Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan
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Chandra Shekhar Azad (born 3 December 1986) is an Indian lawyer and Dalit rights activist and an
Ambedkarite Ambedkarism is called as the teaching, ideology or philosophy of B.R. Ambedkar, an Indian econonist, polymath, barrister, social reformer, human-rights advocate, and the architect of Indian Constitution. Ambedkarism includes the principles of Nava ...
who is the co-founder and national president of the
Bhim Army The Bhim Army, alternatively Bheem Army ( lit."Ambedkar Army") or the Bheem Army Bharat Ekta Mission (translation: "Ambedkar Army Indian Unity Mission") is an Ambedkarite and Dalit rights organisation in India. It was founded by Satish Kumar, ...
. In February 2021, ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' magazine featured him in its annual list of ''100 Emerging Leaders who are Shaping the Future''. He contested against
Yogi Adityanath Yogi Adityanath (born on 5 June 1972 as Ajay Singh Bisht),
in the Uttar Pradesh State Assembly Elections 2022 from Gorakhpur constituency and lost.


Early life

Chandrashekhar Azad was born in December 1986 at
Chhutmalpur Chhutmalpur is a town in Saharanpur district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Demographics India census, Chhutmalpur had a population of 14,274. Males constitute 52.27% of the population and females 47.72%. Chhutmalpur has a literacy rat ...
town in
Saharanpur district Saharanpur district is the northernmost of the districts of Uttar Pradesh state, India. Bordering the states of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and close to the foothills of Shivalik range, it lies in the northern part of the Doab r ...
,
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
to Govardhan Das and Kamlesh Devi. His father Govardhan Das was a retired principal of a government school. Azad came to prominence as a
Bahujan ''Bahujan'' is a Pali term frequently found in Buddhist texts, with a literal meaning of "the many", or "the majority". In a modern context, it refers to the combined population of the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Mu ...
leader after a
hoarding Hoarding is a behavior where people or animals accumulate food or other items. Animal behavior ''Hoarding'' and ''caching'' are common in many bird species as well as in rodents. Most animal caches are of food. However, some birds will a ...
which said "The Great Chamars of Ghadkhauli Welcome You" was installed by him on the outskirts of his village.


Activism

Azad has established himself as Dalit icon and he is known for his style. "Azad does something more: his style is ostentatious. It rejects docility, mimimalism and discretion. It is not quietly elegant, but emphatically flamboyant. It flaunts Ray-Bans alongside homespun, replaces hipster beards with the twirled 'tache. It is azadi with swag."


2020 Hathras gang rape and murder case

Azad and his supporters held a protest at Delhi's
Safdarjung Hospital Safdarjung Hospital is a multi-specialty hospital, and the largest central government hospital in India if measured by bed strength. It is associated with Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and located in the heart of New Delhi on the Ring Road, ...
, where a 19-year-old woman from
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
's
Hathras Hathras is a historical city in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is also the headquarters of Hathras district, formed on 3 May 1997 by merging parts of Aligarh, Mathura and Agra. It is a part of the Aligarh Division. The primary spoken language is a ...
died days after being
gang rape Gang rape, also called serial gang rape, group rape, or multiple perpetrator rape in scholarly literature,Ullman, S. E. (2013). 11 Multiple perpetrator rape victimization. Handbook on the Study of Multiple Perpetrator Rape: A Multidisciplinary Re ...
d in 2020, demanding the culprits be sentenced to death. The
Dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the Caste system in India, castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold Varna (Hinduism), varna syste ...
woman from the marginalised
Valmiki Valmiki (; Sanskrit: वाल्मीकि, ) is celebrated as the wikt:harbinger, harbinger-poet in Sanskrit literature. The epic ''Ramayana'', dated variously from the 5th century BCE to first century BCE, is attributed to him, based on ...
community succumbed to her injuries. He had earlier gone to see the woman, when she was still alive and demanded she be shifted to
AIIMS The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is a group of autonomous government public medical universities of higher education under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare , Government of India. These institutes ha ...
. But she was admitted to
Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh Muslim University (abbreviated as AMU) is a Public University, public Central University (India), central university in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan as the Muhammadan Anglo-Orie ...
's Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital and shifted to Safdarjung Hospital later where she succumbed. He held a massive protest on Sunday after he was stopped twice by the UP Police when he was on his way to meet the victim's family. Visuals showed him standing on a truck, addressing a huge crowd. When he was stopped for the first time, about 20 km from Hathras, he marched for around 5 km, along with his supporters, to cover the distance to reach the victim's home. A video showed them carrying flags and raising slogans against the government. As he met the family on Sunday evening, he demanded "Y+" category security for them. He also urged the administration to let him take the victim's family along with him; the request, however, was turned down. He joined a protest at Delhi's
Jantar Mantar A Jantar Mantar ( Hindustani pronunciation: ͡ʒən̪t̪ər mən̪t̪ər is an assembly of stone-built astronomical instruments, designed to be used with the naked eye. There were five Jantar Mantars in India, all of them built at the com ...
where hundreds of people came with placards and shouted slogans against the incident, which has sparked massive outrage. The body of the
gang rape Gang rape, also called serial gang rape, group rape, or multiple perpetrator rape in scholarly literature,Ullman, S. E. (2013). 11 Multiple perpetrator rape victimization. Handbook on the Study of Multiple Perpetrator Rape: A Multidisciplinary Re ...
victim was burnt with petrol in Hathras in the middle of the night by the police, with her family members alleging that the local police did not give them a chance to do the last rites. This happened when Azad was detained by Uttar Pradesh police midway and then has been put under house arrest in
Saharanpur Saharanpur is a city and a municipal corporation in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is also the administrative headquarters of Saharanpur district. Saharanpur city's name was given after the Saint Shah Haroon Chishti. Saharanpur is declared as on ...
.


Farm bills

Azad joined the protesting farmers at the
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
-
Ghazipur Ghazipur is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ghazipur city is the administrative headquarters of the Ghazipur district, one of the four districts that form the Varanasi division of Uttar Pradesh. The city of Ghazipur also constitute ...
border along with hundreds of his supporters and demanded that the new farm laws be withdrawn immediately. Before that, he was detained at his residence in
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
before he joined the nationwide farmers' protest. He also criticised the centre for using water cannons and tear gas against the demonstrators. He alleged the government wants to grab the farmers' land and give it to industrialists.


Political career

Azad, Satish Kumar, and Vinay Ratan Singh founded
Bhim Army The Bhim Army, alternatively Bheem Army ( lit."Ambedkar Army") or the Bheem Army Bharat Ekta Mission (translation: "Ambedkar Army Indian Unity Mission") is an Ambedkarite and Dalit rights organisation in India. It was founded by Satish Kumar, ...
in 2014, an organization that works for the emancipation of
Dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the Caste system in India, castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold Varna (Hinduism), varna syste ...
s through education in India. It runs free schools for Dalits in the Western
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
. In 2019, he originally planned to contest from
Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...
against Modi, but later withdrew his offer to support the SP/ BSP combination and prevent the splitting of the Dalit vote in the constituency.


Azad Samaj Party Chandra Shekhar Azad (born 3 December 1986) is an Indian lawyer and Dalit rights activist and an Ambedkarite who is the co-founder and national president of the Bhim Army. In February 2021, ''Time'' magazine featured him in its annual list of ...

Azad Samaj Party Chandra Shekhar Azad (born 3 December 1986) is an Indian lawyer and Dalit rights activist and an Ambedkarite who is the co-founder and national president of the Bhim Army. In February 2021, ''Time'' magazine featured him in its annual list of ...
is an Indian political party formally launched on 15 March 2020 by Ravan. It is significant that the announcement was made on the 86th birth anniversary of Kashi Ram, the founder of the
Bahujan Samaj Party The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is a national level political party in India that was formed to represent Bahujans (literally means "community in majority"), referring to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes (OBC), alon ...
. The sister of the founder of that party, Sarwan Kaur, planned to join the Azad Samaj party. The party planned to contest every seat in
Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
in the
2020 Bihar Legislative Assembly election The Bihar Legislative Assembly election was held in three phases through October–November to elect members to the Seventeenth Bihar Legislative Assembly. The term of the previous Sixteenth Legislative Assembly of Bihar ended on 29 November 20 ...
.
Bhim Army The Bhim Army, alternatively Bheem Army ( lit."Ambedkar Army") or the Bheem Army Bharat Ekta Mission (translation: "Ambedkar Army Indian Unity Mission") is an Ambedkarite and Dalit rights organisation in India. It was founded by Satish Kumar, ...
founder Chandrashekar Azad Ravan announced to join the Progressive Democratic Alliance (PDA) led by
Jan Adhikar Party (Loktantrik) Jan Adhikar Party (Loktantrik); English: People's Rights Party (Democratic) is a political party in Bihar, India. The party was formed by Indian politician Pappu Yadav in May 2015. Pappu Yadav wa a Member of Parliament from Madhepura and was exp ...
of Rajesh Ranjan alias
Pappu Yadav Rajesh Ranjan (born 24 December 1967), better known as Pappu Yadav, is an Indian politician. He won elections to the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Parliament of India) in 1991, 1996, 1999, 2004 and 2014 from several constituencies in Bihar ...
with other regional political parties to contest the Bihar assembly election 2020. Much of the party's popularity comes from the
Dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the Caste system in India, castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold Varna (Hinduism), varna syste ...
and
Scheduled tribes The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
.


2020 Bihar Assembly elections

Azad started his career as leader of Bhim Army which is an organisation based in Uttar Pradesh but he later formed Azad Samaj Party to participate in electoral politics. The party allied with
Pappu Yadav Rajesh Ranjan (born 24 December 1967), better known as Pappu Yadav, is an Indian politician. He won elections to the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Parliament of India) in 1991, 1996, 1999, 2004 and 2014 from several constituencies in Bihar ...
led
Jan Adhikar Party Babu Singh Kushwaha (born 7 May 1966) is an Indian politician in Uttar Pradesh. He was one of Mayawati's most trusted man and a senior member of her cabinet. Now he is the chairman of the Jan Adhikar Party. Political career Kushwaha has wor ...
in 2020 Bihar Assembly elections to form a separate front apart from
National Democratic Alliance National Democratic Alliance (NDA) () is a Centre-right politics, centre-right to Right-wing politics, right-wing and Conservatism, conservative Indian big tent political alliance led by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It was foun ...
and
United Progressive Alliance United Progressive Alliance (UPA) is a centre-left political alliance of predominantly left-leaning political parties in India. It was formed after the 2004 general election with support from left-leaning political parties when no single party ...
. In the elections it contested against these two grand alliances besides another front called
Grand Democratic Secular Front The Grand Democratic Secular Front (GDSF) was a coalition of political parties in the Indian state of Bihar formed on 8 October 2020 after the merger of the constituents of the United Democratic Secular Alliance and a three party front. The coal ...
, which was spearheaded by
Rashtriya Lok Samata Party Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (abbreviated as RLSP; translation: ''National People's Equity Party'') was a political party in India led by Upendra Kushwaha. It was launched on 3 March 2013 and was based in the state of Bihar. The party came into exi ...
and contained other regional parties like
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen The All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen ( en, All India Council for Unity of Muslims) ( AIMIM) is an Indian political party based primarily in the city of Hyderabad. It is also a significant political party in the Indian States of Telangana ...
and Suhaldev Samaj Party among others. The front led by Pappu Yadav and Azad was named as
Progressive Democratic Alliance The Progressive Democratic Alliance (PDA) was a centrist political party in British Columbia, Canada founded by Gordon Wilson (British Columbia politician), Gordon Wilson, Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Powell River—Sunshine Co ...
(PDA).


2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election

Chandrashekhar Azad contested 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election on
Gorakhpur Gorakhpur is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, along the banks of the Rapti river in the Purvanchal region. It is situated 272 kilometers east of the state capital Lucknow. It is the administrative headquarters of Gorakhpur dist ...
urban seat against
Yogi Adityanath Yogi Adityanath (born on 5 June 1972 as Ajay Singh Bisht),
. Azad lost the election and finished fourth with 7,543 votes. Azad also lost the security deposit.


Detention

* He was arrested in relation to the
Saharanpur violence The Saharanpur violence was a dispute in April–May 2017 between the Dalit and Rajput communities. Violence There had been an incidence of trouble between the Dalit and Thakur Rajput communities on 20 April 2017 when the Dalits were celebrati ...
incident. Chandrashekhar was arrested under the National Security Act by the
Government of Uttar Pradesh The Government of Uttar Pradesh (ISO: Uttar Pradesh Sarkār; often abbreviated as GoUP) is the subnational government of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh with the governor as its appointed constitutional head of the state by the President of I ...
. Afterwards he was granted bail by the
Allahabad High Court Allahabad High Court, also known as High Court of Judicature at Allahabad is the high court based in Prayagraj that has jurisdiction over the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It was established on 17 March 1866, making it one of the oldest high ...
noting that the arrests were politically motivated, but was continuously imprisoned by the state government. *
Delhi Police The Delhi Police (DP) is the law enforcement agency for the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). Delhi Police comes under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India. In 2015, sanctioned strength of Delhi ...
had denied permission to Chandrashekhar's protest march against the
CAA CAA may refer to: Law * Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 of India ** Citizenship Amendment Act protests, Protests regarding the Citizenship (Amendment) Act * Copyright transfer agreement, Copyright assignment agreement, to transfer copyright to ...
from
Jama Masjid A congregational mosque or Friday mosque (, ''masjid jāmi‘'', or simply: , ''jāmi‘''; ), or sometimes great mosque or grand mosque (, ''jāmi‘ kabir''; ), is a mosque for hosting the Friday noon prayers known as ''jumu'ah''.* * * * * * * ...
to
Jantar Mantar A Jantar Mantar ( Hindustani pronunciation: ͡ʒən̪t̪ər mən̪t̪ər is an assembly of stone-built astronomical instruments, designed to be used with the naked eye. There were five Jantar Mantars in India, all of them built at the com ...
at
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
. He entered into protest at Jama Masjid and was arrested by police and was detained for several days. * He was arrested in
Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
for his participation in two anti-C.A.A. protests. * He was arrested for protests against demolition of
Shri Guru Ravidas Gurughar Shri Guru Ravidas Gurughar, Tughlakabad (or Ravidas Temple Tughlakabad or Guru Ravidas Temple) is one of the important religious places of Ravidasi communities like Ad-Dharmis, Ramdasia Sikhs, Chamars, Jatavs, and Mochis. It is situated at T ...
at Tughalqabad. * He was arrested along with 500
Bhim Army The Bhim Army, alternatively Bheem Army ( lit."Ambedkar Army") or the Bheem Army Bharat Ekta Mission (translation: "Ambedkar Army Indian Unity Mission") is an Ambedkarite and Dalit rights organisation in India. It was founded by Satish Kumar, ...
members for his protest against Hathras gang rape case. All of them were arrested under multiple sections of the IPC and Epidemic Diseases Act, for violation of Section 144 Code of Criminal Procedure in Hathras.


See also

* Satpal Tanwar *
Periyar Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy (17 September 1879 – 24 December 1973), revered as Periyar or Thanthai Periyar, was an Indian social activist and politician who started the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam. He is known as the 'F ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Azad Ravan, Chandrasekhar 1986 births Living people Dalit activists Activists from Uttar Pradesh Social workers from Uttar Pradesh People from Saharanpur district Indian lawyers