India celebrated the 150th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (1875–1950). Sardar Patel played a pivotal role in uniting the nation and paving the way for a stable administrative system in India. He is regarded as a great freedom fighter, a symbol of India’s unity, a visionary with a pragmatic mindset, and a crisis manager for modern India.
The key points of his legacy are as follows:
- A Great Freedom Fighter: The Kheda Satyagrah and Non-Cooperation Movement
Patel began his career as a barrister in Godhra, Borsad, and Anand in the Bombay Presidency. Later, he completed a 36-month law course at the Middle Temple in London. Upon returning from England, he moved to Ahmedabad, where he soon became a prominent barrister, known for his skillful and formidable arguments. However, destiny had a greater role in store for him; he first came into contact with Mahatma Gandhi during the Gujarat Political Conference held in Godhra in October 1917. Patel was chosen as the second-in-command to Gandhi in organizing the Kheda Satyagraha, as Gandhi was occupied with pressing tasks in Champaran and elsewhere. Farmers in Kheda were unable to pay the heavy taxes imposed by the British due to crop failure and a plague epidemic. Patel toured villages, encouraging farmers to withhold land revenue payments. Following negotiations with Patel, the authorities agreed not only to suspend tax collection for a year but also to reduce the tax rates.
Following the success in Kheda, Patel emerged as a prominent leader in the Bombay Presidency during Gandhiji’s call for the Non-Cooperation Movement in 1920. During this movement, Patel gave up Western clothing and adopted Khadi; he recruited over 300,000 volunteers and raised a fund of ₹1.5 million for the movement. In 1923, the British government banned the hoisting of the Indian flag in public places. To protest this ban, Patel organized several processions in Nagpur with the help of volunteers. Eventually, he reached an agreement with the government that permitted the hoisting of the Indian flag in public spaces. This event is known as the ‘Flag Satyagraha’.
2. Bardoli Satyagraha: The Rise of ‘Sardar’
Patel’s capabilities as an exceptional organizer and a fearless leader came to the fore when he organized the Bardoli Satyagraha in Gujarat in 1928. This Satyagraha was launched by farmers to protest against an increase in land revenue amidst a severe drought. After four months of intense protest, Patel secured an agreement with the government under which the hike in land revenue was withdrawn, and the confiscated land and property were returned to the farmers.
It was during the Bardoli Satyagraha that the women of Bardoli, recognizing his leadership qualities, informally bestowed upon him the title of ‘Sardar’.
During this period, Patel was elected President of the Congress for its 1931 Karachi session; under his able guidance and leadership, the Congress passed a resolution on fundamental rights and civil liberties. This resolution included several progressive measures, such as establishing a secular nation in India, providing for a minimum wage for workers, and abolishing untouchability.
3. Quit India Movement and Patel
During the Quit India Movement, Sardar Patel once again demonstrated his skill in organizing mass movements. He garnered public support through speeches across the country, urging people to withhold taxes, participate in large-scale protests, and bring public services to a halt. The speech he delivered on August 7, 1942, at Gowalia Tank in Bombay before a crowd of over a hundred thousand people had a profound impact on Indian nationalists:
“The objective this time is to liberate India before the Japanese arrive, and if they do come, to be prepared to fight them… This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” Patel was arrested on August 9, 1942, and imprisoned in Ahmednagar along with other Congress leaders. He was released in June 1945.
4. Integration of Princely States
The next formidable task was integrating the 562 princely states into the Indian Union. These states were given the option to join either India or Pakistan, or to remain independent. Patel was once again chosen for this challenging task. With his diplomatic acumen and firm resolve, he tackled this challenge in a remarkably short time. He persuaded the rulers of the princely states through his negotiating skills and employed a ‘carrot and stick’ approach to get them to sign the ‘Instrument of Accession’ and join the Indian Union.
Patel achieved tremendous success in his mission; by the time India gained independence on August 15, 1947, all but three princely states had joined India. The remaining three states—Junagadh, Jammu & Kashmir, and Hyderabad—joined later, and Patel once again ensured their integration into India.
5. Vision for the Modern Indian Civil Service
He understood the pivotal role of the civil service in the country’s administration—not merely in maintaining law and order, but also in running the institutions that hold society together. He played a crucial role in establishing the All India Services. On October 10, 1949, Patel advocated for the All India Services in the Constituent Assembly, stating that there was “no alternative to this administrative system” for the sake of the country’s unity.
He is regarded as the father of the All India Services.
Patel envisioned a civil service that was honest, impartial, and dedicated to serving the people. In a speech delivered on April 21, 1947, he described the civil services as the “steel frame” of India. He told Indian civil servants, “A civil servant cannot and should not participate in politics, nor should he get involved in communal strife. Deviating from the right path in either of these matters amounts to degrading public service and diminishing its dignity.”
It is for this reason that Civil Services Day is observed in India every year on April 21.
He is remembered as the “Patron Saint” of India’s civil services.
The day after his death, more than 1,500 officers from India’s civil and police services gathered at Patel’s residence in Delhi to mourn his passing and pledged to serve India with “complete loyalty and unflagging zeal.” This stands as one of the rarest tributes ever paid to any Indian leader in the post-independence era.
Patel’s address to Indian Civil Servants, 21 April, 1947. Image Courtesy Oliveboard
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