Ram Manohar Lohia | Indian Politician, Activist & Socialist

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They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <span class="text-gray-700"> Last Updated: <time datetime="2024-10-08T00:00:00CDT" >Oct 8, 2024</time> •</span> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ram-Manohar-Lohia/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 ai-ask-button btn border-2 module-spacing btn-sm js-inline-ai-ask-button btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="qf-title font-weight-bold font-14 mb-10 text-center"> Quick Facts</div> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Born: </dt> <dd>March 23, 1910, Akbarpur, <a href="/place/India">India</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Died: </dt> <dd>October 12, 1967, <a href="/place/New-Delhi">New Delhi</a> (aged 57)</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Political Affiliation: </dt> <dd><a href="/topic/Congress-Socialist-Party">Congress Socialist Party</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/Ram-Manohar-Lohia"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref1171764"></span>Ram Manohar Lohia</strong> (born March 23, 1910, Akbarpur, India—died October 12, 1967, New Delhi) was an Indian politician and activist who was a prominent figure in socialist politics and in the movement toward Indian independence. Much of his career was devoted to combating injustice through the development of a distinctly Indian version of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/socialism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">socialism</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Lohia was born to a family of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="merchants" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/merchants" data-type="EB">merchants</a>. Following the death of his mother when he was two, he was raised primarily by his grandparents, although his father’s commitment to Indian <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/nationalism" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">nationalism</a> influenced him during his childhood. Lohia attended Banaras Hindu University before earning a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/bachelors-degree" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">bachelor’s degree</a> (1929) from the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/University-of-Calcutta" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">University of Calcutta</a> and a doctorate (1932) from the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Humboldt-University-of-Berlin" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">University of Berlin</a>, where he studied economics and politics.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">In 1934 Lohia became actively involved in the <span id="ref1174969"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Congress-Socialist-Party" class="md-crosslink ">Congress Socialist Party</a> (CSP), founded that year as a left-wing group within the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Indian-National-Congress" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Indian National Congress</a>; he served on the CSP executive committee and edited its weekly journal. A <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="vehement" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vehement" data-type="MW">vehement</a> opponent of Indian participation on the side of Great Britain in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/World-War-II" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">World War II</a>, he was arrested for anti-British remarks in 1939 and again in 1940; the latter incident resulted in an 18-month imprisonment. With the emergence in 1942 of the Quit <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/India" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">India</a> movement—a campaign initiated by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mahatma-Gandhi" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Mohandas K. Gandhi</a> to urge the withdrawal of British authorities from India—Lohia and other CSP leaders (such as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jayaprakash-Narayan" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Jaya Prakash Narayan</a>) mobilized support from the underground. For such resistance activities, he was jailed again in 1944–46.</p><div class="module-spacing"> </div><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">During and after India’s transition to independence in 1947, Lohia continued to play an active role in its politics. At loggerheads with Prime Minister <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jawaharlal-Nehru" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Jawaharlal Nehru</a> on several issues, however, Lohia and other CSP members left the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="Congress" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/Congress" data-type="EB">Congress</a> in 1948. He became a member of the Praja Socialist Party upon its formation in 1952 and served as general secretary for a brief period, but internecine conflicts led to his resignation in 1955. Later that year Lohia established a new Socialist Party, for which he became chairman as well as the editor of its journal, <em>Mankind</em>. A spellbinding orator and a passionate and perceptive writer, he advocated for various sociopolitical reforms in his capacity as party leader, including the abolition of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/caste-social-differentiation" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">caste system</a>, the adoption of Hindi as India’s national language, and stronger protection of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/civil-liberty" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">civil liberties</a>. In 1963 Lohia was elected to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lok-Sabha" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lok Sabha</a> (the lower house of parliament), where he was noted for his sharp <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="criticism" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/criticism" data-type="MW">criticism</a> of government policies. Although his parliamentary influence was ultimately limited, his progressive views, which he expressed in numerous publications, proved inspirational to many Indians.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="md-signature">This article was most recently revised and updated by <a href="/contributor/encyclopaedia-britannica/12989892">Encyclopaedia Britannica</a>.</span><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":1,"pageId":1913285,"pageLength":415,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"A","adLeg":"A","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"BIO_MEDIUM","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Ram Manohar Lohia | Indian Politician, Activist & Socialist | Britannica