Skip to main content

Youth Socialist Convention to chart roadmap for india’s socialist renewal

Ram Manohar Lohia, Acharya Narendra Dev
By Dr. Prem Singh* 
Enough has been written about defining and explaining imperialism; what is needed now is to eliminate it from the world.
India’s socialist movement, with its revolutionary ideology and praxis, has several original characteristics:
- It was born out of the Indian Freedom Movement, absorbing all anti-imperialist currents before and after the Revolt of 1857.
- It does not confine social change to the economic system alone, but treats it as a parallel and partly independent process. It views class, class-consciousness, and class-struggle in the context of caste, and aligns naturally with social reform movements against caste hierarchy and patriarchy.
In the crucial task of transforming India’s social system, the socialist movement has aimed to unleash the inherent potential of the Bahujan masses and secure lasting liberation from feudal and colonial structures.
Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia’s call to advance Dalits, Adivasis, backward castes, women, and poor Muslims in society, public services, and politics was a revolutionary step toward transforming India’s socio-economic and cultural order. He believed these marginalized groups, relatively free from the mental colonization of Brahmanical and Western values, could become the strongest opponents of communal fascism and capitalist imperialism.
This idea, applicable to two-thirds of the world, was later reduced to narrow casteism by those pursuing mere social justice politics. Tragically, these groups were drawn into serving communal fascism and capitalist imperialism, while many progressive intellectuals misread Lohia’s vision through an electoral lens. The result has been the fragmentation of the marginalized into caste, tribal, and religious identities instead of citizens of a modern nation.
- India’s socialist movement propounds an independent socialist ideology distinct from both capitalism and communism, as well as from European social democracy. Rooted in the experience of colonized nations, it recognizes capitalism as inherently imperialist and dependent on external or internal colonies. Hence, it stresses changes not only in production relations but also in technology and means of production.
- It rejects both capitalist and communist models of development, opposes resource exploitation for capital accumulation, and advocates prosperity with equality rather than consumerist excess.
- It maintains that the means and the ends of struggle must align; every step toward the goal must reflect the goal itself.
- It upholds non-violent resistance—Satyagraha and Civil Disobedience—as the highest form of revolution, asserting that even a single individual can challenge injustice.
- Deeply democratic in spirit, it enshrines civil liberties, individual freedom, and especially women’s freedom as integral to building a socialist civilization. It also supports the autonomy of culture, literature, and art from state control.
- It stresses decentralization of power and resources, advocating Chaukhambha Raj (Four-Pillar State) in place of centralized hegemony.
It envisions equality among nations and within nations, including a world government and visa-free global movement.
- It promotes a pluralist understanding of Indianness, rejecting fanaticism and essentialism while embracing rational and progressive engagement with culture and tradition.
- It views politics as a search for truth, demanding transparency, honesty, and accountability in parties and leadership. It rejects one-party, one-person, or dynastic rule as undemocratic, aspiring instead to a global civilization based on socialist political conduct.
***
To understand Indian socialist ideology, one must study the works of Acharya Narendra Deva, Jayaprakash Narayan, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, Kishan Patnaik, Sachchidanand Sinha, and other thinkers inspired by them. Socialist thought in India remains open-ended, aiming to eradicate inequality, injustice, and weaponized power from the world. Its architects infused the socialist vision with Gandhian ethics.
The organized socialist movement in India spanned from the formation of the Congress Socialist Party (CSP) in 1934 to its merger with the Janata Party in 1977. Later parties founded by old and new socialists drew on this heritage but often abandoned its ideological foundation. Ironically, even those who denounced dynastic, caste-based politics failed to revive the movement’s core ideals.
The youth must recognize that post-Janata socialists themselves contributed to the weakening of the socialist movement. A political ideology needs a political party to sustain it. Since 1977, India has lacked a strong socialist party, though ideologically committed groups have persisted. Samajwadi Jan Parishad (1995) and Socialist Party (India) (2011) were formed to resist neo-imperialist dependency born of the 1991 New Economic Policies, but they could not build broad organizational strength.
If India—and the developing world—are to free themselves from the corporate-communal nexus and neo-imperialist domination, it can only happen through socialist ideology. Socialism is not the heritage of those merely calling themselves socialists—it is the collective legacy of all Indians and the wider, suffering world. The Congress Socialist Party was itself conceived as the alternative to the Congress.
***
To achieve this renewal, it is essential to spread awareness and understanding of socialist ideology among India’s youth. As part of the 90th anniversary commemorations, a two-day Youth Socialist Convention will be held in Delhi under the aegis of the Youth Socialist Initiative (YSI). Its principal resolution is that for the next decade—until the centenary of India’s socialist movement in 2034—youth-led programs will be organized nationwide to promote socialist thought and activism.
The Delhi convention will discuss national policies on education, health, employment, economy, agriculture, development, and culture from a socialist standpoint, through resolutions prepared by eminent scholars. Youth from socialist and other transformative movements will debate and refine these resolutions, which aim to restore constitutional and welfare-oriented policymaking in place of today’s corporate-communal governance. Approved resolutions will be published in a booklet for public dissemination.
The convention embodies the spirit of “If not now, then never.” Its goal is to instill in young minds a spirit of decisive resistance against the corporate-communal nexus and neo-imperialist control. If the minds of India’s youth change, the realities outside will follow.
The struggle will be long and difficult. For India to remain an independent, self-reliant, sovereign nation—true to its socialist, secular, and democratic ideals—the youth must take up this challenge with awareness, conviction, and courage.
---
*This is the base paper for the Youth Socialist Convention to be held on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of India’s socialist movement. This  convention will be held in Delhi on Acharya Narendra Dev Jayanti, from October 31 to November 1, 2025. It will deliberate on national policies relating to education, health, employment, economy, agriculture, development, and culture from a socialist perspective, especially in the context of the current corporate-communal political nexus. The convention organisers have invited young men and women associated with the socialist movement, as also those from other progressive and transformative political streams, to participate. Senior socialist comrades are invited to guide and inspire the participants

Comments

TRENDING

How Hindutva and the Taliban mirror each other in power and ideology

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak*  The recent visit of Taliban-appointed Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to India and the warm reception extended to him by the Modi government have raised questions about India’s foreign policy direction. The decision appears to lend legitimacy to the Taliban regime, which continues to suppress democratic aspirations in Afghanistan. 

Justice for Zubeen Garg: Fans persist as investigations continue in India and Singapore

By Nava Thakuria*  Even a month after the death of Assam’s cultural icon Zubeen Garg in Singapore under mysterious circumstances, thousands of his fans and admirers across eastern India continue their campaign for “ JusticeForZubeenGarg .” A large digital campaign has gained momentum, with over two million social media users from around the world demanding legal action against those allegedly responsible. Although the Assam government has set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which has arrested seven people, and a judicial commission headed by Justice Soumitra Saikia of the Gauhati High Court to oversee the probe, public pressure for justice remains strong.

History, culture and literature of Fatehpur, UP, from where Maulana Hasrat Mohani hailed

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat*  Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a member of the Constituent Assembly and an extremely important leader of our freedom movement. Born in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, Hasrat Mohani's relationship with nearby district of Fatehpur is interesting and not explored much by biographers and historians. Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri has written a book on Maulana Hasrat Mohani and Fatehpur. The book is in Urdu.  He has just come out with another important book, 'Hindi kee Pratham Rachna: Chandayan' authored by Mulla Daud Dalmai.' During my recent visit to Fatehpur town, I had an opportunity to meet Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri and recorded a conversation with him on issues of history, culture and literature of Fatehpur. Sharing this conversation here with you. Kindly click this link. --- *Human rights defender. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/vbrawat , X @freetohumanity, Skype @vbrawat

Celebrating 125 yr old legacy of healthcare work of missionaries

Vilas Shende, director, Mure Memorial Hospital By Moin Qazi* Central India has been one of the most fertile belts for several unique experiments undertaken by missionaries in the field of education and healthcare. The result is a network of several well-known schools, colleges and hospitals that have woven themselves into the social landscape of the region. They have also become a byword for quality and affordable services delivered to all sections of the society. These institutions are characterised by committed and compassionate staff driven by the selfless pursuit of improving the well-being of society. This is the reason why the region has nursed and nurtured so many eminent people who occupy high positions in varied fields across the country as well as beyond. One of the fruits of this legacy is a more than century old iconic hospital that nestles in the heart of Nagpur city. Named as Mure Memorial Hospital after a British warrior who lost his life in a war while defending his cou...

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

Urgent need to study cause of large number of natural deaths in Gulf countries

By Venkatesh Nayak* According to data tabled in Parliament in April 2018, there are 87.76 lakh (8.77 million) Indians in six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While replying to an Unstarred Question (#6091) raised in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said, during the first half of this financial year alone (between April-September 2018), blue-collared Indian workers in these countries had remitted USD 33.47 Billion back home. Not much is known about the human cost of such earnings which swell up the country’s forex reserves quietly. My recent RTI intervention and research of proceedings in Parliament has revealed that between 2012 and mid-2018 more than 24,570 Indian Workers died in these Gulf countries. This works out to an average of more than 10 deaths per day. For every US$ 1 Billion they remitted to India during the same period there were at least 117 deaths of Indian Workers in Gulf ...

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

Creative destruction? The myth of ‘better capitalism’ behind the 2025 Economics Nobel

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak *  The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has awarded the 2025 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel to Joel Mokyr , Philippe Aghion , and Peter Howitt “for having explained innovation-driven economic growth .” According to the Nobel announcement on October 13 , one half of the prize goes to Professor Joel Mokyr “for having identified the prerequisites for sustained growth through technological progress ,” while the other half is shared by Professors Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt “for the theory of sustained growth through creative destruction .”