Seva Dal

Last updated

Congress Seva Dal
Founded28 December 1923;100 years ago (28 December 1923) [1]
Founder Dr. Narayan Subbarao Hardikar
Type Center politics, Peaceful Militia
Location
Area served
India
MethodIdeological process based on Gandhian thoughts
Key people
Sh. Lalji Desai (Chief Organiser)
Website Official Website
Formerly called
Hindustani Seva Dal

The Seva Dal is an organization of the Indian National Congress. [2] The organization has a chapter in all the states of India. The members of the organization are known for wearing the Gandhi topi.[ citation needed ] It is headed by a Chief Organiser Shri Lalji Desai [3]

Nehru in uniform with Seva Dal Volunteers in Allahabad Seva Dal.jpg
Nehru in uniform with Seva Dal Volunteers in Allahabad

History

In 1923, following the Flag Satyagraha at Nagpur, many activists of the Congress were arrested and sentenced to prison. Unable to tolerate the conditions of the prison, most of them tendered written apologies to the colonial authorities. However, members of the Hubli Seva Mandal, founded by N. S. Hardikar did not submit apologies. This position gained the attention of the Congress' national leadership that had gathered in Nagpur to participate in the satyagraha. It was here that the idea of establishing an organisation of volunteers to combat the Raj was formed. At the Kakinada session of the Congress in 1923, a board under Dr. N. S. Hardikar was constituted for establishing the Seva Dal. [ citation needed ]

The Seva Dal was established as the Hindustani Seva Mandal on 1 January 1924. According to the resolution at Kakinada, the Seva Dal was to work under the supervision of the Congress party's working committee. Jawaharlal Nehru was its first president. [4] The Dal faced initial opposition from Congressmen, who were opposed to the idea of creating a militia-like organisation in the Congress, seeing it as a threat to the idea of civilian dominance and as being inconsistent with the idea of non-violence. [5] Umabai Kundapur was the founding president of the women's wing of the Seva Dal. [6] Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay was closely associated with the organisation, especially in the 1930s. [7]

In 1931, the Congress Working Committee decided to rename the Hindustani Seva Dal as the Congress Seva Dal, making it the central volunteer organisation of the Congress. Every province was to have a general officer commanding the provincial Seva Dal. The organisation also focused specifically on three categories of people: children, adolescents and adults. All Seva Dal members were required to take an oath, which, among other things, required them to stay aloof from political activity in the Congress. [8] RSS founder Dr. K.B. Hedgewar was also associated with the Congress Seva Dal's predecessor - Hindustani Seva Dal. [9]

Colonial Government of India banned Seva Dal in 1932 for setting up a women's army. The ban was never lifted. [10]

The task of imparting training and organising volunteers was given to the Seva Dal in 1938, which was then headquartered in the Karnatak district of the Bombay presidency. Under Hardikar, an academy for physical training was established and training camps established at several places across India. During the Civil Disobedience Movement, the Seva Dal played an stellar role in enrolling new members in the Congress, organising activities like picketing and in arming the party with an organised but peaceful militia. [11] Following the Civil Disobedience Movement, the colonial authorities lifted the ban on the Congress and its organisations. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh</span> Hindu nationalist organisation in India

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is an Indian right-wing, Hindu nationalist volunteer paramilitary organisation. It is the progenitor and leader of a large body of organisations called the Sangh Parivar, which has developed a presence in all facets of Indian society and includes the Bharatiya Janata Party, the ruling political party under Narendra Modi, the 14th prime minister of India. Mohan Bhagwat has served as the Sarsanghchalak of the RSS since March 2009.

The Sangh Parivar refers, as an umbrella term, to the collection of Hindutva organisations spawned by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which remain affiliated to it. These include the political party Bharatiya Janata Party, religious organisation Vishva Hindu Parishad, students union Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), religious militant organisation Bajrang Dal that forms the youth wing of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), and the worker's union Bharatiya Kisan Sangh. It is also often taken to include allied organisations such as the Shiv Sena, which share the ideology of the RSS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">K. B. Hedgewar</span> Indian physician and founder of the RSS (1889–1940)

Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, also known by his moniker Doctorji, was an Indian physician and the founder of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Hedgewar founded the RSS in Nagpur in 1925, based on the ideology of Hindutva with the intention of creating a Hindu Rashtra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M. S. Golwalkar</span> 2nd head of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (1906–1973)

Madhav Sadashivrao Golwalkar, popularly known as Guruji, was the second Sarsanghchalak ("Chief") of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Golwalkar is considered one of the most influential and prominent figures among Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh by his followers.

<i>Organiser</i> (magazine) Hindutva Magazine

Organiser is a mouthpiece of the Hindutva voluntary organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). It was launched as a newspaper in 1947 in the weeks before the Partition of India. The newspaper has been edited by A. R. Nair, K. R. Malkani, L. K. Advani, V. P. Bhatia, Seshadri Chari and Dr R. Balashanker. It has promoted misinformation on many occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Champaran Satyagraha</span> First civil resistance movement led by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in India in our Assam 1917

The Champaran Satyagraha of 1917 was the first satyagraha movement led by Mahatma Gandhi in British India and is considered a historically important rebellion in the Indian independence movement. It was a farmer's uprising that took place in Champaran district of Bihar in the Indian subcontinent, during the British colonial period. The farmers were protesting against having to grow indigo with barely any payment for it.

In India, Flag Satyagraha is a campaign of peaceful civil disobedience during the Indian independence movement that focused on exercising the right and freedom to hoist the nationalist flag and challenge the legitimacy of the British Rule in India through the defiance of laws prohibiting the hoisting of nationalist flags and restricting civil freedoms. Flag Satyagrahas were conducted most notably in the city of Jabalpur and Nagpur in 1923 but also in many other parts of India.

Manikya Lal Verma was a member of Constituent Assembly of India in 1949. He was prime minister of Rajasthan, India before full formation of the state. He was elected to Lok Sabha in 1957 from Chittorgarh and in 1952 from Tonk. He was recipient of Padma Bhushan in 1965.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quit India speech</span> 1942 Indian-independence speech by Mahatma Gandhi

The Quit India speech was given by Mahatma Gandhi on the eve of the Quit India movement, August 8, 1942. His address was issued shortly before midnight at the Gowalia Tank Maidan park in Bombay, which has since been renamed August Kranti Maidan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madhukar Dattatraya Deoras</span> Leader of the Indian RSS (1915–1996)

Madhukar Dattatraya Deoras, was the third Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

The Goa liberation movement was a movement which fought to end Portuguese colonial rule in Goa, Portuguese India. The movement built on the small scale revolts and uprisings of the 19th century, and grew powerful during the period 1940–1961. The movement was conducted both inside and outside Goa, and was characterised by a range of tactics including nonviolent demonstrations, revolutionary methods and diplomatic efforts. However, Portuguese control of its Indian colonies ended only when India invaded and annexed Goa in 1961, causing a mixture of worldwide acclaim and condemnation, and incorporated the territories into India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eknath Ranade</span> Leader of the Indian RSS (1914–1982)

Eknath Ramakrishna Ranade was a social activist and right-wing leader. He joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) when in school, and was its general secretary from 1956 to 1962.

Hindu nationalism has been collectively referred to as the expression of social and political thought, based on the native spiritual and cultural traditions of the Indian subcontinent. "Hindu nationalism" is a simplistic translation of हिन्दू राष्ट्रवाद. It is better described as "Hindu polity".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">N. S. Hardikar</span> Indian politician (1889 – 1975)

Narayan Subbarao Hardikar was a freedom fighter and Congress politician who founded the Congress Seva Dal.

Laxman Vasudev Paranjape, was a member of the Hindu nationalist organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), along with its first Sarsanghchalak Keshav Baliram Hedgewar. Paranjape also served as the Acting Sarsanghchalak (1930–1931) when Hedgewar went to jail during the Forest Satyagraha.

Umakant Keshav Apte, also known as Babasaheb Apte, was one of the first pracharaks of the Hindu nationalist organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), taking initiation from its founder K. B. Hedgewar. Upon his death, the Babasaheb Apte Smarak Samiti was set up in his honour by RSS pracharak Moropant Pingle, which has been active in commissioning and publishing research on the history of ancient India.

Harihar Vaman Deshpande was born in Chandkapur (Amravati) Bombaby Presidency, India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duvvuri Subbamma</span> Indian independence activist

Duvvuri Subbamma was an Indian independence activist who played an important role in the Indian independence movement. She was one of the founders of the women's congress committee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hedgewar Smruti Mandir</span> Memorial in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India

Hedgewar Smruti Mandir (HSM) is a memorial in Reshimbagh, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India dedicated to K. B. Hedgewar and M. S. Golwalkar, who were the first two leaders of the Hindu nationalist organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). It was inaugurated in 1962. It was granted tourism status on the recommendation of the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) in 2017, but this decision is mired in controversy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Umabai Kundapur</span> Indian freedom fighter (1891–1992)

Umabai Kundapur (1891–1992) was an Indian freedom fighter from Karnataka. She was Founder of Bhagini Mandal, a group of freedom fighters, She was the head of the women's wing of the Hindustani Seva Dal founded by N. S. Hardikar.

References

  1. ↑ Sharda, Shailvee (3 July 2018). "Congress Sewa Dal undergoes overhaul to take on RSS for 2019 Lok Sabha". The Times of India. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  2. ↑ All India Congress Committee. "Frontal Organisations". Indian National Congress. Archived from the original on 27 September 2009. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
  3. ↑ "All India Congress Committee - AICC". 29 September 2009. Archived from the original on 29 September 2009. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  4. ↑ "87-yr-old Seva Dal to get a facelift". The Hindustan Times. 9 July 2010. Archived from the original on 13 June 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  5. ↑ Bharathi, K S (2008). Encyclopaedia of eminent thinkers, Volume 7. New Delhi: A K Mittal. pp. 60, 61. ISBN   9788170226840.
  6. ↑ Kamat, Jyotsna. "Biography of a Remarkable Woman (1892-1992)" . Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  7. ↑ Kumar, Radha (1997). The History of Doing: An Illustrated Account of Movements for Women's Rights and Feminism in India 1800-1990. New Delhi: Zubaan. p. 55. ISBN   9788185107769.
  8. 1 2 Pandey, Gyanendra (2002). The Ascendancy of the Congress in Uttar Pradesh: Class, Community and Nation in Northern India, 1920-1940. London: Anthem Press. p. 36.
  9. ↑ "RSS founder Hedgewar was with Congress, and other facts you didn't know". 25 March 2020.
  10. ↑ Choudhary, Valmiki (June 2003). Kamaladevi Chattopadhyaya: Portrait of a Rebel. Abhinav Publications. ISBN   9788170170334.
  11. ↑ "All India Congress Committee - AICC". 29 June 2009. Archived from the original on 29 June 2009. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.