Bengali Language Movement (Barak Valley)

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A memorial built on memory of language martyrs Silchar Bhasa.jpeg
A memorial built on memory of language martyrs

The Bengali Language Movement of Barak Valley was a protest against the decision of the Government of Assam to make Assamese the only sole official language of the state, even though most Barak Valley residents speak Bengali. About 80% of the Valley's residents are ethnic Bengalis. [1] In the Barak Valley region, the ethnic Bengali population consists of both Hindus and Muslims, who are almost equal in population and constitute the overwhelming majority of the population. There is also a substantial minority of native tribals and immigrants from other parts of India. The main incident took place on 19 May 1961 at Silchar railway station in which 11 ethnic Bengalis were killed by the Assam police.

Contents

Events of 1960–61

Background

In April 1960, a proposal was raised at the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee to declare Assamese as the one and only official language of the state. [2]

On 10 October 1960, Bimala Prasad Chaliha, the then Chief Minister of Assam presented a bill in the Legislative Assembly that sought to legalize Assamese as the sole official language of the state. [3] Ranendra Mohan Das, the legislator from Karimganj (North) assembly constituency and an ethnic Bengali, protested against the bill on the ground that it sought to impose the language of a third of the population over the rest two-thirds. [4] On 24 October, the bill was passed in the Assam legislative assembly thereby making Assamese as the one and only official language of the state. [4]

Protest

On 5 February 1961, the Cachar Gana Sangram Parishad was formed to agitate against the imposition of Assamese in the Bengali-speaking Barak Valley. On 14 April, the people of Silchar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi observed a Sankalpa Divas in protest against the injustice of the Assamese government. [5] On 24 April, the Parishad flagged off a fortnight-long padayatra in the Barak Valley, in the regions surrounding Silchar and Karimganj to raise awareness among the masses. The Satyagrahis, who took part in the padayatra, walked over 200 miles and covered several villages. The procession ended on 2 May in Silchar. Later on, a similar padayatra was organized in Hailakandi. After the padayatra, Rathindranath Sen, the Parishad leader declared that if Bengali was not accorded the status of official language by 13 April 1961[ clarification needed ], a complete hartal would be observed on 19 May from dawn to dusk. [6] The Parishad also called for due recognition of the languages of other linguistic minorities.

On 12 May, the soldiers of the Assam Rifles, the Madras Regiment, and the Central Reserve Police staged a flag march in Silchar. [7] On 18 May, the Assam police arrested three prominent leaders of the movement, namely Nalinikanta Das, Rathindranath Sen and Bidhubhushan Chowdhury, the editor of weekly Yugashakti.

Main incident of 19 May

Assam police resort to lathicharge on the satyagrahis at the Tarapur railway station (now, Silchar railway station). Lathicharge on satyagrahis at Tarapur railway station on 19 May 1961.jpg
Assam police resort to lathicharge on the satyagrahis at the Tarapur railway station (now, Silchar railway station).

On 19 May, the dawn to dusk hartal started. Picketing started in the sub-divisional towns of Silchar, Karimganj and Hailakandi from early in the morning. In Karimganj, the agitators picketed in front of government offices, courts, and railway stations. In Silchar, the agitators picketed in the railway station. The last train from Silchar was around 4 pm, after which the hartal would be effectively dissolved. Not a single ticket was sold for the first train at 5:40 AM. The morning passed off peacefully without any untoward incident. However, in the afternoon, the Assam Rifles arrived at the railway station.

At around 2-30 PM, a Bedford truck carrying nine arrested Satyagrahis from Katigorah was passing by the Tarapur railway station (present-day Silchar railway station). Seeing their fellow activists arrested and being taken away, the Satyagrahis assembled at the railway tracks broke out in loud protests. At that point, the truck driver and the policemen escorting the arrested fled the spot. Immediately after they fled, an unidentified person set fire to the truck. [5] A firefighting team immediately rushed to the spot to bring the fire under control. Within five minutes, at around 2-35 PM, the paramilitary forces guarding the railway station started beating the protesters with rifle butts and batons without any provocation from them. Then within a span of seven minutes they fired 17 rounds into the crowd. Several persons were hit by bullets and were carried to hospitals. Nine of them died that day. On 20 May,the people of Silchar took out a procession defying curfew with the bodies of the martyrs in protest against the killings. [6] Two more persons attained martyrdom next day. [8]

Procession in Silchar on 20 May 1961 in memory of the deceased martyrs in defiance of the curfew. Procession in Silchar on 20 May 1961.jpeg
Procession in Silchar on 20 May 1961 in memory of the deceased martyrs in defiance of the curfew.

Effect

After the incident, the Assam government had to withdraw the circular and Bengali was ultimately given official status in the three districts of Barak Valley. [9] [10] Section 5 of Assam Act XVIII, 1961, safeguards the use of Bengali in the Cachar district. It says, "Without prejudice to the provisions contained in Section 3, the Bengali language shall be used for administrative and other official purposes up to and including district level". [11]

Legacy

Statue dedicated to martyrs of Bengali Language movement of Barak valley, located in Udharbond Statue of martyrs of Bengali Language movement of Barak valley.jpg
Statue dedicated to martyrs of Bengali Language movement of Barak valley, located in Udharbond

This massacre is compared with the one in Bangladesh on 21 February 1952 when students demonstrating for recognition of their language, Bengali, as one of the two national languages of the then Pakistan, were shot and killed by police in Dhaka, which is the capital of present-day Bangladesh. [12]

Every year on 19 May is celebrated as Bhasha Shahid Divas to commemorate those 11 martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the sake of protecting Bengali language, various cultural programmes are conducted, rallies are taken out and bust of those martyrs are decorated with flower garlands.

The Assam government had, on 30 November 2013, issued a circular asking the deputy commissioners of all districts of the state to ensure the use of Assamese as an official language, which generated a lot of protests in the three Barak Valley districts – Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. Section 5 of the Assam Official Language Act 1960 as amended in 1967 had specified Bengali as the official language anyway. This prompted the state government to issue a fresh circular on September 9 saying that the official language (Bengali) of Barak Valley will continue to be used for all official works. [13]

List of martyrs

Eleven persons were martyred in 1961. Nine persons died on 19 May 1961, two died later.

One person was martyred on 17 August 1972.

Two more persons were martyred in 1986.

Other than eleven martyrs of 19 May 1961, many protesters of 1961 language movement were badly beaten up by lathis and bayonets of armed forces. Many faced bullet injuries. At least 30 of them were admitted to Silchar Civil Hospital, others were released after first aid treatment. Of these 30 activists some lived with pain and mark of bullet injuries for the remaining part of their lives. Some organizations and writers in Barak valley humbly remember them alongside eleven martyrs of Bengali language movement of 1961. Their names are: [14]

Memorial

Dr. Mohit Ray, speaking at a commemorative event at Kolkata in 2019. Commemoration of Bengali language movement in Barak Valley - Kolkata 2019-05-26 182610.jpg
Dr. Mohit Ray, speaking at a commemorative event at Kolkata in 2019.

A martyr's tomb, known as the Shahid Minar was erected in Silchar in the memory of the martyrs. This stone tomb shelters the ashes of the braves who chose death for their right to get formal education in their mother tongue in their free country. [15] In 2011, Gopa Dutta Aich unveiled a bronze bust of Kamala Bhattacharya in the premises of the Chhotelal Seth Institute under the initiative of Shahid Kamala Bhattacharya Murti Sthapan Committee. [16]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cachar district</span> District of Assam in India

Cachardistrict is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence, the pre-existing undivided Cachar district was split into four districts: Dima Hasao, Hailakandi, Karimganj, and the current Cachar district. Silchar is Cachar district's center of government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hailakandi district</span> District of Assam in India

Hailakandi district is one of the 33 districts of Assam state in north-eastern India. It makes up the Barak Valley alongside Cachar and Karimganj. It was constituted as a civil subdivision on 1 June 1869. Subsequently, it was upgraded to a district in 1989, when it was split from Cachar district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karimganj district</span> District of Assam in India

Karimganj district is one of the 31 districts of the Indian state of Assam. Karimganj town is both the administrative headquarters district and the biggest town of this district. It is located in southern Assam and borders Tripura and the Sylhet Division of Bangladesh. It makes up the Barak Valley alongside Hailakandi and Cachar. Karimganj was previously part of the Sylhet District before the Partition of India. It became a district in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silchar</span> City in Assam, India

Silchar is a city and the headquarters of the Cachar district of the state of Assam, India. It is second largest city of North Eastern Region after Guwahati in terms of area, population and GDP. It is also administrative capital of Barak Valley division. It is located 343 kilometres south east of Guwahati. It was founded by Captain Thomas Fisher in 1832 when he shifted the headquarters of Cachar to Janiganj in Silchar. It earned the moniker "Island of Peace" from Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India. Silchar is the site of the world's first polo club and the first competitive polo match. In 1985, an Air India flight from Kolkata to Silchar became the world's first all-women crew flight. Silchar was a tea town and Cachar club was the meeting point for tea planters.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barak Valley</span> Region in the Indian state of Assam

The Barak Valley is the southernmost region and administrative division of the Indian state of Assam. It is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam namely - Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. The main and largest city is Silchar, which seats the headquarter of Cachar district and also serves as administrative divisional office of Barak valley division. The valley is bordered by Mizoram and Tripura to the south, Bangladesh and Meghalaya to the west and Manipur to the east respectively. Once North Cachar Hills was a part of Cachar district which became a subdivision in 1951 and eventually a separate district. On 1 July 1983, Karimganj district was curved out from the eponymous subdivision of Cachar district. In 1989 the subdivision of Hailakandi was upgraded into Hailakandi district.

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Sachindra Chandra Pal was an Indian student who took part in the Bengali Language Movement in Silchar. He was killed on 19 May 1961. Sachindra Paul Road in Silchar is named in his memory.

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Kanailal Niyogi was an employee of the Indian Railways who took part in the Bengali Language Movement in the Barak Valley in 1961. On 19 May 1961, Niyogi became a martyr when he was shot dead by the paramilitary forces at the Tarapur railway station in Silchar.

Assam – 16th largest, 15th most populous and 26th most literate state of the 28 states of the democratic Republic of India. Assam is at 14th position in life expectancy and 8th in female-to-male sex ratio. Assam is the 21st most media exposed states in India. The Economy of Assam is largely agriculture based with 69% of the population engaged in it. Growth rate of Assam's income has not kept pace with that of India's during the Post-British Era; differences increased rapidly since the 1970s. While the Indian economy grew at 6 percent per annum over the period of 1981 to 2000, the same of Assam's grew only by 3.3 percent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silchar railway station</span> Railway station in Assam

Silchar railway station is a railway station situated at Tarapur, Silchar in Assam. The railway station falls under the jurisdiction of the Northeast Frontier Railway zone of the Indian Railways. The railway gauge functioned here is broad gauge. The station consists of single diesel line". It is one of the oldest railway station in India built under Assam Bengal Railway. The station has three platforms with a total of 14 originating trains. It serves Silchar, as well as the whole Barak Valley. Trains operate to different cities of India from Silchar including Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Visakhapatnam, Kanpur, Patna, Prayagraj, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Vijayawada, Guwahati, Bhubaneswar, Thiruvananthapuram & Agartala. As of now, 170 stations across India are directly connected to Silchar railway station.

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The Barak state movement includes political activities organised by various individuals, organizations and political parties, for creation of a separate state of Barak, within the republic of India, with Silchar as the capital. The proposed state corresponds to the 5 southern districts of the state of Assam namely: Cachar, Hailakandi, Karimganj, Dima Hasao, Hojai's and Jiribam of Manipur respectively. The total area and population of proposed state is 13,379 km² and 4.5 million as per 2011 Census. The area is covered by thick tropical forests and is surplus in natural resources like tea, oil, natural gas and jute. There are around 125 tea gardens across the Valley. The Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas of India Mr. Hardeep Singh Puri on a visit have stated that the region is rich in natural gas and have further said that, "If those huge reserve is properly utilized, then it will definitely boost local industry & employment.

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References

  1. ↑ "Assam Elections 2021 | Can Barak Valley Pay BJP the Dividend of CAA Bid?".
  2. ↑ Bodhi, S. R. (2021). "Khasi Political Reality and the Struggle for Statehood: History, Context, and Political Processes". In Ambagudia, Jagannath; Xaxa, Virginius (eds.). Handbook of tribal politics in India. SAGE Publications. p. 398. ISBN   978-93-5388-460-4.
  3. ↑ Bodhi, S. R. (2021). "Khasi Political Reality and the Struggle for Statehood: History, Context, and Political Processes". In Ambagudia, Jagannath; Xaxa, Virginius (eds.). Handbook of tribal politics in India. SAGE Publications. p. 398. ISBN   978-93-5388-460-4.
  4. 1 2 Chowdhury, Ranajit (19 May 2013). বিস্মৃত বলিদান. Ei Samay (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
  5. 1 2 Choudhuri, Arjun. "Bhasha Shahid Divas". We The People, Barak Valley. Archived from the original on 29 May 2013. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
  6. 1 2 Mukhopadhyay, Baidyanath (19 May 2013). বাঙালির চেতনায় শুধু একুশে, স্থান নেই উনিশের শহীদদের. Ei Samay (in Bengali). Kolkata.
  7. ↑ "Report of Non-Official Enquiry Commission on Cachar" (PDF). Silchar: A. K. Das Memorial Trust. p. 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 December 2013. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  8. ↑ Laskar, Dilip Kanti (4 March 2012). উনিশের সংগ্রাম অনন্য, অতুলনীয়. The Sunday Indian (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 2 September 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
  9. ↑ "No alliance with BJP, says AGP chief". The Telegraph, Calcutta. 27 December 2003. Archived from the original on 14 September 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  10. ↑ "Silchar rly station to be renamed soon". The Times of India. 9 June 2009. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  11. ↑ "Compulsory use of Bengali Language in Cachar". Silchar News. 24 July 2013. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  12. ↑ International Mother Language Day [ circular reference ]
  13. ↑ "Gogoi draws flak over official language circular for Barak Valley". The Indian Express. 10 September 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  14. ↑ Raktanjali, Bangla Bhasa sangramer Itihas, by Paritosh Paul Chaudhury, Raktim Giganta, Natun Diganta Prakashani, Silchar
  15. ↑ "Learn A Little About Silchar". The Cachar Club . Retrieved 23 May 2013.
  16. ↑ "Bronze bust of martyr Kamala Bhattacharya installed". The Sentinel. 18 May 2011. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2012.
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