Publisher's Note There have books and books on Jyoti Basu, Five decades in active politics, longest serving Chief Minister of the world. It is not a small span of life. The first autobiography 'Janaganer Sange' (With the People) was published in two volumes spanning a great part of his carrier. A more intimate  'Jatadur Monepore' was published this year. Both have been in Bengali. There has been an 'authorised biography' in English, but this is the first time his personal Autobiography is being published in English. Translated from original Bengali 'Jatadur Monepore' by senior journalist, Abhijit Dasgupta Preface By Jyoti Basu Part I Childhood Days Part II In London Part III London Mazlish Part IV Back Home Part V Organising Labour Part VI In the assembly Part VII Riots of 1946 Part VIII Tebhaga Movement Part IX Independence & Partition Part X West Bengal assembly Part XI I am Arrested Part XII Party ban is Lifted Part XIII 1952 Elections Part XIV Resisting Tram fare rise Part XV I am a father Part XVI 1954 teachers agitation Part XVII Agitations unabetted Part XVIII Goa Liberation War Part XIX The Reorganisation of states Part XX Party Congress Part XXI Second General Elections Part XXII A wave of mass agitations Part XXIII Inflation Crisis Part XXIV 1957 Elections

 MEMORIES: The Ones That Have Lasted
(A political autobiography)
I AM ARRESTED

The second congress of the Communist Party of India, held in Calcutta’s Mohammed Ali Park between February 28 and March 6,1948, made changes in the membership policy and work culture. B T Ranadive succeeded P C Joshi as the general secretary. I was part of the delegation from West Bengal and was one of those who raised questions about of the political thesis adopted at this congress. Many of the mistakes made by Joshi had been rectified, but in the process, there was hint of recklessness which had crept into the party.We felt this would harm the party.

I did not get a chance to speak at the congress but sent a questionnaire to the secretariat. The provincial secretary of bengal, Bhabani Sen, called a meeting of the state unit the next day and those of us who had raised questions on the political thesis, were asked to apologise and the contents were read out at the party congress.

Work started in right earnest on the lines of the new political thesis. The Congress government tried to take full advantage of some of our organisational weaknesses and prepared for an all-out attack against us. Some secret documents of the home department, which came to our possession at that time. detailed how the Communist Party was aiming to unleash a wave of terror and why it was important to keep a watch on some of its leaders.

A top police official tipped us off that widespread arrests would be undertaken and that the party could be declared unlawful in West Bengal. However, despite this warning, our party leaders did not take any counter steps; most probably, not much importance was attached to the tip-off.

In this context, I remember an incident while the Assembly was in session.I shared good relations with minister Hem Chandra Naskar. A few days before the party was actually declared unlawful, he called me aside in the Assembly, gave me a paan and alerted me. "Jyoti, I would like to have a word with you later. But please be careful. We will talk later."

I was not able to trace Hem-babu after this; he could have given me some authentic information. Later I was told that on the eve of my arrest on March 26, 1948, a "source" had indeed confirmed the government move to ban the party. And that a list of those to be arrested had already been drawn up. This was passed on to the top leadership at our Dacres Lane office. Some members went underground but because of the suddenness and the little time left, most of us were caught napping. I was at my residence at Hindustan Park. On March 26, at the crack of dawn, the police encircled our house. I was still asleep. Soon, a police officer came up with a warrant, arrested me and took me to the Special Branch office on Lord Sinha Road.Once there, I saw the other comrades who had been arrested.

It was in this office that I came to know that our party had been banned under the erstwhile Raj law. Our party office had been raided and locked. "Swadhinata" had stopped publication. Thousands had been arrested throughout West Bengal and many of the warrants were still pending.

We also learnt that home minister Kiran Shankar Roy had signed the orders against us. Gopal Halder was among those whom I met at the S B office. He had brought his bag along. I asked him why. Gopal-babu said: "You have never been in jail before.You will not understand. These should be kept ready. You never know how long you have to stay here."There is another incident I remember. While going to the SB Office in the police van, I saw former chief minister Dr Ghosh on Gariahat Road. I was immediately reminded that it was he who had promised in the Assembly that this Bill would never be used against any people's movement.

Some of us were sent to Dum Dum Central Jail, Presidency Jail and Alipore Jail. It was Presidency Jail for me; was my first imprisonment. I came across many comrades there. We used to stay in one hall. Some gave themselves up to writing during those long hours, others played games or simply read books. Some took to a game of bridge; unfortunately, I did not know how to play that particular game of cards. Ambika Chakraborty took care of us; he seemed to have the right of way within the premises.

Our cases were to be reviewed every three months. The police brought ridiculous allegations against me. They said that I had been invited by farmers’ organisations in Burma which was patently false and that I was involved in trade union activities.

I was freed after three months. Likewise many others were freed either on the recommendation of the review committee or under habeas corpus pleas. I plunged into railway trade union activities. The Communist Party was still illegal. I could make out that police sleuths were after me all the time and every movement was under watch. I was told that I could not change residence without the permission of the police.

Mrinalkanti Bose, the then BPTUC president, was one of those who voiced strong reservations against the ban. Subsequently, we had differences with him as Mrinal-babu felt that we were being too reckless at times. He left the BPTUC and became acting president of the newly formed UTUC.

The stage was set for the conference of All India Trade Union Congress and I was expected to join. I discussed tha matter with barrister friends like Niren Dey and asked them whether I should risk the trip to Bombay. They gave me the green signal. I took the train from Howrah with Mrinalkanti Bose as the leader of our delegation. But we could not go far. When the train stopped at Kharagpur, a police force led by an officer entered the compartment and asked for me. The officer came to me and said that he had an arrest warrant. I asked why. He replied that he had no clue but that there were orders from the Police IG in Calcutta and that he was carrying the telegram with him.

I alighted from the train. I was kept waiting at the Kharagpur station and told that our next destination would be Midanapur. We boarded a passenger train soon afterwards. I was taken straight to Midnapur court. After getting to know of my antecedents, the lawyers seemed taken aback. I told them that I had no idea why I was in court. And that too, in Midnapur.

I was presented before the magistrate. He asked the police who drew a blank. The magistrate then ordered that I should be sent to Calcutta forthwith. I waited in the Bar Library of the Midnapur court. Later, the magistrate called me to his court and showed me an order from the government. The order said that Communist prisoners would have to be escorted by armed policemen. It was almost evening and no police force was available. I had to stay overnight in Midnapur. The magistrate also informed me that he had already ensured that I would reach Calcutta by the first train in the morning.

I was taken to the Midnapur Central Jail and stayed overnight there. I met many comrades there. Everybody was happy to see me. I took the first train surrounded by armed policemen to Calcutta and taken straight to the Alipore court. I sat in the Bar Library. I had decided that I would ask for bail. Some lawyers told me that this would not be granted since the judge who was to hear my case was on temporary posting and that he would do nothing to displease the government.

Snehangsu Acharya arrived soon. I saw some known faces in the Alipore court. My brother was present too; he was there in connection with another case. I was summoned to the court and Snehangsu accompanied me. What I was told by the lawyer came true. I was not granted bail. We asked for an explanation as to why bail was being denied. The judge did not even look at us.. I asked him, "Why can't you look us in the eyes?" But even then he did not. I was sent to the Alipore Central Jail. It was a Thursday. Some youths, charged with dacoity, were with me. I asked them why they had taken to crime. They answered that they had no means of livelihood and had been forced to take to unlawful activities.

I was sent to Alipore Central Jail on Thursday itself. Snehangsu decided that he would ask for bail in the court of M. Guha Roy. I was produced in his court on Monday. This time I got bail but the police tagged on some restrictions. I was told to report every week at the Beltala police station . I did not even know how to react to this since this was a totally new experience.

The case came up in court. The police charged me with flouting orders; that I had proceeded to Bombay without letting the police know. The police said that amounted to "change of residence!" The case went on for some months.

A friend Mrigen Sen helped us a lot during this case, not to forget what Snehangsu did as always.On the last day of the case, I came to court alongwith Mrigen Sen. He was prepared and had done his home work. The counsel for the prosecution came beside me and said, " I have to say certain things against you. But my hands are tied, I have to ask for a jail remand. But that is all: I shall not stay to hear the ruling." The proceedings went on for 45 minutes. I was released unconditionally, thanks to Mrigen Sen. I returned home. 

12 Union which was affiliated to the AIFR. One of its top leaders Madras’s Kalyanasundaram with me as it. Vice-president. Jaiprakash Narayan was the initial President to the all India organisation and the General Secretary was Guruswamy. not belonged to any party but we shared harmonious relations. He wanted us in many ways. On 26th March 1948 I was arrested. As said earlier I was released three months later. While going through the minutes of the Assembly’s September session I now see that I have then said: "A total of 70 comrades and I appealed for habeas corpus in the High Court which released us. But High Court said that there was no reason to keep us under arrest. It was only after the review that we were released. Since none of the allegations against us held any water. It was precisely for this reason that the ordinance was necessary. But it is important to note that the government had not released us.

I have already mentioned the two frivolous allegations against me. There was one more. I was a member of the West Bengal Unit of the CPI. This party was amassing arms. On this ground we were liable to be arrested without trial.

Kiran Shankar Roy and the rest of the ministers knew that such an excuse would not do; no Court could order us in jail. It is because of this that when our habits corpus appeal was placed in Court, I was faced with a fresh charge. This was absolutely hilarious, so much so that even under the new law, it sounded ludicrous. The fresh charges were :

(a) I was taking part in labour conference to propagate the Community Party beliefs. This was my first crime.

(b) I had led a procession and staged a blockade of the legislative assembly. This was the second crime.

Finally I had apparently threatened those who were not interest in joining strike; this was possibly of the worst of them of all. However when I lead the procession was not made clear neither was I told which labour meeting I had participated which propagated communist beliefs.

I was not the only target, other comrades were too, I have personally seen around 80 of these charge sheets.

The then Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court said : "If these charges are to be found rationale enough, then I can take it that you can arrest anybody anywhere in the country if you feel that they are working against the Government if the security of the government is the only issue. Then no party can fight elections and such parties and individuals can not expect justice from the court rooms."

The High Court find a Special Bench to go into this matter. A secular government almost overnight issued an ordnance to amend the law which, however, said that whatever the government felt was rationale reason enough for the arrest would be taken thus. The ordinance was issued on the very day that the bench was supposed to give this ruling. By this, all those arrested without trial of all those held were taken out of the purview of the High Court. Later one of the Judges of the Special Bench Justice Chatterjee in a separate judgment said that the authorities who had drafted the ordinance should have taken care to pass its final order.

Referring to Justice Chatterjee’s remark I indicated that the government had not only defamed the court but had also trampled upon the rights of the citizens. It was clear that the government felt that the citizens had no right to go to court. It had been left to the police to explain the rationality of reason as it was felt proper.

Now-a-days I feel that this order had striking similarities with the MISA introduced by Indira Gandhi during Emergency; obviously it would be a if I had mentioned MISA at the legislative assembly at that point of time. On 4th September 1948 we met for all India Railway Federation meeting at Liluah. On of the top Railway Union leaders, Kamal Sarkar stepped out for tea during the meeting, the police immediately arrested him and sent to the jail.  

Raids and arrests were routine. Between September 1948 and January 1949, I worked openly in the trade unions, maintaining keeping the communication links with our leadership who were in hiding. I also used the Assembly to ventilate our views.

I was then the general secretary of the B.N.Railroads Workers Union which was affiliated to the All-India Railwaymens Federation (AIRF). I was also the vice-president of the South Indian Railway Workers Union (Golden Rock) which had Kalyansundaram as its president. The AIRF was headed by Jaiprakash Narain and the general secretary was Guruswamy. Guruswamy did not have any political party affiliation but our terms with him were friendly.

On September 4, 1948, we held a national railway workers meeting in Liluah near Calcutta. One of our leaders, Kamal Sarkar, had gone out from the meeting room for a cup of tea; he was immediately arrested and sent to the Presidency Jail. Arrests without trial did not surprise us any longer.

I kept harping one point inside the Assembly. This government could arrest us any time and that keep us in custody without trial. But as long as I was outside and alive, I would continue to and oppose this anti- people government. This was a government of traitors.

The stage was set for a nationwide strike under the leadership of the AIRF. A charter of demands had been drafted. Amendments to the labour structure and wage parity were included in the charter. The process of organising the strike began from October 1948. My first aim then was to make this strike a success. The railway union office was situated on the third floor of a house on the Bowbazar and College Street crossing.

The B.N.Railways strike in support of the sailors' uprising in 1945 had been an unqualified success. The party had gained a new experience from that. But this was big, entailing a nationwide stoppage of railway movement. This was to be a major and far greater experience.

Guruswamy started touring the nation. I was also making hurricane tours. Our enterprise and enthusiasm knew no bounds.

As I have said earlier, reformist leaders already sway in the AIRF. We were also told that these leaders were holding parleys with the government to call off the strike. We started to pressurise the leadership to announce a date for the strike. At another level, the preparations continued.

On December 5, 1948, I got married for a second time. The then central and provincial leadership were wary whether I would be prepared to carry on party activities and risk the possibility of having to go underground; their apprehensions were unfounded. I had clear instructions to carry on party work in public.

Suddenly I got a letter from the secret underground party centre asking for an explanation as to why I had still not gone underground. They also questioned my decision to marry. In reply, I said that all my actions had the sanction of the leadership. If the party so wanted, I was prepared to go into hiding in an hour.

I also requested the leadership to make my position known throughout the party. The letter seeking my explanation was circulated; whether my reply was, I am not too sure. My father was still alive and I was living in Hindustan Park with my family.

The AIRF session was called at Danapur near Patna on February 16,1949 after considerable pressure was exerted by our group. By that time, we had confirmed news that the reformists within the organisation had reached a compromise with the authorities.

However, the decision was on the strike stood despite any compromise that had been reached. It was presumed that the strike would begin some time in March. We were instructed likewise. Later, the strike date was fixed as March 9.

We left for Danapur. Before my departure, I told my wife that I may not be home for an indefinite period of time. By that time, an arrest warrant had been issued against me. I went to Danapur alongwith some comrades and stayed in a nearby village because of security reasons. News about the conference filtered through. A proposal on March 9 as the strike date was brought; we lost in the voting. I was expelled from the AIRF.

I held a somewhat different view from that of the party leadership. Some of us felt that the workers were not ready for a strike of this nature. However despite differences, we had gone all out to make the strike a success. Some time later, the leadership did veer round to the stand that indeed the time had not been ripe for a strike on such a scale. Obviously, a correct assessment of the situation had not been made.

I did not come back straight to Calcutta. Some of our comrades were arrested. I flew down from Patna after hoodwinking the police. It was then that my life in hiding actually began. This also meant that I had to carry on hectic party work without getting arrested.

I was changing residence frequently in Calcutta and zeroed in on comrade Abdul Halim’s secret shelter. From there, I wrote a letter to my wife which went simply, "I am well. I need to stay in hiding now". Incidentally I had also sought refuge at a relative's residence who was totally dumbfounded. Such incidents were new to the family; they were unimaginable.

I organised a meeting of party members working in the railways. They could not give me any idea of where I could possibly stay. For some time, I stayed with Indrajit Gupta in a secret shelter in North Calcutta. By then, we had received information that the chances of holding the strike had receded.

The railway station had become virtual police camps and the city itself was teeming with policemen. On March 8 evening, the police activities reached a peak and there were widespread arrests. Not even one train could be stopped on March 9. There was normalcy everywhere barring a few stray violent incidents. The railway strike had been a failure but the leadership did not seem to have learnt any lesson from that. That we were going the wrong way was not realised at this time. In fact, the party gave itself over to some recklessness and impetuous decisions were taken.

The Politburo had a feeling that the Provincial Committee elected in 1947 would not be able to implement its policies. A new seven-member committee was then formed with Mohammed Ismail as its secretary. I was out; so was also Bhupesh, Saroj Mukherjee, Pramode Dasgupta, Niranjan Sengupta and Mohammed Ismail.

We had to change shelter often. But by that time the secret party headquarter was in position. I spent some time with Mohammed Ismail too. We ;had to do all the household chores ourselves. We stuck to the party line despite differences now and then. This was done with great sincerity. That was the positive aspect. In the final count, we did not desert the public and always stayed with them. The result of this attitude was reflected in the 1952 elections. The Congress government had by then taken it for granted that the Communist Party had been finished. We entered the Assembly with significant influence. Since 1952, our party has gained in strength after every election, reflecting the confidence of the people in us. In fact, we are now the biggest political party in West Bengal.

While our unit was banned officially in 1948, our comrades in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh had to face great restrictions and worked under a virtual siege.During our days in hiding, we used to meet for group discussions in the evening, moving from place to place to avoid arrest.

Certain events of 1949 return to me now. After returning to our base after holding group discussions, news came to us that the police had opened fire on a procession of women at Bowbazar in Calcutta and that four of our party leaders, including Pratibha Sen and Latika Sen, had died. One youth had also been killed.

In the same year, some of our comrades started a fast in jail. The police was requisitioned and a clash ensued. Many prisoners died or were hurt. Muzaffar Ahmed was then in jail. An agreement was signed between chief minister B C Roy and Kaka-babu, who represented the prisoners. The chief minister accepted many of our demands and the fast was called off.

Many of us felt that we were on the wrong track. Both Bhupesh and I realised this and discussed whether anything positive could be done and even thought of sending word to the Communist Party in Great Britain. But this could not be done because of a communication gap. The functioning of the party continued as before.

Nothing else of any major consequence happened in 1949. The Comminform was established after the Second World War to establish greater links between the Communists and other labour parties. The mouthpiece of this organisation was named, "For A Lasting Peace For A People's Democracy".

We were still following the same narrow-minded leftist policies. In January 1950, the Comminform mouthpiece published an important editorial on the various liberation struggles, taking the examples of Asia, Africa and Latin America. The editorial indicated that the Indian Communists should also change their line of thinking. There was much that needed to be rectified.

Soon after this, the Politburo issued a circular saying that discussions would be held to reassess the party line and strategy on the basis of that editorial.

We were enthused again and derived strength from that editorial. There was now scope for debate within the party. Rajeshwar Rao became the general secretary of the newly-constituted Politburo. A renewed drive begun. In West Bengal, a new Provincial Organisation Committee (POC) with Ranen Sen as secretary was formed. We in the Bengal unit had differences with Rajeshwar Rao over the reorganisation of the central leadership and at times, this led to serious bitterness. There were long discussions; we stressed the need for reorganisation first and the adoption of the political thesis later.

Apart from myself, those who worked tirelessly during this inner-party struggle were Abdul Halim, Abdullah Rasul, Saroj Mukherjee, Bankim Mukherjee, Niranjan Sengupta, Pramode dasgupta, Bhupesh Gupta and Ranen Sen.

We used to hold group discussions almost daily at the state party level. After the editorial became the focal point of discussions, the tendency towards recklessness abated. Many of our underground leaders were arrested one after the other. In September 1950, while Niranjan Sengupta and I were on our way after a secret group meeting, we were arrested on the road by officers of the Special Branch who took us to their office on the Lord Sinha Road. We were later sent to Presidency Jail. From there to Dum Dum Central Jail where we met many of our comrades.

Next to be arrested were Pramode Dasgupta, Abdul Halim, Abdullah Rasul, Bhupesh Gupta and Saroj Mukherjee. They were also lodged in the Dum Dum Jail. My second imprisonment continued for almost one year. In 1951, I was a free man again after I filed a habeas corpus petition.