Chitta Ranjan

by Sukumar Ranjan Das

"Swaraj is our birth right, it is a divine gift. When you realise yourself by penances, you shall get freedom from within and without. We look to others for our education, commerce and government; this is bondage. We must get rid of that. We cannot even clothe our mothers and sisters. What servility! We must be free men and not bondsmen as we are at present. This yearning for Swaraj is meant for our liberation. We are inimical to no body, ours is a peaceful struggle."

Chitta Ranjan came back to Calcutta in April 1921 and shortly afterwards went to Bezwada to attend the meeting of the All-India Congress Committee held in the middle of April 1921 where it was decided that as a first step towards the attainment of Swaraj three things would be necessary:—(1) a crore of rupees to be contributed to the Tilak Swarajya Fund, (2) a crore of persons to be enrolled as members of the Indian National Congress and (3) twenty lacs of spinning wheels to be distributed to the Indian Villages. This first step was to be completed on or before the 30th June 1921.

Chitta Ranjan came back and addressed many meetings at Calcutta and the mufassil asking the people of Bengal to contribute Bengal's quota. The Anglo-Indian Press and the Moderate Press with one voice declared that it was beyond human power to work out the Bezwada programme within such a short time. But when the soul of a nation is awakened, everything is done in an unexpected manner. On the 1st of July 1921 the All India Congress Committee declared that contributions to the Tilak Swarjya Fund exceeded one crore of rupees and that the other two parts of the Bezwada programme were also accomplished beyond dispute.

In the mean-time a most deplorable event took place in Bengal. This was the inhuman treatment of the Assam Tea-garden Coolies at Chandpur. The tea-garden coolies had been for a long time smarting under acute grievances. They did not get sufficient food, were now and then brutally assaulted and even their wives and sisters were subjected to occasional humiliation at the hands of the European managers. These exasperated their feelings to such a pitch that they determined to go back to their own country. In early May 1921 the Coolies of many tea-gardens at Assam went on strike and in spite of many persuasions from the Deputy Commissioner and the proprietors of the tea-gardens they left the gardens for Karimganj. Coolies,—men, women and children began to pour in from different tea-gardens. They were worn out, shattered, half-naked and starving. In fact they presented a most pitiable picture and the local people took charge of their feeding and clothing. They were also making arrangements for the repatriation of the Coolies. But the Railway authorities declined to issue tickets to them. Perhaps they thought that the Coolies would of themselves return to the gardens if they had to face starvation and were refused tickets to go home. But the authorities were mistaken. The inhuman treatment at the gardens had long overstepped the limits of their patience and now they stood at all costs determined to leave the gardens once for all. Even they suspected the Government of being implicated with the managers of the gardens and refused to take food from them when offered. At the request of the people of Karimganj Mr. J. M. Sen Gupta went there and wired to the Traffic Manager to withdraw the unjustifiable order of the local Station Master. The order was withdrawn and the coolies came down to Chandpur in large numbers. The Government declined to make any arrangement for their repatriation.

The coolies were left to their own fate and as it could have been expected epidemic broke out among them. About midnight on the 20th May the most horrible tragedy that was ever enacted in Bengal was witnessed at Chandpur. At the instigation of the local authorities a band of savage Gurkhas fell upon the innocent men, women and children who were starving and dying of epidemic. They butchered the coolies right and left amidst the glee of the Local Magistrate and the Commissioner. The people of Chandpur were so much agitated over this matter, that had not the leaders come in an opportune moment to the place of occurrence there would have ensued a riot of the severest type. Chitta Ranjan was informed of this event and was wired to come to Chandpur as early as possible. He at once sanctioned on behalf of the Provincial Congress Committee 5000 rupees for the relief of the distressed coolies. The Railway employees went on a sympathetic strike and Chitta Ranjan started from Goalundo for Chandpur in a boat. The violent Padma became turbulent and it was most unsafe to face the waves in a boat. Many of Chitta Ranjan's friends tried to desist him from such a rash step. But he was not to be stopped. His heart was moved at the agony of the coolies and go he must to send them back to their home. If it wished God that he would be drowned, he was ready to court death at the call of duty. He was accompanied in this perilous journey by his wife and constant companion Srijukta Basanti Devi. The wind was raging high, the waves dashed against the boat; cheerfully did Chitta Ranjan proceed on his journey with his wife. It was his firm determination to go to Chandpur and arrange for the repatriation of the coolies. For this he feared not death. After an eventful journey in course of which he was once overtaken by a heavy storm and narrowly escaped being drowned Chitta Ranjan reached Chandpur. There he managed to send a large number of coolies in a special steamer to Goalundo and arranged for the repatriation of the rest. He came back to Calcutta with his wife in a cheerful spirit—cheerful, as he knew that he had been able to do his duty as the leader of Bengal.

Now when the first stage of the Non-Co-operation movement was so successfully passed, the Working Committee of the Congress met at Calcutta in the beginning of September to discuss the second step and it was decided that the next step would be boycott of foreign cloth. This step entailed a great difficulty as it would be necessary to make the people self-reliant and independent of foreign cloth. It necessitated that spinning should be introduced in every house and Indians should be encouraged to weave their own clothes. Chitta Ranjan proceeded on a lecturing tour all over Bengal to preach Swadeshi to his countrymen and to make it clear to them that the salvation of India lay in hand-spinning and weaving. In course of one of his lectures he said:—

"At this commencement of a new era in the history of India, you must take the Swadeshi vow. I know Indians can do everything only if they wish it. Their fortitude is unique and determination firm. Once take the vow that you shall not use foreign cloth. If you cannot procure sufficient country-made cloth, cut one cloth into two pieces and use them separately. You have no reason to be ashamed of wearing a short dress. On the other hand if you import fine cloth from Manchester, the whole world will cry shame upon you. To-day at this dawn of national consciousness take the vow that you shall wear only country-made cloth, be it coarse or fine. With it is inter-woven the sweet affection of your brothers and sisters. It will help you to develop your manhood."

In another lecture Chitta Ranjan has said:—

"Our national life has become stagnant. We must purify it. This requires penance for our past sins, this means we should give up all our luxuries and strive for the realisation of our national spirit."

In course of one of his mufassil lectures he once remarked:—"Those who still do not believe in Swaraj, must very soon change their minds. For they also must strive to attain Swaraj as the only means of developing their manhood. Swaraj is the birth right of a nation. It comes to believers and non-believers as a divine blessing."