M.N. Roy’s Political Thought – UGC NET Political Science Notes

Introduction

Manabendra Nath Roy (18871954) alias M.N. Roy was perhaps the most original and radical political philosopher in contemporary India. An intellectual life of Roy as a revolutionary nationalist morphing into a Marxist and then a humanist bears the signatures of political thinking in colonial and post-colonial India. He made his contributions on the theory of Marxism, critiques of Gandhism and its development of the philosophy of Radical Humanism that focused on reason, freedom and ethical politics. 

Among the UGC NET Political Science aspirants, the thinking of Roy is important in the sense of getting acquainted with the ideological multiplicity of Indian political discourse and how the revolutionary activist had to turn towards philosophical cogitation.

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Having been born as Narendranath Bhattacharya in Bengal, Roy pursued revolutionary nationalism as a young girl. He became a member of Anushilan Samiti and later the Jugantar group and engaged in such activities as anti-colonial political assassinations. He ventured into United States and Mexico to find weapons to struggle against British rule and he in the process changed his name to M.N. Roy and joined socialism groups.

Roy had given birth to the Mexican Communist Party in 1917, and he became one of the earliest Indians who was leading a communist party overseas. The experience of Marxist thoughts that time formed his basis of later political thought.

Roy and Marxism

Roy’s engagement with Marxism was both deep and critical. He was a delegate to the Second Congress of the Communist International (Comintern) in 1920, where he debated Lenin on the role of nationalist movements in colonial countries. Roy argued that communists should not support bourgeois nationalist parties like the Indian National Congress but should instead build independent revolutionary organizations rooted in the working class.

Key Marxist Contributions

• Colonial Question: Roy emphasized that colonial societies could bypass bourgeois democracy and move directly toward socialism.
• Class Analysis: He critiqued the Indian National Congress as a bourgeois party and advocated for mobilizing peasants and workers.
• Communist Party of India: Roy helped establish the CPI in 1925 (Tashkent group), aiming to inject Marxist ideology into Indian politics.

However, Roy’s relationship with the Comintern soured due to ideological differences, and he was expelled in 1929. This marked the beginning of his shift away from orthodox Marxism.

Critique of Marxism

Roy criticized Marxism on basis of it being incompatible to the backward and agrarian societies such as India. He stated that;

• Marxism Economically Depended: The relationship between Marxism and economic determinism is that Marxism understated the role of human agency by over}}$ deciding on the side of economic structures.
• Dictatorship of the Proletariat: Roy did not believe in this theory since it was contradicting the democratic ideals.
• Dialectical Materialism: He detected contradictions in the philosophical underpinnings of Marx especially the combination of subjective dialectics and scientific materialism.
• Middle Class Role: Unlike the prediction of Marx, Roy noticed the rise of middle class in the capitalist society.

Roy came to the conclusion that Marxism even though of value in some respects did not meet the ethical and democratic needs of people in the colonial societies.

Radical Humanism: Roy’s Philosophical Turn

After his imprisonment (1931–1936), Roy underwent a profound ideological transformation. He moved away from Marxism and developed Radical Humanism, a philosophy that emphasized individual freedom, rationality, and ethical politics.

Core Principles of Radical Humanism

1. Freedom: The individual is the ultimate unit of society, and institutions must exist to enhance personal liberty.
2. Reason: Human beings are rational and capable of shaping their destiny through knowledge and critical thinking.
3. Morality: Politics must be guided by ethical principles, not just power or economic interests.
4. Democracy: Roy advocated for Organized Democracy, a decentralized system where people’s committees replace parliamentary structures.

Radical Humanism was Roy’s attempt to create a new political philosophy suited to India’s needs—one that combined scientific reasoning with moral responsibility.

Partyless Democracy and Political Reform

Roy criticized the system of parties so much in that the system tended to create corruption and opportunism and alienation. He suggested partyless democracy, where:

• Laypersons are involved directly by participating at the local levels of committee.
• Political power is de-centralized and open.
• Issues of education and good citizenship are emphasized to develop responsible citizenship.

Roy was not a man of utopia but a person who believed that democracy should be participatory and ethical to become something significant.

Roy’s Views on Indian Nationalism and Gandhism

Roy was ambivalently committed to Indian nationalism and Mahatma Gandhi. First, he regarded the Congress as a bourgeois group which had interests of the elite. He disapproved of Gandhi and his policies of non-violence and unity of classes as a deflection of oppression of laborers and farmers.

Nevertheless, Roy subsequently recognized the contribution of Ghandi to the mobilization of the masses and the enlargement of political base of the nationalistic movement. He admired the moral leadership of Gandhi but was not so much impressed with his political policy.

The critiques that Roy made in regard to Gandhism consisted of:

• Politics and Religion: He did not believe in blending of religion and politics.
• Non Cooperation Roy viewed as a strategy to regulate mass dissatisfaction and not as a means to liberate it.
• Class Collaboration: He felt that the movement of Gandhism dilutes the revolutionary power of the working class.

Roy’s Major Works

These writings reflect Roy’s intellectual evolution and his commitment to developing a philosophy rooted in reason, ethics, and freedom.

Legacy and Relevance

M.N. Roy’s political thought remains relevant for several reasons:

• Alternative to Marxism: His Radical Humanism offers a democratic and ethical alternative to authoritarian socialism.
• Democratic Theory: Roy’s ideas on partyless democracy and civic participation enrich contemporary debates on governance.
• Human Rights: His emphasis on individual freedom and moral politics aligns with modern human rights discourse.
• Educational Reform: Roy believed that education was key to building a rational and free society.

Roy’s legacy is that of a thinker who refused to be confined by ideology. He constantly revised his views in response to changing realities, making him a dynamic and courageous intellectual.

Relevance to UGC NET Political Science

UGC NET aspirants should focus on:

• Roy’s ideological phases: Revolutionary, Marxist, Humanist
• His critique of Marxism and Gandhism
• Principles of Radical Humanism
• Views on democracy and political reform
• Major works and their themes

Conclusion

The political thought of M.N. Roy is one of intellectually boldness and philosophical innovativeness. Through its formulations on revolutionary activism to the Marxist theory and ultimately to the Radical Humanism, Roy is portrayed to be highly committed to the idea of freedom, reason, and justice. To the UGC NET Political Science candidates, reading Roy should not be reduced solely to memorizing the knowledge within the syllabus there needs to be something inspirational of the way in which they can pursue a more ethical and democratic society.