‘Madan Das Devi brought swadeshi to India’s mainstream’

If you had the presence of Madan Das Devi, or ‘Madan ji’ as he was fondly called by his followers, admirers and peers, you could expect solutions to the most complex of issues. His discipline, honesty and commitment to the cause commanded so much respect that solutions to problems were obvious. Madan ji’s biggest contribution to the nation was that he brought swadeshi to the mainstream in the most challenging times.

Today, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scripting India’s economic self-reliance, in the backdrop shines Madan ji’s concept of ‘Arthik Rashtravad’, or economic nationalism—coined and propagated by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) under his stewardship.

Born in Maharashtra’s Solapur on July 9, 1942, Madan ji became a pracharak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and went on to devote his life to the nation’s service. By education, he was a lawyer and a chartered accountant.

Madan ji was national organising secretary of the ABVP from 1970 to 1992. He was one of the founding members of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) in 1991, along with Dattopant Thengadi, M.G. Bokare and other leaders. He was made national co-convenor of the SJM, the organisation’s battle being the globalisation pushed by the West in which India was seen as a mere market.

Madan ji—first as a representative of the ABVP and later as an RSS patron—was continuously a part of the SJM steering committee, flagging off economic issues of concern and effectively intervening at various levels. All programmes and activities of the SJM had his stamp. From the controversial Dunkel Draft before the formation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to intellectual property rights, labour standards and other issues, the SJM, under his able guidance, opposed tooth and nail concepts that were discriminatory towards the developing world. When an attempt was made to bring global giants into the power sector in Maharashtra, Madan ji’s directions led to opposition and the project being put on hold.If you had the presence of Madan Das Devi, or ‘Madan ji’ as he was fondly called by his followers, admirers and peers, you could expect solutions to the most complex of issues. His discipline, honesty and commitment to the cause commanded so much respect that solutions to problems were obvious. Madan ji’s biggest contribution to the nation was that he brought swadeshi to the mainstream in the most challenging times.

Today, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scripting India’s economic self-reliance, in the backdrop shines Madan ji’s concept of ‘Arthik Rashtravad’, or economic nationalism—coined and propagated by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) under his stewardship.

Born in Maharashtra’s Solapur on July 9, 1942, Madan ji became a pracharak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and went on to devote his life to the nation’s service. By education, he was a lawyer and a chartered accountant.

Madan ji was national organising secretary of the ABVP from 1970 to 1992. He was one of the founding members of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) in 1991, along with Dattopant Thengadi, M.G. Bokare and other leaders. He was made national co-convenor of the SJM, the organisation’s battle being the globalisation pushed by the West in which India was seen as a mere market.

Madan ji—first as a representative of the ABVP and later as an RSS patron—was continuously a part of the SJM steering committee, flagging off economic issues of concern and effectively intervening at various levels. All programmes and activities of the SJM had his stamp. From the controversial Dunkel Draft before the formation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to intellectual property rights, labour standards and other issues, the SJM, under his able guidance, opposed tooth and nail concepts that were discriminatory towards the developing world. When an attempt was made to bring global giants into the power sector in Maharashtra, Madan ji’s directions led to opposition and the project being put on hold.

Madan ji stood like a rock in the most testing of times when Atal Bihari Vajpayee took over the reins of power at the Centre with alliance partners and was seen as guided by leaders not so sympathetic to the swadeshi ideology. Madan ji was tasked with coordination between the government and the RSS.

Various contentious issues brought the SJM at loggerheads with the government—Enron, WTO, FDI in insurance, disinvestment, to name a few. The SJM’s ‘maha dharna’ on WTO issues in 2003 moulded India’s approach and saw it raise issues at the WTO Ministerial Conference, which drew appreciation from the developing world. The dharna against FDI in insurance made the government take a parliamentary resolve to limit foreign investment in the sector to 26 per cent.

Madan ji worked to strike a balance between the RSS affiliates and the Vajpayee government, and it was due to his leadership that many contentious issues got flagged and resolved. If the SJM came to be known as a force to reckon with on India’s economic roadmap, the brainchild was Madan ji. Today, if the SJM continues to raise issues of national importance, irrespective of the political party in power at the Centre, the foundation was laid by Madan ji. Its implementation now rests in the hands of his true disciple, PM Modi.        

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