Under the Presidency of Mr. Chakravarty a largely attended meeting of the citizens of Calcutta was held in April 1918, when Mr. C. R. Das spoke:—
Mr. Chairman and gentlemen,—the resolution which has been entrusted to me is in these words (Mr. Das read the resolution). It is hardly necessary to commend this resolution to your acceptance by any lengthy speech. The resolution speaks for itself. It is only because I have heard of objections in some quarters that I have to say a few words in support of the resolution. There are people amongst us who think that it is not gracious at this time, in the face of the great danger which besets us, to trouble the Government by asking for political rights and privileges. Gentlemen, it is for the very success of the measure that I am asking the Government to consider the resolution. My answer to those critics is this: Do you think that a country where the people have been fighting for political rights for so many years and where every time their petitions and prayers have been rejected with scorn, do you think that in such a country you will get a very large army in Bengal to come forward unless you can create among them an enthusiasm, unless you can make them feel that they are fighting their own battle (hear, hear). Is it reasonable to ask the people of this country to join the army when you have made it impossible for them to feel that this is their country, when you have made it impossible for them to feel that empire you speak of is their empire? Have they any share in that empire? Is it possible for the people of this country under these circumstances to respond to the call which you have made to-day? After all, what are we asking for—is it an unreasonable request to make to the Government—here are these young men, members of many families of Bengal, whom you have interned, kept under imprisonment and in custody—is it so much unreasonable to ask Government now, in the face of a great danger, which threatens you and which threatens us, also, to release them and make them feel that after all it is their country, that there is a Government which feel for them (hear, hear)—that they have a Government also which care for their rights and privileges—is it an unreasonable request at this juncture to ask the Government to consider this resolution? Call to arms has been sounded—it is our duty—it is the duty of every one of us to respond to that call; and I do say this, because I feel it my duty to tell the Government, at this juncture that in order that that response may be real—in order that that response may be fruitful that you ought to consider the position of these prisoners who are detained in jail and kept in custody without trial. I am not raising the question as to whether they are innocent or guilty,—let that question wait till the danger is over, I am asking the Government to release them, so that they may respond to this call to arms. With these people interned, do you think you can get thousands and tens of thousands in the army in this country? Release them. What army do you want, which Bengal cannot furnish? I take upon myself to give up my profession for six months (loud cheers) and go over the whole of this country asking the people to join the army in their thousands (cheers). I ask the Government to make it possible for us to raise this army. Gentlemen, when I think of our present position, while the danger is before us, and the attitude and the relation, if I may call it, between the Government, I mean the Bureaucracy, on the one hand, and the people on the other, I must confess, I look upon this as a tragedy. The Bureaucracy suspects the people.—Often and often have we told them, we have cried ourselves hoarse—and I repeat this again—I know these people—I have defended their cases—there is not one among the revolutionaries who wants to bring a foreign power in this country—be that foreign power Germany or Japan. I am prepared to prove it, if there is an enquiry—a proper enquiry by impartial men. But all those requests have fallen on deaf ears. Why? Because the Government distrusts the people. The result is they misunderstand us and misinterpret our statements and utterances. In the same way, we, the people mistrust them because they mistrust us. (hear, hear). I am free to confess that we very often misunderstand their declarations and mistrust them unjustly but the fact that we misunderstand each other is there, and I say it is a tragedy. I can assure the Government that I can prove it to demonstration, to whatever political party an individual in this country may belong, there is not one man in Bengal, who really desires that the English people should lose all connection with India and that some other foreign power should be brought here (loud cheers and hear, hear.) You do not believe that. We want to justify ourselves and want to become ourselves. We want to feel that this country really belongs to us—we want to feel that we are a nation—that we have got our specialities. We want to give expression to our ideals and we want to stand side by side with the different nations of the world and we do believe that with the English connection, it would be easier for us to do so than if we tried to make the English connection cease. That is the real attitude of the people. But the pity is, they will not believe us, with the result that whatever they say on many occasions, we do not believe. That is why I think it is a tragedy. I appeal to the Government again to come forward. The Prime Minister has sounded the call to arms. It is not only a call to arms but it is a call to duty (hear, hear). We are here prepared to discharge our duty. Do you do your duty, in the same spirit—come forward and forget your racial prejudices, forget your sense of prestige.—Stand side by side with us.—Hold us by your hands and you will find between the two of us we will raise such an army in Bengal which will beat back all foreign aggression (loud cheers.) If the thing were possible, I say to the Government again, if you really think you can raise a large army in this country, if you can show us that it is probable, though I am a Nationalist, I say, that I am prepared to postpone our struggle for political privileges till the war is over. If it were possible, do it by any means. Call for any sacrifice and the people of Bengal will not be slow to respond to that. If in the face of this great danger, I ask you to release the political prisoners, it is because I feel that if you do that, that which you want will be secured. If you think you can secure what you want without releasing the political prisoners, do so. You will not find me slow to do my part of the duty (cheers.) I am prepared to wait if I see that the Government with our help can raise a large army in Bengal to-day to face a great danger—if I see that and if I find that such a course is likely to succeed, I am prepared to wait till the war is over for the fulfilment of those broken pledges. I will be prepared to wait and dream of to-morrow, of the future, when our ambitions will be satisfied—and satisfied they must be—I will forget the history of broken pledges, of dead hopes and crushed aspirations. I will wait in silence and in patience. Do make it possible. Call for any sacrifice and here we are at your service. We will wait till the war is over.—We will look forward to a later date for the fulfilment of broken pledges and the resurrection of our dead hopes and our crushed aspirations, (loud cheers.)
Mr. C. R. Das spoke—On the third day's session of the Congress held in Calcutta in 1917.
Madam President, Ladies and Gentlemen. I have the honour to support the resolution which has been placed before you. Brother delegates, at the very outset I desire to refer to the song to which you have just listened; it is a song of the glory and victory of India. We stand here to-day on this platform for the glory and victory of India, (Cheers) and I urge you that amidst the many discussions which have taken place on the form of the resolution, you should not forget the essential idea which runs through it and which stands behind it. It is a resolution which has for its object the growth and the development of the great Indian nation. We are all agreed about that. The question is how to bring that about. Gentlemen, the Bengal ideal has been presented to you to-day by my friend, Babu Bipin Chandra Pal. I accept that ideal and if I thought that there was anything in this resolution which was inconsistent with that ideal, I should not have supported it. I do not think there is anything in this resolution which goes against the ideal which Bengal has unanimously declared by its resolution at the Bengal Provincial Conference. What is that ideal? That ideal is firstly, Provincial Autonomy viz., that the Government of India must have its sphere demarcated, its functions defined; all other functions should belong to the Provincial governments of the particular province. Gentlemen, is that an ideal which is foreign to that resolution? I ask you to look into it carefully. I find within it a careful demarcation of the sphere of the Government of India and those of the Provincial governments. Therefore, so far as that ideal is concerned I do not think that this is at all inconsistent with the resolution which I have the honour to support. Now gentlemen, what is the next point in the ideal of Bengal? And that is: that the functions of the Executive Government must be made subordinate to the Legislative Council which would represent the wishes of the people of the particular province. Now is there anything in this resolution which goes against that? It may be that Bengal has provided for that in one particular way and in this resolution you have provided for that in another way, but so far as the ideal is concerned, I say that there is absolutely no difference between that of Bengal and that which is shadowed in this resolution (Hear, hear.) You say in this resolution that the power of the purse should be in the hands of the Legislature. Now, gentlemen, just pause for one moment to think what that means. Let us take it that your scheme is accepted by the Government. What does that mean? That means that the Executive must be obedient to the Legislature. If they do not obey the commands of the Legislature, the Legislature will say we stop the supplies. It may be said that the British Parliament will never grant you that; but are we considering that at present? When they make a definite pronouncement as to what they are willing to give us, it will be time then to meet again and formulate a definite scheme as to the way in which that ideal may be given effect to. But the time has not come to discuss about it, because I am afraid in the discussion of it, the main ideal may get lost and I am most anxious to keep up that ideal before you. But whatever happens to the drafting of this resolution, the matter of drafting may be corrected,—I hope, gentlemen, that whatever happens, you will stick to this; that the time has come when the British Parliament must make up its mind to transfer the powers from the hands of the Bureaucracy to the people of this country. (Loud Cheers). We have had enough of the Bureaucracy in this country. We have suffered and groaned under the misrule of 150 years and not one day is to be lost in declaring our will and to see that our wishes are given effect to—that the powers which are in the hands of the Bureaucracy to-day are transferred to the people of the country. (Cheers). Now, gentlemen, having regard to that ideal, I must say that I do not see any inconsistency between what we want in Bengal and that which is put forward in the resolution. But my revered friend, Mr. Tilak said that this scheme is very much better than the Bengal scheme or any other scheme. I am speaking of Provincial Governments—of the scheme which relates to the ideal of the Provincial Governments and I do not see any difference there. Mr. Tilak thinks it is not wise to ask too much. I ask him to read the resolution again and he will find in it that it does not claim one item less than the Bengal scheme—not one item less. It claims the whole thing—it claims perfect responsible government for India. I do not understand the power over the purse to mean anything less than that. Without saying perfect responsible government for the provinces as well as for the central government, you may convey the same idea by saying: "I do not care what you do but give me the power over the purse. But if you give me the power over the purse I can have my own way. You, the executive, you say you will not obey my command but I will stop your supplies. Where are you then? You will have to obey my command." And if they obey your command what is the good of saying that we have not asked for Responsible Government? You have asked in an indirect manner, but as effectively as we have done in Bengal. You have asked not only for full responsible government for the provinces but also for the central government. Now it may be, that this ought to be put in another shape, the words may have to be changed, for this scheme does not pretend to be a perfect or an exact one.
I agree with my friend Mr. Jinnah who said: let the Government come out with a definite pronouncement—the government declaration is vague—let the government come out with its declaration—a definite pronouncement as to what they are willing to give. It will be time then to sit over this resolution again, to consider what words are to be used and what words to reject or what new words are to be put in. I think we have been fighting unnecessarily. We are all agreed as to the great ideal. Let us gather strength to fight for it—let us fight for it with all our might and let us not rest content till the whole thing is granted to us (Hear, hear), viz., Responsible Government in the Provinces, responsible Government in Imperial matters—till the whole of the Government is put into the hands of the people. I rely on no dictum of politicians—I rely upon my natural right (Cheers). I do not care what the constitution of England or the constitution of Switzerland or that of Australia is (Cheers). I want to build my own constitution. I want the power to build my own constitution in a way which is suited to this country and which afterwards will be referred to as the great Indian constitution (Loud cheers). That is what we want and that is what we must have. Do not engage in endless discussion in the meantime. Gather all your strength and say with one voice all over India, in every village, in every town, in provincial gatherings and in this Congress that nothing less than the transference of the Governmental powers into the hands of the people will satisfy us. It is our natural right, it is the birthright of every individual to live and to grow (Hear, hear). It is the natural right of every nation to live and to grow according to its nature. (Loud cheers). We demand that right—that right has been unjustly withheld from us—by excuses and pretences—by subterfuges—we have discovered that. We were sleeping, but by God's grace, we are awake and we claim our natural right. (Prolonged cheers).