Conceptualizing Freedom: M.N. Roy’s Revolutionary Blueprint for India’s Constituent Assembly

 

https://amzn.in/d/aiN4bMd

This book is available at Amazon 

It is about the significant contribution made by the Indian intellectual leader, M.N. Roy, who first proposed the idea of convening a Constituent Assembly in 1928, amid opposition to the Simon Commission. He argued that Indians must independently frame their Constitution, rejecting any Assembly under British control as lacking true sovereignty. 

This book explores Roy's vision of the Constituent Assembly. As a revolutionary, he visualized the CA as a democratic body arising from mass struggle, not a mere legal formality. Over time, he developed this vision through speeches and writings. He also advocated for including Fundamental Rights, as seen in the 1931 Karachi Resolution. For Roy, constitution-making was a transformative act of collective political will, rooted in the people’s active participation. He also authored the draft Indian Constitution in 1944, which was circulated by the Radical Democratic Party.

This work argues that Roy’s conception of the Constituent Assembly differed from his contemporaries and extended far beyond the procedural mechanics of constitution-making. For Roy, constituting the Constituent Assembly was a radical, democratic, and revolutionary project rooted in the active participation of informed, conscientious citizens addressing the immediate concerns of the masses.

This book concluded that if applied today, Roy’s vision could serve as a powerful reminder of the importance of participatory democracy. It underscores the need for civic engagement, transparency, and public accountability in constitutional governance, especially in times when democratic institutions are under stress. His ideas remain relevant as they challenge us to envision constitution-making not as a bureaucratic task but as a continuous, inclusive, democratic, people-driven process.

A quote from this book to demonstrate Roy's idea of the Constituent Assembly:

In his address at Faizpur, Roy elaborated on his idea of the Constituent Assembly, stating, “A Constituent Assembly means nothing less than a challenge to the self-assumed prerogative of the British Government to dictate the political right of Indian people…For us the Constituent Assembly is not only an agitation and propaganda slogan but also a slogan for practical politics. When we raise the slogan, we raise the issue of the capture of power.”

Another quote by MN Roy, as mentioned in this book 

"The idea of the Constituent Assembly means the determination of the Indian people to create an organ of power for asserting their right to self-determination."

MN Roy Memorial Lecture 2025 at Jaipur by Aruna Roy

The program began with MN Roy's quote

"Who is a revolutionary? A revolutionary is one who has got the idea that the world can be remade, made better than it is today; that is was not created by a supernatural power, and therefore could be remade by human efforts. A revolutionary further starts with the knowledge that the world has been remade time and again, and that the process of remaking the world takes place of necessity. "

 

Speaker Aruna Roy

Topic: Radical Humanism and its Relevance in Contemporary Times

The Videos of the MN Roy Memorial Lecture, 2025, are available here 

Part 1: https://youtu.be/o9g0TdFj67I

Part 2: https://youtu.be/s6zK63hZVXY

Part 3: https://youtu.be/BfY7G6iEhX4

Part 4: https://youtu.be/EZQNGdStwaE

Part 5: https://youtu.be/ISpAPkY_B8E

The MN Roy Memorial Lecture for 2025 was delivered by renowned social activist Aruna Roy on March 23, 2025, at Samgrah Sewa Kendra in Jaipur, Rajasthan. In keeping with the legacy of MN Roy—philosopher, political thinker, and the pioneer of Radical Humanism—Aruna Roy’s lecture explored the continued relevance of his ideas in today’s rapidly changing political and social landscape.

Focusing on Radical Humanism, Roy emphasized that in the current era, marked by political polarization, digital surveillance, and the erosion of democratic institutions, Roy’s call for a cultural and political revolution is more relevant than ever. She argued that meaningful change cannot be achieved solely through legal reforms or policy shifts; it also requires a deep transformation in public consciousness. Citizenship, she insisted, must go beyond the act of voting—it must be rooted in critical thinking, participatory governance, and a collective sense of responsibility.

In the face of increasing technological control and the commodification of data, Roy called for reimagining citizenship education. She spoke about the urgent need to equip people—especially youth—with the tools to question authority, understand their rights, and actively engage with democratic processes. She warned that without such awareness, democratic spaces risk being hollowed out, and the promise of equality and justice remains unfulfilled.

Aruna Roy also celebrated the power of grassroots movements in challenging systemic injustice and asserting the rights of the marginalized. Citing landmark struggles like the Right to Information (RTI) movement, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), and the Right to Food campaign, she underscored how sustained people's movements have succeeded in pushing the state toward greater accountability. These movements, rooted in community participation and democratic values, are living embodiments of Radical Humanism in action.

The lecture served not just as a tribute to MN Roy’s intellectual legacy but as a clarion call to reclaim democracy through humanist values, collective action, and moral courage. In Aruna Roy’s words and work, Radical Humanism found a powerful and timely contemporary voice. 

Aruna Roy stands as an enduring inspiration for millions across civil society, particularly for those committed to grassroots activism and working in solidarity with the marginalized. Her lifelong dedication to transparency, accountability, and participatory democracy has empowered countless individuals and communities to assert their rights and demand justice. Through her leadership in transformative movements like the Right to Information campaign and NREGA, she has not only influenced policy but also shaped a powerful model of people-centric governance rooted in ethical politics and radical empathy.

Moreover, her recent book, "The Personal is Political: An Activist Memoir," reflected on the personal dimensions of activism. The memoir offers a nuanced exploration of the intersections between personal choices and public action. Through it, Roy illustrates how intimate, everyday experiences of injustice and resistance are inextricably linked to larger macro-level struggles for democracy, equality, and justice. Her life and work challenge the false binary between the personal and political, showing how the two are fundamentally interconnected.

Quotes by MN Roy

M.N. Roy: A Global Intellectual and Revolutionary Thinker

While working on the fifth volume of Selected Works and Writings of M.N. Roy, I was struck by the depth, clarity, and foresight of his ideas. Roy emerges not merely as an Indian political thinker but as a truly global intellectual and revolutionary, one whose contributions spanned continents and ideologies. His writings reveal a powerful synthesis of Marxist thought, radical humanism, and democratic ideals.

Throughout his career, from his involvement in international communist movements to his later advocacy of reason, individual freedom, and ethical politics, Roy remained committed to the pursuit of truth and the emancipation of human consciousness. 

Many of his quotes reflect a profound concern for the moral and intellectual development of society, making his work as relevant today as it was in his time.

I am adding some of these here

“Who is a revolutionary?

What is a revolution? And who is a revolutionary? A revolutionary is one who has got the idea that the world can be remade, made better than it is today; that is was not created by a supernatural power, and therefore could be remade by human efforts. A revolutionary further starts with the knowledge that the world has been remade time and again, and that the process of remaking the world takes place of necessity. Those Indians who have felt the necessity of remaking our country, and are convinced that the people of India have the power to do so, are revolutionaries. One cannot be a revolutionary, without possessing scientific knowledge. One must have the conviction that not only human beings can remake the world, can make and unmake gods, but ever since the birth of the race have been doing that. Human nature is to set up gods, topple them down, and set up new ones.”

― MN Roy

"Freedom is the supreme value of life, because the urge for freedom is the essence of human existence."

M.N. Roy, Reason, Romanticism and Revolution

"Freedom is not a beautiful castle built in the air of imagination. It rests on the triple pillar of humanism, individualism, and nationalism."

MN Roy

"It is true that the common people are illiterate; they may not be able to govern the country. But at the same time, is it not a fact that, left to themselves, even the most ignorant peasants can manage their affairs better than our present government? The distrust for the ability of the common people to think for themselves and take care of themselves is only a pretext for seizing power in their name and abusing that power to suppress their liberty.”

MN Roy

"Science has given confidence to a growing number of human beings that they possess the power to remake the world."

 MN Roy, Science, Philosophy, and Politics, 1942

We stand for a thorough reconstruction of national life. Our political objective is the establishment of democratic freedom, which will mean effective political power for the people. We strive not only for national freedom, but also for the social emancipation of the toiling masses. Our task is to spread enlightenment, which will dispel obscurantism in the political and spiritual life of the country. We advocate modernism in every walk of life against revivalism. We want the disinherited to come to their own and enjoy the richness and fullness of life on this earth. We want man to be the master of the world and the maker of his destiny.”

MN Roy

"The spirit of inquiry into every physical phenomenon confronting us is a spirit of science."

MN Roy, Science, Philosophy, and Politics, 1940

https://www.academia.edu/127727821/Science_Philosophy_and_Politics 

"… the purpose of all rational human endeavour must be to strive for the removal of social conditions which restrict the unfolding of the potentialities of man. The success of this striving is the measure of freedom attained."

"Human beings starts with science. Baffled in primitive efforts to explain natural phenomenon in physical terms, he fell back on metaphysical assumptions, but in the last analysis, these also are analogous to the hypotheses of the scientific enquiry." 

MN Roy, Science, Philosophy, and Politics, 1940

https://www.academia.edu/127727821/Science_Philosophy_and_Politics 

"The realisation of the possibility of a secular rational morality opens up a new perspective before the modern world… It must be realised that human existence is self-contained and self-sufficient; and that, therefore, man can find in himself the power to work out his destiny, to make a better world to live in."

M.N. Roy, Reason, Romanticism and Revolution
From time to time, the march of history is obstructed by the requirements of the established social order,which sets a limit to human creativeness, mental as well as physical. The urge for progress and freedom,born out of the biological struggle for existence, asserts itself with a renewed vigour to break downthe obstacle. A new social order conducive to a less hampered unfolding of human potentialities isvisualised by men, embodying the liberating ideas and cultural values created in the past. A newphilosophy is born out of the spiritual heritage of mankind to herald a reorganisation of society.The passionate belief in the creativeness and freedom of man is the essence of the romantic view of life. The idea of revolution, therefore, is a romantic idea; at the same time, it is rational because revolutions take place of necessity. Revolution, thus, may appear to be a self-contradictory concept

MN Roy Reason, Romanticism, and Revolution 

"When, as a school boy of fourteen, I began my political life, which may end in nothing, I wanted to be free. Independence, complete and absolute, is a new-fangled idea. The old-fashioned revolutionaries thought in terms of freedom. In those days, we had not read Marx. We did not know about the existence of the proletariat. Still, many spend their lives in jail and went to the gallows. There were no proletariat to propel them. They were not conscious of class struggle. They did not have the dreams of Communism. But they had the human urge to revolt against the intolerable conditions of life. They did not know exactly how to those conditions could be changed. But they tried to change them anyhow. I began my political life with that spirit, and I still draw my inspiration from that spirit than from the three volumes of the Capital or three hundred volumes by the Marxists."

MN Roy, New Orientation, p. 120-121

MN Roy Memorial Lecture 2017 on Free Speech, Nationalism and Sedition

 

12 May 2017 

Speaker: Hon'ble Justice Ajit Prakash Shah

Chair: Hon'ble Justice Jasti Chelameswar 

"There is a spiritual affinity between international Fascism and parochial and revivalist nationalism. That spiritual affinity persuades the average Indian nationalist to believe that the victory of Fascism will not in any way be prejudicial for India’s aspiration to freedom."

MN Roy, 1941

https://www.academia.edu/125515563/MN_Roy_Speech_on_Freedom_and_Fascism_with_background_note

"A nationalism with a revivalist programme cannot naturally appreciate the value of human progress made in the epoch of modern civilization. As a matter of fact, to derive the achievements of modern civilization has been the characteristic feature of orthodox Indian nationalism."

MN Roy, 1941

https://www.academia.edu/125515563/MN_Roy_Speech_on_Freedom_and_Fascism_with_background_note

M.N. Roy, writing in 1941, astutely observed the ideological kinship between international Fascism and parochial, revivalist nationalism. He argued that this “spiritual affinity” led many Indian nationalists of the time to believe—mistakenly—that the rise of Fascism posed no threat to India's quest for independence. This delusion, he warned, stemmed from a shared hostility to modern democratic values and rational progress.

Roy further noted that a nationalism grounded in revivalist sentiment was ill-equipped to recognize or value the advancements of modern civilization. In fact, he argued, orthodox Indian nationalism often made a point of rejecting the very foundations of modernity—reason, individual liberty, and human rights—in favor of a glorified, mythic past.

These reflections remain strikingly relevant today.

In 2017, former Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, Justice A.P. Shah, invoked M.N. Roy’s critique during his MN Roy Memorial Lecture titled "Free Speech, Nationalism & Sedition," delivered on April 19 in New Delhi. Justice Shah highlighted the perils of narrow, exclusionary nationalism—echoing Roy’s concern that such ideologies often pave the way for authoritarianism rather than genuine freedom.

Justice Shah also examined the outdated and colonial nature of India’s sedition law, which still relies on the 1870 definition inherited from British rule. Contrasting India’s continued enforcement of sedition statutes with the UK’s repeal of its own sedition laws, he pointed out how many democracies have moved toward abolishing or substantially reforming such laws, recognizing them as incompatible with free expression in a modern, democratic society.

Roy’s warnings from 1941 and Justice Shah’s reflections in 2017 converge on a vital point: freedom and democracy cannot flourish under the shadow of dogmatic nationalism and legal repression. If India is to remain true to the spirit of its constitutional ideals, it must embrace progress, pluralism, and the free contestation of ideas, not a regression into authoritarian nostalgia.

The text of the speech is available here http://sacw.net/article13222.html