• My ideas have gone through a long process of evolution. I have often been accused of changing my views and field of activity. I claim that through all the apparent changes, I have been pursuing a single goal, seeking the answer to a single question and this has taken me to several ideologies and political paths, until I have arrived at the conclusion that Gandhiji holds the answer !

< back


Life at a glance

  • Early Life
  • Pre - Independence
  • Post Independence
  • Years of Social Experiments
  • Sampoorna Kranti
  • Jail Chronology

  • Year - 1902
    Was born on 11th October Samvat 1959, Vijayadashmi
    Year - 1905
    On 2nd April Passed Metric with Merit Certificate
    On 3rd April Married Prabhavati
    On 3rd April Saw Gandhiji for the first time in a Public meeting
    Year - 1922
    On 1st January left college to join the Non-Cooperation Movement of Gandhiji
    On 1st August left for America by a ship for higher studies
    On 1st October Reached San Francisco
    Year - 1924-25
    1924-25 Introduced to Marxism while studying at Wisconsin University, Chicago
    Year - 1928
    On 1st August Graduated from Ohio University
    Year - 1929
    On 1st August Post Gradated from Ohio University
    On 1st September left USA to return to India
    On November reached India

  • December 1929 Met Gandhiji for the first time in Wardha; Attended Congress for the first time at Lahore
    1930 At Allahabad, accepted the responsibility of Labour department in Congress; Mother died, father paralysed
    1932 After the arrest of all top leaders, nominated as acting Secretary General of the congress; work underground, galvanised the congress; was arrested in Madras; Went to Jail for the first time
    1933 Developed the idea of Congress Socialist Party during days in the prison
    October 1934 Congress Socialist Party was formed, became the first Secretary General
    1936 Nominated as a memebr of working committee of Congress
    1936 to 1939 Try to bring all the socialist, communist forces on one platform but failed
    February/1940 - Arrested second time and sent to jail for 9 months for giving an anti-war speech in Jamshedpur, Bihar
    January/1940 - Arrested for the third time in Bombay- kept under surveillnace in Jail at Dewli Camp Rajasthan
    October 1941 Fasted for 31 days in the Jail for a fair treatment to the inmates; tried to send out letters with wife Prabhavati but caught
    1942 Transerred from Dewli to Hajaribaugh jail in Bihar
    08/November 1942 After the declariation of Quite India Movement by Gandhiji, could not reconciled with his arrest and Jumped the 17 feet high wall of the jail with his chosen freiends and guided the movemnt underground with great success
    1942-1943 Remained underground and toured whole of the country incognito and carried on the movement; went hiding in Nepal; formed a army like organisation 'Azad Dasta' in Nepal; arrested in Nepal; ordered the 'Azad Dasta' to raid the jail and take them out;after successful operation return to India underground
    18/September 1943 After working underground for a while, tried to cross Indian border from Punjab but arrested by the CID brach, in a moving train at Lahore and kept in Lahore fort ; tortured physically and mentally
    January 1945 Transerred to central Jail, Delhi
    11/April/1946 Released from Jail
    19th April 1946 Accorded as a Hero of August-Kranti
    February 1947 Removed the word Congress from the Congress Socialist Party
    June 1947 Against the partition plan and opposed it in the Congress Working Committee along with Gandhiji and Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan

  • 1947 Became the president of the three major labour Unions of the country - Railways, Post& Telegraph, Army constebulary
    March 1948 Discarded the Marxian theory; accepted the Gadhian concept of purity of means. Socialists decided to move out of Congress
    April 1949 Met with an accident in Bihar and fractured his Right hand
    August 1950 Attracted towards Vinoba Bahve's Bhoodan Movement; Toured Wardha & Pavnar to feel the ferver
    30th May 1950 Met Vinoba during his Bhoodan Padayatra in the Banda district of UP
    23rd June 1952 21 days fast in Pune for self purification; meditated deeply, what is the incentive to goodness in men; finaly descarded the philosophy of Dialectical Materialism
    September 1952 Worked extensivly in the Bhoodan Movement in Gaya district of Bihar
    Jan 1953 Went Rangoon to participate in the first conference of the Samajwadi Parishad
    February - March 1953 Nehru offered Socialists to join his government; this created major difference in Socialist Party; put a 14 point programme as a condition to join the government; Nehru declined to commit; Talk failed
    April 1953 Declared in the Chandil Sarvodaya Sammelan : 'I am willing to call myself a desciple of Vinoba'
    19th April 1954 In the Bodhgaya Sarvodaya Sammelan decleared his 'Jeevandaan' for Sarvodaya movement; given the movement a new drive
    5th May 1954 Established his Ashram at Sakhodevra in Gaya district of Bihar
    1954 Became the founder president of new orgnaisation : Award - an association of volentary organisations
    August 1955 Expressed strong disapproval of the firing on the students of the Patna University, serious fall out with Jawaharlal Nehru
    Oct 1957 Resigned from the basic membership of the Praja Socialist Party; renounced party politice for ever

  • May-Sept 1958 Four and a half months Foreign tour to England and Europe
    1959 Organised an international seminar on the issue of Tibet
    1960 Became one of the three presidents of the International Shanti Sena
    1961 Became the Present of All India Panchayat Parishad
    May 1961 Presided the 13th Sarvodaya Sammelan in Oogutoro
    1962 Became the founder president of Bharat- Pak Maitri Sangha
    November 1962 Declined the offer to replace Nehru during the China attack
    1963 Became a member of the five member governing council of the 'Commonwealth of World Citizens'
    June/1963 Decided to consentrate at the construcitve work of Gramdaan in Gaya district
    6th September 1964 Work among Naga tribes in the North; Nagaland peace accord came in being through Nagaland Peace Mission
    May-65 Accepted the challange to realise the Gramdaan in Bihar during Wardha Adhiveshan of Sarva Seva Sangh
    1965 Awarded with Megsasay Award
    1967 Declined the offer to become country's President
    1967-68 Took lead in the fight with great Bihar femine; started Bihar Relief Committee and became its President; conducted massive relief operation with worldwide support
    1968 70 days foreign tour to America, Europe, Russia
    1969 went Australia on the ocassion of Gandhiji's birth centenary ; became president of the national committee formed to welcome Bashah Khan on his first visit to India after partition
    May 1970 Took leave from all his public work and went to Gangotri for a long vacation
    June 1970 cancelled his vacation and decided to reach Musahari Block in Muzaffarpur, Bihar in response to a death order to two Sarvodaya workers by the Naxalites; started Musahari Experiment;realised the limitation of Sarvodaya movement's methodology
    1970 Became president of the Gram Swarajya Fund collected for Sarvodaya Movement
    1971 Supported East Pakistan uprising led by Shaikh Muzeebur Rahman; quationed Indira Gandhi's policy and led India's public opinion in a unique way; Travelled 70 countries of the world to create public opinion on the issue of Bangladesh; organised International Seminar on Bangladesh
    July 1971 Mild heart attack
    April 1972 Dacoits surrendered in Chamabal; Became president of Chamabal Ghati Peace Mission
  • November 1972 Operated for a syst in the underarm; Prabhavati Ben diagnosed with Utrus Cancer
    15th April 1973 Prabhavati Ben died
    July 1973 Started English Weekly- Everymen's to create conducive public opinion towards Gandhian ethos
    December 1973 Tried to address the youth of the country  - Issued an appeal from Pavnar Ashram  : "Youth for Democracy"
    February 1974 Student's movement started in Gujrat; went to Gujarat on their demand; guide the Navneerman movement; saw the potential of aYouth led people's movement
    March 1974 Students of Bihar started a new movement; Appealed the Bihar government to behave responsibly towrds the students movement; Students urged him to lead them; accepted the leadership  
    1st April 1974 Indira Gandhi attacked him to discredit his leadership; Warned Indira for making personal attacks; 
    8th April 1974 Led a historical silent march in Patna and decleared his vow to fight miss rule, curruption and high handedness of the state power
    9th April 1974 Students named him Loknayak during massive public meeting at Gandhi Maidan, Patna
    April 1974  Demanded to disolve Bihar assembly and resiganation of the government after the police firing in Gaya on 12th April
    29th April 1974 Operated for Prostate in VelloreHospital
    5th June 1974 Gave lakhs of signatures collected in favour of Assembly dissolution to the governor; named the movement : Total Revolution in the historical public meeting in Patna
    July 1974 Division in Sarva Seva Sangh; Vinoba Vs JP rants the Sarvodaya movement; din't agree with Vinoba's assesment of the situation; Sarva Seva Sangh freezed; 
    1st August 1974 Appeal to remove corruption from daily life ; talks about moral revolution
    3rd,4th,5th October 1974 Unprecedented Three day Bihar Bandh
    1st November 1974  Indira Gandhi invited him to discuss the Bihar movement; no compromise reached
    4th November 1974 Historical people's march by the lacs of people; beaten by a BSF Jawan; created nationawide condemanation 
    18th November 1974 Accepted the challange given by Indira Gandhi to decide all in the elections; rift with Vinoba widen
    March 1975 Lead the epic rally in Delhi; gave the People's charter of demand to the speaker of parliament; Vinoba-JP met; declined the advise of Vinoba to avoid confrontation with the government; termed it as People Vs State 
    26th June 1975 Addressed a massive rally of central governments employees; appealed the Army and the police to adhere to their constitutional obligations and not of the government; in the mid night central government declared emergency: first in the independent India; Arrested from GPF, New Delhi and kept under house arrest in Chandigarh
    27th September 1975 Health declined; severe pain in stomach; suffers with the pain for months
    1st November 1975 Health deteriorates; signs of dementia
    5th November 1975 Both kidneys damaged
    12th November 1975 Almost on deathbed; released on payrole ; travelled to Delhi and then to Mumbai
    22nd November 1975 Admitted to the Jaslok Hospital; health improved; lifelong dialysis by every alternate day started
    4th December 1975 Government took back the order of House arrest
    January 1977 Government lifted the emergency; elections declared; forced the opposition parties to merge as one party;  Janata Party formed; Despite the critical health, travelled the country to defend Democracy; election became instrument to fight dictetorship 
    March 1977 Massive victory for the Janta Party; took all new MPs to Rajghat and administered an oath;  choose Morarji Desai as the Prime Minister; said : my work is done; started again with his people his movement for Total Revolution.  
    May-77 Travelled to USA for dialysis related problems
    1978-79 Impossible to travel and interact with the people; frustrated with his health and failure of the Janta Party government & party; disturbed with the leadership of the Sarvodya movement; felt alienated & helplessness
    22nd March 1979 Rumours of death; Parliament paid homage; felt the death
    8th October 1979 Died at around 6 am
    9th October 1979 Cremated at the banks of Ganga river, Baans Ghat at Patna, Bihar
  • First Arrest 1932
    Second Arrest  1937
    Third Arrest 1939
    Fourth Arrest  1940
    Fifth Arrest  1940
    Sixth Arrest 1941
    Seventh Arrest 1943
    Eighth Arrest 1943
    Ninth and  the last arrest 1975
Main Links
All Rights Reserved © 2014, jayprakashnarayan.org | Powered by Indiproduction.com