Celebrating the hard-earned independence only for a day in a year is not enough. To safeguard it, people must be vigilant, former Supreme Court judge Jasti Chelameswar said here on Wednesday.
Addressing a meeting after releasing a book, ‘Three Leaders of Socialism’, here, he said the leaders who were brought together by Jayaprakash Narayan and swept to the power stopped valuing his words in just two years after assuming the offices.
“It is important that people should be vigilant about what the political leaders did in the past and what the powers-that-be are doing or willing do do,” he said.
The book ‘Three Leaders of Socialism’ authored by Loknayak Foundation president Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad deals with the contribution of Acharya J.B. Kripalani, Jayaprakash Narayan and Ram Manohar Lohia to the cause of socialism.
“The three people spoke out boldly and Lohia’s speeches were backed by a sound logical process and not rhetoric,” said Mr. Chelameswar.
Supreme Court judge Lavu Nageswara Rao who released the book said the term socialist was introduced in the Preamble of the Constitution by the 42nd Amendment and the three leaders had their belief in the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and non-violence.
Questioning the authority
“Thee three leaders always questioned the authority. Prof. Lakshmi Prasad researched minute details before writing the book,” he said.
MLC M.V.V.S. Murthy said, “Jayaprakash Narayan fought emergency. Kripalani was the first to raise issues related to people and Lohia, during his four-year stint in Parliament, left a lasting impression.”
Prof. Lakshmi Prasad said the book was his 65th and was intended for the youth who hardly knew about the great leaders.
Loknayak Foundation secretary N. Babaiah was present.