MEMORIES: The Ones That Have Lasted
(A political autobiography)
My longtime associate, Comrade Saroj Mukherjee, had requested me to write about my political experiences in Bengali. After giving it a long thought, I had decided to do so and Ganashakti serialised them which were later compiled as a book “Janaganer Sangey” (”With the People”).I have had to face many complex problems during my career which centred wholly on the liberation of the people at large. I have seen the people rise in victory as much as I have been witness to their defeat at times. These memories themselves imbibe a sense of achievement. This new book has been updated since then. If my experiences are of any help to all those who are striving to make this world a better place to live in, then I will consider my efforts a success.
Finally, I would like to repeat what I have always believed in: it is man, and man alone, who creates history. Despite the many crests and thrusts, the people will finally emerge victorious and gain freedom in a classless, society free from exploitation of any form.
Jyoti Basu
January 22, 1998
Calcutta
CHILDHOOD
April 2, 2009 ·
Time has travelled. It’s been over 50 years that I have been in active politics. When I first stepped on the portals of politics, the country’s struggle for independence had entered a cervical stage; our goal, at that point of time, was not only achieving freedom but how to handle it later. Building a new nation was important. But the ultimate task was to ensure the liberation of the poor. We thought of ourselves as a partner in the fight for liberation of the global labour force. Looking back, I realise the vast changes in perception over the years; both positive and negative. But the original problem has remained. In our country, the rule of the proletariat continues to elude us.Thoughts-and memories along with them- come rushing. I have put pen to paper to document only those which have braved the ravages of time. Memories which have lasted. It would be quite impossible to write about and mention all those who I have been close to. All I can say is that I have been with the people of this country and, in the process, been witness to many twists and turns of history. The people – the common man – have been my inspiration. It is indeed difficult to write about the days gone by; memories don’t paint the canvas chronologically any longer. Above all, there is always this lurking compulsion to talk about oneself. I have always been hesitant about that.
My Childhood
I was born on July 8, 1914 at a house on Calcutta’s Harrision Road. The name of that Street has since been changed to Mahatma Gandhi Road. My father – as did my immediate family on his side – stayed in Dhubli, Assam. My grandfather used to work there; and that was the reason for our link the with Assam. My two uncles – elder to my father – were into law. There was not much of politics in my family. Both my parents hailed from what is now called Bangladesh. The village was Baradi in Dhaka district. My mother came from an upper middle-class family; they were well to do landowners. Mother was the only girl-child in the family; on the other hand, my father, Nishikanta Basu, came from a relatively lower middle class background, having got his medical degree from the Dibrugarh Medical College. After practising for sometime in Dhaka, he left for higher studies in the US and stayed on for six years. He returned with a foreign degree after working there for some time. While he was there, he had arranged for the studies of a younger brother – my uncle – there too. My uncle became an engineer and returned to the country after 13 years.
As I have said earlier, politics was not the hot subject in our household; a certain sense of sympathy and respect for the revolutionaries of those days were, however, not missing though underplayed. Mother used to tell us that a revolutionary, Madanmohun Bhowmick, had taken shelter in our Bardi residence for quite some time. He used to stay at Dhumni in Dhaka district. He joined the Anushilan Samity in 1905; he was first arrested in 1913 when he was a final year student at the Dhaka Medical School. But the case was withdrawn for lack of evidence. It was after this that he went underground. In 1914, he was rearrested – a sick man then – in the Second Barishal Plot case and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. He was tortured mercilessly during his incarceration at the Andaman Islands. But even after release, he continued to maintain links with revolutionaries, dying in 1955.
During his underground days in 1913-14, Bhowmick used to frequent our residence often. He was always armed. He used to keep these arms for safekeeping in our residence at times. Once, there was a police raid; my mother had then hid the weapon in her saree. Incidentally, she was as much a mother to him; he used to even call her ‘Ma’.
One of my elder uncles, Nalinikanta Basu, rose from a munsif to become a judge of the high court; we are told he was the first in the courts to set such an example of distinction. Another uncle, younger to my father, was with the Railways.
Father had by then started practising in Calcutta. With time, his patients grew in number and his name spread. We used to stay opposite the Hindusthan Buildings where now stands the Elite Cinema in Central Calcutta. It was a rented house; the landlord was Dr. Naliniranjan Sarkar who was also the owner of Hindusthan Insurance. Father’s chamber of practice was where now is the Aminia Restaurant. We spent long years in the Hindusthan Building area.
When I was all of six years, I was admitted to the Loreto School where my sister, eight years my senior, also studied. My cousin sister was also there. My father was, for all practical purposes, a father-figure to a huge family. The families of my uncle stayed in the US and another uncle used to stay with us. Upon his return from the US, father learnt that his brother, his immediate elder, had passed away. That family was taken care of. This uncle had been a lawyer.
The curriculum at Loreto Kindergarten was for four years; it came down to three with a double promotion. The rules prohibited boys from studying in the school from the First standard; it was entirely meant for girl students then onwards. Father wanted to get me admitted to the Saint Xavier’s School, but by then, admissions for that session had been completed. I had to be waitlisted for the next year. Father now zeroed in on Loreto of Middleton Road but even there, we drew a blank since the Mother-in-charge told us that boys were not allowed after kindergarten there too. Back to my old school at the Loreto in Dharamtolla the Mother-in-charge realised the predicament and allowed me in. In that First Standard, I was the only boy, the rest were girls. Father reasoned that there was no point in losing out on one academic year. And so, Loreto it had to be.
I entered the second standard of Saint Xaviers the next year. It was at that time that Dr. Naliniranjan Sarkar told my father that there was some vacant land belonging to the Hindusthan Insurance at Hindusthan Park. He was ready to part with it if Father was willing to buy and set up house there. Around two bighas were bought; my elder uncle kept half of it. Father’s share was slightly less than a bigha. The entire area those days was surrounded with thick growth, almost resembling a jungle. There were no roads. We had to get down from the car far ahead. There were paddy fields, tall palm trees and stray ponds. If memory serves, our house was built in 1924; we shifted when new roads were coming up within a year. Tram tracks were being laid. The surroundings were changing. I was 10 years old. Talk of revolutionaries and the fight for independence was in the air. Father was treating a revolutionary who had been shot and wounded. Those were part of my childhood thrills.
I passed the Senior Cambridge (Ninth Standard) from Saint Xavier’s; the Intermediate was also done from that college. Time was passing fast. Then it was English (Honours) from the presidency College. It was during my Intermediate and Graduation days that I familiarised myself with the Bengali language since, there was not much scope to do so earlier.
I was in the Eight Standard of Saint Xavier’s in 1930-31. Entire Bengal was being swept by the revolutionary favour of the freedom struggle. News had filtered that revolutionaries had stormed the Chittagong Armoury. British subjects were being murdered as a counteroffensive against the torture inflicted on the freedom-fighters. But it was an unequal fight; on the one hand, was the armed might of the British Royalty and on the other, the helpless, insecure Indian revolutionary with love for the country and a fierce desire to bring freedom at any cost was his only weapon. This was not a stray wave; it was crystallising itself into a major movement from which it was impossible to stay untouched. I do not remember the exact date now but the year was 1930 and Gandhiji had begun a fast. I felt my heart heavy; I did not want to go to school. Father did not object. I accompanied him to his chamber.
It was in the same year that we heard that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was to address a meeting at the Ochtorloney Monument (now Sahid Minar) grounds. A cousin and I decided to go. We were not into “Khaddar” those days but somehow, emotion got the better of us and we went for the homespun cloth. The entire area resembled a battlefield. There were mounted policemen, ordinary constables and sergeants in uniform. When the sergeants gave chase, we decided we would not run for safety; naturally, as we started walking away in the face of the onslaught, a few canes fell on our backs. But we did not flee; that would show that we were scared. We walked briskly to Father’s chamber. One of our cousins had been with Jaiprakash in the US; he had returned as a dentist. We did not utter a word to anybody, not even to this cousin. We only asked Mother to apply some home-made lime-turmeric paste on the bruises. Perhaps that was the first public protest of sorts against imperialism as far as we were concerned.
During my greenhorn days, a relative Indusudha Ghosh, a student of Shantiniketan’s painter Acharya Nandalal Bose, was a major exception to the prevalent norms of those times. She used to frequent our residence often; she was Putu-di’s (Suhashini Ganguly’s) friend; Indu-di was also related to Bengal Lamps Kiron Roy. It was Roy who initiated Indu-di to the basic tenets of the revolutionary struggle. Later, she joined the Communist movement. After the split in the party, she joined the CPI(M). She was also the principal of the Nari Shiksha Mandir for a long time.
The motherland, in ferment, the indomitable wish of a nation to be free from the shackles of the inhuman British monarchy, father’s silent but strong sympathy for the Swadeshis, Indu-di ….. all these seemed to me at that time to flash a distant signal as to what the future would hold for me. But nothing had crystallised then.
My widowed aunt, her three sons and two daughters used to stay with us. This aunt of mine was sympathetic towards the Swadeshis. People like Kiron Roy and Bijoy Modak used to visit her. They used to study at the Jadavpur Technical Engineering School. I observed them but did not quite get the feel of things then.
My, uncle Nalinikanta Basu, had retired as a judge from the high court. He had been suffering from diabetes. At that time, a special tribunal had been set up to go into the Mechuabazar bomb case. The principal accused was Niranjan-da (Niranjan Sen) and others. My uncle was asked to head the tribunal. Father was opposed to the proposal. His thesis was simple; there was no need to get involved in such affairs and uncle was not keeping good health anyway. But the chief secretary himself came over to our house and got uncle’s assent.
Though we did not have nay clear idea about what was happening around us, one feature stood out; we did not like it at all. We were young, but even at that stage, we realised that the revolutionaries were dedicated souls who were ready for the ultimate sacrifice. There may not have been too many Bengali families directly linked with the struggle, but deep inside, all of us harboured a deep love and total respect for the cause and these men. Anyway, my uncle did take up the job. The police used to confiscate “forbidden” books during raids. These books were usually kept lined on my uncle’s work desk. When he went to court, we used to take a peep at these books and return them to their old order before he returned. My initiation and subsequent alliance with so-called anarchist literature were made thus.
Sarat Chandra Chatterjee’s “Pather Dabi” was published in August 1926. It was banned immediately thereafter during September-October. But by then, I had read the book, albeit behind closed doors. My cousins had a keen interest in these affairs. One of them was Prabitra Kumar Basu. He used to stay in London at one point of time. He was very involved in the affairs of the nation. But he did not live to see Independence. Bijoy Modak and some others had kept a revolver with Pabitra for safe going. They thought our house was safe enough since uncle happened to be the judge of the special tribunal. Pabitra used to cover the revolver in a cloth and keep it in a box. It was a routine of seeing him take the wrapped revolver to the bath room everyday; perhaps he had been told to clean the weapon on a regular basis. Pabitrada’s younger brother once caught him in the act. He was very curious. Once Pabitrada had gone out of Calcutta, his brother opened the box and saw the revolver. The entire family came to know about it immediately. Uncle was most embarrassed. He used to go for a morning walk everyday, accompanied by security guards and my father. He took the easy way out; he consigned the revolver to a pond. As soon as Pabitrada was back, he was flooded with questions. He got very angry and countered; “Why did you have to open that box?” But the matter rested there since nobody was keen to make an issue of it. Later we learnt the revolver had indeed been given by Bijoy Modak and his associates. By that time an armed police camp had been set up outside uncle’s house. But we were getting more and more zealous; it was as if we had now thrown ourselves fully into the Independence Movement. We were never reconciled to the fact that uncle had accepted the offer to become a judge of the tribunal, which was trying the nationalists. One of my cousins, Debapriya Basu, and I secretly drafted a letter in English. We typed it ourselves. It went somewhat like this : “You have done great injustice. You have let down Bengalis being a Bengali yourself by siding with those who are against the Patriots. This is entirely wrong. Your life will be in danger.” The day uncle received the letter, word spread around. The family was in the middle of a meal and my parents seemed to be quite disturbed. We could hear Father speak in a low tone to Mother, “I had asked him not to take up the offer. But he did not pay any heed to me. And here comes this letter and his life is in danger.”
Security at the residence was increased; the morning walk had to stop too. Both father and uncle loved to go to the market everyday together. That was now taboo. But we were enjoying every minute of it.
My brother’s marriage was arranged when he were at Hindusthan Park. The bride was Raja Presannadeb Raiket’s daughter. Both my parents had reservations about the match; some close relatives has said that the families would be imcompatible because of caste considerations. We were dumb-founded. It struck us that the question of caste could crop up like this suddenly. We laughed it away. The marriage was solemnised.
We had come across revolutionaries other than the militant types also. We used to live on the first floor at Hinduathan building; a floor above was Nalini Ranjan Sirkar. Chittaranjan Das used to frequent him at times. I have seen him myself. He used to come to father also for subscriptions.
Back to Militant struggle. The Chittagong Armoury raid had already taken place in 1930. When the news reached Saint Xaviers School, there was disbelief among all round. No body could imagine that Bengalis could actually carry out a mission like this. But when it was established as a fact, the priests at Saint Xavier’s issued a leaflet condemning the raid. I raised my voice in protest. The non-Bengalis, particularly the Anglo Indians, friends did not like this at all. In fact, we had a running battle. My stand was simple; the raid had been carried on for the good of the nation. Why should the school authorities issue a leaflet like this?
IN LONDON
April 2, 2009
I graduated from the Arts Faculty with Honours from the Presidency College in 1935. It had already been decided that I would go to the U.K. and return as a barrister. I did not oppose the idea either. Father suggested that since I was going to the U.K. then I might as well appear for the ICS also. I set out for the U.K. after my graduation results were out in 1935; I reached the shores for the Kingdom by the end of the year. Little did I realize that something great was going to happen to me; a realization which went far beyond studying law.
I reached London. I was all set to become a barrister. Following father’s advice, I appeared for the ICS examination the next year but could not make it. My law studies continued.
I was initiated to international politics in London. Entire Europe was restive; Fascist Mussolini had wrested power in Italy. In 1922, within a year of my reaching London, he was in control of Abyssinnia too. In Germany, Hitler, after going control of power, was casting lustful eyes at the entire world. On the other hand, the Socialist Soviet Russia had been trying to align its economic policies with Fascism. Japan had already attacked China.
Politics was a hot topic of discussion at all the Universities in England. Professor Harold Laski was drawing huge crowds with his anti-Fascist lectures. I had also become one with the progressive forces. I was reading a lot on Fascism. We Indian students were at the some time trying to generate public opinion on the movement back home. Krishna Menon was the leader of India League. In later Independent India, was a minister in Nehru’s cabinet for a long time. It was under his leadership that we took to our movement to London. Later my personal relationship with him deepened. All the Indian students co-operated with him without reservations.
In 1936, Bhupesh Gupta came to study in London. With he was lodged in Behrampur Jail, he had graduated in arts; he was that intelligent. He also arrived in London to study law.
It was at a house in London that I met Bhupesh, his enthusiasm was contagious. Bhupesh had brought along with him a letter written to the Great Britain Communist Party leadership. Snehangshu Acharya was also present in London at that time. We met Britain’s top Communist leaders Harry Polit, Rajani Palme Dutt, Ben Bradley and others. The British Communist leadership actively helped the India League and the Indian Students.
I would like to mention here the role of two leaders of the British Communist Party; Bradley and Michele Karrit Bradley had even come to India to help the Communist movement here. He had a significant involvement in the Labour Movement too. Though he was an Englishman, he had to spend some time in India jails for his involvement in the Meerut conspiracy case. We can never forget or ignore the role of this Englishman in India’s Freedom struggle and the spread of socialism here. Karrit, on the other hand, was a top Imperial Civil Service Officer. He was even secretary to the Governor of undivided Bengal for sometimes. Once his political inclinations became public, he resigned. Some idea about his contribution to the Indian Communist Movement can be gauged from his book, ‘ Mole in the Crown’. We received all out support from leaders like these.
Hiren Mukherjee, Sajjab Zahir, Dr. Z.A. Ahmed and Niharendu Dutta Majumdar had left Britain for India in the meantime. Their absence was felt by us dearly; in fact, our enthusiasm had ebbed somewhat. We realized with the void had to be filled. Indian students at London, Cambridge and Oxford formed their own Communist groups. The British leadership advised us not to hold public meetings because the British Raj in India had already banned the Communist Party. We started attending Marxist Study circles. Our teachers were Harry Pollit, Rajani Palma Dutt, Clemens Dutt and Bradley. The entire world was by then in a tizzy. There was a civil war in Spain; all progressive forces were coming together against the dictatorial rule of Franco. An International Brigade had been set up to fight this Fascist attitude. Ralph Fox, Chirstopher Codwell and other eminent communist intellectuals had started going to Spain. Incidentally ‘For whom The Bell Toll’s by Ernest Hemingway was based on this struggle. I was getting more and more involved; deep inside; I would realize everything changing. Marxist literature and the contemporay political happenings of the world were fast pulling me into the mainstream of politics.
‘LONDON MAJLISH’
April 2, 2009 · No Comments
At this point of time, me Indian Student formed the London Majlish. I was its first editor. My job was to create public opinion for India’s cause and collect subscriptions.
The Indian Students Federation in Britain was re-established and its mouthpiece with the Indian Students and Socialism started publication.
I have already referred to the formation of Communist groups in the various Universities in England. I cannot quite recollect the names of all the members; from what I can, those of Rajani Patel, P.N. Haksar, Mohan Kumar Mangalam, Indrajit Gupta, Renu Chakraborty, M.K. Krishnan, Parbati Krishnan (nee Mangalam), Nikhil Chakraborty and Arun Bose spring to mind immediately. These groups used to meet at joint conferences regularly. Feroze Gandhi was an active leader of the India League. He was also involved in the work of the London Majlis He made it a point to attend every meeting of the Students Federation. Snehangshu used to come too. Bhupesh and Snehangshu had already become friends earlier. One of the most important priorities of the Majlis was to host receptions for Indian Nationalist Leaders who came to London. Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhas Chandra Bose, Vijaya Laxmi Pandit, Congress Socialist Party Leader, Yushuf Meher Ali had all been guests.
It was Krishna Menon who introduced me to Nehru. He took me to the place where Nehru used to stay in London. I remember telling Nehru ‘ I believe in Socialism’. Nehru had replied, ‘ Our first task is to earn freedom for India. Do you people agree with this? I replied in the affirmative and invited him to a reception function. Nehru was one of those Indian leaders who I respected during my stay in London. He had rejected proposals to meet Fascist leaders like Hitler and Mussolini. Also the fact that he had raised us voice against Franco enthused us a lot. We were also very proud of Mrs. Vijaya Laxmi Pandit. It was really heartening and a fact to be proud of that Indian women leaders like Sarojini Naidu had turned to active politics when the world was rumbling with Hitler’s diktat that a women’s place was only in the kitchen.
It was during our student life in London that some of us decided for sure that once back in India, we would devote ourselves to the Communist Party.
A top Congress leader and excellent orator, Bhula Bhai Desai was given a reception in London, though we considered him to be a representative of the bourgeoisie class. The India Domicile Rule was already enforced since 1935 and in 1937, the Congress had formed governments in most of the states of India after elections. Farmers had been fired upon; we raised this issue with Desai. To this, he only replied, ‘ The farmers support only the Congress’.
We considered Subhash Chandra Bose to be a left list. We sent him a Congratulatory note after he became the President of the Congress at the Tripura Conference in 1939. It was also decided that a meeting would be held in London. We invited Feroze Gandhi who said that though he would be present at the meeting, he would not make any speech. He kept his word. There were two speakers on that day; N.K. Krishnan and I. It was after this meeting that the note was sent to Bose.
While we were still there, Bose had come to London once. A full interview of CPGB leader, Rajani Palm Dutt was published in the daily worker, a mouth piece of the British Communist Party, the next day.
Meetings of rallies were held every year at London’s Trafalgar Square on January 26. Indira Gandhi used to come for these meetings.
Before morning on to other subjects, there are some incidents relating to my stay in London, which need mention. We started a literacy campaign in East London which was populated largely by Indian sailors. The British Communist Party lent a helping hand in this too.
The civil war was or in Spain. The famous Communist leader of Spain, Ms. Dolors Ebaruri (la Pasionara) had gone to France to generate public opinion and help for the civilian government in her country. A reception was organized for her in Paris where Indian leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Mohit Banerjee and Feroze Gandhi were present. But the French government would not allow here to speak on the occasion. It was at this meeting that Nehru presented a bouquet of red roses to the Spanish leader. This incident caught the imagination of the people and public opinion was veered against the French Government.
The Indian scientist, Dr. Biresh Guha, who had Communist leanings came over to London and met Rajani Palme Dutt and other leaders of the CPGB. I met him too.
Meetings of some party or the other were routine at London’s Hanistead Health area, where Karl Marx had spent a long time of his life. While a rally of the Fascist Party was on in the area one day, and India was being bandied around, Bhupesh and I could not but go upto the speaker and tell him that while he had every right to talk about his politics, there was no reason why he should be dragging our country into it. A couple of hundreds of people supported us. The police cautioned as that while we could pose questions, we would not possibly disrupt the meeting. The meeting all the same, was aborted. Of all the acquaintances in London, I specifically remember two people. One was Promod Sengupta, who was a party member. We used to meet him often. He was at odds with the British Communist Party over certain issues. The CPGB advised him to return to India and continue party work.
The second was Dr. Sasadhar Sinha. He owned a book shop called Bibliophile in London which had become a short of meeting point for us. Dr. Sinha was extremely sympathetic to our cause.
I do not remember the exact year; Soumen Tagore had send a theoretical paper from India to the British Communist Party leadership which in turn, sent it to us for our appraisal. We, the Communist students, rejected it as being unacceptable. The British Party agreed with us.
I remember that when we left London, tap CPGB leaders like Rajani Palme Dutt, Harry Pollit and Ben Bradley had told us categorically that formation of an anti-imperialist united front was the only way out in India at that time.
By that time, Europe was aflame. Hitler had already annexed Czechoslovakia and Poland and Britain Conservative Party Prime Minister Champerlain was only appeasing the Nazi leader in the name of anti-communism.
Champerlain returned with Peace Treaty with Hitler. The people of Britain as also all the peace loving forces of the world rosel in Vision against him. But the Prime Ministers line was that he had brought peace. His followers chimed the ‘ Follow him; Inspire him.’ A part of the Conservative Party like Harrold Laski also joined him. Indian students in Britain played a major role in forming public opinion against this appeasement policy. The London Majlis organized meetings after meeting to strengthen the Left forces.
Finally, on September 3, 1939, Britain too declared was. He also came to know that there were some differences in opinion within the British Communist Party regarding the character of the Second World War.
I appeared for my final law exams in December 1939. But without waiting for the result, I left for India within a month. Back home, I was informed that I had passed. During my stay in London, I had grasped the basic knowledge that Britain was not prepared for the war and the Chamberlain had taken it for granted that Hitler would attack the Soviet Union first and that Britain would remain unscathed. Chamberlain considered the Soviet Union, and not Hitler as the main enemy. There was no war-preparedness in England. It was only after Churchill became Prime Minister that the defence forces were upgraded and modernised. Churchill was a known Communist-baiter but even then the reason as to way he signed and agreement with the Soviet Union against Nazi Germany would be an issue that would be quite outside the purview of this book.
Hitler started bombing London even as we were there. We had to wear gas masks as a precaution. After some of US took the ocean route back to India, Hitler’s Nazi started using for torpedoes; as a result, this route was stopped for civil Navigation. Bhupesh Gupta, Indira Gandhi and Feroze Gandhi were stranded in London. They had to take a detour back to India. We were suspicious that Scotland Yard detectives were on our trail; naturally, we became alert. A book,’ The History of the Communist Party’ of the Soviet Union was kept with a lady who returned with us to India. The rest of the books were with us. That we were not off the mark proved when we returned home. As soon as the ship berthed in Bombay, the books were confiscated but fortunately the “History of the CPSU” was spared.
We had already decided that we would become whole timers of the Communist Party. Some of us like Bhupesh Gupta, M.K. Mangalam, Arun Bose and myself contacted some of our party leaders in Bombay in 1940. They told me to attend a public meeting to be addressed by labour leader Swami Sahajananda. I went. It turned out to be a huge rally.
BACK HOME
April 2, 2009 · No Comments
I got in touch with party leaders in Calcutta in 1940. Following party directives I did not go underground but Keeping in touch with the organization at that level was one of my most important tasks.
I enrolled myself as a barrister at the Calcutta High Court but have never since taken to practice. Simply because some of us like bhupesh and I had already dedicated ourselves to the party. Father was obviously not happy. He wanted that I start a practical and earn my own livelihood. But he was a liberal anyway; what he could not fathom was why I could not practice law and lead a political life at the some time. If Deshbandu Chittranjan Das could have done this, how was I an exception?
I remember one incident. Suddenly one day three leaders, who were under ground Kakababu (Mujaffar Ahmed), Saroj Babu (Saroj Mukherjee) and Panchu Gopal Bhaduri-told us during a meeting at our Hindusthan Park residence that it was imperative that they shift base since they were under watch. I immediately took them to a friend’s house in Dover Lane. (This friend had since been chairman of various central Government under taking). He was woken up from his sleep. He was extremely courteous and treated our leaders as guests. Later, after a shelter was identified, the three leaders were shifted from Dover Lane.
The entire character of the war underwent a sea change in the June of 1941 after Hitlar attacked the Soviet Union. From an imperialistic character, it became a people’s war against Fascism. Those of our leaders who were in jail opined the same. With the change in the character of the war, we had to change tactics also. Outside, I was also among those who relieved that this had become a people’s war.
A Friends of the Soviet Union (FSU) and Anti-Fascist intellectual organisation of writers and artists was established. I was its first secretary. Both the organization were housed at 46, Dharamtalla Street.
Talk of marriage was being discussed. I did not attach much importance to this. I know there was a long and difficult struggle ahead but anyway, I got married. My father-in-law’s name was Shri Amukule Ghosh; Prof. Prafulla Ghosh who tough English at the presidency college was part of that family. Within a few days of my marriage, my wife died. My mother died in 1941. I was sitting at the high court Bar Library when my father called to break the news. The last rites were performed by my elder brother. It was father who told me that there was no need to stick to custom and have vegetarian food. I would’nt have had anyway. But with father beside me, I got that extra bit of strength.
My life as a party whole-timer begun shortly after my return from London. When the Communist Party was banned in India during the British Raj, secret meetings used to be hold at our Hindustan Road residence; Under ground leaders took shelter also. My parents knew about it but did not object. My main task was to keep like with underground leaders and fix shelters for them and also organize secret meetings.
It was basically a communications job. During my last days in London I had established contact with a barrister who had communist leanings. I revived this upon my return to Calcutta. He had taken some risks by organizing the shelter of some underground leaders. A house had been rented in South Calcutta which had been turned into a secret base. But after a few months this a barrister friend developed cold feat; we realized that he did not want to having his head out. He stopped contact with him and discarded the house which had been taken in his name. This friend left policies after this incident.
I also used to collect subscription for the party. It was through me that many party sympathizers, including a few top government officers, donated generously. I also held party classes and was a frequent speaker in various meetings.
Hitler’s attack on the Soviet Union marked a qualitative change in the international situation. Pearl Harbour came soon after and the US also got involved. The Soviet Union, Britain and the US become formal allies against Fascist forces. A part of the party leadership was in jails, while another was underground. The party leadership decided that since the character of the war had changed it was time for us to launch an all-out offensive against Fascism. The defeat of Fascism would give a fillip to our freedom struggle. The relative success of the Nazis during the initial stages of the attack on the Soviet Union encouraged the enemies of Socilism no end. They were convinced that the end of Bolshevikism had come. But we were sure that the Soviet Union would win; after all, there is no force which can defeat socialism. That the task would be difficult was known to us. Our party had always stood by the theory that only Independent India could fight Fascism effectively. But the British government was not yet ready to hand over power. The country was going through an economic crisis and even the political scenario was leading confusing signal on the question of Independence. Shortly before the quite India Movement took off on August 9, 1942, the British Raj, for their own were forced to. Some of the under trials at the Andaman Islands issued a leaflet condemning Fascism, despite his, they were not released. But the leaflet was distributed freely by the British rulers. Nationalist leaders like Nehru announced that it was only independent India which could fight the Fascist - Japanese Axis. But the British rulers were in no mood to talk about Independence. On August 9, 1942, Gandhi, Nehru, Maulana Azad and other Congress leaders were arrested. The Quit India Movement had begun. The Communist Party opposed the movement at that time become we fell that this would only weaken the struggle against Fascism.
We demanded the release of the Congress leaders saying that this was absolutely necessary to put up an effective fight against the Fascist -Japanese Axis.
The party was subjected to tremendous opposition and stiff criticism at that time. Many of our party offices were attacked and countless comrades were subjected to physical fortune almost on the lines of Fascist theory. But we continued with the Mass contact programmes and during the 1943 Famine, organised) a lot of relief work in the then undivided Bengal. It was at our initiative, that the Bengal Medical Relief Co-ordination Committee was formed. Its President was Mr. Bidhan Chandra Roy. The scope and work of the writer and artist organisation, later to be re-christioned as the Progressive Writers Forum, where enlarged.
I gave it my all too. Despite the opposition, the party progressed as a political entity and Membership increased. The first open Congress of the CPI was held in Bombay in 1943. Earlier that year, the Bengal chapter had held its maiden open session at the Indian Association Hall in Calcutta. A small provisional committee of seven members was formed. Saroj Babu has told me; as far as he can remember, according to a directives of the party politburo in 1945, all the provinces had appointed a few Provincial Committee Organisers. I was also nominated to be a PCO members.
There were many events between 1942 and 1945. But one of them stands out; the in human member of budding revolutionary writer and the member of Communist Party of Dhaka, Soumen Chanda.
We were on our way in Dhaka to attend an anti-Fascist conference. Bankim Babu (the late party leader Bankim Mukherjee) had already reached the venue ahead of us. Suddenly we noticed a group of people running; in the melee, Snehangshu was injured in the hand - We heard that Somen Chanda had been murdered. The entire conference area had been cordoned off by the police. But the conference was held. We gave speeches. But the inhuman tragedy did cast its sad shadow over the proceedings. Snehangshu and I went to Munshigunj the next day where we participated in a largely attended public meeting. From there, on to Mymensingh. After staying at Snehangshu’s residence for a couple of days, we returned to Calcutta. I have mentioned Martyr Soumen Chandra’s name only to high-light the fact that there were many such casualities during our political struggle between 1942 and 1945.
The National Leadership of the Congress was released from imprisonment at tag end of the war. The situation was volatile. Labour strikes, revolts by farmers, an indefinite strike in support of the E & T employees demands on July 29, 1946, the insurrection of the Indian sailers of the Royal Indian Navy, the police firing on a meeting in Calcutta held to support the calls of the Vietnam Liberation War and the General widespread antipathy against the British imperialists; all these went into making up the immediate history of Post-War India.
Organising the Labour
April 2, 2009 · No Comments
As far as I can remember, the party leadership asked me to work with the labour forces in 1944. Initially, I used to communicate with the Port and Dock labourers since we did not have much of a organisation in this two sectors. We had not been able to penetrate them. After this, I was asked to work with the labour force of the Railways.
In 1944, the party was trying to organize a Trade Union in the B. N. Railways. I was part of the effort. I met leaders like Mohammed Ismail and Nikhil Maitra. Maitra was expelled from the party later. Those who helped in this work - and I can only remember only the names of some of them - were Nityananda Chowdhury, Amulya Ukil, Purnendu Dott Roy, Satyen Ganguly and Satya Gupta. Saroj Mukherjee played a vital role during this time, it was he who introduced me to people like Ukil and others. The Trade Union activity was growing. There were calls from Dhaka. Along with Bankim Mukherjee and Saroj Mukherjee, I had to go places like Parvtipur are sodhpur. Kamania Dasgupta, who later become the Chairman of the Ranigunj Municipality, was a known figure in the labour Movement of Sodhpur. Saroj Babu used to devote a lot of his time to the Provincial Committee as member-Secretary.
It was an extremely difficult task to develop a Union in the Railways. Since there was already an existing one - the B. N. Railway Employees Association. Humayun Kabir was to later become President of the organization.
We had to fan out in areas like Sealdah, Howrah, Kanchapara and the border areas with Assam. Finally, the B. N. Railways Workers Union was established in 1944. I became its General Secretary with Bankim Mukherjee as/its President.
The War had not yet ended. It was too difficult to travel on trains. I had to make do with only a bag during commuting; I never felt any stress or physical discomfort though.
We pursued our aim with unrelenting effort and branches were soon to grow in East Bengal, North Bengal and Assam. The opposition Union did not live any stone interned to spread disinformation against us.
There was a small but recognized Union at Domohari in Jalpaiguri. It was called the B. D. Rail Road Workers Union and its General Secretary was Biren Das Gupta who went as to become a member of our party. The Vice-President of this Union was Parimal Mitra. Hailing from Jalpaiguri, he was to later become the Forest & Tourism Minister of the Left Front Government in West Bengal.
Much later, the B. N. Railway workers Union and B. D. Rail Road Workers Union amalgated. The new President was Mohammad Ismail and Vice President was Parimal Mitra. I was elected the General Secretary and Biren Das Gupta was made the Joint General Secretary. Kamal Sirkar and Krishnamurty from Madras were included in the working committee. A publication, Rail Mazdoor, with Parimal Mitra as its editor, was released but the entire administration devolved on Kamal Sirkar Englishman. We demanded that our Union be recognized officially. There was much dilly-dallying over the matter. But the recognition came anyway; we were further encouraged. There were some perks too; being the General Secretary of the recognized Union, I was entitled to a first class pass or Railway travel. Our influence on the labour force grew from strength to strength.
The All India Railwaymen’s Federation was being run by reformists. We demanded that our Union too should be included in the Federation. They tried their best to ignore us but we were successful in the end. Earlier, the party = led SIR Workers Union had been included in the AIRF. I got involved with some other trade Unions also. Mr. Bhandarkar was General Manger of the east Bengal Railway. His son was sympathetic to the Communist Movement. Having returned after studying in Cambridge, he had joined a Mercantile firm in a responsible post.
He died before his time was due. At the time of his death, he had a savings of Rs. 10,000/-. His father handed over the money to us Saying, at the same time, that he was aware of his son’s political beliefs. He felt that it would only be in the fitness of things it his son’s savings came to the aid of the party. It was not only economic issues which rallied the railway workers. There was a constant effort to build a political philosophy. Their were instances when Railway Labours struck work over political matter. The sailors had revolted. A new history was being written at the Bombay Port by the Indian Armymen. The entire country was being rocked. The admiral of the British Navy served an ultimatum that the surrender should be effected within 24 hours. Otherwise the rebel ships would be sunk.
The BPTUC office was situated at 249, Bowbazar Street. We met there. A counter Offensive was planned. The British imperialists had to be taught a lesson. A 24 hour Railway Strike was called. No bogey would move. There would be no work. A total bandh. We were septic. Would we be successful? Yes, it was. The Railway labour force had set a new example in the struggle against imperialism.
In The Legislative Assembly
April 2, 2009 · No Comments
It had never ever occurred to me that I would have to become an MLA but the party thought otherwise. And, I had to abide by the Directives. There was some other candidates too; Somnath Lahiri from Calcutta, Bankim Mukherjee from Howrah, Chatur Ali from Barrackpur, Ratanlal Brahman from Darjeeling and Krishna Binod Roy from Jessore. Indrajit Gupta, Moni Singh and Rupnarayan Roy contested from Asansol, Maimansingh had Dinajpur constituencies.
I was a candidate from the Railway constituency which included the entire B. N. Railway area except Assam. An electoral college would be formed by Railway Workers with valid voter papers and this college would elect the MLA.
My rival was Humayun Kabir, President of the Railways Association. I knew the fight would be a tough one. The congress was supporting Kabir with its full strength. Leaders like Moulana Abul Kalam Azad and had come to campaign for him. On the other hand, our union was new and our presence among the labour force had also not been for long.
But our comrades went headlong into the battle. We travelled throughout Bengal in a whistle-stop campaign; contacts were made with Railway workers with a lea to vote for us. Mr. Kabir’s supporters were up to many tricks. Top-shot Bureauirats were fudging voter papers. The rules stipulated that the election office had to send ballots to every voter in a registered envelope./News of fudging was pouring in by the minute; ballots were apparently reaching only false voters.
News reached that one thousand voter slips had reached the Chitpur ward from the post-office. All the voter slips had been accepted strangely by a single officer. There was no way but to take to the streets. It was decided that the strike would continue till all the slips reached their rightful destination. The strike started. Within hours, the Railway Officers assured us that each and every ballot would be deemed valid only if signed by the particular valid voter. The labour strike had forced this decision to come about.
But I was still slightly sceptical. Our election agents fanned out in the Railway colonies. The workers were alerted. The message went loud and clear; rigging would not be allowed. The postal authorities were also warned that it was their responsibility to ensure that the valid slips reached only the voters they were meant for.
Our doubts subsided some what. My very first election as a candidate gave me a taste of what bourgeois elections were all about. It was to baptism by fire. But all’s well that ends well. Mr. Kabir was defeated.
For all practical purpose, Mr. Kabir was a Congress candidate. Behind him was the Congress organisation and top leaders. There was a anscious effort to buy votes.
At another level, I saw what honesty and idealism was all about. Not one person of the electoral college had betrayed us; the dedication, perseverance and loyalty of our comrades ensured my victory. It was their victory, it was a party victory and above all, it was a victory of the Railway workers. Ratan Lal Brahman from Darjeeling and Rupnarayan Roy from Denajpur won. The other candidates of the party lost.
The significance of these victories were far reaching. The norm of the day was disinformation against the party and physical attacks on comrades. Allegations of treachery were being brought against us. In this background, the victory was most important.
This election was also an education. We realized that our critics and rivals could take to any means, open or hidden. During the election in the Barrackpur Constituency, I was sent as a party observer to Kanchapara. I was eye witness to the congress hooliganism.
After the elections, I returned to the State Party Office at 121, Lower Circular Road. Wounded comrades were lying on the ground floor. This was a result of congress Goondaism throughout Calcutta. The 1946 elections taught me that there could be no place for ideals and honesty in such a bourgeois set-up. The end game was to win. At any cost.
I became an MLA. Father was some what happy. That helped me in my work.
For all practical purposes, I started my life as a whole timer only then. I used to give my salary as an MLA to the party. The party used to give me wages.
The political scene at that time needs to be elaborated. In 1946 under the leadership of Suhrawarddi, the Muslim League formed the government in Bengal. The Congress was in the opposition, led by Kiran Shankar Roy. We three Communist MLAs formed a separate group. The Muslim League got a majority in the 1946 elections. Suhrawarddi led the government and kept the home portfolio with him. There were seven other ministers. There were Mohammad Ali, Sayed Mojum Hussain, Ahmed Hussain, Abdul Gafran, Abul Rajar Mohammad, Abdul Rehman, Samsuddin Ahmed and Yogendra Nath Mondal. Mondal was opposed to the congress. Five to eight members of the ministry were Khan Bahadur, a title doled out by the Raj to those that it viewed to be loyal. Khan Bahadur, Khan Saheb, Rai Bahadur and Rai Saheb - these are all part of those old symbols of Prizes for loyalty. In 1946, a new Legislative Assembly was formed on the basis of the India Domicile Rule Act of 1935. The two sessions was held on May 14, 1946. It would not be futile to dwell on the economic situation of the entire nation, particularly Bengal, before going into the deliberations of the session.
Only a year earlier, on May 2, 1945, Berlin had fallen to the Soviets. The red flag had been hoisted there. We organised a victory rally in Calcutta. That year = end, the entire country rose in demand for the release of the imprisoned soldiers of the Indian National Army. There were rallies and meetings everywhere. In Calcutta, this eliminated in a huge procession on November 21.
The police opened fire. Many students were killed or injured. In the January and February of 1946, Calcutta echoed with protests. The war carried on. On Rashid Ali Day, the demand that the INA soldiers would have to be freed. At another procession, voices of support were raise for the anti-imperialist struggle in Vietnam. The police opened fire again. Two young students, Rameshwar and Abdus Salem, became Martyrs in that eventful year. The labour force, particularly those of the Post & Telegraphs, observed a general strike. The student-youth-labour-employee protests were slowly creating a major struggle agianst the imperialist British.
The Communist Party was in the forefront; in Bengal, we were being regarded as a second force after the Congress. However, the League, capitalising on the Communal factor, etched out a place in the Muslim Constituency.
The Tebhaga Movement had begun in right earnest; Lakhs of farmers in the 11 States of Bengal had joined in the Parts affected were the Goro Hill Ijong area of Mymensingh, Denajur and Jalpaiguri in North Bengal, the Adhiyar dominated area of Rangpur, 24 Parganas on this side of the Gorges, Hooghly and Midnapur. The farmers of Bardhaman, Jessore and Comilla also rose again canal and other tax related disparities. Apart from Bengal, the movement also spread to Andhra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Maharastra. And in this entire chapter of the nation’s history, the party was like a beacon and its role was that of a leader. In the mean tie, the Suhrawarddi government was forced to release the freedom fighters lodged in the Andamans in the face of a Sustained agitation. Niranjan Sengupta was a convenor of the committed set up to ensure the release of the nationalists. The Legislative Assembly session had not yet begun. The food crisis was acute. There was a need to organises a Movement to force the government to take measures on a war-footing. With the people’s support, we also launched a drive against hoarders. Fair price shops were opened is most districts. The Committee which ensured that the process went on smoothly received recognition from the government too.
The food crisis had given rise to hunger deaths. News of such tragedies were pouring in. Calcutta was being choked with hungry villagers there were reports of deaths event from a district like Dinajpur, known to be the crop bowl of Bengal. ‘Give Us Phaan (Starch)’ was the hungry shriek that echoed across the lanes and by lanes of the city of places. Bijon Bhattacharya wrote his famous, ‘Nabana’ play during these times in 1944; On the other land, the tragedy was put to canvas by artists Chitta Prasas and Jainul Abedin. The party’s Gananatya Sangha staged plays to collect money for the hunger = sticken. Great masters like Uday Shankar and Ravi Shankar joined Us in this effort.
As the party grew both in stature and in its role I found myself getting more and more involved in its activities. Trade Union work in the Railway went on simultaneously.
We were preparing for the Railway strike. I remember addressing a rally in Assam’s Laksum area on June 10 that year; the genesis of what I said was that the British had to be thrown out of the country and that the 5 lakh labours who were involved in the Trade Union activity were part of this struggle. There were meetings at Badarpur and Lamding. In the mean time, the Congress has also joined in the struggle. We demanded adjudication; the Congress supported this. My proposal was hat if the Congress joined the interim government at the Centre, then their leaders would put pressure on the Railway Board. In that event, our struggle would get a further impetus. It was possible that are acceptable solution would be found without resorting to a strike.
On September 2, 1946, the Nehru-Liaquat interim government was formed. Kiran Shankar Raj (the leader of the opposition), Bimal Chandra Sinha, Niharendu Dutta Majumdar, Nisha Pati Majhi, Suresh Chandra Banerjee, Charu Candra Bhandari and Bipen Bihari Gunguly were some of the leaders who were elected to the Legislative Assembly as Congress candidates. Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee was elected from the Calcutta University Constituency. He was a leader of the Hindu Maha Sabha. Krishak Praja Party’s nominee Fazlal Haque joined the Assembly after having been elected from Barishal. There were some other members from his party who became MLA/ s. There were 21 members of the European British Block and 25 from Anglo Indians. All of them were representatives of the British imperialists.
I realized that barring a few, most of the members had been elected due to Communal considerations. Most of the Congress members were Hindus; all the League MLA/s were Muslims. The Maharaja and Bardhaman was also a member representing the Royalty Block.
Thus the British Raj had a major role to play in sowing the seeds of Communal Politics.
We were totally inexperienced about the proceedings of the Assembly; neither did the party prepare Us for this new experience. We prepared our own questions and speeches.
But I always discussed these matters with the party leadership and accepted their directives.
We used to sit in a separate group. The release of prisoners, police torture, agitation by farmers and labourers, the food crisis and communal harmony - it was generally decided that we would raise these issues in the Assembly.
The elections to the Posts of Speaker and Deputy Speaker were to be held on May 14, 1946. The Muslims League candidate Nurul Amin was elected Speaker with 137 votes. Rival Syed Mohammed Afzal got 93 votes. He belonged to the Krishak Praja Party.
After the division of Bengal. Amin became the Chief Minister of erstwhile last Pakistan. On the issue of the release of prisoners, a large section of the Congress and the League supported Us. But consensus eluded Us on other questions.
This was the beginning of our education in and initiation to Legislative Politics.
On September 2, 1946, the interim qualition government was formed at the Centre. The Prime Minister was Jawaharlal Nehru and Liquat Ali Khan became the Finance Minister. The British had already made up their mind on partition. The setting up of the interim government was only a first step in this direction. Earlier in July the Constituent Assembly had been formed to formulate and decide on the new constitution of free India. The members of this Assembly were elected on the basis of votes by the MLA/s of various provinces. On July 17 1946, a special session was held by the Legislative Assembly of Bengal to discuss the voting pattern and process.
The then editor of Dainak Swadhinata and Party Leader Somnath Lahiri was made our nominee and he was elected to the Constituent Assembly as Communist Member. The Assembly again met on July 24 1946; it tuned out to be a memorable day. The all Party Committee going into the release of prisoners had launched a massive agitation on the issue; as part of the programme, 15,000 processionists marched towards the Assembly. Once inside the Assembly promises, they shouted slogans asking for an explanation from the government as to why the prisoners had not yet been free.
It was common knowledge with the procession would enter the Assembly premises. I had thus proposed an adjournment notice but it was disallowed. After Question Hour, I stood up and called the speaker’s attention to the fact that he had rejected my proposals. And I wanted to know why he had done so.
Suhrawarddi tried to oppose me on the question of propriety. I had him flatly that I was ready to accept the speaker’s ruling but not that of the Chief Minister. A debate ensued; the Congress Members supported us on the issue. In the meantime I had come out of the chamber and faced the processionist. I told them categorically that we had raised the issue inside and that the things were hotting up.
I reminded the speaker of my queries about the rejection of my notice. I insisted that he explain his ruling. The Speaker said that he would show me under which law he lad ruled me out only if I went to his chamber. I reiterated that this was a very important matter and that at that very moment, there were thousands of people waiting outside, clamouring for the release of the political detenus. The people wanted to know why the government could not take a decision to issue the release orders. The slogans could be heard from inside the chamber. The Chief Minister had told journalists that he would ensure the release of the prisoners. Looking directly at the speaker, I said, “I do not know why he can’t sign the order…… I request a review the matter. There is still time. Please allow a discussion.’
The Congress member Bhirendra Nath Dutt echoed my demand of and asked for a statement from the Chief Minister.” There are countless Hindu and Muslims asking for the release of the prisoners. The Chief Minister has to say why he can not……… we will not wait any longer” the Leader of the opposition and Congress Member Kiren Shankar Roy told the Speaker that while he respected the ruling, emotions were high outside; there was a huge gathering. “I do know with all the political parties, including the Muslim League, are out there….. I repeat almost all Political Parties of this province are waiting for an answer outside. There are both Hindus and Muslims……….” this statement was jeered at by the Treasury Benches.
What followed was a slanging match between me on one/side and some government MLA/s and the Chief Minister or the other. Kiren Shankar Roy and Suhrawarddi left the chamber. The speaker announced that they had gone to meet a team of representatives of the processionist.
On the same day, an all-party team led by Niranjan Sengupta handed over a memorandum to the Chief Minister. Finally, Suhrawarddi was forced to face the gathering outside; I was also present. Suhrawarddi, in his broken Bengali, explained that he had gone through the relevant files many times and that he would do so again. The fathering shot back; ‘we want a deadline, not promises’ At last Suhrawarddi gave in: The prisoners would be released by August 15. The gathering dispersed peacefully.
Sometime before this unprecedented protest gathering, a few of us went to Writers Buildings to hand over a memorandum on the prisoners’ release issue to Chief Minister, Suhrawarddi, Bankim Mukherjee and Bhupesh Gupta were among those who went along with me. The memorandum had demanded immediate release of the prisoners.
Suhrawarddi asked us to sit and called for an English Officer of the Home department (most probably the Home Secretary). His name was Porter. The Officer did not have chair to sit on.
As soon as he entered the room, Suhrawarddi told him, ‘Porter, why don’t you get a chair for yourself?’ Porter went out and soon returned with a chair. Suhrawarddi read out a part of the memorandum and asked him for his for his views.
Porter answered flatly. “Sir, these people (the prisoners) re all killers.” A war of words ensued between Porter and Us. Suhrawarddi then asked Porter to leave and told Us that he would look into the matter. It was then that we realized that Suhrawarddi had already taken the policy decision to release the prisoners. On July 24, he announced the decision.
However, the Committee looking into the release of prisoners did not sit idly after Suhrawarddi’s decision. Between July 25 and August 15, entire Bengal witnessed meetings and processions in which a major part comprised students. Ultimately on August 15, 1946, Suhrawarddi announced the release of all the prisoners and that steps were being taken in this regard. Suhrawarddi added that he was also reviewing the cases of others who had identified as political detenus.
At that point of time, I wanted to raise an issue but the Speaker disallowed all speeches. On August 16, after the tragedy of the fratricidial riots had taken place, the prisoners were released; most of them had been initiated into communism during their incarceration. A few had, however, joined parties like Congress. Among the political detenus who were released were Ganesh Ghosh, Ambika Chakraborty, Ananta Sinha and Probhat Chakraborty. All these communist leaders were felicitated at our state party office, at 8/E Deckers Lane in Calcutta.
Earlier on August 6, I found the Legislative Assembly gates locked and that a few thousands of people who wanted to enter the premises were waiting on the streets. I was accompanied by Ratanlal Brahman. Apart from Us, Dhiren Mukherjee of the Congress and some other members of the Assembly were also left standing on the streets.
The then Deputy Police Commissioner - the Much-hated Samsu Doha - was in charge of operations. All the police sergeants were Anglo Indians. When I started making enquiries, Samsu Doha pushed me aside, so so, that my clothes were torn. Samsu Doha then instructed his police to rough me up. The Congress Member, Dhiren Mukherjee then intervened and told the police that they could not do this and that I was a member of Legislative Assembly. I was then arrested and lodged in the custody of an Assistant Police Commissioner.
When this news reached the Assembly Chamber, the session was adjourned after request from the members.
Suhrawarddi rushed out. The gathering had become extremely restive. “Even The Muslim League supporters/were up in arms against Doha.
Suhrawarddi called me, ‘Jyoti, come here’ I replied, ‘How can I? I am under arrest.’ To this Suhrawarddi said : ‘No body has arrested you - you come here.’
We met on the Assembly Premises. I was joined by many other when I insisted that Doha would have to apologize if any solution had to be reached. Suhrawarddi summoned the English Police Commissioner who, however, did not seen to be agreeable to an apology. These were arguments and counter-arguments after which the Commissioner was asked to leave. The Chief Minister then asked Doha to apologize. Doha said that while he was convinced that he had done no wrong, but since the Chief Minister was insistent, he would follow orders and apologize.
I entered the Assembly Chamber in my torn clothes. Suhrawarddi announced that he was happy to say that a wrong had been corrected, that a honourable member had been arrested but released and the police officer concerned had apologized.
He also said that he would look into the matter further. I asked him for a deadline regarding this. Suhrawarddi said that he would definitely complete the prove into this matter latest by August 17. All members of the Assembly, cutting across party lines deplored the attitude and the action of the police.
I was still in the torn clothes when I reached the party office in the evening and reported the morning’s incident. It was then that I left for home. Father was quite surprise. I told him everything that needed to be told. It was my usual practice to go to the party office every evening and report the day’s events to the leadership, for instructions on various issues. As General Secretary of the Railway Leader Union, I visited at the crossing of college street and Bowbazar Street. During recess of the Assembly, I had to tour the districts; it was always our endeavour to be in close contact with the masses to raise their issues inside the Assembly. On July 25, 1946, the Congress Member, Bimal Chandra Sinha brought an adjournment motion in the Assembly on the acute food crisis throughout Bengal. The motion castigated the Bengal government for the abnormal price rise, of failure to distribute sufficient food grains. As leader of the three= Member Communist group, I had also given notice for a similar motion.
I participated in the discussion, my first speech as member of the legislative Assembly. The Amrita Bazar Patrika and a few other newspaper gave some importance to my speech in the next days edition.
We had already discussed our stand on the food crisis with the party leadership. The district committee had also fed us with information and statistics which helped us in the Assembly debates. The difference in opinion between Us on the one side and the congress and the Muslim League on the other had become apparent on that day itself . It had also been noticed that we had done some significant and constructive work in setting up people’s committees in various districts; There Committee took up cudgels against hoarders and ensured the distribution of food stocks to fair price shops.
At no point did we expect that the Congress and the Muslim League Members would accept or party line. But again there were many leaders of other parties who met me individually and praised my speech. That speech was my first speech; it also proved that the Communist Party was now an organized force. It would not be ignored any longer.
The adjournment motion of Bimal Chandra Sinha was put to vote. We voted for the motion which was defeated 86-126.
It is important to take note of another significant debate of those times. On July 26, the Muslim League Member, Taffazzal Ali, moved a motion, it concerned a request to the Governor. The Governor was requested that he should take up the cases of many Bengali families of the Assam Valley which were facing eviction by the Assam government. It was our lea that the Governor-General be apprised of the situation and that the general feeling of the Bengal Assembly be conveyed to him.
Assam then had a Congress Government while Bengal had a Muslim League regime. Many poor farmers, particularly from Maiman Singh of East Bengal, had settled in the Assam Valley. They had been driven to Assam because of hunger. The earlier government of Assam had promised them citizenship. But Taffazzal Ali maintained that there was a premeditated plan to event them by the congress government.
This was holly contested by the congress. We also apposed the motion but for purely different reasons. Leader like J. C. Gupta and Niharendu Dutta Mujumdar of the Congress raised the question of propriety and said such motions would not be adopted by the Assembly. They could not validate their arguments with political reasoning; most probably, the fact that Assam had a congress government as well as a chances of losing popular support in Bengal made them shy away from a political debate. The Speaker agreed to a discussion. Taffazzal Ali’s speech had communal overtones. He said that Bengalis needed a place of their own. I reputed this by saying that this mirrored Hitter’s Philosophy.
The cross of the matter was simple; on the one hand, the Muslim League was busy trying to resettle the poor farmers in Assam on the plea that Bengal did not have sufficient room for them while, at the same time, the Assam government was busy trying to evict them.
We discussed the matter with the party leadership and spoke accordingly in the Assembly. My first question was why the Bengalis were forced to leave their homes and whether there farmers had been identified as a social group. They were all landless farmers who, because of tack of food and shelter, were being forced to migrate to other parts of the country. It was a matter of shame that we could not provide for them in Bengal. The Zamindari system, established by Lord Cornwallis, was playing havoc with the lives of these farmers. This system, unfortunately is evident even now.
I said that this issue needed serious introspection. I called far a different approach; there was no point, I said, in making representations to the Government and Viceroy with whose approval this system was continuing. This was shameful. Azad and his Morning News was spreading propaganda against the Congress and Hindus in Assam, while some other publication is Assam were disseminating Lathed among the Assamese. I emphasized that we were fully against both there view points and propaganda. Both the Congress and Muslim League Members tried to stop me; Obviously because I had hit them where they did not want to be.
I said there was still time and that we should unite to form a committee and try to solve the problems. Going to the Viceroy would be useless. It was important that the motion be withdrawn and the focus be on Hindu-Muslim Unity. Niharendu Dutta Majumdar tried to stop me from completing my speech. I announced that the there of us in the communist block would vote against the motion. The Congress members also voted against the motion. Needless to say, the motion was adopted.
The Riots of 1946
April 2, 2009 · No Comments
August 16, 1946 will go down in Indias history as a black day; it was on this day that the fratricidial riots Began. The Statesman Newspaper called it ‘The Greet Calcutta Killing.’ While its a fact that the communal elements belongings to both the Hindus and Muslims started the riots, it was equally…..that it could not have happened without the egging of the British imperialist rulers. The British had already decided that would leave a partitioned country in the lands of the Congress and the Muslims League and there could be nothing more to help in this then communal riots.
Soon after the riots started, the police administration of Calcutta collapsed completely. The police force was operated on communal lines. Despite innumerable requests to the then Governor of Bengal, the army was not called out even three days before the Riots began. When the situation went out of control and entire Calcutta city gave itself upto mass killings and boot, only then did the British rulers deploy the army and suddenly try and project themselves as “Peace-loving” and “friends of India.” They did succeed in their mission though; the genesis of the partition was sowed by the riots.
Our party activity opposed partition and with our limited renounces tried hard to keep Congress and League unity and Hindu = Muslim unity.
A majority in the Congress and Muslim League was against partition. The same was true among the Hindus and Muslims. But the reformists, provoked by the British imperialists, started the riots. Riots also took place in the Punjab, the United Provinces and Bihar. It was like a conflagration. The Muslims League called for Direct Action Day throughout India on August 16. The Bengal government announced a State Holiday. The Assembly was in session.
The Speaker had earlier disallowed the congress adjournment motion on the situation. I tried to say a few words but the speaker and the Deputy Speaker did not give me permission.
I had decided that I would ask the government to revoke its holiday notice. I felt that a common man wanted to leave in peace and that there was no need to call for dissect action. It would, I wanted to say, only add to the tension in the air** but I was not given a chance to speak.
The congress also announced its opposition to Direct Action Day. The Muslim League leadership was unsleken**.
Our leadership apprehended disturbances on August 16. Our leaders and comrades were asked to fan** out in the labour = dominated and mixed = population areas of Calcutta. The call for Direct Action was made by the Muslim League leadership at a rally on the Maidan in the second week of August.
Following arty directives, I went to the Labour Lines of Narkeldanga. The then Railway Union Leader, Krishnamurty and Nikhil Mitra, we re with me. We spent the evening of August 16 at the Railway colony there. I was very involved with Railway Union activities at that time.
From inside the colony, we could not make out what was happening outside. We could only see some processionists shouting slogan. The labourers asked us to go, as they felt that we could be attacked. It was they who told us that the entire city was burning. Somehow we made our way to the Sealdah Station and then on foot onto Lower Circular Road. Dead bodies were strewn on pavements. The attackers were moving about freely. We avoided the pavements and walked through the middle of the road. We managed to reach our Calcutta district office at 121, Lower Circular Road near the Loreto School. Even there, the party commander had the same story to narrate. Calcutta was burning. We spent the night there. That area was not safe either; we were expecting attacks any moment. Comrades with Lathis were put on guard. We could not reach news to our provincial party office at Deckers Lane or back home. During our stay at the Lower Circular Road office, me suffered a lot; at times we had to go without meals. News, however, did reach the provincial committee office. Leaders like Nripen Sen, Saroj Babu and another comrade took a Peoples Relief committee Van to out Calcutta district committee office. Sen drove himself. We heard from them that this van had been used to rescue some congress and communist men from danger = prone areas. Infact, they had only sometime back picked up some injured people from Mirzapur crossing and got them admitted to the Medical College.
We reached Deekers Lane. Khoka Ray, Promod Dasgupta and Dinesh Roy were present there. Leaders like Bankim Mukherjee, Nirodh Chakraborty and Abdul Momen and is wife were trapped in a hotel near the Islamia Hospital at Chittaranjan Avenue. The building was already under siege. These lives were in danger. Snehanshu Acharya was all the time doing a lot to help in the rescue work.
R. Gupta, an ICS officer was in charge of the rescue centre which had been set up in the Maidan. The centre had been alerted about our trapped comrade. Even then I was asked to go and ensure that some action was taken immediately.
I took a car to the Maidan. Gupta could not be found. Mohamemad Ismail accompanied me. At the rescue centre, an English youth alongwith another sepoy came to us and heard us out. After this, they summoned for a lorry, I asked the English youth whether he would be able to handle the tens of thousands of emotional people who had gathered at Chittaranjan Avenue. I also asked him pointedly whether he would be able to manage on his own. His simplistic answer was, “Do you know that I have fought in the Second World War?”. I realised that it would be futile to say anything more and both Ismail and I followed him in our car. We did not go upto Islamia Hospital and stopped at the crossing of Bowbazar Street and Chittaranjan Avenue. We waited in our car.
Strangely, as soon as the English youth alighted from the lorry, revolver in hand, the assembled rioters gave way. Bankim Mukherjee, Abul Momin, Nirodh Chakraborty and Promod Dasgupta were rescued and brought out. We could see everything from our vantage point. They were then brought to Deekers Lane. If we have waited for another half an hour, I wonder whether these leaders would have been alive.
Kamal Sarkar said that Snehangshu Acharya had also participated in the rescue mission and that they had gone to Deekers Lane in a military van and we followed them in our car. Earlier we have been asked to stay put on the crossing of Bowbazar Street.
Abdul Momin gave us the full story.
They had been trapped at the hotel. The Muslim janitor had tried to save them till the last moment. The rioters raided Momin’s room many times and asked for the Hindus inside. But the janitor had said that there were no Hindus. The room where Bankim babu had stayed was blocked from outside; however they did not stop the attackers from having doubts that there could be Hindus inside also. This went on for two days. As and when the injured were laid down in front of the hospital, the emotion which were thrown around and the tension were palpables. The janitor was helpless. It was at that point of time that we reached the spot.
Till things normalised, our party had taken the initiative in rescue work. Both Hindus and Muslims had taken shelter in our provincial Committee Office, the District Committee Office and other Units. The peoples relief committee was housed on 249 Bowbazar Street and the volunteers there were ready to give their lives to rescue out comrades.
By contemporary estimates, the causality in the Calcutta killings in 1946 were nothing less than 20,000 or more. There were some significant factors in the riots during 1946. The British Imperialists had divided the common people among communal lines. The communal element, no doubt, had been able to incite a major part of the public. But this is only one side of the story.
In Hindu dominated areas were people who despite the riotous situation had staked their lives to help out Muslims; but this feeling was also reciprocated by the other community. I can give one example. The then party leader Krishna Binod Roy used to live in Park Circus. His landlord was a Muslim who despite danger had whisked Roy to a Police station and saved his life.
The rehabilitation work was now uppermost. Though the riots had stopped the repercussions went on….
The stability and taken the fear psychosis from the minds of the public were among the major task in front of us. A mission for peace was then the top priority. I am proud to say that at that time our party comrades had a major role to play and formations of peace missions was our primary task, The Communist Party had already taken the lead role. This was admitted by no less a person than Chief Minister Suhrawarddi. On September 1946 responding to a No Confidence Motion against his Government, Suhrawarddi said; “I think all those who have helped in our peace efforts and joined our rallies. In particular I would like to thank some members of the Communist Party since it was they who had demanded that peace Committees be set up right from the beginning.”
The party leadership had been trying to set up an all = party Central Peace Committed after the riots started. When Gandhiji was camping at Beliaghata in 1947, representatives of various parties and organisations met him uninterruptedly. I also met Gandhiji alongwith Bhupesh Gupta and asked for his advice. Gandhiji said that the best potion would be to form an all = party central committee and organise and all = party central procession. That, he added, should be the foremost task ahead of us.
We set about our work in right earnest. Almost all political parties met Suhrawarddi at a meeting at his house. Bhupesh Gupta and I represented the Communist Party where some from the Congress party and Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee came from the Hindu Maha Sabha while the Chief Minister himself represented the Muslim League. The Sikh community was also there. Even as the talks were on, Suhrawarddi took me and Bhupesh to his bedroom and told us that Shyma Prasadbabu was not willing to work on the same committee with the Communists.
The idea of All Party Central Peace Committee was still-born. But the local Units continued to work.
Confidence was restored amongst the public and there was a general feeling of friendship and amity. A major part of Congress and Muslim League worked for peace. On September 1947, Dhirendra Nath Dutta of the Congress brought a No Trust Motion against the Suhrawarddi Government in the Legislative Assembly. There was a long debate and many speakers spoke on the occasion. I also got an opportunity to make my views known. However the move was defeated with 85 members voting for the motion while Suhrawarddi won with 130 votes.
It was during this debate that it was revealed that both the Congress and Muslim League were divided on communal lines. The Congress speakers blamed the Suhrawarddi Government for the riots while the Muslim League members tried to convey to the Congress that it was the Hindu communalists who started it. However, it must be said that there were some members in both the parties who did not attack any particular community and stressed the importance of keeping harmony. Strangely no leader put the British Imperialists on the dock though it was the rulers who were the main culprits.
I went hammer and tongs against the British rulers and emphasised Hindu-Muslim unity.
www.sangambayard-c-m.com
ReplyDelete