Jyotiba Phule

• 12 Apr 2025

Source: TH 

Why in News? 

The birth anniversary of Jyotiba Phule was observed on 11th April, the great social reformer, philosopher and writer. 

What are the Key Facts about Jyotiba Phule? 

• About: He was born on 11th April, 1827, and emerged as a pioneering social reformer who challenged Brahmanical orthodoxy, fought for the rights of Dalits and women, and laid the foundation for India’s social justice movements. 

 

• Key Contributions: 
  • Educational Reforms: Phule and his wife Savitribai opened India’s first girls’ school in 1848 and later started night schools (1855) for workers, farmers, and women in Pune. 
  • Social Reforms:  
    • Opposed Orthodoxy: Phule opposed caste oppression, criticized Brahminical figures like Chiplunkar and Tilak, and supported the British to uplift the oppressed and women. 
    • Anti-Caste Movement: Phule founded Satyashodhak Samaj (1873) to fight caste hierarchy and, in Gulamgiri, compared caste oppression to American slavery. 
      • Deenbandhu, a Marathi weekly newspaper founded by Krishnarao Pandurang Bhalekar in 1877, served as an outlet for Satyashodhak Samaj. 
    • 1857 Revolt Critique: Viewed it as an upper-caste effort to restore Brahmin rule. 
  • Economic Reforms: Advocated compulsory education for lower castes and economic upliftment to dismantle caste hierarchies.  
  • Religious Freedom: In his Satsar (The Essence of Truth), Phule defended the right of Pandita Ramabai to convert to Christianity. 
  • Farming Reforms: In Shetkaryanche Asud (Farmer’s Whip), Jyotirao Phule critiqued the exploitation of Shudra peasantry by a British and Brahmin bureaucratic alliance. 
  • Rationalism: In Sarvajanik Satya Dharma Pustak, he advocated for a just and equitable society where God is seen as a loving and rational creator. It dismantled traditional hierarchies. 
  • Major Publications: Tritiya Ratna (1855), Powada: Chatrapati Shivajiraje Bhosle Yancha (1869), Gulamgiri (1873), Shetkarayacha Aasud (1881). 
• Inspiration: He was influenced by Thomas Paine’s The Rights of Man, and saw education of women and lower castes as key to ending social evils. 
• Recognition: He was bestowed with the title of Mahatma on 11th May, 1888 by a Maharashtrian social activist Vithalrao Krishnaji Vandekar. 

UPSC Civil Services Examination, Previous Year Questions (PYQs) 

Q. Satya Shodhak Samaj organized (2016)

(a) a movement for upliftment of tribals in Bihar 

(b) a temple-entry movement in Gujarat 

(c) an anti-caste movement in Maharashtra 

(d) a peasant movement in Punjab 

Ans: (c)