Table of Contents

Growth of Left................................................................................................................................. 3
Left, Right and Centre ............................................................................................................................... 3
Socialist Ideas and Role of INC .................................................................................................................. 3
Socialism and the Early National Movement ............................................................................................................. 3
Socialist ideologies among nationalists ..................................................................................................................... 4
Socialism after the Non-Cooperation Movement ....................................................................................................... 4
Jawaharlal Nehru and Socialism ................................................................................................................................ 5

Growth of Leftist Movement in India ......................................................................................................... 6

Formation of Communist Party of India and its early history ..................................................................................... 7
Peshawar Conspiracy Case (1922-23) ........................................................................................................................ 8
Early Communist Groups in India and Abroad............................................................................................................ 8
Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case (1924) .................................................................................................................. 9
Formation of the Indian Communist Party (1925) ...................................................................................................... 9
Formation of Workers' and Peasants' Parties (WPPs) .............................................................................................. 10
Communist Influence on Trade Union ...................................................................................................................... 11
Government's Measures to Curb Communist Influence ............................................................................................ 12
Isolation of the Communists from the National Movement ..................................................................................... 13
Communist Party after 1935 .................................................................................................................................... 14

Formation of Congress Socialist Party ..................................................................................................... 15

The Early Socialists .................................................................................................................................................. 15
Towards an All India Congress Socialist Party .......................................................................................................... 16
Ideological currents within CSP ................................................................................................................................ 17
Developing Alternate Leadership ............................................................................................................................. 18
Impact of Congress Socialist Party (Left-wing) ......................................................................................................... 18

Second World War and the Left Response................................................................................................ 19

Opposition to the War ............................................................................................................................................. 20
Support to the War .................................................................................................................................................. 20
 Author: Vishwajeet Kawar
Protégé of PMF IAS

Suggestions / Feedback: vishwjeethistory@gmail.com | t.me/vishwjeetkawar | t.me/pmfiashistory

 Growth of Left

Left, Right and Centre

• During the period of the French Revolution, in the National Assembly of France, there were three
groups:
1. Conservative group: It supported the monarch and nobility and did not want to reduce their powers
2. Liberal group: It wanted limited reforms in the government
3. Radical group: It wanted drastic changes in the system of government, such as the adoption of a
constitution and the Imitation of the monarch's powers.
• Within the assembly:
❖ The conservatives sat on the right side of the speaker
❖ The liberals sat in the centre
❖ The radicals sat to his left
• Since then, in the political vocabulary:
❖ The word 'Right' has been used to refer to groups that are opposed to change in the existing
system of government and socio-economic order because of their own stakes.
❖ The word 'Left', on the other hand, refers to groups and movements that advocate radical reforms
in the government and the socio-economic order, considering the interests of the unprivileged
and oppressed sections of society.
❖ Those who stand for limited changes in the socio-economic and political system are known as
Centrists.
• The left is generally considered synonymous with socialism because socialism is an ideology that aims
to uplift toiling workers and protect them from exploitation by their employers, i.e., the capitalists.

Socialist Ideas and Role of INC

• Socialism aims to end the exploitation of a vast majority of hapless humanity by a small, powerful
minority. It seeks to remove the consequent injustices and inequalities from society.

Socialism and the Early National Movement

• By the beginning of the 20th century, socialism had acquired a considerable following, especially in
the West. The earlier nationalist leaders were aware of socialism or socialist traditions from the
beginning; however, they did not seriously concern themselves with socialist ideology. This was
because:
➢ Fear of division: The leaders of the Congress in its early phase were afraid that socialism, which
encourages the resistance of the exploited against the exploiters and sets up workers against
 industrialists and peasants against landlords, would antagonise the wealthy, who were crucial
financial supporters of the nationalist cause.
❖ Most earlier nationalists thought that adopting socialist ideology might weaken the national
awakening and undermine the national unity the Congress was trying to build up.
➢ Absence of masses: Up to the First World War, the nationalists were engaged primarily in
constitutional politics and agitations within the limits the British masters allowed them. Except for
the Swadeshi movement (1905-8), they did not involve the masses in politics. Consequently, since
the earlier nationalists did not have a political programme that included the Indian people, they did
not feel the need to come closer to them.

Socialist ideologies among nationalists

• Under British rule, Indian people were impoverished and degraded because of the following:
➢ British allies: The British permitted the princes, landlords and moneylenders to oppress the
peasantry.
➢ Exploitation of workers: The British offered leverage to business owners and industrialists,
allowing them to exploit workers.
• Several patriotic Indian intellectuals and militants were drawn to socialist ideologies, especially
those who had lived in Western countries or established links there. Madam Cama, Shyamji Krishna
Verma, Virendranath Chattopadhyay, Bhupendra Nath Dutta, and many others belonged to this
category. They operated from abroad until the beginning of the First World War.
• However, none of these distinguished personalities worked within the main nationalist organisation
in India, the Indian National Congress. As a result, they had little to no influence over the Congress'
activities, policies, and programs.
• Until the end of the Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-22), Socialism had no impact on the political
behaviour of the Congress. However, after this, socialist ideas started influencing Congress policies
and played an important role in politics.

Socialism after the Non-Cooperation Movement

• The Non-Cooperation movement evoked unprecedented enthusiasm among almost all classes and
sections. Hitherto, neglected categories, such as tribals, peasants, women and workers, participated
in the movement.
• During this time, the Russian Revolution also aroused interest among many young nationalists. Those
dissatisfied with Gandhian political ideas and programmes turned to socialist ideology for
guidance.
• In 1927, a new trend of socialism emerged. This trend reflected the rise of a new left wing in Congress,
led by Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose. The left wing did not confine its attention to the
 fight against imperialism but also raised the issue of internal class oppression by capitalists and
landlords.
• Jawaharlal and Bose toured the country, attacked imperialism, capitalism and landlordism and
preached socialism. Youth leagues were formed all over the country, and student conferences were
held.
• During this time, revolutionary nationalists led by Chandrashekhar Azad and Bhagat Singh turned
towards socialism.
• Trade unions and peasant movements rapidly grew in the 1920s with the support of communists. As
a result of the radicalisation of INC, Workers' and Peasants' Parties (WPPs) were formed in different
provinces.

Jawaharlal Nehru and Socialism

Nehru's contact with socialism
• Jawaharlal went to Europe in 1926 to take his ailing wife Kamala to Switzerland for medical treatment.
In Europe, he came in contact with political thinkers, movements, and various forms of Socialism,
including Marxism.
• Jawaharlal was invited to participate, as the representative of the Indian National Congress, in the
International Congress Against Colonial Oppression and Imperialism, held in Brussels in February
1927. He was appointed a member of the Executive Committee of the League Against Imperialism,
which was established in this Congress.
 The League Against Imperialism (LAI) was founded at the Brussels conference in 1927.
• During this Congress, Jawaharlal had the opportunity to meet some of the most prominent
representatives of the European radical tradition. Additionally, he interacted with numerous delegates
from countries such as China and Mexico, as well as various nations in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The exchange of ideas and experiences he had during this event had a profound impact on him.
• In November 1927, Nehru visited the Soviet Union on an official invitation. He was greatly impressed
by the novel experiments in government and social reconstruction being conducted there. By the time
he returned to India in December 1927, Jawaharlal had, for all practical purposes, become a Socialist.

Impact on Domestic Politics

Complete Independence

• The year 1927 witnessed a debate on the extent and character of Swaraj or self-government.
• For the Congress leaders, the Swaraj meant the Dominion Status for India within the ambit of the
British Empire. However, Jawaharlal Nehru and others like him believed that accepting Dominion
Status would not only recognise the inevitability of British presence in India but also perpetuate
British exploitation of India through the backdoor.
• In the Madras session in December 1927, Jawaharlal moved a resolution demanding complete
independence instead of the mirage of Dominion Status.
• Jawaharlal also criticised the Nehru report for accepting Dominion Status. In 1928, along with
Srinivasa Iyengar and Subhas Chandra Bose, Jawaharlal formed the Independence for India League
to present their demand for Purna Swaraj (complete Independence).
• At the Lahore session of the Congress in December 1929, Jawaharlal Nehru became the President,
and the Congress adopted "Complete Independence" as its goal.

Spread of Socialism

• Jawaharlal and Subhas exercised influence over the youth (through the Youth League, the Hindustani
Seva Dal, the Naujawan Bharat Sabha and the Volunteers' movement), the students (through the
students' organisations and conferences) and the workers (mainly through the All India Trade Union
Congress) and inspired them to adopt a radical militant temper.
• Nehru propagated socialist ideas through speeches and articles, emphasising the need for economic
emancipation along with political freedom.
• In 1936, Jawaharlal Nehru urged the Congress to accept socialism as its goal and to bring itself
closer to the peasantry and the working class.
• In his presidential address to the Lucknow Congress in April 1936, Nehru said: I am convinced that
the only key to the solution of the world's problems and of India's problems lies in socialism. I see no
way of ending the poverty, the vast unemployment, the degradation, and the subjection of the Indian
people except through socialism.

Against All Forms of Oppression

• The left-wing in Congress, led by Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose, did not confine its
attention to the fight against imperialism but also raised the issue of internal class oppression by
capitalists and landlords.

Growth of Leftist Movement in India

• In the late 1920s and 1930s, a powerful left-wing group emerged in India and contributed to the
radicalisation of the national movement.
• The Leftist movement originated and grew in India as a result of:
1. The development of industries in India: Industrial development in places like Bombay, Calcutta,
and Madras resulted in large and concentrated working populations. Gradually, the workers
started organising themselves to demand better working conditions and higher wages. This led to
the emergence of trade unions, which prepared the ground for the formation of the Leftist parties.
2. The impact of socialist movements in other countries: The Russian Revolution (Bolshevik
Revolution) of 1917 served as a great inspiration to the world communist movement.
 3. Third Communist International: In 1919, the Communist government of the Soviet Union
established an international organisation called the Third Communist International. It aimed at
bringing about Communist revolutions and establishing governments of the working class
worldwide.
 The First International, founded by Marx, existed from 1864 to 1872.
 The Second International existed from 1889 to 1914, up to the war.
 The Third International (Communist International or Comintern)existed from 1919 to 1943.

Formation of Communist Party of India and its early history

• M.N. Roy (Manabendra Nath Roy) formed the Communist Party of India outside India in Tashkent
in 1920 under the auspices of Communist International.

M.N. Roy (Manabendra Nath Roy)

• The original name of Manabendra Nath Roy was Narendranath Bhattacharya. During the First World
War he was engaged in bringing about an armed revolt in India with the help of German arms
(Zimmerman Plan).
• While pursuing the goal, as a revolutionary, Narendranath travelled through many countries. In the
U.S.A., he changed his name to Manabendra Nath Roy.
• In Mexico, Roy came in contact with the Russian Communist emissary, Michael Borodin. Roy became
friends with Borodin, converted to communism, and helped Borodin organise the Communist Party of
Mexico. From Mexico, he went to Moscow at the call of Lenin, the Russian Communist leader.

M.N. Roy-Lenin Debate

• At Moscow, Roy attended the Second Congress of the Communist International, held from July to
August 1920. At the congress:
❖ Lenin held that in colonial countries, the communists should actively support the revolutionary
movements of the bourgeois (middle classes, i.e., propertied classes and intelligentsia) nationalists
against the foreign imperialistic governments.
❖ Roy held that the bourgeois nationalists were reactionaries (opposed to progress) and that the
Communists should carry on their struggle against imperialism independently by forming parties
of workers and peasants.
• As a result of Roy's insistence, the Second Congress of the Communist International decided that
while extending support to the "revolutionary national bourgeoisie" in the struggle against
imperialism, the Communists would carry on their struggle independently by means of an alliance
between workers and peasants.

M.N. Roy at Tashkent

• In October 1920, M.N. Roy came to Tashkent and established:
1. Communist Party of India
2. A military school to train the Indian frontier tribes for armed revolt against the British
Government.
• M.N. Roy successfully recruited young ex-Muhajirs such as Mohammad Shafiq, Mohammad Ali and
others into the fold of the communist party.

Muhajirs
• Muhajirs were Muslim religious exiles from India who crossed over in batches between 1915 and 1920
to Kabul to resist and escape wartime and post-world war British rule in India.
• They were unhappy with the British Government's unfriendly attitude towards the Sultan of Turkey,
who was the Caliph or the religious head of the Muslims. They were initially pan-Islamists but later
abandoned this position, and many joined the communist party of India in Tashkent.
• Muhajirs took lessons at the newly established military school in Tashkent. When this school closed in
May 1921, the Muhajirs went to the Communist University of the Toilers of the East in Moscow. There,
they received training in the ideas of Marx and Lenin.

Peshawar Conspiracy Case (1922-23)

• After training in Moscow, the Muhajirs wanted to return to India and uproot colonial rule. On their
return, they were caught by the police and brought for trial to Peshawar. This trial is known as the
Peshawar Conspiracy Case (1922-23).
• Among the seven convicted in the Peshawar Bolshevik Conspiracy Case of 1922-23, some remained
with the communist movement, partially or wholly, during the 1920s or even later.

Early Communist Groups in India and Abroad

• In the 1920s, some Communist groups emerged inside and outside India.
• Outside India: Revolutionaries like Virendranath Chattopadhyay and Bhupendranath Dutt, who were
working outside India, converted to Marxism.
• Inside India: After the suspension of the Non-Cooperation Movement by Mahatma Gandhi, some
Non-cooperators turned to Communism.
1. In Bombay, a Communist group was organised by Shripad Amrit Dange.

Shripad Amrit Dange

• Dange joined the Non-Cooperation Movement but converted to communism after its suspension.
• In 1921, Dange published a book entitled Gandhi vs. Lenin, in which he showed his preference for
socialism.
• In 1922, Dange started editing the first socialist weekly, The Socialist.
 2. In May 1923, in Madras, Singaravelu Chettier, an old lawyer, announced the formation of the
Labour Kisan Party.
3. In 1925-26, in Bengal, Muzaffar Ahmad formed the Labour Swaraj Party (which was soon renamed
the Peasants' and Workers' Party) with the help of Kazi Nazrul Islam.

Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case (1924)

• In 1924, the British Government started a conspiracy case against the four leading Communists -
Muzaffar Ahmad, S.A. Dange, Shaukat Usmani and Nalini Gupta.
• The Government alleged that these Communists had established "a branch of a revolutionary
organisation known as Communist International" with the object of depriving the British King-
Emperor of the Sovereignty of British India. This case is known as the Cawnpore Conspiracy Case,
as the trial of the accused took place in Cawnpore (Kanpur).
• During the trial, Dange claimed the right to preach socialism in India, as it had been allowed in other
parts of the British Empire and Great Britain.
• As a result of this trial, Dange, Ahmad, Usmani and Gupta were sentenced to four years' rigorous
imprisonment in May 1924.

[Prelims Practice] Who among the following were jailed in the Kanpur Bolshevik
conspiracy case in 1924?
a) Muzaffar Ahmad, S. A. Dange, Shaukat Usmani, Nalini Gupta
b) Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Usmani
c) S. A. Dange and S. V. Ghate
d) Muzaffar Ahmad and S. S. Mirajkar
Answer: Option A

Formation of the Indian Communist Party (1925)

• The Communist Party of India, formed in Tashkent, did not function properly. It laid the foundation
but did not survive because when some of its members came back to India, they were arrested and put
in prison.
• In the early 1920s, the government banned all communist activity, making it difficult to form an all-
India organisation.
• In December 1925, Satyabhakta organised an all-India Conference of the Communists at Cawnpore
(Kanpur). Several Communists, including Nalini Gupta and Muzaffar Ahmad, who had been released
from jail, attended the conference, which was presided over by Singaravelu Chettier.
• Many communist groups came together at the conference, leading to the foundation of the
Communist Party of India. At this meeting, the party's Central Committee was constituted, with S.V.
Ghate and J.P. Bergarhatta as the Joint Secretaries.
• The Communist Party of India (CPI) urged all its members to join the Congress and form a strong
left wing in all its organs. It also encouraged its members to collaborate with other radical nationalists
and work to transform the Congress into a more radical mass-based organisation.

Formation of Workers' and Peasants' Parties (WPPs)

• In the early 1920s, the government banned all communist activity. As a result, in many parts,
communists organised peasants' and workers' parties to operate through them.
• Bengal: The “Labour-Swaraj Party of the Indian National Congress” was founded in Calcutta on 1
November 1925 by Muzaffar Ahmad, Hemanta Kumar Sarkar, Kazi Nazrul Islam and a few others. In
early 1926, it was renamed the Peasants' and Workers' Party.
• Bombay: In November 1926, a "Congress Labour Party" emerged from within the Congress in
Bombay province. It changed its name to the Workers' and Peasants' Party (WPP) in February 1927.
• Punjab: The Kirti Kisan Party (KKP) was founded on 12 April 1928 at Jalianwala Bagh in Amritsar,
Punjab, to mobilize the peasants and labourers of the region. Members of Naujawan Bharat Sabha,
like Sohan Singh Josh and Bagh Singh, played an important role in KKP.
• U. P.: The Workers' and Peasants' Party (WPP) of UP was founded at a conference held in Meerut in mid-
October 1929. The conference was presided over by Kedarnath Sehgal and attended by communist
leaders from other provinces, such as SS Josh, Philip Spratt, and Muzaffar Ahmad. PC Joshi, who later
became the General Secretary of the CPI, was elected the secretary of the WPP.
• These parties attempted to propagate their ideology and programme through the use of press:
1. The Labour Swaraj Party started its weekly organ Langal (Plough). Langal stopped publication after
15 April 1926. On 12 August 1926 it was substituted by Ganavani.
2. The Bombay WPP started a Maratha weekly entitled Kranti (Revolution).
3. The Punjab WPP started an Urdu weekly called Mehanatkash (Toiler or Worker).
4. The WPP of UP published the Hindi weekly Krantikari (Revolutionary).
5. In Madras, M. Singaravelu started Labour-kisan gazette.

[Prelims Practice] Which of the following was/were connected primarily to the communist
ideology?
1. Kirti Kisan Party
2. Labour Swaraj Party
Codes:
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
 Answer: Option C

All India WPP conference

• In December 1928, an all-India Conference of workers' and peasants' parties was held at Calcutta
under the presidentship of Sohan Singh Josh. Here, three major decisions were taken:
1. This Conference formed a National Executive Committee comprising leading Communists.
2. The Conference emphasised the international character of the Communist movement and the need
for the Communist Party of India to be affiliated with international organisations like the
League against Imperialism and the Communist International.
3. This Conference asked the Communists to carry on their movement independently instead of
identifying themselves with "the so-called bourgeois leadership of the Congress".

WPPs and Communists

• The communists played an important role in the Workers' and Peasants' Parties (WPPs), but the WPPs'
leadership did not entirely consist of communists.
• WPPs were born out of the general radicalisation of INC and were not a front for a hidden and secret
CPI. They formed the left wing of the Congress and used the Congress platform for their organisational
and propaganda work.

Dual Task of WPPs

• The WPPs at this time were performing a dual task:
1. By participating in the organisational framework of the Congress, they were radicalising Congress
ideology and programme, orientating it towards the masses
2. They organised the workers into trade unions, influencing the All India Trade Union Congress
(AITUC).
• The WPPs played an important role in creating a strong left-wing within Congress and giving the
Indian national movement a leftward direction.
• Until 1927, the AITUC remained under the influence of trade unionists with liberal views who opposed
workers' participation in the national movement. However, by 1927, the influence of WPP began to be
felt in the AITUC as well.

Nationalism and Socialism

• The WPPs played an important role in organising anti-Simon demonstrations. For the first time, the
youth and the working class participated in the national movement in a big way.
• In 1929, Jawaharlal Nehru was elected president of the Congress as well as the AITUC. This was
symbolic of the emerging alliance between nationalism and socialism.

Communist Influence on Trade Union

• Trade unionism rapidly grew under the leadership of the All-India Trade Union Congress (AITUC). The
Communists increased their influence over the Trade Union Organizations by leading the workers'
strikes.
• Till 1927, the left-wing influence among the working class was marginal, but by the end of 1928, the
leftists were able to dominate several trade unions all over the country, particularly in Bombay.
❖ The Communists played a prominent role in the Railway Workshop workers' strikes of February
and September 1927 at Kharagpur.
❖ From April to October 1928, the textile workers of Bombay carried on massive strikes, protesting
against the wage cuts. As a result of this strike, the communists formed their own organisation, the
Girni Kamgar Union (GKU), in May 1928. It played the most prominent role in the strike.
• By the end of 1928, the communists had penetrated almost all the labour unions. Their influence
spread to municipal workers, transport and rock workers, and the GIP Railway union.
• In Bengal, the communists or their sympathisers organised jute workers, seamen, fishermen,
municipal workers, scavengers, Railway workers, and iron and steel workers.

Government's Measures to Curb Communist Influence

• By 1929, the government was concerned about the increasing communist influence in the national
and trade union movements. It decided to curb its activities and introduced the Public Safety and the
Trade Disputes Bills.

Trade Disputes Act

• Trade Disputes Act was passed on 11 April 1929. This Act introduced tribunals for settling workers'
problems and practically banned strikes that "coerced" the Government or caused hardship to the
people.

Public Safety Bill

• The British Government introduced the Public Safety Bill of 1929, which aimed at curbing the
communist movement in India. The bill:
❖ Allowed the government to deport “undesirable and subversive foreigners.”
❖ Gave the government sweeping powers, including the power to detain individuals considered a
threat to public safety without trial for up to two years.

Central Legislative Assembly Bombing (April 8, 1929)

• The British Government introduced the Public Safety Bill of 1929 to curb the communist
movement in India. Vithalbhai Patel, president of the Legislative Assembly, said that any
discussion on the bill in the assembly could prejudice the Meerut trial. Vithalbhai’s opposition to
the bill was known, and the British government expected an adversarial ruling.
 • On 8th April 1929, just as Vithalbhai rose to give his final ruling on the subject, two bombs were
dropped from the visitor’s gallery by Bhagat Singh and B.K. Dutt to protest against the passage of
the Public Safety Bill and the Trade Disputes Bill.

Ordinance (13 April 1929)

• In 1828, the Assembly rejected the Public Safety Bill. A year later, in 1929, the majority of members
opposed the bill again. Consequently, the Viceroy on 13 April 1929, announced the Public Safety
Ordinance to deport subversive elements.

[UPSC CSE 2017] The Trade Disputes Act of 1929 provided for
a) The participation of workers in the management of industries.
b) Arbitrary powers to the management to quell industrial disputes.
c) An intervention by the British Court in the event of a trade dispute.
d) A system of tribunals and a ban on strikes.
Answer: Option D

Meerut Conspiracy Case

• The most severe anti-Communist measure taken by the Government was the arrest of 32
Communists, including three British Philip Spratt, B.F. Bradley and Lester Hutchinson in March 1929.
• They were tried at Meerut on the charge that, under the direction of the Communist International,
they wanted to deprive the British Monarch of his sovereignty over British India by means of general
strikes and armed uprisings. The government alleged that to achieve this objective, the Communists
had formed Workers' and Peasants' Parties in places like Meerut.
• The trial of the Communists lasted for four years, and the Sessions Court in Meerut awarded stringent
sentences to the accused in January 1933.
• Eventually, after an appeal from the Special Sessions Court, the Allahabad High Court acquitted some
of the accused and significantly reduced the sentences of the others.
• The Meerut Conspiracy case against the Communists was universally criticised in India. Mahatma
Gandhi described it as an instance of the "reign of lawlessness under the guise of law" and intended
not to kill communism but to strike terror.
• Instead of being a setback for the Communist Movement, the case made heroes and martyrs out of
the Communists. The speeches made by the communists before the court were propagated by
nationalist newspapers, which familiarised lakhs of people with communist ideas for the first time
and raised the dignity of the Communist Movement.

Isolation of the Communists from the National Movement

• The Sixth Congress of the Comintern in 1928 asked the Communist Parties to adopt an
uncompromising attitude towards the other left currents because they were not genuinely
revolutionary. This reflected the Comintern's growing sectarian trend towards the left currents
throughout the world.
• In India, communists started opposing the INC, especially its left wing, led by Nehru and Bose. The
communists declared INC to be a class property of the bourgeoisie.
• The Third International also asked the Indian communists to dissolve the WPPs as they were a serious
hindrance in forming the centralised communist party. When communists deserted, the WPP fell apart.
• The sudden shift in the Communists' political position, the Meerut conspiracy case, and the split in
the Communists resulted in their isolation from the national movement at the very moment when it
was gearing up for its greatest mass struggle and conditions were ripe for massive growth in the Left's
influence over it.
• The government took advantage of this and banned the Communist Party of India on 23 July 1934.
 In 1934, the Communist Party of India renewed its militant trade union activities. Strikes were
held at Sholapur, Nagpur, and Bombay.
 After the government banned the Party in 1934, many Communists continued their activities within
the Indian National Congress and the newly formed Congress Socialist Party. The Communist
Party continued to function underground.

Communist Party after 1935

• The Communist Party underwent a radical change in 1935 due to the following two events.
1. Reorganisation: In 1935, the Communist Party was reorganised under the leadership of P.C. Joshi.
2. U-turn of Third International: In 1935, the Seventh Congress of the Communist International
initiated the policy of a united front on a world scale. It changed its earlier position and
advocated the formation of a united front with bourgeois-led nationalist movements in colonial
countries.
• The Communist Party called upon its members and supporters to join and influence the Congress.
Communists worked actively within the Congress, occupying official positions in district and provincial
committees and the All-India Congress Committee.
• In 1938, the Communist Party acknowledged that the Congress was the central political organisation
of the Indian people against imperialism.
• From 1936 to 1942, Communists successfully established strong peasant movements in Kerala,
Andhra, Bengal, and Punjab and recovered their popular image as the most militant anti-imperialists.

Dutt-Bradley Thesis
• In early 1936, R P Dutt and Ben Bradley explained the reasons for changing communist politics in
India by a document entitled 'Anti-Imperialist People's Front in India' known as the Dutt-Bradley
thesis.
• According to the Dutt-Bradley thesis, Congress was already the united front of the Indian people in
the national struggle, and it could play a great and foremost part in realising the Anti-Imperialist
People's Front.

[Prelims Practice] What was the Dutt-Bradley thesis?

1. The Working Committee of the Indian National Congress decided that Congress should play a
crucial role in realising the independence of India.
2. The Socialist Party decided to play a foremost part in the anti-imperialist struggle.
3. Revolutionary socialist Batukeshwar Dutt put forth a ten-point plan to work. for the success of the
anti-imperialist front
4. It was a Communist party document, according to which the National Congress could play a great
part and a foremost part in realising the anti-imperialist people's front.
Answer: Option D

Formation of Congress Socialist Party

• In the 1920s and 1930s, within the Congress, a considerable section was drawn towards the Socialist
or Communist ideology and sought to work out a Socialist programme through the Congress.
• This section included leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhas Chandra Bose, Jaya Prakash Narayan,
Acharya Narendra Dev, Achyut Patwardhan, and Ram Manohar Lohia.

The Early Socialists

• In 1934, after the suspension of the Civil Disobedience Movement, a section of Congressmen decided
to enter into the legislature to work for the Congress cause within the government. Mahatma Gandhi
endorsed the line of action adopted by these Congressmen who were known as the Constitutionalists.
• At this stage, some socialists wanted to form a socialist party within the Congress organisation to
prevent the erosion of the Congress's revolutionary character by entering the legislatures.
• The Socialists within the Congress believed in Marxist ideas like the Communists. But there were two
basic differences between the Congress Socialists and the Communists:
1. While the Congress Socialists owed their allegiance to the INC, the Communists owed their
allegiance to the Communist International.
2. The Congress Socialists were nationalists, and the Communists also believed in the goal of an
international Communist society.
• The Congress Socialists belonged to the westernised middle class. They were influenced by the ideas
of Marx, Gandhi and the Social Democracy of the West. They simultaneously practised Marxian
Socialism, Congress nationalism and the liberal democracy of the West.

Towards an All India Congress Socialist Party

• In 1934, Acharya Narendra Dev, Jayaprakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia, and others formed the
Congress Socialist Party (CSP) within the Congress.
• Acharya Narendra Dev was appointed as the founding President of the Congress Socialist Party, while
Jayaprakash Narayan served as the general secretary.
 Separation from Congress: In 1948, the Congress amended its constitution to prevent its members
from having dual party membership. This forced the Socialists to form a separate Socialist Party.

Background
• In the early 1930s, Socialist groups had been formed by the leftist Congressmen in provinces like
Bihar, U.P., Bombay and Punjab.
❖ On the initiative of Jayaprakash Narayan in July 1931, the Bihar Socialist Party was formed.
❖ In Orissa, Utkal Congress Socialist Karmi Sangh was formed in February 1933 with Nabakrushna
Choudhury as secretary.
❖ Socialists like Yusuf Meherally, Minoo Masani, Achyut Patwardhan and Smt. Kamala Devi
Chattopadhyay formed the first Congress Socialist group in Bombay in December 1933.
❖ In May 1934, the UP Socialist Party was formed under the leadership of Sampurnanand.
❖ The Kerala Congress Socialist Party was organised under the initiatives of influential Congress
leaders like P. Krishna Pillai and E.M.S. Namboothirippad.
• In May 1934, Jayaprakash Narayan, on behalf of the Bihar Socialist Party, convened the first All-
India Congress Socialists' Conference at Patna. Acharya Narendra Dev presided over the conference.
In his presidential speech, Narendra Dev criticised the new Swarajist section of Congressmen who
wanted to enter the legislatures and run counter to the Congress's revolutionary character.
• The Patna meeting called for a socialist conference. At this conference, held in Bombay from October
22 to 23, 1934, they formed a new All-India party, the Congress Socialist Party.
 Jayaprakash Narayan published a book, "Why Socialism?" in which he stressed the relevance of
socialism for India.
• All Congress socialists agreed on four fundamental ideas from the very beginning:
1. The primary struggle in India was for national freedom, and nationalism was an essential stage in
the journey towards socialism.
2. Socialists must work within the INC because it was the chief organisation leading the national
struggle.
 3. Socialists must provide the Congress and the national movement with a socialist direction.
4. Socialists must organise workers and peasants for their economic uplift and to lead the
movement to achieve independence and socialism.
• The Socialists put forward the programme of the abolition of zamindari, state ownership of land,
nationalisation of industries and banks, redistribution of land among peasants, and fixation of minimum
wages for the working masses.

[Prelims Practice] Consider the following statements :

1. The growth of socialist tendency in the national movement led to the foundation of the Congress
Socialist Party in 1934 under the leadership of Acharya Narendra Deva and Jayaprakash Narayan.
2. In 1936, Jawaharlal Nehru urged the Congress to accept socialism as its goal and to bring itself
closer to the peasantry and the working class.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: Option C

[Prelims Practice] Which one of the following pairs of organizations and their founders is
NOT correctly matched?
a) National Liberation Federation: Tej Bahadur Sapru and M. R. Jayakar
b) Jamiat-ul Ulama-i Hind: Maulana Mahmudal Hasan Shaikh-ul-Hind
c) Congress Democratic Party: B. G. Tilak
d) Congress Socialist Party: M. N. Roy
Answer: Option D

Ideological currents within CSP

• After the Seventh Congress of the Communist International in 1935, the Communists joined CSP as
part of the policy of a united front of the Comintern. In some states, like Kerala and Orissa, communists
dominated CSP. Communists dominated the entire Congress in Kerala through its hold of CSP at one
point.
• Later, the Anushilan Marxists and some members of the Hindustan Socialist Republican
Association, including Jogesh Chandra Chatterji, joined the CSP.
• As a result, CSP was not a homogeneous entity. There was the Marxist trend led by J.P. Narayan and
Narendra Deva, the Fabian socialist trend led by Minoo Masani and Asoka Mehta and a Gandhian
socialist trend led by Ram Manohar Lohia and Achyut Patwardan.
Developing Alternate Leadership
• From the beginning, all the left groups within the Congress worked together:
❖ To influence the decisions of the Congress
❖ To displace the existing leadership (Gandhiji's leadership)
• From 1936 onwards, all the left groups within Congress acted unitedly against the right wing of the
Congress. In the 1939 presidential election, they all came together in their struggle to replace the
Gandhian leadership.
• Bose accused the right-wing leaders of not being genuinely Interested in the struggle against
imperialism. He accused them of planning to compromise with the colonial government.
• After Bose's election victory, Mahatma Gandhi referred to Pattabhi Sitaramayya's loss more as his
own defeat than Pattabhi's.
• At this stage, the left leadership, particularly the CSP, realised that an effort to establish alternative
leadership would weaken the national movement and isolate the Left from the mainstream. They
also realised that Indian people could be mobilised into a movement only under Gandhiji's
leadership. Now, the communists and socialists began to dissociate themselves from Bose and
abandon its policy of developing alternate leadership.

Question of Gandhi's leadership

• The question of Gandhi's leadership was the fundamental difference between Nehru and the rest of
the left groupings (Roy, Bose, Socialists and Communists).
• Unlike them, Nehru believed that the struggle for India's independence could be successful only
under Gandhi's leadership. Instead of perceiving Gandhi as an obstacle, he considered him pro-poor
and pro-peasant.
• Nehru disagreed with Gandhi on many issues but firmly believed that Gandhi was the only possible
leader for India's millions, especially the peasantry, as nobody understood them better than Gandhi.

Impact of Congress Socialist Party (Left-wing)

• The CSP opened its doors to Communists in 1935. it allowed communists to engage in political work
legally.
• In 1936, Nehru inducted three Congress Socialists - Narendra Dev, Jaya Prakash Narayan and Achyut
Patwardhan into the Congress Working Committee.
• The Faizpur session of the INC held towards the end of 1936 under Jawaharlal Nehru's presidency,
adopted an agrarian programme containing such items as revenue reduction, abolition of feudal dues
and levies, the introduction of cooperative farming, a living wage for agrarian labourers, and
formation of peasant unions.
• The Congress Socialists played an important role in the Kisan (peasant) movement. Through the efforts
of Prof. N.G. Ranga, Indulal Yagnik, and Swami Sahajanand Saraswati, the All-India Kisan Sabha
was organised. The first All-India Kisan Congress met at Lucknow in 1936.
• The Congress Socialists changed the Congress Party's policy from aloofness to closer involvement in
the affairs of princely states. The Congress socialist activists actively participated in the democratic
movements of people in the princely states, fighting against their autocratic rulers.
• The following events reflected the growth of the left-wing and its impact on the national movement:
❖ The resolution on Fundamental Rights and Economic Policy passed by the Karachi session of
the Congress on the urging of Jawaharlal Nehru.
❖ Election Manifesto of Congress in 1936
❖ Setting up the National Planning Committee under the Chairmanship of Jawaharlal Nehru in
1938
❖ The foundation of the All-India Students' Federation in 1936
❖ Establishment of the left-leaning Progressive Writers' Association in 1936
❖ Election of Jawaharlal Nehru as president for 1929, 1936 and 1937 and of Subhas Chandra Bose
for 1938 and 1939.
❖ In 1939, Subhas Bose, a left-wing candidate, defeated Pattabhi Sitaramayya (supported by
Gandhiji) in the presidential election.

[Prelims Practice] Who among the following was NOT a Communist leader in colonial
India?
a) P.C. Roy
b) S. A. Dange
c) Muzaffar Ahmad
d) Singaravelu
Answer: Option A

Second World War and the Left Response

• When the Second World War broke out in September 1939, the Government of India immediately
joined it without consulting the Congress or the elected members of the central legislature.
• The Congress Working Committee (CWC) adopted a resolution which categorically declared that India
could not associate herself with a war which claimed to be anti-fascist and for the defence of
democracy when the same democratic freedom was denied to her.
• At the Ramgarh session of the Congress in March 1940, the Congress adopted a resolution pledging
support for the allies in return for national independence. The Congress Socialists supported the
Congress leadership.
Opposition to the War
• On the occasion of the 1940 Ramgarh Congress Conference, CPI released a declaration called
Proletarian Path. This declaration sought to utilise the weakened state of the British Empire in times of
war and called for a general strike, no-tax, no-rent policies, and mobilisation for an armed revolution
uprising.
• By following this policy, the communists separated themselves from the national movement. The
government decided to attack the communists. Until February 1941, about 480 leading communist
activists were arrested in various parts of the country, and the party was completely paralysed.

Support to the War

• In June 1941, Hitler attacked the Soviet Union, and the communists were divided over their response
to the war.
1. One faction, which was outside the jail and led by P.C. Joshi, believed that the earlier policy of
mass opposition to imperialism should continue and be further strengthened.
2. The other faction, comprising the majority of CPI members who were in jail, argued that the
communist policy should prioritise Russia's victory, even if it meant abandoning India's goal of
freedom. They believed that the "imperialist war" had transformed into a "People's War" with the
new circumstances.
• The latter policy eventually became the policy of the CPI, although some individual communists
disagreed with it. As a result, the communists began supporting the colonial government's war
efforts.
• In 1942, P.C. Joshi, the General Secretary of the Communist Party, met the Governor and other
authorities and requested they release the detained Communist leaders. Consequently, a large section
of the communists were released from various jails, and the CPI became a legal party.
• The Communist Party of India did not support the quit-India movement due to its "people's war"
line.