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DR. Ram Manohar Lohia and the Quit India Movement -Prof. J. Raghavendhar Rao Professor of Sociology (Retd.) Osmania University, Hyderabad – 07 The anti-imperialist struggle against the British lathies and bullets. From among those, who were started in 1920, under the leadership of Mahatma arrested many were brutally tortured and maimed. Gandhi. He introduced the new methodology of There was no second line of leadership left to non-violence and non-cooperation into the carry on the anti-imperialist struggle. The plan framework of the struggle. The freedom fighters of the British was to crush the movement with an were largely scared of the might and power of iron hand; to some extent, they have succeeded, the British, namely, its modern arms, weapons to begin with. But soon this was proved false and bullets. They were trapped by the fear of with the entry of valiant socialist leaders like Dr. injury and death but the salt Satyagraha of Dandi Ram Manohar Lohia, Jayaprakash Narayan, march, a major step in non-cooperation Aruna Asaf Ali, Achut Patwardhan and others. movement was led by Gandhiji as a forlorn soldier They formed their underground network and with tremendous success. The masses were a united all the underground freedom fighters to witness to the fearless march of Gandhi which keep the struggle alive and the flag flying. emboldened them to become fearless. Dr. Lohia used the Congress Freedom Radio After this, the major event which turns out as and made fiery speeches to awaken the fire and a landmark in the freedom struggle is the “Quit enthusiasm of the masses. He also wrote India” movement. On 8th August, 1942, the Indian booklets and edited bulletins about the national National Congress passed a resolution almost struggle and provided a proper direction to the late in the evening and called the British “to Quit freedom movement which otherwise would have India”, once for all. They were no longer been like a boat without rudder. prepared to support the British war against Fascism. All the top national leaders like The socialist fighters led by Dr. Lohia and Mahatma Gandhi, Sadar Patel, Jawaharlal Nehru Jayaprakash Narayan developed a programme and Azaad were arrested on the morning of 9th of sharpening the struggle in terms of mobilization August, 1942. Vinoba Bhave was the first to as well as the realization of the objective of court arrest. freedom, 1) They first concentrated on destroying the system of communication and paralyzing the Gandhiji gave a stirring call for the masses of administration, 2). They planned for either seizing India to participate in the movement with a “do the offices of British administration or damaging or die” slogan. The response was enormous. them, 3). They developed a plan of blowing of The unarmed men, women, youth and children those trains which carried the British arms and courted arrest in the midst of violent attack of ammunitions used against the freedom fighters. 14 sêyéT eTH√Vü≤sY ˝ÀVæ≤j·÷ X¯‘· »j·T+‹ Á|ü‘˚´ø£ dü+∫ø£ Dr. Lohia was a very good visionary of foreign they were calling it as an ‘Imperialist War’ but policy and he was appointed as the secretary of under the inspiration and guidance of Moscow, foreign policy department of the Indian National they changed their terminology and called it a Congress by Pandit Nehru in 1934. With his “People’s War”. This was shocking and traumatic vast erudition he related the freedom struggle of and Dr. Lohia was forced to have a second look India with the struggles of other nations. He was at the doctrine of Marxism itself because he not an isolationist but believed in Universalist view suspected that there was something lacking in of the freedom struggle. Thanks to his teachers the fundamentals of Marxist ideology. During Prof. Onken, he had a good grounding in history this period, he wrote a long but unfinished treatise and could relate the past with the present and tilted “Economics after Marx”. In this, he came future. About the Indian freedom struggle, he up with the formulation of the twin origins of said: “India has been the subject of world history capitalism and imperialism/colonialism. during the last 150 years. Free India must not During this period, an underground remain merely a subject of world history”, it must publication called “Do or Die” was started with become its creator. his inspiration. Dr. Lohia wrote profusely on the The underground movement was an interval future economy of India, decentralization of between 1942 arrests of leaders and the open power and the power-operated spinning wheel politics of negotiations in 1944. Dr. Lohia led etc. He cautioned the leaders that India should the underground movement from 9th August, not become a ‘slave’ to the ‘machine’. th 1942 to 28 May, 1944. He managed to escape In his underground life, Lohia changed places the clutches of British police and intelligence with and also changed faces. In Bombay, he was great skill and courage. As stated earlier, he dressed up in Pyjama, Sherwani with a cap while operated the Congress Freedom Radio from in Calcutta he was immaculately dressed in underground with the help of other friends and western attire. These were the tactics needed spread the idea of revolution for 94 days from to escape the gaze of the British spys and police. 13th August to 14th November, 1942. Dr. Lohia was a dauntless speaker and a selfless fighter. Dr. Lohia came to know that Jayaprakash He burnt with freedom and kindled the fire of Narayan was in Nepal continuing his emancipation in youth and students as well as underground activity. Then he went to Nepal the government employees and the police of the and met him in a camp where the youth were British administration. In his speeches and being imparted training in the use of fire arms. writings he attacked the arrogance of the British He was very much excited by the activity but it and their strategy of terror. For sometime, he was against his credo of non-violence. propagated on the radio from Calcutta. After sometime, the Nepal government at the Many people from different parts of India instance of the British, ordered their police to participated in the freedom struggle with great arrest Lohia, Jayaprakash Narayan and others. gusto and dedication to his astonishment; he Having arrested, the Nepal police lodged them found the communists and their party overnight at Hanuman Nagar camp 70 miles away from changing their stand towards the British. Earlier, the main base camp. The guerilla wing of the sêyéT eTH√Vü≤sY ˝ÀVæ≤j·÷ X¯‘· »j·T+‹ Á|ü‘˚´ø£ dü+∫ø£ 15 freedom fighters known as “Azaad Dasta” him. Dr. Lohia felt lonely, despondent and decided to liberate Lohia and JP. They came in helpless. He told the Jailor and his constables the early hours at Hanuman Nagar and burnt the that he was prepared to tell everything about huts; they also heavily fired in the air in all himself but did not know about the other freedom directions. This created confusion in the Nepal’s fighters and comrades in arms. But the Britishers police as they thought that a large number of were not prepared to believe his version and armed men had attacked them. They were continued the torture. demoralized and could not stop the operation of During this period, Dr. Lohia tried to inform setting Dr. Lohia and JP free. After travelling the central government and its under-secretary few days Dr. Lohia reached Calcutta safely Mr. Arthur Anderson at Delhi, but the Punjab The British government was chagrinned with police suppressed the information from reaching this development and was furious about the the higher authorities. Lohia wrote a detailed escape of Dr. Lohia from the clutches of Nepal account of his torture but it never came to the police. They announced big prize money on the light of the people as the information was ‘killed’ head of Lohia and for providing information by the Punjab government in collusion with the leading to his arrest. Federal government. While staying in Bombay on 19th May, 1944, In December 1944, he was allowed to file a Dr. Lohia was caught and arrested in a flat located Habeas Corpus petition in the High Court. He in a building in Babulnath road in Bombay. Thus, added an addendum to his petition but it was the adventurous and courageous saga of heard in camera preventing the press from underground life came to a halt. highlighting the information to the people of India. The petition, however, was dismissed by the local He was kept in Bombay jail for one month as well as the federal court. and later was transferred to Lahore fort which is Dr. Lohia vividly remembered the days of his now in a part of Pakistan. The Lahore fort was torture in Lahore Fort and said that the suffering notorious for its methods of cruelty and torture. was painful and intense; it was a “Stodgy Dr. Lohia was subjected to third degree methods Situation” through which he passed and became and new methods of torture were tried on his further stubborn in his resolve to keep the body to extract information from him about the ‘information’ about the movement ‘close to his underground movement. He used to be taken breast’. In a letter to Prof. Harold J. Laski, he from the prison to Jailor’s office with “hand cuffs” described the suffering and torture in detail around and used to be ordered, to sit in a chair exposing the barbarous character of the British for hours together and ask him the same question police and administration.

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