How much can you and I suffer? What is the point beyond which our bodies collapse, minds derange and spirits break? Strange indeed is human spirit, that when inspired by an idea- a value, it throws itself to the all consuming pyre of altruism.
Nani Gopal was one such hero from the days of revolutionary movement in the course of our nation’s independence. No, you will not find a mention of his name in the history text books and popular literature of independent India, for he was a revolutionary nationslist sentenced to transportation of life in Kalapani, a chapter our historians deemed unimportant in their frenzy to please the Nehru clan.
The young revolutionary from Bengal, Nani Gopal, was barely 16 years when he threw a bomb on the running car of a high ranking British official (sometime in 1912). He was not the one who would run away after the act. He stood the ground and got arrested. He faced the trial calm, did not plead for any leniency, and readied himself for the capital punishment. It was utter disappointment to him when he realised that the British Govt. had other plans. They robbed him of the opportunity of martyrdom and sentenced him for transportation of life for 25 years to Kalapani, the notorious Silver Jail of Andaman.
Nani hailed from a Brahmin family where he spent much of his childhood in Veda recital and studies. His constitution wasn’t strong and his body wasn’t trained for hard labour. But that’s no excuse when he was put in the prison mill to turn the “Kolu”, 10 hours a day, to extract 30-40 lbs of oil from the heap of coconuts allotted to him- a work that would challenge even the toughest of the beasts. He went round and round the Kolu, day after day, commanding all the strength he could from his fragile body.
He was thus reconciled to his fate and passing his days when he learnt that he, along with some of the other political prisoners, were stripped of that title and were counted among the dacoits, bandits and the petty criminals. His honour was outraged and he wouldn’t take that lying.
A political prisoner had to suffer far greater hardships than a criminal. But he would still want to be categorised as the former, for he was one among them, and decided to fight for his right to be called one. He stopped working in the Kolu and went on a hunger strike. Soon he was segregated from other prisoners (on the ground that they, all of whom elder to him, were spoiling him) and was kept standing through day and night with menacles on. The more he was punished the wilder he grew. He escalated the fight by giving up wearing clothes. The jail warder was infuriated and in his order the petty officers held him fast on the ground, put clothes made of rough gunny bags upon of him, and sewed them on his body. But Nani managed to tear them off at night.
The warder went a step ahead in torture. Nani was put in chain, with his hands and legs tied up. Nani retaliated by giving up his speech… maun vrata, that’s his new weapon of fight! He refused to answer any question that was put to him. He also refused to stand up before any officer.
Solitary confinement was the next in line. And Nani responded by refusing to come out of it, even for bath. He was then bodily lifted, stark naked to be washed on the reservoir. He was stretched flat upon it and the petty officers scrubbed his body with pieces of dry coarse coconut shreds till his flesh tore and blood oozed out from all the pores. Nani would bear all of it with out a word.
Nani remained day and night stripped in body and shivering with cold on the bare floor of his prison cell. He mainatained his demand throughout, that the prison authorities should rank him among political prisoners. It wasn’t a question of rank for him, but a question of personal honour… to be counted as a foot soldier in the cause of his nation’s freedom. He want the British to acknowledge it and till then he wouldn’t budge.
This led David Barrie, the jailor of the dreaded prison, to order the last resort of caning (which was abolished under the Morley Minto reforms of 1909). But Nani was upto it with a smile. He was locked in the frame to execute the most inhuman of the tortures. The prison was ready, all other prisoners were locked up in their cells for the jailer feared an outbreak of a revolt when the piercing cries of Nani echoed the walls of the prison.
However on an after thought, the punishment was put off, for they were unnerved by the prospect of his martyrdom in the process. Therefore he was transferred to the prison hospital where he was forcefully fed a little quanity of milk everyday through a tube running down his nose.
Months passed (not sure how many), one day as the prisoners sat down for their meal they were startled by an ecstatic cry, “Brothers! We are free!” It was Nani Gopal! And he went on,
“Brethren we are all born free. It is our birth right to speak to one another with love and kind greetings. If any enemy were to deprive us of that right, we must challenge him. Here I am speaking to you and will continue speaking.”
Hardly had these words escaped his lips, when, bursting with rage, the jailor and the warder rushed at him. Undaunted, Nani continued his eloquence. He was lifted out of the hall and locked up in a room for another year.
He continued to fight his complete non-cooperation until, finally, the British command in India came out with a special notification on the subject. It finally budged to his demand and ruled in his favour! It is not only that Nani won his demand, but he also helped his fellow prisoners secure many of their fundemental rights.
…
The mention of Nani Gopal and the events related to him came into my notice when I was reading Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in his ‘Story of My Transportation for Life’. It has touched me beyond words and I wish many more of us will take the effort to bring back to life many more such heroes burried in our one and a half century long war for independence.
My humble pranam at the memory of this great patriot. May he inspire many more generations to come.
P.S.
Since this narration is dedicated to the spirited story of Nani Gopal, equally spirited fight offered by many other political (and non-political) prisoners is not mentioned here. However, one should not fail to acknowledge their collective efforts in securing the rights.
—
Srinath Mohandas
April 22, 2016
Śrīnāth Mohandās 