Ram Rajya Parishad

(“Organization for Ram’s Reign”)
Northern Indian political party formed
immediately after Indian independence
in 1947. It was founded by Swami
Karpatri, an influential modern Hindu
ascetic. The term Ram Rajya carries
mythical significance, referring to the
period of righteous rule by the god-king
Rama, the protagonist of the epic
Ramayana, after his return from fourteen years of exile in the forest.
According to popular belief, Rama’s
reign was marked by perfect peace, justice, and social harmony.
The Ram Rajya Parishad sought to
reshape India according to the vision of
this mythical time, and the party’s political platform was solidly rooted in conservative Hindu religious ideas. The
party strongly supported the caste system, with its traditional division of
social status and labor, and believed that
it was essential for a smoothly functioning society. This position would have
condemned most low-caste people to a
life of servitude, although the party did
leave them a few meager windows for
advancement. One of these was managing shoe factories, since leather is considered religiously impure by the higher
castes, and thus working with leather is
the traditional occupation of certain low
status groups. Aside from their views on
the validity of the caste system, the Ram
Rajya Parishad also supported other
conservative Hindu causes, particularly
a total ban on cow slaughter and a complete ban on the production and consumption of liquor. The Ram Rajya
Parishad’s constituency came mainly
from conservative, upper-class Hindus,
particularly those in the Ganges River
basin. Its conservatism gave those outside this group no incentive to support
it. Although it had limited electoral success in years immediately after independence, within a dozen years the party
had been reduced to a completely marginal presence.