhiji launched the Quit India Movement, Jayaprakash was in
Hazaribagh Central Jail. He effected a daring escape by scaling the prison walls, and slipped
away to Nepal where he organized and trained an Azad Dasta (freedom brigade) to paralyse
the machinery of the British government. In 1943, he was arrested and incarcerated in
Lahore fort, where he was subjected to inhuman torture. Finally, public pressure forced the
government to release him in April 1946. The people gave him a hero’s welcome.
After India attained independence, JP and his followers left the Congress and formed
the People’s Socialist Party in 1948. He never held a formal position in the government, but
remained a leading political personality operating outside party politics.
In 1954, JP quit party politics to join Vinoba Bhave’s Sarvodaya movement that
called for voluntary redistribution of land to landless farmers. JP’s dream was to form
independent and self-sufficient villages, and he worked tirelessly for this cause. In 1965, he
won the Ramon Magsaysay Award for public service.

3. In 1975, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a national Emergency, JP was
jailed for opposing the Emergency. His health deteriorated in prison and he was released
after five months.
On October 8, 1979, Jayaprakash Narayan passed away. The nation mourned his
passing. Prime Minister Charan Singh hailed JP as “the conscience of the nation”.