The Subaltern Backstories of The Indian Independence Movement

 If we really ponder over it, it’s clearly a given that no historical narrative can be said to be truly complete. But why? The answer is simple. History is written by the victorious or at least in favor of them and their aspirations are considered representative of the greater stratified India. These dominant narratives take precedence over the lesser or marginalized ones. But ironically, these marginalized ones are often far more in number than the, so called, “great leaders.” Therefore, there’s a need for a more comprehensive version of history opening a window to the trivials of the independence struggle. This is especially important in today’s times considering how people’s voices are gaining greater attention.

This is not to say that people’s voices have never been given “the attention.” It’s just that it has never been enough. Even then, the efforts of subaltern historians cannot be ignored. These 1970 historians like Ranajit Guha, Sumit Sarkar and many others aimed to bring out the often subsumed perspective of historical narratives sidelined by the hagiographic retellings. They made history more intersectional and brought out the tales of smaller regional struggles, which had different interests and objectives from that of the “great leaders,” within the ambit of the independence struggle.

Now, when we say, “smaller regional struggles,” this is another massive category to cover. But the major part and the most ignored of them were:

1      1. Women

Women, their issues, participation, the stakes they had, etc., haven’t been given enough attention in the hagiographic version of Independence struggle. Even if they are heard, the count is limited to a few prominent ones like Sarojini Naidu, Aruna Asif Ali, Bhikaiji Cama, etc. But there are other seemingly ordinary household names buried in the hearts of a few who share the memories of the pain and suffering of those multiple and marginalized women.

One such example is Matangini Hazra, popularly known as Gandhi Buri. She participated in both the Quit India Movement and the Non-Cooperation Movement and showcased her chivalry by leading a procession, holding an Indian flag and shouting ‘Vande Mataram,’ even after being shot thrice. Her statue has also been put up in Kolkata at the spot where she was killed in Tamluk and the Hazra road in Kolkata has also been named so in her honour.

Another woman is Kanaklatha Barua, popularly known as Birbala. She led the female volunteers in the Quit India Movement in 1942 at Barangabari. At the young age of 18, she was shot dead by the British police for her noble efforts to hoist the national flag at the British dominated Gohpur Police Station by shouting the slogans “British imperialists should go back” etc.

Other than these few examples, there were many more sacrifices made attesting to the involvement of women in the Indian freedom struggle.

2   2.   Peasants

Peasant issues are dominated by grievances due to unfair land ownership and tenancy in British India. One such movement is the Pabna Movement of the 19^th century. This riot, though supported by big names of the time like Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Indian Association under Surendranath Banerjee, etc., was led mainly by the peasants toiling due to the exorbitant rents and taxes and the Occupancy Right under Act X of 1859. In opposition to these unjust policies, in May 1873, the peasants came together to form an Agrarian League in the Yusufshahi Pargana of Pabna district, Patna, East Bengal. The struggle, focusing less on violence and more on legal resistance, continued till 1885 when the Government enhanced the occupancy rights of the peasants by implementing the Bengal Tenancy Act of 1885.

Another movement was in the Jalpaiguri region of Bengal against the jotedari system which forced the landless peasants to pay exorbitant rents reducing them to conditions worse than that of the serfs.

3    3.   Indigenous People

Tribal struggles are a lot similar to the peasant grievances as they were forced into bonded labour under the British Raj. One such struggle was the Santhal bataidar agitation in Bihar that continued even after independence. They rose against the landed elite or the maliks, to whom they were bound. Anand Chakravarti, author of Social Power and Everyday Class Relations: Agrarian Transformation in North Bihar (2001), opines that the reason for this uprising was that the freedom movement and the Congress failed to account for their interests. Likewise, it can be noted that the interests of many other groups may have been ignored in the rat race towards popular interests.

4    4.   Trade Unions / Labour Movements

There were a number of movements in the pre-independent India even before the incidence of trade unions. Some of the less eye-catching ones were that of the plantation and mine workers who were heavily exploited by the plantation and mine owners and mangers. In contrast, the cotton and jute workers were more in the limelight receiving support from philanthropists.

Following these developments, Bombay emerged as a major city and gained importance. In this scenario, the Bombay dock workers rose up revolting against the British for their labour rights and formed the Bombay Dock Workers’ Union in 1932, at a time when forming trade unions was considered a criminal act. This was a turning point in the Indian freedom struggle showing the national leaders the importance of integrating the multiple and marginalized local movements to the “greater struggle.” 

Soon, most nationalist meetings started to take place in working class neighborhoods out of the realization that the dock workers had the potential to disrupt trade and thus, adversely impact the colonial administration. This was made true by persuading the dock workers to adopt a hands-off attitude towards foreign cargo, consequently disrupting foreign trade.

 

The aforementioned individuals and organizations constitute just the tip of the iceberg. Many more women, peasants, tribals, workers and others have been buried in the leaflets of history without due recognition. These endeavors, however negligible they may seem, need to be recognized so as to provide a much more enlightening and educated perspective of the Independence struggle to the posterity and give enough credit to those who rightly deserve it.