Raja Ram Mohan Roy

• According to Ramachandra Guha, Roy was unquestionably the first person in South Asia to seriously engage with challenges posed by modernity to traditional social structures and ways of being. He was also one of the first Indians whose thought and practice were not circumscribed by constraints of kin, caste and religion.
• He was simultaneously interested in religion, politics, law, jurisprudence, commerce and agrarian enterprise, Constitutions and civic rights, unjust treatment of women and appalling condition of Indian poor.
• Given the title of ‘Raja’ by Mughal emperor Akbar II. 

Socio-Religious Reforms

• Roy’s first published work, Tuhfat-ul-Muwahhiddin (a gift to deists/monotheism) published in 1803 exposed irrational religious beliefs and corrupt practices of Hindus in revelations, prophets, miracles etc.
• Atmiya Sabha: In 1814, he started Atmiya Sabha (Society of Friends), to nurture philosophical discussions on the monotheism in Vedanta and to campaign against idolatry, casteism, child marriage and other social ills. Atmiya Sabha would make way for Brahmo Sabha in 1828, set up with Debendranath Tagore, Rabindranath Tagore’s father.
• Education: In 1817, he collaborated with Scottish philanthropist David Hare to set up Hindu College (now, Presidency University). 
• He followed it up with Anglo-Hindu School in 1822.
• In 1825, he established Vedanta College where courses in both Indian learning and Western social and physical sciences were offered.
• In 1830, assisted Alexander Duff to set up General Assembly’s Institution, which later became Scottish Church College.
• Abolition of Sati: His relentless advocacy alongside contemporaries such as Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar led to abolition of Sati under Governor General ship of William Bentinck in 1829. He characterised sati as a violation of every humane and social feeling and as symptomatic of the moral debasement of a race. He attacked child marriage, illiteracy of women and the degraded state of widows and demanded the right of inheritance and property for women petitioned freedom of the press (in 1829 and 1830).

Brahmo Samaj

• Roy founded Brahmo Sabha in 1828, later renamed Brahmo Samaj.
• Aim: Worship of eternal God; was against priesthood, rituals and sacrifices & believed in Unity of all religions. It focused on prayers, meditation and reading of scriptures. 
• Brahmo Samaj was the first intellectual reform movement in modern India. It led to emergence of rationalism & enlightenment in India and indirectly laid foundations of nationalist movement.
• Brahmo Samaj split into two in 1866 (i) Brahmo Samaj of India led by Keshub Chandra Sen (ii) Adi Brahmo Samaj led by Debendranath Tagore.

Economic And Political Reforms

• Civil liberties: Roy was impressed and admired the British system of constitutional government for the civil liberties it gave to the people. 
• Press freedom: Through his writings and activities, he supported a free press in India & petitioned for freedom of the press (in 1829 and 1830).  When press censorship was relaxed by Lord Hastings in 1819, he founded three journals: (i) Brahmanical Magazine (1821) (ii) Samvad Kaumudi (1821), a Bengali Weekly (iii) Mirat-ul-Akbar, a Persian weekly.
• Taxation reforms: Roy condemned oppressive practices of Bengali zamindars and demanded fixation of minimum rents & demanded abolition of taxes on tax-free lands. Called for reduction of export duties on Indian goods abroad and abolition of East India Company’s trading rights.
• Administrative reforms: Demanded Indianisation of superior services and separation of the executive from the judiciary. He demanded equality between Indians and Europeans.

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