Chandrashekhar Prasad
Encyclopedia
Chandrashekar Prasad was an India
n student leader from Jawaharlal Nehru University
, a president of its students' union
and an activist of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation
. He was shot dead on March 31, 1997 while addressing street corner meetings in the north-Bihar
district town of Siwan
in support of a strike called by his party. His assassination led to large student protests in India
.
in a poor kushwaha family, Chandrashekhar was an only child. His father who was in the army died when he was a boy, and his widowed mother worked hard to pay for his education. Following his initial education in Siwan, he studied at the Sainik School Tilaiya
. He joined the Indian National Defence Academy but soon left it, telling his mother in a letter that he wanted to be an activist. He joined the University of Patna
before joining JNU
.
unit of the All India Students Federation
, the student organisation of the Communist Party of India
(CPI).
Soon after, he became disillusioned with what he believed to be the reformist and parliamentarist politics of the CPI and grew sympathetic to CPI-ML(Liberation)
.
Chandrashekar played a very important role in the building of AISA
, the newly formed student organization of the CPI-ML(Liberation), there.
He was elected to the JNU Students Union three times in a row, first as vice-president in 1993-94, then as president for successive terms in 1994-95 and 1995-96.
As leader of JNU Students' Union (JNUSU), Chandrashekar led a number of different campaigns for students' rights. The old admission policy of affirmative action for students from backward areas was restored. Students thwarted the JNU administration's bid to bring up privatisation in academic council meetings. Chandrashekar made serious attempts to forge close ties with student movements in other universities and institutions.
In 1995 he represented India in the UN-sponsored youth conference in Seoul
, where he formed a group of third world representatives inside the conference and moved several resolutions against US imperialism
, eventually staging a walkout in protest. Risking the wrath of Korean authorities, he contacted many outlawed left-wing
student leaders and even addressed a huge rally of students on the issue of Korean reunification
.
as a full-time party activist. The Janata Dal
(now the Rashtriya Janata Dal
), which ran the government in the province of Bihar
, had been waging a campaign against leading activists of the CPI-ML. More than 70 people, including leaders of the district committee, had been killed between 1990 and 1996.
On March 31, 1997 Chandrashekhar and another activist Shyam Narain Yadav were shot dead while addressing street corner meetings in support of a strike called by their party.
The CPI-ML (Liberation)
alleges that the assassination was carried out at the behest of Mohammed Shahabuddin, the then Member of Parliament
from Siwan
who belonged to the Janata Dal
.
There were protests of thousands of students against the assassination in Delhi
as well as in Bihar
. Students participating in one protest in Delhi
were illegally fired upon by Sadhu Yadav, the brother-in-law of the then Chief Minister
of Bihar
.
one of the four G Parthasarathi Endowment Fellowship is awarded in the memory of Chandrashekhar Prasad . The fellowship of Rs.1000 per month, awarded to students initially for a period of one year, renewable by another year on the basis of academic performance, is granted students coming from economically weaker sections of society, particularly Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe/Backward Class, and disabled students.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n student leader from Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University, also known as JNU, is located in New Delhi, the capital of India. It is mainly a research oriented postgraduate University with approximately 5,500 students and a faculty strength of around 550.-History:...
, a president of its students' union
Students' union
A students' union, student government, student senate, students' association, guild of students or government of student body is a student organization present in many colleges and universities, and has started appearing in some high schools...
and an activist of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation
Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation
Communist Party of India Liberation is a communist political party in India.Communist Party of India was formed in 1969 by the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, who had split from Communist Party of India in 1967...
. He was shot dead on March 31, 1997 while addressing street corner meetings in the north-Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
district town of Siwan
Siwan District
Siwan district is one of the districts of Bihar state, India. Siwan town is the administrative headquarters of this district. Siwan district is a part of Saran Division since 1972. The town is known for its great past especially for First President of Indian Republic who belonged to Jeeradei. The...
in support of a strike called by his party. His assassination led to large student protests in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
Education
Born at bindusar village in SiwanSiwan
Siwan may refer to* Sivan, a month of the Hebrew calendar* Siwan, Xichuan County , a town in Xichuan County, Henan, China* Siwan District, in the state of Bihar, India* Siwan, Bihar, the headquarters of the district...
in a poor kushwaha family, Chandrashekhar was an only child. His father who was in the army died when he was a boy, and his widowed mother worked hard to pay for his education. Following his initial education in Siwan, he studied at the Sainik School Tilaiya
Sainik School Tilaiya
The primary aim of Sainik School is to prepare boys academically, physically and mentally for entry into the Defence Services and those who do not make the grade, for responsible positions in the various other walks of life....
. He joined the Indian National Defence Academy but soon left it, telling his mother in a letter that he wanted to be an activist. He joined the University of Patna
University of Patna
The Patna University, Hindi: पटना विश्वविद्यालय, the first university in Bihar, was established in 1917 during the British Raj, and is the seventh oldest university of the Indian subcontinent. At that time, the jurisdiction of the university extended to Bihar, Orissa, and the Kingdom of Nepal...
before joining JNU
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University, also known as JNU, is located in New Delhi, the capital of India. It is mainly a research oriented postgraduate University with approximately 5,500 students and a faculty strength of around 550.-History:...
.
Early years
From early in his student life Chandrashekhar was involved in student activism. In the mid-1980s he became the vice-president of the BiharBihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
unit of the All India Students Federation
All India Students Federation
The All India Students Federation was the first student union in India level.It was founded by students] on 12 August 1936 with the banner Freedom Peace Progress, with the guidance of Nehru. At that time, it worked for the independence of India. The organisation now works for the betterment of...
, the student organisation of the Communist Party of India
Communist Party of India
The Communist Party of India is a national political party in India. In the Indian communist movement, there are different views on exactly when the Indian communist party was founded. The date maintained as the foundation day by CPI is 26 December 1925...
(CPI).
Soon after, he became disillusioned with what he believed to be the reformist and parliamentarist politics of the CPI and grew sympathetic to CPI-ML(Liberation)
Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation
Communist Party of India Liberation is a communist political party in India.Communist Party of India was formed in 1969 by the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, who had split from Communist Party of India in 1967...
.
Jawaharlal Nehru University
After joining JNUJawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University, also known as JNU, is located in New Delhi, the capital of India. It is mainly a research oriented postgraduate University with approximately 5,500 students and a faculty strength of around 550.-History:...
Chandrashekar played a very important role in the building of AISA
All India Students Association
AISA, All India Students' Association is a radical left students' organization, associated with the Communist Party of India Liberation...
, the newly formed student organization of the CPI-ML(Liberation), there.
He was elected to the JNU Students Union three times in a row, first as vice-president in 1993-94, then as president for successive terms in 1994-95 and 1995-96.
As leader of JNU Students' Union (JNUSU), Chandrashekar led a number of different campaigns for students' rights. The old admission policy of affirmative action for students from backward areas was restored. Students thwarted the JNU administration's bid to bring up privatisation in academic council meetings. Chandrashekar made serious attempts to forge close ties with student movements in other universities and institutions.
In 1995 he represented India in the UN-sponsored youth conference in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, where he formed a group of third world representatives inside the conference and moved several resolutions against US imperialism
Imperialism
Imperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
, eventually staging a walkout in protest. Risking the wrath of Korean authorities, he contacted many outlawed left-wing
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
student leaders and even addressed a huge rally of students on the issue of Korean reunification
Korean reunification
Korean reunification refers to the hypothetical future reunification of North Korea and South Korea under a single government...
.
Assassination and Protests
At the end of his stint in JNU, Chandrashekar opted to return to SiwanSiwan
Siwan may refer to* Sivan, a month of the Hebrew calendar* Siwan, Xichuan County , a town in Xichuan County, Henan, China* Siwan District, in the state of Bihar, India* Siwan, Bihar, the headquarters of the district...
as a full-time party activist. The Janata Dal
Janata Dal
Janata Dal is an Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal, Congress, and the Jan Morcha led by V. P...
(now the Rashtriya Janata Dal
Rashtriya Janata Dal
The Rashtriya Janata Dal is a political party in India, based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Laloo Prasad Yadav. The party came about as a result of Lalu Prasad Yadav, ex-president of Janata Dal, being evicted by Sharad Yadav, the then president, on corruption charges ...
), which ran the government in the province of Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
, had been waging a campaign against leading activists of the CPI-ML. More than 70 people, including leaders of the district committee, had been killed between 1990 and 1996.
On March 31, 1997 Chandrashekhar and another activist Shyam Narain Yadav were shot dead while addressing street corner meetings in support of a strike called by their party.
The CPI-ML (Liberation)
Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation
Communist Party of India Liberation is a communist political party in India.Communist Party of India was formed in 1969 by the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, who had split from Communist Party of India in 1967...
alleges that the assassination was carried out at the behest of Mohammed Shahabuddin, the then Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
from Siwan
Siwan
Siwan may refer to* Sivan, a month of the Hebrew calendar* Siwan, Xichuan County , a town in Xichuan County, Henan, China* Siwan District, in the state of Bihar, India* Siwan, Bihar, the headquarters of the district...
who belonged to the Janata Dal
Janata Dal
Janata Dal is an Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal, Congress, and the Jan Morcha led by V. P...
.
There were protests of thousands of students against the assassination in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
as well as in Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
. Students participating in one protest in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
were illegally fired upon by Sadhu Yadav, the brother-in-law of the then Chief Minister
Chief Minister
A Chief Minister is the elected head of government of a sub-national state, provinces of Sri Lanka, Pakistan, notably a state of India, a territory of Australia or a British Overseas Territory that has attained self-government...
of Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
.
Memorial
In JNUJNU
JNU may refer to:* Jawaharlal Nehru University* Juneau International Airport in Juneau, Alaska...
one of the four G Parthasarathi Endowment Fellowship is awarded in the memory of Chandrashekhar Prasad . The fellowship of Rs.1000 per month, awarded to students initially for a period of one year, renewable by another year on the basis of academic performance, is granted students coming from economically weaker sections of society, particularly Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe/Backward Class, and disabled students.
Source
- http://naxalrevolution.blogspot.com/search/label/Martyrs (a leftist website)