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Reference: Recurrent Exodus of Minorities from East Pakistan and Disturbances in India: a Report to the Indian Commission of Jurists by its Committee of Enquiry, 1965. Published by: Purushottam Trikamdas, General Secretary, Indian Commission of Jurists, New Delhi, 1965, Appendices IV, p.354-372
FULL TEXT OF THE LETTER OF RESIGNATION DATED 8TH OCTOBER 1950 OF
JOGENDRA NATH MANDAL, MINISTER FOR LAW AND LABOUR, GOVERNMENT OF PAKISTAN,
ADDRESSED TO LIAQUAT ALI KHAN, PRIME MINISTER OF PAKISTAN.
My dear Prime Minister,
It is with a heavy
heart and a sense of utter frustration at the failure of my lifelong mission to
uplift the backward Hindu masses of East Bengal that I feel compelled to tender
the resignation of my membership of your cabinet. It is proper that I should set
forth in detail the reasons which have prompted me to take this decision at
this important juncture of the Indo-Pakistani subcontinent.
1. Before I narrate
the remote and immediate causes of my resignation, it may be useful to give a
short background of the important events that have taken place during the
period of my co-operation with the League. Having been approached by a few
prominent League leaders of Bengal in February 1943, I agreed to work with them
in the Bengal Legislative Assembly. After the fall of the Fazlul Haq ministry
in March 1943, with a party of 21 Scheduled Caste M.L.A.s, I agreed to
cooperate with Khwaja Nazimuddin, the then leader of the Muslim League
Parliamentary Party who formed the Cabinet in April 1943. Our co-operation was conditional
on certain specific terms, such as the inclusion of three Scheduled Caste
Ministers in the Cabinet, sanctioning of a sum of Rupees Five Lakhs as an
annual recurring grant for the education of the Scheduled Castes, and the
unqualified application of the communal ratio rules in the matter of
appointment to Government services.
2. Apart from these
terms, the principal objectives that prompted me to work in cooperation with
the Muslim League was, first, that the economic interests of the Muslims in Bengal
were generally identical with those of the Scheduled Castes. Muslims were
mostly cultivators and labourers, and so were members of the Scheduled Castes.
One section of Muslims were fishermen, so was a section of the Scheduled Castes
as well, and secondly that the Scheduled Castes and the Muslims were both
educationally backward. I was persuaded that my cooperation with the League and
its Ministry would lead to the undertaking on a wide scale of legislative and
administrative measures which, while promoting the mutual welfare of the vas
bulk of Bengal’s population and undermining the foundations of vested interest
and privilege would further the cause of communal peace and harmony. It may be
mentioned here that Khwaja Nazimuddin took three Scheduled Caste Ministers in
his cabinet and appointed three Parliamentary Secretaries from amongst the
members of my community.
SUHRAWARDY MINISTRY:
3. After the general
elections held in March 1946, Mr. H.S.Suhrawardy became the leader of the
League Parliamentary Party in March 1946 and formed the League Ministry in
April 1946. I was the only Scheduled Caste member returned on the federation
ticket. I was included in Mr. Suhrawardy’s Cabinet. The 16th day of August of
that year was observed in Calcutta as ‘The Direct Action Day’ by the Muslim
League. It resulted, as you know, in a holocaust. Hindus demanded my
resignation from the League Ministry. My life was in peril. I began to receive
threatening letters almost every day. But I remained steadfast to my policy.
Moreover, I issued an appeal through our journal ‘Jagaran’ to the Scheduled
Caste people to keep themselves aloof from the bloody feud between the Congress
and the Muslim League even at the risk of my life. I cannot but gratefully
acknowledge the fact that I was saved from the wrath of infuriated Hindu mobs
by my Caste Hindu neighbours. The Calcutta carnage was followed by the
‘Noakhali Riot’ in October 1946. There, Hindus, including Scheduled Castes,
were killed, and hundreds were converted to Islam. Hindu women were raped and
abducted. Members of my community also suffered the loss of life and property.
Immediately after these happenings, I visited Tipperah and Feni and saw some
riot-affected areas. The terrible sufferings of Hindus overwhelmed me with
grief, but still, I continued the policy of co-operation with the Muslim
League. Immediately after the massive Calcutta Killing, a no-confidence motion
was moved against the Suhrawardy Ministry. It was only due to my efforts that
the support of four Anglo-Indian Members and of four Scheduled Caste members of
the Assembly who had hitherto been with the Congress could be secured, but for
which the Ministry would have been defeated.
4. In October 1946,
most unexpectedly came to me through Mr. Suhrawardy the offer of a seat in the
Interim Government of India. After a good deal of hesitation and being given
only one hour’s time to take my final decision, I consented to accept the offer
subject to the condition only that I should be permitted to resign if my leader
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar disapproved of my action. Fortunately, however, I received
his approval in a telegram sent from London. Before I left for Delhi to take
over as Law Member, I persuaded Mr. Suhrawardy, the then Chief Minister of
Bengal, to agree to take two Ministers in his Cabinet in my place and to
appoint two Parliamentary Secretaries from the Scheduled Case Federation group.
5. I joined the
Interim Government on November 1, 1946. After about a month, when I paid a
visit to Calcutta, Mr.Suhrawardy apprised me of the communal tension in some
parts of East Bengal, especially in Gopalganj Sub-division, where the
Namahsudras were in majority, being very high. He requested me to visit those
areas and address meetings of Muslims and Namahsudras. The fact was that Namahsudras
in those areas had made preparations for retaliation. I addressed about a dozen
of largely attended meetings. The result was that Namahsudras gave up the idea
of retaliation. Thus an inevitable dangerous communal disturbance was averted.
6. After a few months,
the British Government made their June 3 Statement (1947), embodying certain
proposals for the partition of India. The whole country, especially the entire
non-Muslim India, was startled. For the sake of truth, I must admit that I had
always considered the demand of Pakistan by the Muslim League as a bargaining
counter. Although I honestly felt that in the context of India as a whole,
Muslims had legitimate cause for grievance against upper-class Hindu
chauvinism, I held the view very strongly indeed that the creation of Pakistan
would never solve the communal problem. On the contrary, it would aggravate
communal hatred and bitterness. Besides, I maintained that it would not
ameliorate the condition of Muslims in Pakistan. The inevitable result of the
partition of the country would be to prolong, if not perpetuate, the poverty,
illiteracy, and miserable condition of the toiling masses of both the
States. I further apprehended that Pakistan might turn to be one of the
most backward and undeveloped countries of South East Asia.
LAHORE RESOLUTION:
7. I must make it
clear that I have thought that an attempt would be made, as is being done at
present, to develop Pakistan as a purely ‘Islamic’ State based on the Shariat
and the injunctions and formulae of Islam. I presumed that it would be set up
in all essentials after the pattern contemplated in the Muslim League
resolution adopted at Lahore on March 23, 1940. That resolution stated inter
alia that (I) “geographically contiguous areas are demarcated into regions
which should be constituted with such territorial readjustments as may be
necessary, that the areas in which the Muslims are numerically in majority as
in the north-western and eastern zones of India, should be grouped to
constitute independent states in which the constituent units shall be
autonomous and sovereign” and (II) “adequate, effective and mandatory
safeguards should be specifically provided in the Constitution for minorities
in these units and in these regions for the protection of their religious,
cultural, political, administrative and other rights and interests in
consultation with them.” Implicitly in this formula were (a) that Northwestern
and eastern Muslim zones should be constituted into two independent States, (b)
that the constituent units of these States should be autonomous and sovereign,
(c) that minorities’ guarantee should be in respect of rights as well as of
interest and extend to every sphere of their lives, and (d) that Constitutional
provisions should be made in these regards in consultation with the minorities
themselves. I was fortified in my faith in this resolution and the professions
of the League Leadership by the statement Qaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah was
pleased to make on the 11th August 1947 as the President of the Constituent
Assembly giving solemn assurance of equal treatment for Hindus & Muslims
alike and calling upon them to remember that they were all Pakistanis. There
was then no question of dividing the people on the basis of religion into full-fledged
Muslim citizens and zimmies being under the perpetual custody of the Islamic
State and its Muslim citizens. Every one of these pledges is being flagrantly
violated, apparently to your knowledge and with your approval in complete
disregard of the Qaid-e-Azam’s wishes and sentiments and to the detriment and
humiliation of the minorities.
PARTITION OF BENGAL
8. It may also be
mentioned in this connection that I was opposed to the partition of Bengal. In
launching a campaign in this regard, I had to face not only tremendous
resistance from all quarters but also unspeakable abuse, insult, and dishonour.
With great regret, I recollect those days when 32 crores of Hindus of this
Indo-Pakistan Sub-continent turned their back against me and dubbed me as the
enemy of Hindus and Hinduism, but I remained undaunted and unmoved in my
loyalty to Pakistan. It is a matter of gratitude that my appeal to 7 million
Scheduled Caste people of Pakistan evoked a ready and enthusiastic response
from them. They lent me their unstinted support, sympathy, and encouragement.
9. After the
establishment of Pakistan on August 14, 1947 you formed the Pakistan Cabinet,
in which I was included, and Khwaja Nazimuddin formed a provisional Cabinet for
East Bengal. On August 10, I had spoken to Khwaja Nazimuddin at Karachi and
requested him to take 2 Scheduled Caste Ministers in the East Bengal Cabinet.
He promised to do the same sometime later. What happened subsequently in this
regard was a record of unpleasant and disappointing negotiations with you,
Khwaja Nazimuddin and Mr. Nurul Amin, the present Chief Minister of East
Bengal. When I realised that Khwaja Nazimuddin was avoiding the issue on this
or that excuse, I became almost impatient and exasperated. I further discussed
the matter with the Presidents of the Pakistan Muslim League and its East
Bengal Branch. Ultimately, I brought the matter to your notice. You were
pleased to discuss the subject with Khwaja Nazimuddin in my presence at your
residence. Khwaja Nazimuddin agreed to take one Scheduled Caste Minister on his
return to Dacca. As I had already become skeptical about the assurance of
Khwaja Nazimuddin, I wanted to be definite about the time-frame. I insisted
that he must act in this regard with a month, failing which I should be at liberty
to resign. Both you and Khwaja Nazimuddin agreed to the condition. But alas!
you did not perhaps mean what you said. Khwaja Nazimuddin did not keep his
promise. After Mr. Nurul Amin had become the Chief Minister of East Bengal, I
again took up the matter with him. He also followed the same old familiar
tactics of evasion. When I again called your attention to this matter prior to
your visit to Dacca in 1949, you were pleased to assure me that Minority
Ministers would be appointed in East Bengal, and you asked 2/3 names from me
for consideration. In stat deference to your wish, I sent you a note stating
the Federation Group in the East Bengal Assembly and suggesting three names.
When I made enquiries as to what had happened on your return from Dacca, you
appeared to be very cold and only remarked: “Let Nurul Amin return from Delhi.”
After a few days, I again pressed the matter. But you avoided the issue. I was
then forced to come to the conclusion that neither you not Mr. Nurul Amin had
any intention to take any Scheduled Caste Minister in the East Bengal Cabinet.
Apart from this, I was noticing that Mr. Nurul Amin and some League leaders of
East Bengal were trying to create disruption among the Members of the Scheduled
Caste Federation. It appeared to me that my leadership and wide-spread
popularity were considered ominous. My outspokenness, vigilance, and sincere
efforts to safeguard the interests of the minorities of Pakistan, in general,
and of the Scheduled Caste, in particular, were considered a matter of
annoyance to the East Bengal Govt. and few League leaders. Undaunted, I took my
firm stand to safeguard the interests of the minorities of Pakistan.
ANTI-HINDU POLICY
10. When the question
of partition of Bengal arose, the Scheduled Caste people were alarmed at the
anticipated dangerous result of partition. Representation on their behalf were
made to Mr. Suhrawardy, the then Chief Minister of Bengal, who was pleased to
issue a statement to the press declaring that none of the rights and privileges
hitherto enjoyed by the Scheduled Caste People would be curtailed after
partition and that they would not only continue to enjoy the existing rights
and privileges but also receive additional advantages. This assurance was given
by Mr. Suhrawardy not only in his personal capacity but also in his capacity as
the Chief Minister of the League Ministry. To my utter regret, it is to be
stated that after partition, particularly after the death of Qaid-e-Azam, the
Scheduled Castes have not received a fair deal in any matter. You will
recollect that from time to time, I brought the grievances of the Scheduled
Castes to your notice. I explained to you on several occasions the nature of
inefficient administration in East Bengal. I made serious charges against the
police administration. I brought to your notice incidents of barbarous
atrocities perpetrated by the police on frivolous grounds. I did not hesitate
to bring to your notice the anti-Hindu policy pursued by the East Bengal
Government, especially the police administration and a section of Muslim League
leaders.
SOME INCIDENTS:
11. The first incident
that shocked me took place at a village called Digharkul near Gopalganj, where
on the false complaint of a Muslim, brutal atrocities were committed on the
local Namahsudras. The fact was that a Muslim who was going in a boat attempted
to throw his net to catch fish. A Namahsudra, who was already there for the
same purpose, opposed the throwing of the net in his front. This was followed
by some altercation, and the Muslim got annoyed and went to the nearby Muslim
village and made a false complaint that he and a woman in his boat had been
assaulted by the Namahsudras. At that time, the S.D.O. of Gopalganj was passing
in a boat through the canal, who, without making any enquiry, accepted the
complaint as true and sent armed police to the spot to punish the Namahsudras.
The armed police came, and the local Muslims also joined them. They not only
raided some houses of the Namahsudras but mercilessly beat both men and women,
destroyed their properties, and took away valuables. The merciless beating of a
pregnant woman resulted in abortion on the spot. This brutal action on the part
of the local authority created panic over a large area.
12. The second
incidence of police oppression took place in the early part of 1949 under P.S.
Gournadi in the district of Barisal. Here a quarrel took place between two
groups of members of a Union Board. One group which was in the good books of
the police conspired against the opponents on the plea of their being
Communists. On the information of a threat of attack on the Police Station, the
O.C., Gournadi requisitioned armed forces from the headquarters. The Police,
helped by the armed forces, then raided a large number of houses in the area,
took away valuable properties, even from the house of absentee-owners who were
never in politics, far less in the Communist Party. A large number of persons
over a wide area were arrested. Teachers and students of many High English
Schools were Communist suspects and unnecessarily harassed. This area being
very near to my native village, I was informed of the incident. I wrote to the
District Magistrate and the S.P. for an enquiry. A section of the local people
also prayed for an enquiry by the S.D.O. But no enquiry was held. Even my
letters to the District authorities were not acknowledged. I then brought this
matter to the notice of the highest Authority in Pakistan, including yourself
but to no avail.
WOMEN FOR MILITARY:
13. The atrocities
perpetrated by the police and the military on the innocent Hindus, especially
the Scheduled Castes of Habibgarh in the District of Sylhet deserve
description. Innocent men and women were brutally tortured, some women
ravished, their houses raided, and properties looted by the police and the
local Muslims. Military pickets were posted in the area. The military not only
oppressed these people and took away stuff forcibly from Hindu houses but also
forced Hindus to send their womenfolk at night to the camp to satisfy the carnal
desires of the military. This fact also I brought to your notice. You assured
me of a report on the matter, but unfortunately, no report was forthcoming.
14. Then occurred the
incident at the Nachole in the District of Rajshahi was in the name of suppression
of Communists, not only the police but also the local Muslims in collaboration
with the police oppressed the Hindus and looted their properties. The Santhals
then crossed the border and came over to West Bengal. They narrated the stories
of atrocities wantonly committed by the Muslims and the police.
15. An instance of callous and coldblooded brutality is furnished by the incident that took place on December 20, 1949 in Kalshira under P.S. Mollarhat in the District of Khulna. What happened was that late at night, four constables raided the house of one Joydev Brahma in village Kalshira in search of some alleged Communists. At the scent of the police, half a dozen young men, some of whom might have been Communists, escaped from the house. The police constable entered the house and assaulted the wife of Joydev Brahma, whose cry attracted her husband and a few companions who escaped from the house. They became desperate, re-entered the house, found 4 constables with one gun only. That perhaps might have encouraged the young men who struck a blow on an armed constable who died on the spot. The young men then attacked another constable when the other two ran away and raised the alarm, which attracted some neighbouring people who came to their rescue. As the incident took place before sunrise when it was dark, the assailants fled with the dead body before the villagers could come. The S.P. of Khulna with a contingent of military and armed police appeared on the scene in the afternoon of the following day. In the meantime, the assailants fled, and the intelligent neighbours also fled away. But the bulk of the villagers remained in their houses as they were absolutely innocent and failed to realise the consequence of the happening. Subsequently, the S.P., the military, and armed police began to beat mercilessly the innocents of the entire village, encouraged the neighbouring Muslims to take away their properties. A number of persons were killed, and men and women were forcibly converted. House-hold deities were broken, and places of worship were desecrated and destroyed. Several women were raped by the police, military, and local Muslims. Thus a veritable hell was let loose not only in the village of Kalshira, which is 1-1/2 miles in length with a large population but also in a number of neighbouring Namahsudra villages. The village Kalshira was never suspected by the authority to be a place of Communist activities. Another village called Jhalardanga, which was at a distance of 3 miles from Kalshira, was known to be a center of Communist activities. This village was raided by a large contingent of police on that day for the hunt of the alleged Communists, a number of whom fled away and took shelter in the aforesaid house of village Kalshira which was considered to be a safe place for them.
16. I visited Kalshira
and one or two neighbouring villages on the 28th February 1950. The S.P.,
Khulna and some of the prominent League leaders of the district were with me.
When I came to the village Kalshira, I found the place desolate and in ruins. I
was told in the presence of S.P. that there were 350 homesteads in this
village; of these, only three had been spared, and the rest had been
demolished. Country boats and heads of cattle belonging to the Namasudras had
been all taken away. I reported these facts to the Chief Minister, Chief
Secretary, and Inspector of General of Police of East Bengal and to you.
17. It may be
mentioned in this connection that the news of this incident was published in
West Bengal Press, and this created some unrest among the Hindus there. A
number of sufferers of Kalshira, both men and women, homeless and destitute,
had also come to Calcutta and narrated the stories of their sufferings, which
resulted in some communal disturbances in West Bengal in the last part of
January.
CAUSES OF THE FEBRUARY
DISTURBANCE
18. It must be noted
that stories of a few incidents of communal disturbance that took place in West
Bengal as a sort of repercussion of the incidents at Kalshira were published in
exaggerated form in the East Bengal press. In the second week of February 1950
when the Budget Session of the East Bengal Assembly commenced, the Congress
Members sought permission to move two adjournment motions to discuss the
situation created at Kalshira and Nachole. But the motions were disallowed. The
Congress members walked out of the Assembly in protest. This action of the
Hindu members of the Assembly annoyed and enraged not only the Ministers but
also the Muslim leaders and officials of the Province. This was perhaps one of
the principal reasons for the Dacca and East Bengal riots in February 1950.
19. It is significant
that on February 10, 1950 at about 10 o’clock in the morning, a woman was
painted red to show that her breast was cut off in the Calcutta riot and was
taken round the East Bengal Secretariat at Dacca. Immediately the Government
servants of the Secretariat stuck work and came out in procession raising
slogans of revenge against the Hindus. The procession began to swell as it
passed over a distance of more than a mile. It ended in a meeting at Victoria
Park at about 12 o’clock in the noon, where violent speeches against the Hindus
were delivered by several speakers, including officials. The fun of the whole
show was that while the employees of the Secretariat went out of the
procession, the Chief Secretary of the East Bengal Government was holding a
conference with his West Bengal counterpart in the same building to find out
ways and means to stop communal disturbances in the two Bengals.
OFFICIALS HELPED
LOOTERS
20. The riot started at about 1 p.m. simultaneously all over the city. Arson, looting of Hindu shops and houses, and killing of Hindus, wherever they were found, commenced in full swing in all parts of the city. I got evidence even from the Muslims that arson and looting were committed even in the presence of high police officials. Jewelry shops belonging to the Hindus were looted in the presence of police officers. They not only did not attempt to stop loot but also helped the looters with advice and direction. Unfortunately for me, I reached Dacca at 5 o’clock in the afternoon on the same day, in February10, 1950. To my utter dismay, I had occasion to see and know things from close quarters. What I saw and learned from firsthand information was simply staggering and heartrending.
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