Gandhi@150 & India’s Swaraj Parampara

On October 2, the nation beings a year-long celebration of Gandhi@150. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born 150 years ago in Porbandar, Gujarat. He led India’s struggle for freedom against British colonial rule, widely to be recognised the world over as a Mahatma or great soul. Without doubt, he was a unique phenomenon in the history of humanity, especially in the methodology of his fight for justice, equality, and liberty.

From Mahatma Gandhi to Narendra Modi, Indian democracy, despite its various drawbacks and failures, is somewhat of a political marvel. The notion of swaraj may serve as a useful lens through which we can measure its achievements. We can start by asking whether Indian democracy really embodies the idea of swaraj, so eloquently enunciated by several leaders of the freedom struggle including Lokmanya Tilak, Dadabhai Naoroji, Sri Aurobindo, and Gandhi.  

Swaraj is not a contemporary, but age-old Vedic idea, going back to ancient times. Some say Swami Dayanand Saraswati’s Satyarth Prakash (1875) contains its first modern usage. Dayanand quotes the Vedic “Yah svayam raajate sa svaraat” (this is self-government). But it did not apply to political independence from Britain. Its earliest modern political use was probably in Sakharam Ganesh Deuskar’s pamphlet “Shivajir Mahattva” (1902), republished two years later as “Shivajir Diksha.” Deuskar was a friend of Sri Aurobindo, who was also an early purna swarajist, an advocate of India’s complete independence. In a few years, with the struggle for freedom acquiring momentum especially because of Lord Curzon’s partition of Bengal in 1905, swaraj became the most evocative and popular of indigenous words for political freedom, whether total or partial, within the British Empire.

Several important political leaders like Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Dadabhai Naoroji, and Aurobindo used the word, as did Gandhi, who made it a household mantra in Hind Swaraj (1909). The latter is not only one of his most important books, but also a comprehensive statement of the aims and methods of non-violent revolution. In the discourse of the freedom movement, though swaraj mostly signifies political autonomy, Gandhi meant much more by it. It is also a radical articulation of an alternate vision of the society, culture, and polity. Perhaps, he and others were intuitively aware of its etymology, though they did not explicitly explain it.

Once we understand that swaraj is the central issue, we see parampara or tradition not in dialectical opposition to its other, adhunikata (modernity). Nor is Bharatiyata (Indianness) merely oppositional to pashyatikarana (Westernisation). Parampara, instead, is whole, integral, not just fragmentary or antithetical. Not a knee-jerk reaction to the domination of Western categories over Indian ones, but a deep understanding of the difference will take us forward. Gandhi achieved such an authentic Indianness by opening a dialogue between Bharatiya parampara and Western modernity so as to create new spaces of knowledge and swaraj. Throughout Indian history, the struggle for swaraj has gone on, often unrecorded. The Vijayanagar Empire fought for swaraj, as did Chattrapati Shivaji. In the 150 years of British rule, there was a revolt practically every single year in India. Some part or the other was always up in arms against British rule. So Pax Britannica was a great illusion. How could there be lasting peace without swaraj?

In today’s context, Narendra Modi’s elevation to the post of India’s Prime Minister in 2014 marks a watershed. His winning again, with an even more impressive count of 303 in 2019, signifies the beginning of “new India,” a combination of developmental nationalism and inclusive Hindutva. To my mind, Modi has understood the idea of swaraj better than his predecessors. Unlike some of his hardline followers, Modi also deeply appreciates the Mahatma and his message. We cannot forget how Modi’s first act on entering his office as PM in 2014 was to offer a floral tribute to a photo of the father of the nation. The rise of India on the world stage under Modi has led to a quantum jump in the respect accorded to India. Furthermore, improvement of both national security on the borders and reduction in crime, lawlessness, and violence on the home front suggest an era of peace and stability. A new pride in our identity, culture and heritage could well end the self-loathing and civilisational inferiority complex which have plagued us for centuries. Today swaraj means the augmentation of India’s hard power through military prowess, economic empowerment, and determined diplomacy, on the one hand, combined with Soumya Shakti, the soft power of culture, spirituality, yoga, cuisine, couture, and so on, on the other hand. Together they add up to nothing less than India’s rejuvenation, renewal, and rise.

Gandhi, despite differences in his approach and Modi’s, would have approved. The Mahatma might have also insisted on reducing the present regime’s governmentality and empowering the citizenry much more for the deepening of swaraj.

The author is Director, IIAS, Shimla Views are personal