J. B. Kripalani

Who was J. B. Kripalani?

Jivatram Bhagwandas Kripalani, popularly known as Acharya Kripalani, was an Indian politician, noted particularly for holding the presidency of the Indian National Congress during the transfer of power in 1947. During the election for the post of the future Prime Minister of India held by the Congress party, he had the second highest number of votes after Sardar Patel. However, on Gandhi's insistence, both Patel and Kripalani backed out to allow Jawahar Lal Nehru to become the first Prime Minister of India.

Kripalani was a Gandhian Socialist, environmentalist, mystic and freedom fighter.

He grew close to Gandhi and became in time one of his most ardent disciples. Kripalani was a familiar figure to generations of dissenters, from the Non-Cooperation Movements of the 1920s through till the Emergency of the 1970s.