Celebrated Social Reformer Raja Ram Mohan Roy was a “British Agent:” Says BJP Minister, Apologises
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Nov 16: Apparently with an eye on the coming elections to the West Bengal Assembly, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently blamed Jawaharlal Nehru for “truncating” the national song “Vande Mataram” written by Bankim Chandra Chottopadhyay, while a BJP minister in Madhya Pradesh abused a great son of Bengal as a British agent” aiding to convert Hindus into Christianity, sparking off a political storm in the country.
Raja Ram Mohan Roy, a celebrated 19th century social reformer and scholar, was among the “agents” of the colonial British rulers who were working to change the faith of the people through English education, the MP Higher Education Minister Inder Singh Parmar has said.
Speaking at an event in Agar Malwa district to mark the 150th anniversary of Birsa Munda, Mr Parmar said the tribal icon had tried to stop the “cycle of religious conversion run by some fake social reformers” at the behest of the British rulers. The Madhya Pradesh government is celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Birsa Munda as Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas with events being held across the State.
As criticism mounted across political and academic circles, Parmar released a video message on Sunday, saying, “While speaking on the life of Bhagwan Birsa Munda, I accidentally misinterpreted Raja Ram Mohan Roy. I deeply regret this and I apologize.” He said Raja Ram Mohan Roy was a “renowned” social reformer. “I personally respect him. The statement slipped out inadvertently,”
In his address at the Birsa Munda anniversary on Saturday, Mr Parmar had said, “There was a vicious cycle going on in Bengal and nearby regions to change the faith of the people of this county through English education and the British had made several Indians as fake social reformers. Raja Ram Mohan Roy was one of them who kept working as a British agent. And if someone dared to stop the cycle of religious conversion by them, it was Birsa Munda. He saved the tribal community,” the Minister added.
Roy acted “on British directions,” and that English education in Bengal had created a “vicious cycle” of religious conversion. “During that time, missionary schools run by the British were the primary means of education, where religious conversion efforts were carried out. Birsa Munda, too, wanted to study, but after understanding the missionary activities happening there, he left the school and joined the movement against British rule,” the BJP leader had said.
Often referred to as the father of modern Indian renaissance, Roy is most celebrated for his efforts in the abolition of the Sati practice and promoting women’s rights such as widow remarriage. He was also one of the founders of the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, which later became Brahmo Samaj.
His apology, however, did little to weather the storm. The Congress spokesperson Bhupendra Gupta said Parmar’s remark was not just factually wrong but “an insult to India’s reformist legacy.” “Was the abolition of Sati also some form of British brokerage? Those who were truly close to the British are today calling our reformers British agents,” he said. He added that the minister’s comments reflect a dangerous trend of rewriting history to fit “ideological narratives.”
Historians and academics have strongly refuted these claims, pointing out that Roy’s legacy from abolishing Sati to championing women’s rights and modern education is widely regarded as foundational to India’s social renaissance.
This is not the first time Parmar’s statements have stirred controversy. Earlier, he had claimed that India was not discovered by Vasco da Gama but by a merchant named Chandan, saying “we have been taught the wrong history.” Addressing a university convocation, he asserted that the official historical narrative had long been distorted.
He also came under scrutiny after his department directed government and private colleges to mandatorily include 88 specific books in their libraries, many of which were authored by individuals linked to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
