Question

How did Raja Rammohan Roy contribute to the movement against the practice of Sati in early 19th-century Bengal?

• A. He organized armed protests in Bengal villages
• B. He issued government ordinances against orthodox leaders
• C. He campaigned using newspapers and engaged in debates
• D. He formed alliances with British Christian missionaries

Answer 1

Answer:

C. He campaigned using newspapers and engaged in debates

Role in Abolition of Sati

• Raja Rammohan Roy, often referred to as the Father of the Indian Renaissance, spearheaded the intellectual campaign against Sati, the ritual burning of widows.
• He utilized his journalistic platform, specifically the Bengali weekly Sambad Kaumudi (founded in 1821), to articulate the inherent cruelty of the practice and to challenge the religious justifications offered by conservative Hindu orthodoxy.
• Roy conducted extensive research into ancient scriptures, including the Vedas and the Upanishads, to demonstrate that Sati had no legitimate sanction in Vedic texts, labeling it a murder rather than a religious duty.
• He engaged in intense public debates and correspondence with the Dharma Sabha, led by Radhakanta Deb, who staunchly defended the practice on traditional grounds.
• His relentless lobbying and factual evidence provided the moral and legal foundation for British administrator Lord William Bentinck to enact the Bengal Sati Regulation, 1829 (Regulation XVII), which officially declared the practice of Sati as illegal and punishable by the criminal courts.
• His efforts represented one of the earliest successful instances of social legislation driven by indigenous reformist movements in colonial India.