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{{short description|Overview of liberalism in India}}
{{Liberalism sidebar}}
This article gives an overview of '''liberalism in [[India]]'''.

==History==
The strengthening of [[British Raj|British influence]] in [[Bengal]] with the [[Battle of Plassey]] in 1757 coincided with significant developments of thought in [[England]] ([[John Locke]], 1680s; [[Adam Smith]] in the late 1700s; and [[Edmund Burke]]) and in the [[United States]] ([[Thomas Jefferson]], [[John Adams]], and [[Alexander Hamilton]], among others).

=== 1603–1835: Introduction and development of English ===
The [[English language]] came to India in 1603 during the time of [[Akbar]], but there was then no pressing economic reason for [[Indian people]] to learn the language. It was only after the consolidation of Bengal by [[Robert Clive]], and the extension of the [[East India Company]] into the Indian political landscape, that the demand for learning English began to grow. By 1835, Indians were paying serious money to be taught English, as it allowed for job opportunities in the Company.

As [[Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay|Thomas Babington Macaulay]] noted in his famous Minute, "the natives" had become "desirous to be taught English" and were no longer "desirous to be taught {{Sic|[[Sanskrit|Sanscrit]]}} or [[Arabic language|Arabic]]." Further, those who wished to, seemed to picked up English very well: "it is unusual to find, even in the literary circles of the Continent, any foreigner who can express himself in English with so much facility and correctness as we find in many {{Sic|[[Hindus|Hindoos]]}}."<ref>Sharp, H. [1920] 1965. "[http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00generallinks/macaulay/txt_minute_education_1835.html Minute by the Hon'ble T. B. Macaulay, dated the 2nd February 1835]." Pp. 107–17 in ''Selections from Educational Records, Part I (1781-1839)''. Delhi: [[National Archives of India]]. – via [[Columbia University]]. Retrieved 23 June 2020.</ref>

Those who learnt English quickly became aware of its literature, including the rapid evolution of Western political thought. This greater awareness of the advances in freedom laid the seeds for the demand for self-rule.

=== Late 1800s–1947: Independence movement ===
While people like [[Ram Mohan Roy|Raja Ram Mohan Roy]] (1772–1833) began to articulate elements of these political arguments, no one was in a position to explore and articulate new insights. However, catching up to some key liberal ideas, such thought would begin to be implemented through new demands for greater freedom in India. While the West was firmly embedding its new political institutions, or contesting the growing forces of [[socialism]] (which had overpowered parts of the [[Feudalism|feudal]] and [[Aristocracy|aristocratic]] West), the Indian [[intelligentsia]] was grappling with the challenge of the first major task ahead of it: [[Indian independence movement|independence]].

In the Portuguese colony of [[Portuguese India|Goa]], [[Francisco Luís Gomes]] advocated freedom, self-rule, and political unity for India. His outstanding contributions towards the fields of liberal philosophy and economics led him to be widely hailed as "The Prince of Intellectuals" in Europe. In addition to Roy and Gomes, other contributors to political thought on freedom in 19th century India included [[Dadabhai Naoroji]] (1825–1917), [[Mahadeo Govind Ranade]] (1842–1901), [[Gopal Krishna Gokhale]] (1866–1915), and [[Pherozeshah Mehta]] (1845–1915). Theory thus led to an [[Indian independence movement|independence movement in India]].

[[Mahatma Gandhi]] demonstrated through a [[Satyagraha|humane, non-violent, and dignified protest]], that all humans were equal and should be treated equally, including their being given the opportunity to govern themselves. This was a major advance in the theory and practice of freedom, and can be argued to have had a major effect in ending the age of [[imperialism]] and of [[racial discrimination]].

[[Jawaharlal Nehru]], who was very well-educated and fully aware of the history of liberalism, seems to have had surprisingly little faith in an individual's ability to think and take responsibility for himself or herself. Nehru did not emphasize the importance of each individual undertaking self-reflection and choosing among ethical alternatives. Possibly, in his view, making these ethical choices was too difficult for the common man. He definitely believed that these choices were best directed through state level dictates laid down by governing elites. Through planning. In any event, he veered toward [[Collectivism|collectivist]] and socialist thinking where decision making power is concentrated in the State. [[Decentralization]], where power and freedom vests with people at the lowest levels, was [[anathema]] to Nehru. He stated in his Autobiography, "socialism is ... for me not merely an economic doctrine which I favour; it is a vital creed which I hold with all my head and heart." Indian [[Business magnate|industrialists]] (with their [[Bombay Plan]]) also sided with Nehru on a socialist pattern based on the [[Five-Year Plans for the National Economy of the Soviet Union|Soviet Five-Year Plan]] model.

Despite the environment in which socialist thought was flourishing, India was fortunate to enjoy at least a few liberties even before independence. The advances made in political institutions in England as a result of liberalism were imported and embedded into India over the decades by British rulers. Things like the [[Freedom of assembly|right of assembly]] and [[Right to protest|protest]] under reasonable circumstances, the [[right to property]], and [[Freedom of speech|freedom of expression]] – with a relatively [[Freedom of the press|free press]], became a part and parcel of Indian political landscape before independence.

=== 1949–1970s: Post-independence liberalism ===
[[File:C Rajagopalachari 1944.jpg|thumb|200px|right|C. Rajagopalachari, founder of Swatantra Party]]

The 1949 [[Constitution of India|Constitution]] gave to Indians some of the liberal rights that the [[British people|British]] and [[Americans]] had come to expect by then. In addition, [[India]] extended franchise to everyone: all adults had the right to vote in the [[republic]]. That was earlier than even most [[developed countries]] had provided to their [[citizens]] at that time. But on most political issues, India adopted Nehru’s [[socialist]] model, that included a significant dilution in property rights, among others. The [[Government of India|government]] entered businesses as its primary activity, to help it achieve the ‘commanding heights of the economy.’ Government factories sprung up quickly and began churning out shirts, watches, fridges, scooters, bicycles, milk, bread, and cheese.

[[Chakravarthi Rajagopalachari]] (informally called Rajaji), the second [[Governor-General of India]] and a [[Bharat Ratna]], and [[Minocher Rustom Masani|Minoo Masani]], and [[economist]]s like [[Bellikoth Raghunath Shenoy|B.R. Shenoy]] advocated greater freedom. However, they were unable to over-ride the Indian fascination with socialism. Rajaji was a close colleague of Nehru during the independence movement, but soon after independence, he quickly began to see the risks to India of letting Nehru's fervour with socialism go unchallenged. Despite having fought for independence by Nehru's side, and without regard for his own advanced age (Rajaji was 80 by then), Rajaji decided to act to block Nehru's onslaught on freedom. He parted ways with the [[Indian National Congress]] in 1957 and formed the [[Swatantra Party]] which supported classical liberal principles and free enterprise.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rajagopalachari|first1=C|title=Why Swatantra?|url=http://www.livemint.com/Sundayapp/XlvTGlfJcdJu9mQGZcksTI/C-Rajagopalachari--Why-Swatantra.html|access-date=4 April 2017|issue=16 July 2016|publisher=Mint}}</ref> For the next 14 years till his death in 1972 he waged a battle with Nehru's Congress party to advance freedom. However, as Nehru was extremely popular at that time, and also had the resources of the government at his command, Rajaji's was inevitably a losing battle.

{{Quotation|The Swatantra Party stands for the protection of the individual citizen against the increasing trespasses of the State. It is an answer to the challenge of the so-called Socialism of the Indian Congress party. It is founded on the conviction that social justice and welfare can be attained through the fostering of individual interest and individual enterprise in all fields better than through State ownership and Government control. It is based on the truth that bureaucratic management leads to loss of incentive and waste of resources. When the State trespasses beyond what is legitimately within its province, it just hands over the management from those who are interested in frugal and efficient management to bureaucracy which is untrained and uninterested except in its own survival.

The Swatantra Party is founded on the claim that individual citizens should be free to hold their property and carry on their professions freely and through binding mutual agreements among themselves and that the State should assist and encourage in every possible way the individual in this freedom, but not seek to replace him.|[[Chakravarthi Rajagopalachari]] writing about his party in 1960}}

Rajaji's opposition arguably helped India minimize the excesses of socialism. His party held 44 seats in [[Parliament of India|Parliament]] in the [[4th Lok Sabha]] (1967–71). Swatantra was also part of the opposition to the Nath Pai Bill that advocated primacy for the [[Directive Principles in India|Directive Principles of State Policy]] over [[Fundamental Rights in India|Fundamental Rights]]. There were many other occasions when Swatantra acted as the voice of reason in a very unreasonable time. Making use of the free press and [[democracy]], Swatantra pressed on for freedom, regardless of the difficulties it faced, but ran out of steam in 1973.

Since then, many new thinkers such as [[S. V. Raju]], [[Sharad Anantrao Joshi]], Barun Mitra, [[Lok Satta Party|Lok Satta]] [[Jayaprakash Narayan]], [[Parth J. Shah]], [[Gurcharan Das]], and Sauvik Chakraverti, Raghavendar Askani, [[Venkatesh Geriti]], among others, have emerged on the Indian liberal scene, contributing to the debate on freedom in India, and advancing [[classical liberalism]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2013-07-17|title=Evolution of Liberalism in India|url=https://ccs.in/evolution-liberalism-india|access-date=2020-09-17|website=Centre For Civil Society|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Classical liberal-reformer-activist-empowering-youth-for-a-better-india|url=https://bookofachievers.com/articles/liberal-reformer-and-an-anti-corruption-activist-empowering-youth-for-a-better-india|website=Bookofachievers}}</ref>

==Economic liberalisation==
{{main|Economic liberalisation in India}}
{{more citations needed section|date=December 2015}}Following [[Partition of India|Independence]], India adopted the [[Socialism in India|Socialist]] model of development. This led to creation of [[Licence Raj]], the elaborate licences, regulations and the accompanying [[red tape]] that were required to set up business in India.

India's first attempt at [[Economic liberalization|economic liberalisation]] was carried out in 1966 as a precondition to an increase in foreign aid.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Mital|first1=Ankit|title=India and liberalization: There was a 1966 before 1991|url=http://www.livemint.com/Sundayapp/h4nQPwoxX2j8HnftPQt2BI/India-and-liberalization-There-was-a-1966-before-1991.html|access-date=27 March 2017|publisher=Mint|date=24 January 2016}}</ref>

The [[economic liberalisation]] of 1991, initiated by then-[[Prime Minister of India]] [[P. V. Narasimha Rao]] in response to a balance-of-payments crisis, did away with the Licence Raj and ended many public monopolies, allowing automatic approval of [[foreign direct investment]] in many sectors.

==Liberal organisations in India==

===Political parties===
This is a list of both past and present political parties with liberal views.

*[[Indian Liberal Party]]
*[[Swatantra Party]] (1959–1973)
*[[Swatantra Bharat Party]] (1994–)
*[[Lok Satta party]] (2006–)

===Other organisations===
* [[Centre for Civil Society]]
* [[Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative]]
* [[Freedom First]]
* [[Indian Liberal Group]]
* [[Janaagraha]]
* [[Manushi]]
* [[Students for Liberty]] India
* Swatantrata Center <ref>{{cite web | url=https://libel.iflry.com/interview-with-venkatesh-geriti-from-swatantrata-center-in-india/ | title=Interview with Venkatesh Geriti from Swatantrata Center in India | first=Larissa | last=Saar | date=16 October 2020 | publisher=libel.iflry.com | access-date=27 December 2020 }}</ref>

==Prominent Indian liberals==

=== Pre-Independence ===
* [[Raja Ram Mohan Roy]]
* [[Gopal Krishna Gokhale]]
* [[Mahatma Gandhi]]

=== Swatantra Party ===
* [[C. Rajagopalachari]]
* [[Minoo Masani]]

=== Post-Swatantra Party ===
*[[Sharad Anantrao Joshi|Sharad Joshi]] ([[Swatantra Bharat Paksh|Swatantra Bharat Party]])
*[[Gurcharan Das]]
*[[Jayaprakash Narayan (Lok Satta)|Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan]] ([[Lok Satta Party]])<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbesindia.com/article/independence-special-2013/jayaprakash-narayan-fixing-governance-with-reforms-and-economic-freedom/35869/1|title=Jayaprakash Narayan: Fixing Governance With Reforms And Economic Freedom|website=Forbes India}}</ref>

=== Contemporary Indian Liberals ===
*[[Jagdish Bhagwati]]
*[[Deepak Lal]]
*[[Parth Shah|Parth J. Shah]], Founder, President, [[Centre for Civil Society]], New Delhi.
*[[S.V. Raju]], President, [[Indian Liberal Group]]
*[[Venkatesh Geriti]], Founder, President, [[Swatantrata Center]]
*[[Raghavendar Askani]], Founder, President, [[Youth Parliament Program]]
* Nalamotu Chakravarthy Founder, President, Center for Individual Liberty

==See also==
* [[History of India]]
* [[Politics of India]]
* [[List of political parties in India]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.ccsindia.org/ Centre for Civil Society]
*[http://www.indiapolicy.org/party/political.html India Policy Institute].
*[http://indianliberals.in/ Indian Liberals]
*[https://swatantrata.org/ Swatantrata Center]
{{Asia topic|Liberalism in}}

[[Category:Liberalism in India| ]]
[[Category:Political history of India]]
[[Category:Indian political philosophy]]

Liberalism in India - Revision history

>Maxeto0910 at 21:10, 16 March 2021