Acharya Narendra Deo Biography

Acharya Narendra Deo is the founder of the Democratic Socialist Movement in India, was a noted politician as well as a theorist.

Acharya Narendra Deo was born on October 30, 1889 in Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh. Following the footsteps of his father who was an advocate, Acharya Narendra Dev also completed his education in law. However, the then prevalent fervor of independence and nationalism led him to being one of the pioneers of the Freedom Movement.

Acharya Narendra Deo was drawn into national politics primarily influenced by the likes of Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Aurobindo Ghosh around 1915. His interest lay in Marxism and Buddhism and this led to his principles of democratic socialism being based on non- violent means. Influenced by Mahatma Gandhi he accepted ‘Satyagraha’ as the means of struggle for independence. His theoretical contribution towards philosophy and culture of Budhhism is of paramount importance.

Acharyaji was an active member of the Congress Socialist Party right from its inception in 1934 and went on to become a member of the Praja Socialist Party till his demise in 1956. Narendra Deo was imprisoned quite a number of times during the freedom movement and was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Uttar Pradesh in 1938 and then in 1946. He served as a member of the Legislative Council of Uttar Pradesh between 1952 – 54 and was a member of the Rajya Sabha between 1954-56.

An educationist of repute, Acharya Narendra Deo served as the Vice Chancellor of Lucknow University after 1948. Keeping his contributions in mind, the Narendra Deo University of Agriculture and Technology was established in 1975. Acharya Deo died on February 19, 1956.