Ideologue and Teacher
Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya (1916-1968)
Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya was the leader of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh from 1953 to 1968. A profound philosopher, committed organization man and a leader who who maintained the highest standards of personal integrity and dignity in public life, he has remained a source of ideological guidance and moral inspiration for the BJP since its inception. His treatise Integral Humanism is a critique of both communism and capitalism. It provides a holistic alternative perspective for political action and statecraft consistent with the needs of the human race and the sustainability of our natural hab itat.
On September 21, 1951, he was instrumental in hosting a political convention in UP and founding the state unit of the new party, the Bharatiya Jana Sangh. Dr. Mookerjee presided over the first all-India convention a month later, on October 21, 1951.
Deendayalji's organizing skills were unmatched. Finally came the red letter day in the annals of the Jana Sangh when this utterly unassuming leader of the party was raised to the high position of President in the 1968. On assuming tremendous responsibility Deendayalji went to the South with the message of Jana Sangh. On the dark night of February 11, 1968, Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya was pushed into the jaws of sudden death, however. To this day, his followers and disciples lament that tragedy in Mughalsarai railway station.
