2024 - Shri Karpoori Thakur | Commemorative Coin

A 2nd commemorative coin for the year 2024 was released to mark the Birth Centenary of Late Shri Karpoori Thakur. 

Karpoori Thakur (24 January 1924 – 17 February 1988) was a distinguished Indian politician hailing from the state of Bihar, widely known as Jan Nayak. He served as the Chief Minister of Bihar on two occasions: first, from December 1970 to June 1971 representing the Socialist Party/Bharatiya Kranti Dal, and later, from December 1977 to April 1979 as a member of the Janata Party.

Born in the Nai caste to Gokul Thakur and Ramdulari Devi in Pitaunjhia (now Karpuri Gram) village in Samastipur District of Bihar, Karpoori Thakur was deeply influenced by nationalistic ideas during his student days. He joined the All India Students Federation and actively participated in the Quit India Movement, for which he spent 26 months in prison.

After India gained independence, Thakur worked as a teacher in his village school. He entered politics and became a member of the Bihar Vidhan Sabha in 1952 from Tajpur constituency as a Socialist Party candidate. Thakur was arrested in 1960 for leading P & T employees during the general strike of the Central Government employees. In 1970, he went on a 28-day fast unto death to advocate for the rights of Telco labourers.

Thakur was an advocate of the Hindi language. As the education minister of Bihar, he removed English as a compulsory subject for the matriculation curriculum. However, criticisms arose, alleging that the quality of English-medium education in the state suffered. Thakur, during his tenure as a minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, later became the first non-Congress socialist Chief Minister of Bihar in 1970. He enforced total prohibition of alcohol in Bihar and played a key role in establishing numerous schools and colleges in the backward areas of the state.

In the 1977 Bihar Legislative Assembly election, the Janata Party, a coalition of various groups, including the Indian National Congress (Organisation), Charan Singh's Bharatiya Lok Dal (BLD), Socialists, and Hindu Nationalists of Jana Sangh, defeated the ruling Indian National Congress. Thakur became Chief Minister for the second time. However, internal tensions within the Janata Party, particularly regarding Thakur's decision to implement reservations for Backward Castes, led to his resignation in April 1979.

Thakur continued his political journey, aligning with the Charan Singh faction after the Janata Party split in 1979. He was elected to the Bihar Vidhan Sabha as a Janata Party (Secular) candidate in 1980 and later as a Bharatiya Lok Dal candidate in 1985 from Sonbarsa constituency. Karpoori Thakur passed away before completing the term.

Known as the champion of the poor, Thakur introduced reservations for backward classes in government jobs in 1978. He served as the President of the Samyukta Socialist Party and is considered a mentor to many current prominent Bihari leaders.

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