MOHANDAS KARAMCHAND GANDHI
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on 2nd october 1869 was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement. Pioneering the use of non-violent resistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience, a tool to fight for civil rights and freedom that he called satyagraha, he founded his doctrine of nonviolent protest to achieve political and social progress based upon ahimsa or total nonviolence for which he is internationally renowned. Gandhi led India to its independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. Gandhi is often referred to as Mahatma. In India, he is also called Bapu and officially honoured as the Father of the Nation. His birthday is commemorated in India as Gandhi Jayanti, a national holiday and worldwide as the International Day of Non-Violence.
Gandhi first employed non-violent civil disobedience as an expatriate lawyer in South Africa, in the resident Indian community's struggle for civil rights. After his return to India in 1915, he set about organising peasants, farmers and urban labourers in protesting excessive land-tax and discrimination. Assuming leadership of the Indian National Congress in 1921. Gandhi led nationwide campaigns for easing poverty, expanding women's rights, building religious and ethnic amity, ending untouchability, increasing economic self-reliance but above all for achieving Swaraj—the independence of India from foreign domination. Gandhi famously led Indians in protesting the British-imposed salt tax with the 400 km Dandi Salt March in 1930 and later in calling for the British to Quit India in 1942. He was imprisoned for many years, upon many occasions, in both South Africa and India. Gandhi strove to practice non-violence and truth in all situations and advocated that others do the same. He lived modestly in a self-sufficient residential community and wore the traditional Indian dhoti and shawl, woven with yarn he had hand spun on a charkha. He ate simple vegetarian food and also undertook long fasts as means of both self-purification and social protest. Gandhi was assassinated on 30 January 1948, by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu nationalist who felt Gandhi was sympathetic to the Muslims. January 30, hence is observed as Martyrs' Day in India.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on 2 October 1869 in Porbandar, a coastal town which was then part of the Bombay Presidency, British India. He was born in his ancestral home, now known as Kirti Mandir, Porbandar. His father, Karamchand Gandhi, who belonged to the Hindu Modh community, served as the diwan of Porbander state, a small princely state in the Kathiawar Agency of British India. His grandfather was Uttamchand Gandhi, fondly called Utta Gandhi. His mother, Putlibai, who came from the Hindu Pranami Vaishnava community, was Karamchand fourth wife, the first three wives having apparently died in childbirth. Growing up with a devout mother and the Jain traditions of the region, the young Mohandas absorbed early the influences that would play an important role in his adult life. These included compassion for sentient beings, vegetarianism, fasting for self-purification and mutual tolerance among individuals of different creeds. The Indian classics, especially the stories of Shravana and Maharaja Harishchandra, had a great impact on Gandhi in his childhood. In his autobiography, he admits that it left an indelible impression on his mind. He writes "It haunted me and I must have acted Harishchandra to myself times without number." Gandhi early self-identification with Truth and Love as supreme values is traceable to these epic characters.
In May 1883, the 13-year-old Mohandas was married to 14-year-old Kasturbai in an arranged child marriage, according to the custom of the region. Recalling the day of their marriage, he once said "As we didn't know much about marriage, for us it meant only wearing new clothes, eating sweets and playing with relatives." However, as was also the custom of the region, the adolescent bride was to spend much time at her parents house and away from her husband. In 1885, when Gandhi was 15, the couples first child was born but survived only a few days and Gandhi father, Karamchand Gandhi, had died earlier that year. Mohandas and Kasturba had four more children, all sons: Harilal born in 1888, Manilal born in 1892, Ramdas born in 1897 and Devdas born in 1900.
GREAT SOCIAL WORKER - ANNIE BESANT
Annie Besant born on 1 October 1847 was a prominent British Theosophist, women's rights activist, writer and orator and supporter of Irish and Indian self rule. She was married at 19 to Frank Besant but separated from him over religious differences. She then became a prominent speaker for the National Secular Society and writer and a close friend of Charles Bradlaugh. In 1877 they were prosecuted for publishing a book by birth control campaigner Charles Knowlton. The scandal made them famous and Bradlaugh was elected Member of Parliament for Northampton in 1880.
She became involved with Union organisers including the Bloody Sunday demonstration and the London matchgirls strike of 1888 and was a leading speaker for the Fabian Society and the Marxist Social Democratic Federation. She was elected to the London School Board for Tower Hamlets, topping the poll even though few women were qualified to vote at that time. In 1890 Besant met Helena Blavatsky and over the next few years her interest in Theosophy grew while her interest in secular matters waned. She became a member of the Society and a highly successful lecturer in Theosophy. As part of her Theosophy-related work, she travelled to India where in 1898 she helped establish the Central Hindu College, and in 1902 she formed the International Order of Co-Freemasonry in England. Over the next few years she established lodges in many parts of the British Empire. In 1907 she became President of the Theosophical Society. She also became involved in politics in India, joining the Indian National Congress. When World War I broke out in 1914 she helped launch the Home Rule League to campaign for democracy in India and dominion status within the Empire. This lead to her election as president of the India National Congress in late 1917. After the war she continued to campaign for Indian independence and for the causes of Theosophy until her death in 1933. She fought for the causes she thought were right, starting with freedom of thought, women's rights, secularism , birth control, Fabian socialism and workers rights. Divorce was unthinkable for Frank and was not really within the reach of even middle-class people. Annie was to remain Mrs. Besant for the rest of her life.
At first she was able to keep contact with both children and to have Mabel live with her. She also got a small allowance from her husband. Once free of Frank Besant and exposed to new currents of thought, she began to question not only her long-held religious beliefs but also the whole of conventional thinking. She began to write attacks on the churches and the way they controlled people's lives. In particular she attacked the status of the Church of England as a state-sponsored faith. Soon she was earning a small weekly wage by writing a column for the National Reformer, the newspaper of the NCS. The NCS stood for a secular state and an end to the special status of Christianity and allowed her to act as one of its public speakers. Public lectures were very popular entertainment in Victorian times. Besant was a brilliant speaker and was soon in great demand. Using the railway, she criss-crossed the country, speaking on all of the most important issues of the day always demanding improvement, reform and freedom.
For many years Besant was a friend of the Society's leader, Charles Bradlaugh. It seems that they were never lovers but their friendship was very close. Bradlaugh, a former seaman had long been separated from his wife. Besant lived with him and his daughters and they worked together on many issues. He was an atheist and a republican. He was also trying to get elected as Member of Parliament for Northampton. Besant and Bradlaugh became household names in 1877 when they published a book by the American birth-control campaigner Charles Knowlton. It claimed that working-class families could never be happy until they were able to decide how many children they wanted. It suggested ways to limit the size of their families. The Knowlton book was highly controversial and was vigorously opposed by the Church. Besant and Bradlaugh proclaimed in the National Reformer.
ANNA HAZARE
Kisan Baburao Hazare born on 15 June 1937, popularly known as Anna Hazare is an Indian social activist who is recognised for his participation in the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement, using nonviolent methods following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. Hazare also contributed to the development and structuring of Ralegan Siddhi, a village in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra, India. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award—by the Government of India in 1992 for his efforts in establishing this village as a model for others.
Anna Hazare started a hunger strike on 5 April 2011 to exert pressure on the Indian government to enact a strict anti-corruption law as envisaged in the Jan Lokpal Bill, for the institution of an ombudsman with the power to deal with corruption in public offices. The fast led to nation-wide protests in support of Hazare. The fast ended on 9 April 2011, the day after the government accepted Hazare's demands. The government issued a gazette notification on the formation of a joint committee, constituted of government and civil society representatives, to draft the legislation.Anna has been featured as the most influential person in Mumbai by a national daily newspaper. Also, he has been believed to be the current youth icon in India. He has faced criticism for his authoritarian views on justice, including death as punishment for corrupt public officials and his alleged support for forced vasectomies as a method of family planning.Kisan's father, Baburao Hazare, worked as an unskilled labourer in Ayurveda Ashram Pharmacy. Kisan's grandfather was working for the army in Bhingar, when he was born. His grandfather died in 1945, but Baburao continued to stay at Bhingar. In 1952, Baburao resigned from his job and returned to his own village, Ralegan Siddhi. Kisan had six younger siblings and the family faced significant hardships. Kisan's childless aunt offered to look after him and his education, and took him to Mumbai. Kisan studied up to the seventh standard in Mumbai and then sought employment, due to the economic situation in his household. He started selling flowers at Dadar to support his family. He soon started his own shop and brought two of his brothers to Bombay.
Hazare said, “Doesn’t a mother administer bitter medicines to a sick child when she knows that the medicine can cure her child.... The child may not like the medicine, but the mother does it only because she cares for the child. The alcoholics were punished so that their families would not be destroyed....
In 1991 Hazare launched the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Jan Aandolan (BVJA) (People's Movement against Corruption), a popular movement to fight against corruption in Ralegaon Siddhi. In the same year he protested against the collusion between 40 forest officials and timber merchants. This protest resulted in the transfer and suspension of these officials.In May 1997 Hazare protested against alleged malpractices in the purchase of powerlooms by the Vasantrao Naik Bhathya Vimukt Jhtra Governor P. C. Alexander. On 4 November 1997 Gholap filed a defamation suit against Hazare for accusing him of corruption. He was arrested in April 1998 and was released on a personal bond of Rs. 5,000 . On 9 September 1998 Hazare was imprisoned in the Yerawada Jail to serve a three-month sentence mandated by the Mumbai Metropolitan Court.The sentencing came as a huge shock at that time to all social activists. Leaders of all political parties except the BJP and the Shiv Sena came in support of him. Later, due to public protests, the Government of Maharashtra ordered his release from the jail. After release, Hazare wrote a letter to then chief minister Manohar Joshi demanding Gholap's removal for his role in alleged malpractices in the Awami Merchant Bank. Gholap resigned from the cabinet on 27 April 1999.In 2003 corruption charges were raised by Hazare against four NCP ministers of the Congress-NCP government.He started his fast unto death on 9 August 2003. He ended his fast on 17 August 2003 after then chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde formed a one-man commission headed by the retired justice P. B. Sawant to probe his charges. The P. B. Sawant commission report, submitted on 23 February 2005, indicted Sureshdada Jain, Nawab Malik, and Padmasinh Patil. The report exonerated Vijaykumar Gavit. Suresh Jain and Nawab Malik resigned from the cabinet in March 2005.Three trusts headed by Anna Hazare were also indicted in the P. B. Sawant commission report. Rs.220,000 spent by the Hind Swaraj Trust for Anna Hazare's birthday celebrations was concluded by the commission as illegal and amounting to a corrupt practice,though Abhay Firodia, an industrialist subsequently donated Rs.248,000 to the trust for that purpose.The setting apart of 11 acres of its land by the trust in favour of the Zilla Parishad without obtaining permission from the charity commissioner was concluded as a case of maladministration. The commission also concluded that the maintenance of accounts of the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Janandolan Trust after 10 November 2001 had not been according to the rules and Rs.46,374 spent by the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal Trust for renovating a temple was in contravention to its object of imparting secular education.LALA LAJPAT RAI
Lajpat Rai was born in an Agarwal family in Dhudike in Punjab on 28 January, in 1865. His grandfather was a Svetambara Jain while his father had great respect for Islam and he even fasted and prayed like muslims, but did not embrace Islam largely due to his family's attachment to the Hindu faith. Lala Lajpat Rai had his initial education in Government Higher Secondary School, Rewari in Haryana in the last 1870s and early 1880s where his father Radha Krishan was an Urdu teacher. Lala Lajpat Rai was influenced by Hinduism and Manusmriti and created a career of reforming Indian policy through politics and writing. Hinduism he believed, led to practices of peace to humanity and the idea that when nationalist ideas were added to this peaceful belief system, a non-secular nation could be formed. His involvement with Hindu Mahasabhaite leaders gathered criticism from the Bharat Sabha as the Mahasabhas were anti-secularism, which did not conform with the system laid out by the Indian National Congress. This focus on Hindu practices in the subcontinent would ultimately lead him to the continuation of peaceful movements to create successful demonstrations for Indian independence.Lala Lajpat Rai was an Indian author, freedom fighter and politician who is chiefly remembered as a leader in the Indian fight for freedom from the British Raj. He was popularly known as Punjab Kesari (The Lion of Punjab) or Sher-e-Punjab. He was also associated with activities of Punjab National Bank and Lakshmi Insurance Company in their early stages.
SIMON COMMISSION PARDON:-
In 1928, Lajpat Rai led a procession with Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya to demonstrate against the Simon Commission. During this procession, Rai became the target of a lathi charge led by British police. During World War I, Lajpat Rai lived in the United States, but he returned to India in 1919 and in the following year led the special session of the Congress Party that launched the noncooperation movement. Imprisoned from 1921 to 1923, he was elected to the legislative assembly on his release. When the commission visited Lahore on 30 October 1928, Lala Lajpat Rai led the protest against Simon Commission in a silent non-violent march, but the police responded with violence. Lala Lajpat Rai was not beaten with lathis at the chest at all. He later succumbed because of heart failure. Bhagat Singh, who was an eyewitness to this event, claimed that it was this act that caused him to vow to take revenge against the culprits of this violence.
TRUST:-
Lala Lajpat Rai's mother, Gulab Devi, died of TB in Lahore. In order to perpetuate her memory, Lala Lajpat Rai established a Trust in 1927 to build and run a TB Hospital for women reportedly at the spot where she had breathed her last.The Trust purchased 40 acres of land in April 1930 from the then Government which gave a free grant of an additional 10 acres on Ferozpur Road . Construction work was started in 1931 and completed in 1934 when the Hospital gates were opened to TB patients.A marble plaque bears witness to the opening of the Hospital on 17 July 1934 by Mahatma Gandhi. On the migration of trustees to India in 1947, the Government invited Begum Rana Liaquat Ali Khan, Syed Maratab Ali, Professor Dr.Amiruddin and some other notables and philanthropists to become acting Trustees of the Hospital in July 1948.They constituted a Managing Committee with Begum Rana in the Chair, for running the Gulab Devi Chest Hospital.
NELSON MANDELANelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born inTranskei, South Africa on July 18, 1918.
His father was Chief Henry Mandela of the Tembu Tribe. Mandela himself was educated at University College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand and qualified in law in 1942. He joined the African National Congress in 1944 and was engaged in resistance against the ruling National Party's apartheid policies after 1948. He went on trial for treason in 1956-1961 and was acquitted in 1966.
Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing of the African National Congress (ANC). In 1962 he was arrested and convicted of sabotage and other charges, and sentenced to life in prison. Mandela served 27 years in prison, spending many of these years on Robben Island. Following his release from prison on 11 February 1990, Mandela led his party in the negotiations that led to multi-racial democracy in 1994. As president from 1994 to 1999, he frequently gave priority to reconciliation.
After the 1948 election victory of the African National Party, which supported the apartheid policy of racial segregation. Mandela began actively participating in politics. He led prominently in the ANC's 1952 Defiance Campaign and the 1955 Congress of the People, whose adoption of the Freedom Charter provided the fundamental basis of the anti-apartheid cause. During this time, Mandela and fellow lawyer Oliver Tambo operated the law firm of Mandela and Tambo, providing free or low-cost legal counsel to many blacks who lacked attorney representation.
Mahatma Gandhi influenced Mandela's approach, and subsequently the methods of succeeding generations of South African anti-apartheid activists. (Mandela later took part in the 29–30 January 2007 conference in New Delhi marking the 100th anniversary of Gandhi's introduction of satyagraha (non-violent resistance) in South Africa).
In South Africa, Mandela is often known as Madiba. Mandela has received more than 250 awards over four decades, including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize.
