"I have witnessed the growth of the railways, post offices, educational institutes, and governance bodies, which the government carried out in full swing to give the impression that the country was advancing under the British Raj. But does development hold any significance if given at the expense of our rights and liberties?" : Ram Prasad Bismil
Most people from my generation were used to pleasuring The Raj's contribution to Indian Development. Rather than sacrifice for Revolutionaries who even offered their lives for these fools.
What did revolutionaries believe, though? How did they gather the spirit to confront the most significant power in those times directly? How does a person even think of sacrifice by knowing that he never would see the outcome of his struggle?
Prachi Garg's Book Kakori will give you answers to all these questions. So let's go threw it.
Initial Impressions of the Book
As per the title, that book is framed on the Kakori Train Action Day on 9 August 1925 by Hindustan Republican Association led by Ram Prasad Bismil. That is a collection of words by Ram Prasad Bismil, which he wrote during his incarceration and is divided into 14 chapters. The last page has a note from Chandra Shekhar Azad in which he describes Bismil, his aim for freedom, and his oath to not stop until death.
The book's scope is to demonstrate that the train robbery was unlike any ordinary action of the pre-independence period. But that was inspired by a larger goal that contains a strict message for London that Indians are not going to watch all their loot and torture silently and also inspired by some need of money to execute the revolutionary activities.
And why does Chandra Shekhar Azad compare that action's message with the 1857 Revolt? You will soon get an answer, but first, look at Book's author.
Why is Prachi Garg the most fitting choice to write that Book?
She is one of the most well-known and impressive personalities of today. She succeeded wildly as an author, columnist, academe speaker, traveler, and entrepreneur. She also achieved Inspiring Leader Award 2021 by the economic times and Adgully Women Disruptor in Technology 2021. She has significantly contributed to Enterpriniorship and this field's related writing. She had a study in computer science and business administration.
However, I still need clarification on how she got inspired to bring the Kakori Action Day to the front of the country. Her achievements & recognitions are enough to hold anyone looking at her writings.
Analysis of Kakori: The Train Robbery that Shook The British Raj
When Gandhi started the Non-Coopration movement, every person with every ideology accepted that, and it soon became an all-India movement. After the Swadeshi Movement of 1905, the country again stood out against the British. Ram Prasad Bismil was 23 years old and enthusiastically joined the movement. But Gandhi's step to take back that action changes everything.
That was when revolutionaries lost their trust in Congress' ideology and started their group, whose aim was finally to achieve independence at any cost. But Ram Prasad Bismil did not deny Gandhi's philosophy of not killing innocents until he could not directly harm his cause.
But the Path of being a revolutionary was more challenging; that movement works voluntarily. Insufficient funds forced them to shut down most of his organization's offices. Bismil even started a business and tried to gather funds, but more is needed to fulfill the requirement.
Bismil also defines his Disappointment over that situation,
I hate to admit that we lived in dark times when the trust was the most expensive resource. People did not want to associate with the revolutionaries to ensure their safety. It was easy for everyone to talk about the country behind closed doors and express their dissatisfaction. But we are still waiting for someone to aid us regarding active participation and contribution. I am deeply saddened to admit that the country failed its revolutionaries.
That reason finally caused the Kakori Train Action Day, which was executed with the aim of two reasons; the first was to fulfill the need for revolutionary funds, and the latter was to give a message to Britishers thought that Indians did not have the courage after 1857 to fight for their proper direction.
The capture of these ten revolutionaries also contains two reasons. First was to drop a piece of a bedsheet on the railway track, including a sign of the washerman of Shahjanpur, and second, a betrayal of his own man.
But Ultimately, that incident shocked the British Raj in every manner. Again, they did not dare to underestimate the power of Indians and the Hindustan Republican Association.
Three Lessons from That Book
The bond between Bismil & Ashfaq changed the perspective of both communities.
On-Page No 38, Ram Prasad Bismil wrote that when Ashfaqulla Khan entered HRA and eventually rose to a higher power, that makes most of his Hindu comrades disapproved of him. But Ashfaqulla Khan's loyalty and dedication changed the perspective of both communities.
Congress never stood with revolutionaries.
On the Kakori Train Action Day, one of the Revolutionary Manmath Nath mistakenly shot one man named Ahmad Ali, which gave Congress an excellent opportunity to criticize HRA and revolutionaries. They even called this "Revenge Against Gandhi" for his drawback of the Non-Copration Movement.
On page no 90, Ram Prasad Bismil writes,
To top it all, we had seen political members of Congress making their observations rather publicly about the incident. Judgments of reprimand were being made, and we were being criticized for the violence that happened.
Writing of "Mera Rang De Basanti Chola"
A feel of Indipendence & Republic Day celebration is always complete without this song.
Ram Prasad Bismil wrote on page no 138 about the writing of this song.
I remember that one time during Basant Panchami when those of us who had access to each other and had managed to get some goodwill from the police officers collectively wrote a song called Mera Rang de Basanti Chola and sang it with our spirits and joy. I know this sound like a romanticized version of the struggle—still, little pleasures can go a long way in the desperation and misery we are experiencing.
The audience I would recommend this book to
If a person thinks that the Indian Revolutionary movement was non-other than killing Britishers here and there, have must need to read that book. That book doesn't require any chronological knowledge of the NCERT History book. Even a student in class 8th can read that and make some vital takeaways. But you must read it.
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