Bipin Chandra Pal was born in Sylhet (now a part of Bangladesh) in 1858. He is known as the ‘Father of Revolutionary Thought’ in India. He was a social reformer. After visiting various countries, he became aware of the people’s struggle against foreign rule in different parts of the world. He joined the Indian National Congress in 1886.
Contributions of Bipin Chandra Pal
- He was a journalist who spread his nationalist ideas through newspapers such as Bengal Public Opinion, The Tribune and New India. His writings were considered seditious by the British government.
- He was in favour of imparting national education to students. According to him, national education should become the basis of the Indian National Movement.
- He was a social reformer who advocated widow remarriage and female education. He opposed the oppressive caste system.
- Bipin Chandra Pal supported the development of indigenous industries in India.
Achievements of the Assertive Nationalists
- They exposed the hollowness of the belief of British sense of justice and fair play.
- They instilled among the Indians the spirit of active nationalism. They made people realize that the policy of non-violent resistance is essential to drive the British out of the country.
- They expressed their opinion and nationalistic ideas in vernacular languages and thus had a large mass base.
- By promoting the principles of swadeshi and boycott of foreign goods, they promoted the principles of self-reliance.
- They stressed that nothing less than complete independence was acceptable to the people of India.
- Many nationalist schools were set up during the period of assertive nationalism. The National Council of Education was set up in 1906 which later developed into Jadavpur University.
- Swadeshi and boycott movements spread all over India and drew people towards the nationalist movement.
- It was due to the efforts of the assertive nationalists that the partition of Bengal was cancelled in 1911.
Also, Read What Were the Main Methods Adopted by Assertive Nationalists?