Essays about the revolutionary activities of Bengal in the early 20th century

a. Introduction:

In Bengal, the first organised attempt at revolutionary movement was made in 1902 with the establishment of Anushilan Samiti.

Outwardly though the Samiti appeared to be a centre for physical cultivation, in reality it was designed to be a centre where Bengalee youths would be trained to resort to political violence and dedicate their lives to free the motherland from the shackles of the foreign rulers.

In course of time there emerged a number of other secret societies in Bengal such as: Sadhana Samiti Suhrid Samiti, etc.

b. First Phase of Revolutionary Movement:

A breakway group from the Anushilan Samiti later on came to be known as Jugantar dal. The dal or party adopted the name from the ‘Jugantar’, a Bengali weekly which was started in 1906.

In the same year Aurobindo Ghosh came over to Calcutta from Baroda and joined the Jugantar. Aurobindo’: participation infused a new blood to the Jugantar party.

In 1908, a few fearless sons of Bengal like Barin Ghosh (brother of Aurobindo Ghosh), Hem Chandra Quanungo, etc. established a bomb manufacturing unit in a garden-house at Muraripukur (near Manicktola) in Calcutta.

It was, in fact, the terrorist activities of his garden-house at Muraripukur that constituted the beginning of terrorist activities in Bengal.

The terrorists of this garden-house hatched a conspiracy to murder the ill-famed judge Kingsford and deputed Kshudiram Eose and Prafulla Chaki-the two spirited young -men for the purpose. But the bombs hurled by the revolutionaries -mistakenly killed two English ladies (Mrs. Kennedy and her daughter) who were travelling in a carriage.

Prafulla Chaki committed suicide before he was apprehended and Kshudiram was sentenced to death by a verdict of the Court. Many other persons, including Aurobindo Ghosh had been arrested following the bomb incident and the British government started the famous Alipore Conspiracy Case against all of them. However, the conspiracy with attempt to murder Kingsford is an event of utmost importance in the history of terrorist movement in India. The attempt of Prafulla Chaki and Kshudiram on the life of Kingsford was not successful. Even then the incident was of utmost importance in the history of revolutionary movement in India.

First, in Bengal t ‘ was the first incident of an attempt on the life of an Englishman.

Second, the attempt was unsuccessful but the consequences followed. Prafulla Chaki committed suicide and Kshudiram was sentenced to death by the Court.

Third, it caused serious alarm to the British government in India.

Fourth, the activities of the British intelligence service increased to a great extent after the bomb incident. And it was within a very short time that the British police authorities unearthed the bomb factory at Muraripukur in Calcutta.

Fifth, the Alipore Conspiracy Case instituted against the revolutionaries was the first of its kind in India which was soon to be followed by a number of conspiracy cases lodged against the terrorist outrages committed later.