Rajagopal P. V.

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Rajagopal P. V.
Rajagopal in Delhi Oct 2007.jpg
Rajagopal in October 2007
Born
Rajagopalan Puthan Veetil

1948 (age 77–78)
Thillenkery, Madras State, then part of the Dominion of India
(present-day Kerala, India)
EducationDiploma in Engineering
OccupationsActivist, president of Ekta Parishad
PartnerJill Carr-Harris

Rajagopal Puthan Veetil (born 1948) is an Indian Gandhian activist, former Vice Chairman of the Gandhi Peace Foundation in New Delhi, and a founding member of Ekta Parishad, a movement advocating for land and resource rights for landless communities. [1] [2] [3] Rajagopal was born in Kerala, India, into a family influenced by Gandhian values and traditions of community service. Through his exposure to local Gandhian institutions and ashrams during his childhood, he developed an early interest in nonviolence, rural development, and social justice.

Contents

His background in agricultural engineering led him to participate in community development initiatives across India. In the 1970s, Rajagopal worked in the Chambal region of central India, participating in nonviolent rehabilitation programs for former dacoits. In 1972, he joined an initiative with J.P. Narayan and Subba Rao to facilitate the surrender and rehabilitation of approximately 500 dacoits (bandits) in the region. [4] [5] These experiences in rural conflict zones and grassroots development shaped his long-term commitment to nonviolent activism and the rights of marginalized communities.[ citation needed ]

In 2012, he led a march of approximately 100,000 supporters to New Delhi to demand land and resource rights for the landless. The movement ended with the signing of an agreement with the Government of India. [5]

Rajagopal was awarded the Niwano Peace Prize in 2023 for his work. [6]

Early life

Biography

Rajagopal was born in 1948 in Thillenkery, Kerala, the fourth of five children. He attended Seva Mandir School and completed his education in agricultural engineering at Sevagram, Gandhi's ashram in Maharashtra, where he also learned English. [7]

In the early 1970s, he worked in the Chambal region of Madhya Pradesh for the rehabilitation of individuals involved in dacoity (banditry). [8] Since 2001, Rajagopal has been married to Canadian social activist Jill Carr-Harris. [9]

Activism

Under Rajagopal's leadership, Ekta Parishad grew to include 200,000 members across six states, consisting primarily of women.

Janadesh 2007

Rajagopal speaking to the crowd in Janadesh 2007 Rajagopal speaking to 25,000 people, Janadesh 2007, India.jpg
Rajagopal speaking to the crowd in Janadesh 2007

In 2007, Rajagopal led a 340-kilometer march, known as Janadesh (People's Verdict), from Gwalior to Delhi. This march, utilizing non-violent methods such as foot-marches (Padayatra) championed by Gandhi, called on the government to address land and forest rights. [10]

Jan Satyagraha 2012

The Jan Satyagraha 2012 march (Yatra) began in Gwalior on 2 October, with the aim of reaching Delhi by 28 October if no agreement was reached with the government. Approximately 35,000 participants joined the march. [11]

Rajagopal addressing in Jan Satyagraha 2012 Rajagopal, Gwalior, Jan Satyagraha.jpg
Rajagopal addressing in Jan Satyagraha 2012

Jan Andolan 2018

In October 2018, Rajagopal led a march of approximately 25,000 people from Gwalior to Morena, demanding land and tribal rights. The march was initially planned to extend from Haryana to New Delhi. [12] This demonstration took place during the 2018 Madhya Pradesh Legislative election and several months before the 2019 national elections. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan addressed the marchers in Gwalior before their departure, promising to establish a committee to address land rights issues. [13] However, according to Ekta Parishad, the marchers were not satisfied with these proposals and decided to proceed. [14] In Morena, leaders from the Indian National Congress, the main opposition party, addressed the marchers, promising to meet their demands if elected. [15] [16] Ekta Parishad expressed satisfaction with these commitments, deciding to halt the march in Morena instead of continuing to New Delhi as initially planned. [14]

Jai Jagat 2020

In 2015, Rajagopal and Ekta Parishad launched the Jai Jagat 2020 campaign as an international movement for justice and peace, aiming to involve civil society organizations and grassroots communities beyond India and Europe.

The 2019–2020 Jai Jagat Global Peace March from Delhi to Geneva expanded outreach to new international organizations and established initiatives in multiple countries.

The march was suspended in Armenia in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A few marches to Geneva at the end of September 2020 marked the last significant mobilization under the umbrella of Jai Jagat, outside India. Since then, local and regional groups have undertaken initiatives such as organizing marches or cartoon exhibitions.

Advocacy

impact and philosophy

Observers have described Rajagopal's leadership of Ekta Parishad, which includes the mobilization of tribal peoples, women, and youth, and its advocacy for land reform, as an alternative to violent movements like Naxalism in central rural India. [17] [18]

New land reforms, 2014 and conflicts

Criticism of Government Policies

In response to proposed amendments to the Land Acquisition Act by the Modi government, Rajagopal stated that Modi was pro-corporate and that these changes would further aggravate the disparities between the rich and the poor in the country. [19]

  1. It seeks to dilute provisions such as the mandatory consent of 70% of those affected in the case of public-private partnership (PPP) projects. [20]
  2. It removes the provision requiring a time-bound Social Impact Assessment for land acquisitions.

Selected works

Books

Articles

Audio-Visual

== Awards ==Awards and Recognition In 2014, Rajagopal received the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration, an award granted annually by the Indian National Congress party. [21] [22] [23]

YearAwardPresenter
2008Friend of the Poor awardOrissa Culture & Youth organization
K. Janardhanan Pillai Endowment awardGandhi Bhawan, Trivadrum, Kerala
2010Swaraj Millenium AwardSwadeshi, Kerala
2011Shri. Kumarapilla Velayudhan Master Award for achievements in the social fieldPurnodaya Trust in Trissur, Kerala
2012Krishi Gaurav AwardPatanjali Pratishthan, Uttarakhand
Gareeb Bandhu AwardOrissa Culture & Youth organization
Human Rights AwardHuman Rights Chapter of Geneva, Switzerland
2013Professor N.A. Karim Award for outstanding Public Service – 2012Vakkom Moulavi Foundation Trust, Trivandrum, Kerala
2014Anuvrat Ahimsa Award for International Peace for the year 2013Anuvrat Global (ANUVIBHA), New Delhi
2015Spirit of Assisi National AwardAssisi Shanti Kendra, Angamally, Kerala
Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration Indian National Congress
2016Honored Jeewan Rakshak Award for his life in service of humanityJeewan Rakshak Trust, Rajasthan
2017Krishi Yoddha AwardIndian Students Parliament
2023 Niwano Peace Prize Niwano Peace Foundation

References

  1. ↑ "Rajagopal PV, India – Jai Jagat International" . Retrieved 23 December 2025.
  2. ↑ Bablu, J. S. (20 November 2007). "Waging a battle for the landless". The Hindu . Archived from the original on 1 December 2007. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
  3. ↑ "Ekta Parishad: Discourse on Land and the Landless". ARCADE. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  4. ↑ "Rajagopal PV, India – Jai Jagat International" . Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  5. 1 2 Jagat, Jai. "Rajagopal PV, India – Jai Jagat International" . Retrieved 29 October 2023.
  6. ↑ "2023 Niwano Peace Prize awarded to Indian activist Rajagopal P.V. - Vatican News". Vatican News. 16 February 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
  7. ↑ "BACHELOR IN AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING (BSC) - Szechenyi Istvan University". Study in Hungary. 22 May 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  8. ↑ Subramaniam Vincent (December 2001). "Interview". India Together. Civil Society Information Exchange Pvt. Ltd. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
  9. ↑ "Rose | Le webzine du Féminin Sacré". rosewebzine.com (in French). Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  10. ↑ Bouver, Emeline (2013). Ekta Parishad, the landless people's movement in India, In A Planet for Life 2013. New Delhi : Teri Press. pp. 250–254.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  11. ↑ Awais, Muhammad (3 January 2023). "Rajagopal P V – Walk of Hope 2015-16 Flag off and Jan satyagraha 2012". Ghazi Empire. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  12. ↑ "Ahead of Jana Andolan movement, a documentary on padayatra for land reforms - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  13. ↑ Dutta, Anup (5 October 2018). "27,000-strong march heads for Delhi from Gwalior". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  14. 1 2 "CPR Land Rights on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  15. ↑ "BJP disempowering the tribals & farmers, says Rahul Gandhi at Morena rally" . Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  16. ↑ "BJP works for the interest of a few rich people, alleges Rahul Gandhi". The Hindu. PTI. 6 October 2018. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  17. ↑ Leader, The Weekend. "A long march that forced the government to look into land reforms". www.theweekendleader.com. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  18. ↑ "2023 Niwano Peace Prize awarded to Indian activist Rajagopal P.V. - Vatican News". www.vaticannews.va. 16 February 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  19. ↑ "Land Acquisition Act: Activists say Modi govt's proposals are pro-corporate". Firstpost. 16 July 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  20. ↑ "The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Second Amendment) Bill, 2015". PRS Legislative Research. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  21. ↑ Vinod Kumar (15 October 2015). ""Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration" to Shri. Rajagopal P.V. "Founder of Ekta Parishad"". Ektaparishad.com. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  22. ↑ "Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for p v rajagopal പി.വി. രാജഗോപാലിന് ഇന്ദിരാഗാന്ധി ദേശീയോദ്ഗ്രഥന പുരസ്‌കാരം". Mathrubhumi.com. Archived from the original on 7 August 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  23. ↑ "padayathra gandhi, p.v rajagopal പദയാത്രാഗാന്ധി". Mathrubhumi.com. Archived from the original on 7 August 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
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