SOClALlST THOUGHT OF DR. RAM MANOHAR LOHlA

Table of Contents

Introduction

Historically, the politics of social justice and socialism in India have gone hand in hand with the empowerment and assertion of communities belonging to the Other Backward Classes (OBC), Extremely Backward Castes (EBC) and Dalits.
The freedom fighter and socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia envisioned this socio-political combination in the 1960s.
He advanced the concept on the premise that only the economic, political and social empowerment of the backward and marginalised castes would usher in India’s real independence which guaranteed justice and equality in society.

Lohia’s Approach to Seven Revolutions

Rammonohar Lohia articulated his approach in what he called Seven Revolutions such as:

Equality between man and woman,
Struggle against political, economic and spiritual inequality based on skin colour,
Removal of inequality between backward and high castes based on traditions and special opportunity for the backward.
Majors against foreign enslavement in different forms, economic equality, and planned production.
Removal of capitalism
Against unjust encroachments on private life, non-proliferation of weapons and reliance on Satyagraha were the basic elements of his thought.

Lohia’s analysis of the principles of democratic socialism

In his book on Marx, Gandhi and Socialism, Lohia made an analysis of the principles of democratic socialism as an appropriate philosophy for the successful operation of constructive programmes.
Lohia made a significant contribution in the field of socialist thought in India, he always laid greater emphasis on the combination of Gandhian ideals with socialist thought.
He believed that through the principles of democratic socialism the economy of a developing country could be improved.
Although Dr Lollia was a supporter of dialectical materialism he put greater emphasis on consciousness.

Lohia on Caste and Class

According to Dr Lohia, the classes represent the social mobilisation process and the castes are symbols of conservative forces.
All human history, he said, has always been “an internal movement between caste and classes – caste loosens into classes and classes crystallise into castes”.

Lohia’s Decentralized Socialism

He was an exponent of decentralised socialism. According to him small machines, cooperative labour and village government, operate as democratic forces against capitalist forces.
He considered orthodox and organised socialism “a dead doctrine and a dying organisation”.
Four Pillar State concept
- Lohia was very popular for his Four Pillar State concept.
- He considered village, mandal (district), province and centra1government as the four pillars of the state.
- He was in favour of villages having police and welfare functions.

Lohia’s theory of New Socialism

Lohia propounded his theory of New Socialism at Hyderabad in 1959.
This theory had six basic elements. They were equalitarian standards in the areas of income and expenditure, growing economic interdependence, world parliament system based on adult franchise, democratic freedoms inclusive of right to private life, Gandhian technique of individual and collective civil disobedience, and dignity and rights of common man.
In his Panchamarlii conference address in 1952 he said, “The delusions and emptiness of modern life seem difficult to overcome, whether under capitalism or communalism as the hunger for rising standards is their mother and common to both.”
Lohia advocated socialism in the form of a new civilisation which in the words of Marx could be referred to as “socialist humanism.”

Lohia’s role in the socialist movement in India

He gave a new direction and dimension to the socialist movement of India.
He said that India’s ideology is to be understood in the context of its culture, traditions, and history.
For the success of the democratic socialist movement in India, it is necessary to put primary emphasis on the removal of the caste system through a systemic reform process.
Referring to the caste system he said, “All those who think that with the removal of poverty through a modern economy, these segregations will automatically disappear, make a big mistake.”
He often highlighted the irrelevance of capitalism in the economic reconstruction and development of Third World countries.
He wanted the state power to be controlled, guided, and framed by people’s power and believed in the ideology of democratic socialism and non-violent methodology as instruments of governance.

Impact of Leon Trotsky on Lohia

Lohia was deeply influenced by Leon Trotsky’s theory of “permanent revolution”.
He preached and practised the concept of “permanent civil disobedience” as a peaceful rebellion against injustice.
To him, the essence of social revolution could be achieved through a combination of jail, spade and vote.

Impact of Marx on Lohia

Although he was in favour of Marx’s theory of dialectical materialism, he was aware of its limitations.
He emphasised both the economic factors and human will as important elements of the development of history.
He was convinced that the “logic of events” and “logic of will” would govern the path of history.
For him, the theory of determinism was not a solution for the tradition-bound Indian society where class distinctions and caste stratifications rule the day.
The Marxist theory of class struggle is not an answer for the complex social structures of India.

Controversy associated with Lohia’s Samyukta Socialist Party (SSP)

Lohia’s Samyukta Socialist Party (SSP) coined a controversial slogan: “SamSoPa ne baandhi gaanth, Pichhara pave sau mein saath (The SSP is determined to get 60 per cent reservation for the backward castes in all the spheres of life)”.
A dexterous theorist and practitioner of his version of socialism, Lohia worked doggedly in the Hindi heartland to implement his vision.

Conclusion

As a socialist thinker and activist, Lohia has carved out for himself a unique place in the history of Indian socialist thought and movement. Although there has been a tendency among contemporary researchers not to recognise him as an academic system-builder in the tradition of Kant, Hegel or Comte, his democratic socialist approach to look at ideology as an integrated phenomenon is now being widely accepted throughout the world.