By: Anand Kumar
One of the leading lights of the socialist movement, Captain Abbas Ali, is no more. It is a great loss for the nation, as Indians will be deprived of the wisdom and encouragement of a selfless socialist leader who gave his all for the cause of freedom, justice and equality. Such elders are needed today more than ever, for resisting the forces that dehumanise people and for working to build an egalitarian society. We need Abbas Ali’s sage-like guidance in these times, when we witness a politics of hate and greed. He was a unique and towering figure who represented the convergence and continuity of the traditions of 20th century Indian mass movements — from the freedom struggle to the socialist struggles and the JP movement, as well as anti-authoritarian resistance.
The fearlessness of the very affectionate Captain Abbas Ali was legendary. Along with Lohia, he was one of the architects of non-Congressism in the 1964-67 period. But Abbas Ali disagreed with the push for the common civil code. He went to prison several times, with Raj Narain and George Fernandes. At the same time, he always remained committed to socialist principles when these colleagues tried to pursue political pragmatism after Lohia. At the time of the “Indira wave”, he did not care for the forces of authoritarianism and answered the call of Jayaprakash Narayan, which landed him in jail for 19 long months during the Emergency. The failure of the Janata regime did not discourage him from remaining engaged with and active in progressive initiatives for the rest of his life. He was one of the guiding forces behind the socialists in organising the Lohia Centenary in 2009-11 across the country.
Abbas Ali lived a life of pragmatic idealism and optimistic activism. He symbolised the courage of conviction for four generations of democratic, patriotic and secular forces. Therefore, it was not surprising that it was Abbas Ali who was requested to light the torch and hand it over to the founding leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party at Jantar Mantar on November 26, 2012.
A person has three levels of being — biological, ideological and spiritual. Abbas Ali reached the biological limits of his illustrious life on October 11 in Aligarh. Incidentally, it was the birth anniversary of one of his heroes, Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan. But his remarkable triple role, as freedom fighter, socialist leader and the voice of hope, reason and courage, will be part of our folklore for generations to come. His autobiography is going to be a great source of strength for the large family of his admirers spread over India and the rest of South Asia, as it presents the fascinating narrative of a legend who represented a unique balance of optimism and critical thinking. He remained cautious and modest in the periods of success and jubilation. At the same time, he was never disheartened by political realities. Listening to him always motivated one to move further.
In the last few years, he had become weak and infirm. But he never missed invitations to programmes to remember the heroes of our times or think together about the challenges and tasks before democratic forces and socialist activists. Who can forget his call for the unity of progressive forces given in New Delhi as recently as June 5, 2014, in a programme organised to remember the promises of the Total Revolution Movement? Who will not miss him from future initiatives and gatherings for the cause of the working masses and people living on the margins of market society?
The writer is a retired professor, Centre for the Study of Social Systems, School of Social Sciences, JNU, Delhi
