Babu Jagjivan Ram’s life: an archetype for building a ‘samras’ Hindu society

“Mohammad Ali Jinnah is demanding a separate country for Muslims ………I am opposed to all forms of religious conversion. We are untouchable Hindus. We are born Hindus, and will stay Hindus and die Hindus. We created the nation; we were not created by the nation. The nation is ours.  We must alert society against religious conversion. We must abolish untouchability. In the battle for freedom every religion and jati must join together in great numbers.”

This speech was delivered at a convention of the society in Patna in 1931. These are the words of a man who did not allow personal tribulations to impede his unwavering patriotism—who became a voice for the untouchables while addressing the issue of social exclusion. Unlike present-day brainless activists who demand separate rights, he believed in Tatvamasi—"That Thou Art."

Popularly known as ‘Bapuji,’ Babu Jagjivan Ram was an eminent leader of the Scheduled Castes and played a prominent role in India’s freedom struggle. He was born on April 5, 1908. His mother was Vasanti Devi, and his father was Shobhi Ram. He had an elder brother, Sant Lal, and three sisters. He passed his matriculation in the first division and joined Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in 1927, where he was awarded the Birla Scholarship and passed his Inter Science examination. He later received a B.Sc. degree from the University of Calcutta in 1931.

Bapuji embarked on an inspiring journey, rising from a lower-caste family to ultimately becoming the Deputy Prime Minister of India. His political career is well known—he held several key positions in the Indian government, including Minister of Defence, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, and was one of the prominent members of the Constituent Assembly. As one begin reading about Bapuji’s life beyond his political career, he would truly be moved by the spiritual depth and quiet strength that guided his journey. What follows is not just history—but a glimpse into the soul of a man who stood tall as both a leader and a devout Hindu.

Yet, his religious life remains largely untouched by academicians, reporters, and scholars. On the occasion of his birth anniversary, let us take a deeper look into his life and legacy.

Bapuji’s firm opposition to proselytization can be seen on several occasions, one such instance was conference of Depressed Classes League held in New Delhi, where his fiery words still have that ability to dismantle the entire conversion drive of missionaries and Islamists; he says, “We are Hindus and those of us who want to get out of the Hindu religion are cowards.” 

This clarity of thought comes from his great religious beliefs and these beliefs and devotion comes from his father, Sobhi Ram, who was a deeply religious person and a priest of the Siv Narayani Sant movement. In the book, ‘A Dharmic Social History of India’, author Aravindan Neelkandan Ji delineates – “Jagjivan Ram was initiated into Śiva Nārāyaṇī Sect, which was established in the 19th century by mystic Saint Śiva Nārāyaṇ. This sect emphasized a blend of Bhakti and nirguṇa Brahman meditation, sparking an all-inclusive spiritual movement that attracted many economically impoverished and socially excluded communities, although it was not limited to them. Jagjivan Ram was initially named Budh Ram by a pandit, but his name was changed to Jagjivan Ram by his father after consulting a sacred book.”  Bapuji’s resilience and dharmic inclination comes from this movement which provided a model for both spiritual belief and social reconstruction, which contributed to the base on which Jagjivan Ram also modelled his own actions. 

In the following discussion we will journey beyond the familiar image of Bapuji the freedom fighter, to rediscover him as a steadfast spiritual seeker—rooted in dharma, silently resisting religious conversion, and embodying the soul-force of India’s eternal wisdom amidst the fires of colonial struggle.

Bapuji: A devoted follower of Shiv Narayani Sect

Jagjivan Ram’s daughter, Meira Kumar, noted that Bapuji had been deeply influenced by his father, who was a priest of the Siv Narayani movement. His father spent his days meticulously writing out, by hand, copies of their sacred texts (anyas) for use by followers of the tradition. Admission to the community was not through a guru but by individuals joining a Siv Narayani gathering, making offerings to a sacred text of the tradition, and listening to its teachings.

The teachings emphasized moral virtues including truth, temperance, and mercy, along with a prohibition on polygamy. Rather than adopting any distinctive dress, followers continued to observe the customary attire of the Hindu community. The founder, Siv Narayan, was a Rajput of the Nerivan lineage from Chandravan, a village near Ghazipur. He was the author of numerous works, and a tradition developed among each community of his followers to have a central object of devotion—a handwritten manuscript of one of his works. Such texts were also a central feature of Jagjivan Ram’s childhood, and the creation of an authoritative sacred text for Ravidas also appears to have been a focus of interest for Bapuji.

Based on a study of Siv Narayan’s works, one of the main goals of his teachings was described as the attainment of a state of entry into a world called sant vilas or sant des (“Sant’s delight” or “Sant land”). This is the ideal true homeland of the Sants, existing in a realm beyond the mundane world, which is referred to as kal des (“the land of death”). The path to this ideal land was to be found by each individual through self-realization and by abandoning forty forms of faults, such as drinking alcohol. This idea of attaining liberation within life is also a key concept that Jagjivan Ram mentions in his writings on the teachings of Ravidas.

A key feature of Siv Narayan’s followers was that they focused not only on the spiritual well-being of their community but also on education, organization, and lobbying for their welfare in the world. Where there were sufficient numbers of devotees, they organized themselves into an association (sangathan), and the members would be called sant sipahi (“soldier Sants”). They would elect an organizing committee, including a Mahant (priest), a Vazir (minister), and other office holders. They would then raise funds, a portion of which would be sent to a higher-level center of the movement, seeking registration, while the remaining funds would be used for local community purposes.

This aspect of the Siv Narayani movement also provided a model for the kind of political activities that Jagjivan Ram promoted through his establishment of Ravidas assemblies and the development of Ravidas temples as focal points for the advancement of socially excluded communities.

Ravidas – Sabhas (assemblies)

Bapuji organized Ravidas Sabhas (assemblies) in Calcutta from 1928 onwards and founded various organizations. Jagjivan Ram established the Ravidas General Assembly (Ravidas Mahasabha) in 1928. According to other sources, he also founded the All India Ravidas Assembly (Akhil Bhartiya Ravidas Sabha) in Calcutta in 1929, and by 1935, he became the Secretary of the All India Depressed Classes League (Akhil Bhartiya Dalit Varg).

Jagjivan Ram’s wife, Indrani Ram, wrote in her memoirs that while studying in Calcutta from 1928 to 1932, he had been actively organizing Ravidas Sabhas and working to unite different socially excluded groups around the figure of Ravidas. Additionally, he promoted the celebration of Ravidas Jayanti processions.

In a description of such an assembly, Nau Nihal Singh noted that in 1928, Jagjivan Ram organized Ravidas Sabhas in various localities of Calcutta and received a positive response. On one occasion, a large meeting was held in Wellington Park, Calcutta, where around 15,000 untouchables gathered.

Singh also recorded that Jagjivan Ram spoke out against meat-eating and alcohol consumption, viewing the abandonment of these practices as a “pre-condition for the uplift of the untouchables.” His role in encouraging Ravidas Sabhas and the celebration of Ravidas Jayanti can be seen as part of his dharmic perseverance, in alignment with the era’s trend of mass mobilization.

Bapuji also played a key role as a supporter and coordinator of the movement to build a Ravidas temple at Rajghat in Varanasi, from 1976 until his death in 1986. One of the leading figures in this movement was Ramlakhan. In an article published in the magazine of the Ravidas Memorial Society, Ramlakhan described the project as being carried out under the support and direction of Jagjivan Ram, with the aim of providing a venue in central Varanasi in honor of Ravidas.

In a separate pamphlet about the project, Ramlakhan detailed how the land was purchased and registered in 1976 in the name of the “Ravidas Memorial Society” in Delhi, and how Jagjivan Ram laid the foundation stone on 12 April 1979, during a conference of the All India Ravidas General Assembly (Akhil Bhartiya Ravidas Maha-Sammelan). He also stated that Bapuji had been the main donor, who not only facilitated but also funded the purchase of the land for the temple.

Sant Ravidas aur unka kavya (Sant Ravidas and his poetry)

‘Sant Ravidas aur Unka Kavya’ (Sant Ravidas and His Poetry) was the earliest serious modern Hindi academic study of Ravidas’s life and works. It included a comprehensive examination of Ravidas’s teachings, life, and literary contributions, along with a pioneering attempt to edit a critical text of his verses based on manuscript sources. Jagjivan Ram wrote the preface to this volume, in which he began by expressing his views on the origins of the teachings of the Sants. He emphasized the distinction between their teachings and what he described as a “distorted,” khalmal, form of orthodox Hindutva.

Dr. Ambedkar and Bapuji

Nearly all discourses on Bapuji’s life invariably engage with the profound ideological divergences between him and Bhim Rao Ambedkar (1891–1956), both of whom, in their distinct capacities, emerged as two of the most consequential Scheduled Caste leaders in twentieth-century Indian political history. The key difference between them emerged in 1936, when Bapuji and Ambedkar parted ways over their views on the role of religion in the struggle for the rights of the untouchables. This rift was sparked by Ambedkar’s announcement at the Yeola Conference in 1935 that although he had been born a Hindu, he would not die a Hindu. Over the following years, he delivered several speeches explaining why he and his followers should renounce Hinduism—arguing that it offered no possibility of emancipation—and adopt a new religion instead.

However, Bapuji rejected Ambedkar’s view. In public speeches, he argued that even if untouchables converted to another religion, they would still suffer from the stigma of untouchability and risk alienating other Hindus. Jagjivan Ram contended that untouchables who had converted to other religions, such as Sikhism, continued to face discrimination within those religions as well. He believed that conversion was a form of escaping the problem rather than confronting and resolving it.

Firm resistance to Conversion (Proselytisation)

Since the time of the Islamic onslaughts and their subsequent rule in India, proselytization has been a major tool used to weaken and fragment Hindu society. During the British colonial period as well, Christian missionaries targeted Scheduled Caste Hindus, luring them into converting to Christianity. This strategy served not only the purpose of religious expansion but also aimed to dampen the flame of the independence struggle.

Addressing this issue, in his book ‘Caste Challenge in India’, he delineates his resolute views pertaining to conversion, that “Although the scheduled castes have suffered a lot in the past at the hands of the caste Hindus, I still feel conversion of religion by them from the Hindu fold to any other sect does not provide any solution to their problems. As early as in 1935 when I appeared before the Hammond Committee at Ranchi as President of the Depressed Classes' League to put before the Committee and argue the case of national Harijans, I pleaded for their fair representation and a larger share in the government. At that time, we were under the subjugation of the British government and our fight for independence was in full swing. The Christian missionaries and the British rulers were trying to tempt our people. The British were only interested in fragmenting the opposition……. I stood against all these enticements and raised my voice against conversion. Otherwise, crores of people may have embraced Christianity. National leaders appreciated these efforts. All poor and oppressed people, irrespective of caste, should bring about a peaceful social revolution for their betterment. I always condemn a revolution by force or bloodshed.”

Bapuji : A Resolute Hindu

It is an well known fact that the Cultural Marxists forces impose an impression that if one belongs to scheduled caste, he should essentially oppose the Hindu rituals and beliefs and denounce their hindu identity in order to be treated equally without any discrimination , which showcases the false narrative as hindu culture is all about caste system but nothing.  On the contrary, Bapuji showed a mirror to these false narratives in one of his interviews. 

In 1974, when the magazine, Weekly of India, asked him why he was a Hindu, he gave an elaborate reply that deserves to be reproduced here in full: “I was born a Hindu and I am proud to be one. I have read Hindu scriptures with various commentaries and I have come to believe that Hinduism, as revealed in the Vedas and the Upanishads, is such as can claim to be a religion of eternal modernity. A fascinating feature of Hinduism is that it not dogmatic or authoritarian……. Although Hinduism has been inhibited by the Varna system of which caste is a necessary corollary, it has managed to survive as a great force. It has shown great resilience in many adverse circumstances. Hinduism teaches the Divinity of Man through its three basic formulae, viz. ‘I am the Brahman’, ‘That art thou’, and ‘All around us is the Brahman’. All men are equal for they are all Divine. The Hindu believes that he is a spirit or Atman. The sword cannot pierce him, nor fire burn him. Death is only a change from one body to another. The entire universe is an expression or manifestation of God. Attachment to perishable things is the cause of sorrow. Here we have a vision of God as well as a rule of life. Liberation or moksha is not a hypothetical state to be attained after death but is realisable in this very life. The Upanishads say: ‘When all desires that the harbours are gone, man becomes immortal and attains the Brahman here.’ Hinduism also implies to me the threefold path of Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Karma Yoga. Jnana Yoga is the path of knowledge or spiritual insight into the nature of God and the universe. Bhakti Yoga is the way of love – way of devotion – and it takes different forms according to the relationship established with the Beloved – the Creator and in wider perspective the creation. Karma Yoga means work as a path to perfection in which the doer loses all attachment to work or its fruits. Success and failure make no difference to him. The greatest merit of Hinduism is its catholicity and spirit of accommodation.”

In an era where rights are often demanded at the slightest inconvenience, Bapuji’s unwavering commitment to his Dharmic values and deep devotion offers a noble and steadfast ideological path—one that every true reformer and revolutionary should aspire to follow. His vision and unparalleled contributions stand as a timeless archetype for young minds striving to achieve samajik samrasta (social harmony) and to strengthen the unity and resilience of Hindu society. Reflecting on Bapuji’s life, one is struck not just by his political brilliance but by his quiet spiritual strength that rooted his activism in dharma, not division. His path reminds us that true reform doesn't always need rebellion—it needs resolve. Bapuji's life is not just a tale of political ascent, but a profound testament to dharma, devotion, and dignity. His unwavering faith in the Siv Narayani tradition and commitment to Hindu values, even amid external pressures, redefined spiritual resilience. Moving forward, it is essential that scholars and citizens alike rediscover this lesser-known facet of his legacy to inspire rooted reform without losing cultural identity. The future demands leaders who, like him, rise above identity politics to unite society through shared values.

References –

1.    Reasessing Religion and politics in the life of jagjeevan ram (research paper) www.mdpi.com/journal/religions

2.    A Dharmic social history of India  – (book) Arvindnan Neelakandan.

3.    “DR.BABU JAGAJIVAN RAM ROLE IN THE MAKING OF MODERN INDIA” (research paper) www.jetir.org

4.    Caste challenge in India  (book) –  Jagjivan Ram

5.    An old  Paper cutting

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