Karsandas Mulji – The Reformist Journalist

GS I-History

Karsandas Mulji has recently gained attention due to the release of the biopic Maharaj.

Early Life and Education

• Born in 1832 in Bombay, into a Gujarati Vaishnav family.
• A prominent member of the Gujarati Gnan-prasarak Mandali (Gujarati Society for the Spread of Knowledge), established by students of Elphinstone College.
• Studied at Elphinstone College, where he was classmates with notable reformists like poet Narmad and educationist Mahipatram Neelkanth.
• Contributed writings to Rast Goftar and co-founded Streebodh, a women’s magazine launched in 1857.
• Briefly ran a weekly publication called Mumbainu Bajar (The Bombay Market).
• Served as Assistant Superintendent of Rajkot State, during which he published Vignanvilas, a monthly journal focused on science and industry.
• Rast Goftar was an Anglo-Gujarati newspaper started by Dadabhai Naoroji in 1851.

Challenges and Social Struggles

• His advocacy for widow remarriage led to his expulsion from his family and excommunication from his caste after he traveled overseas.
• Later found employment at a charitable school established by Sheth Gokaldas Tejpal.

Fight Against Exploitation

• In 1855, he launched Satyaprakash with financial backing from progressive individuals.
• Despite being a Vaishnav himself, he openly criticized the exploitation of female devotees by Vaishnav priests.
• His relentless activism led to the landmark Maharaj Libel Case, securing his legacy as a fearless journalist and reformer.
• He passed away in 1871.

Background: The Jivanlalji Maharaj Controversy

• Jivanlalji Maharaj, a Vaishnav priest, refused to appear in Bombay High Court in a case initiated by Dayal Motiram in 1858.
• He forced Vaishnav followers to accept three conditions:
  1. No follower could write against him.
  2. No follower could take him to court.
  3. If a lawsuit was filed, devotees would bear all legal costs and ensure he never appeared in court.
• Karsandas denounced this agreement in Satyaprakash, calling it gulami-khat (agreement of slavery).
• As discontent grew, Jivanlalji fled Bombay, while another young priest, Jadunath Maharaj, attempted to restore the sect’s reputation through liberal views.
• The debate eventually shifted toward the divine origins of scriptures, leaving the controversy unresolved.

The Maharaj Libel Case (1862)

• Narmad, in Satyaprakash, challenged Vaishnavite priests’ unethical practices.
• His article, Hinduono Asal Dharma ane Haalna Pakhandi Mato (The Original Religion of Hindus and Present-Day Hypocrisies), alleged that priests engaged in sexual misconduct with female devotees.
• The article also accused Gokulnath, the grandson of Vallabhacharya (founder of the Pushtimarg sect of Vaishnavism), of endorsing immorality.
• This led to one of the most significant legal battles of the 19th century, compared to the trial of Warren Hastings.
• Jadunath Maharaj filed a libel suit against Karsandas Mulji and the newspaper’s publisher, Nanabhai Ranina.
• The court ruling favored Karsandas, affirming that all individuals, including religious figures, are equal before the law.
• The judgment rejected the state’s role as “gaubhraman pratipa” (protector of cows and Brahmins), marking a significant moment in India’s legal history.