Yashpal

Yashpal

Not to be confused with Yash Pal (Scientist)

Yashpal (यशपाल) (December 3, 1903–December 26, 1976) was a Hindi author renowned for झूटा सच Jhutha Sach (The False Truth, 1958–1960), which is regarded as one of the best Hindi novels ever written. He won the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel Meri Teri Uski Baat in 1976.

He served as an editor of Viplav for many years. His works have been translated into many languages.

Yashpal, supposedly fought a revolutionary fighting for India's freedom, was twenty-eight years old when he was caught, tried and sentenced to fourteen years of hard labour. However, his role as a revolutionary has been questioned by some people, particularly by Dharmendra Gaur, a retired CID officer from pre-independence British Intelligence. Gaur even went to the extent of naming Yashpal as one of the two traitors from HSRA, who betrayed Chandrashekhar Azad, the other one being Virbhadra Tiwari. Gaur obtained copies of some old secret British documents of C.I.D. Special Branch, Lucknow, on whom he got his hands at C.I.D. HQ, Number 1, currently Gokhle Road, Lucknow. He has even reproduced them in his book titled "Chandrashekhar Azad aur unke do gaddar saathi". The documents give an impression that Yashpal was indeed working as a double agent.

He had led two lives, and in each of them had made important contributions to his country. His first life was dedicated to her freedom, his later life to her literature. As India celebrates the centenary of his birth (1903), scholars and public alike are re-evaluating his life and work in the light of changing social and political values.