Atulya Ghosh
Encyclopedia
Atulya Ghosh (28 August 1904 - 18 April 1986) was a Bengali
politician and an able political organiser who had become a legend in India
n political circles. He has been described as “a wise, scholarly and honest leader who was a superb political organizer.”
in Hooghly district
. In the early 1920s, he quit studies to become a Congress khadi
(hand spun cloth became a symbol of self reliance) worker. In the 1930s, he was active in selling khadi in the East Bengal
districts of Dhaka
, Comilla
and Chittagong
, with the centre being Malekandra, the village home of Dr. Prafulla Chandra Ghosh
, a disciple of Mahatma Gandhi
.
He was a member first of the Calcutta and then Hooghly district Congress
committees. During this period he also came in contact with Bhupendranath Dutta (brother of Narendranath Dutta, better known as Swami Vivekananda), one of the known early communists in India, who introduced him to works by Lenin (autobiography - Kashtokalpito). According to his own admission in his autobiography, it was at this period that the concept of his later book "Gandhism in the eyes of an anarchist" was first formed (Kashtokalpito). However he was fully converted to the Gandhian mode of struggle by Vijay Modak, a well known philanthropist and Congress organizer of the Hooghly district. According to him, he started out on his political career as a "grassroots" worker with one of his first duties being carrying ladders and putting up political posters (Kashtokalpito). In 1930, he was arrested as a suspect in the murder case of a policeman in Midnapore but was released because of lack of evidence. He had to go underground for some time as during this period the British government of India used various acts to justify physical repression or elimination of political activists not necessarily involved in armed movements. (autobiography - Kashtokalpito). He spent two years hiding out with the family of a fisherman sharing their life (Kashtokalpito). During the Quit India movement of 1942 he was arrested and lost one eye in jail, as a result of police action on detainees inside the jail on protest strike when a baton was inserted into one eye. During the same period he contracted spinal tuberculosis and had to be hospitalized. He suffered from mis-advertent administration of drugs while in jail, but reportedly officially forgave the British surgeon in charge when the latter apologized (autobiography - Kashtokalpito). On his release he was diagnosed with severe malnutrition and was instructed to maintain a minimal body weight by the reputed physician and Congress leader and the second Chief minister of West Bengal of independent India, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy (autobiography-Kashtakalpito). He became editor of the weekly Janasevak in 1945. It was converted to a daily in 1949.
For some time he worked in the Hooghly bank, founded by the Congress leader Dhirendra Nath Mukherji. In 1947, he organized a Congress Seva Dal camp at Howrah station to assist elderly AICC members. When the Radcliffe Commission, empowered to draw the boundary line across Bengal, started functioning, he along with Dhirendra Nath Mukherji, Jadabendra Nath Panja, Dr Nalinaksha Sanyal
, Sukumar Datta and others founded the New Bengal Association. The Association told Radcliffe that “the districts of Murshidabad and Nadia must be allotted to the Indian side of Bengal for the protection of the Calcutta Port, the lifeline of Eastern India.”
, and in 1957 and 1962 from Asansol
. In 1967, he lost the Bankura parliamentary seat.
He also served as the treasurer of the AICC (All India Congress Committee) for some time. He lent his support for the selection of Lal Bahadur Shastri
as prime minister after Nehru
’s death and then of Indira Gandhi
. When the Congress old guard fell off with Indira Gandhi, he was with them as part of what was called the ‘syndicate’ and then formed Congress (Organisation).
leader Benoy Choudhury
, who often met him in his retirement days.
Bengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী...
politician and an able political organiser who had become a legend in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n political circles. He has been described as “a wise, scholarly and honest leader who was a superb political organizer.”
Formative years
He was born on 28 August 1904. The family hailed from JejurJejur
Jejur is a gram panchayat under Haripal block in Chandannagar subdivision of Hooghly district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is about from Haripal railway station on the Howrah-Tarakeswar line.-Geography:Jejur is located at...
in Hooghly district
Hooghly District
Hooghly district is one of the districts of the state of West Bengal in India. It can alternatively be spelt Hoogli or Hugli. The district is named after the Hooghly River.The headquarters of the district are at Chinsura...
. In the early 1920s, he quit studies to become a Congress khadi
Khadi
The term khādī or khaddar means cotton. khādī is Indian handspun and hand-woven cloth. The raw materials may be cotton, silk, or wool, which are spun into threads on a spinning wheel called a charkha. It is a versatile fabric, cool in the summer and warm in the winter...
(hand spun cloth became a symbol of self reliance) worker. In the 1930s, he was active in selling khadi in the East Bengal
East Bengal
East Bengal was the name used during two periods in the 20th century for a territory that roughly corresponded to the modern state of Bangladesh. Both instances involved a violent partition of Bengal....
districts of Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
, Comilla
Comilla
Comilla is a city in south-eastern Bangladesh, located along the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway. It is the administrative center of the Comilla District, part of the Chittagong Division. The Eastern Wing of Bangladesh Highway Police is located in Comilla....
and Chittagong
Chittagong
Chittagong ) is a city in southeastern Bangladesh and the capital of an eponymous district and division. Built on the banks of the Karnaphuli River, the city is home to Bangladesh's busiest seaport and has a population of over 4.5 million, making it the second largest city in the country.A trading...
, with the centre being Malekandra, the village home of Dr. Prafulla Chandra Ghosh
Prafulla Chandra Ghosh
Dr. Prafulla Chandra Ghosh was the first Chief Minister of West Bengal, India. He was Chief Minister in three West Bengal governments, first in the Indian National Congress government from August 15, 1947 to August 14, 1948, then in the Progressive Democratic Alliance Front government from...
, a disciple of Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
.
He was a member first of the Calcutta and then Hooghly district Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
committees. During this period he also came in contact with Bhupendranath Dutta (brother of Narendranath Dutta, better known as Swami Vivekananda), one of the known early communists in India, who introduced him to works by Lenin (autobiography - Kashtokalpito). According to his own admission in his autobiography, it was at this period that the concept of his later book "Gandhism in the eyes of an anarchist" was first formed (Kashtokalpito). However he was fully converted to the Gandhian mode of struggle by Vijay Modak, a well known philanthropist and Congress organizer of the Hooghly district. According to him, he started out on his political career as a "grassroots" worker with one of his first duties being carrying ladders and putting up political posters (Kashtokalpito). In 1930, he was arrested as a suspect in the murder case of a policeman in Midnapore but was released because of lack of evidence. He had to go underground for some time as during this period the British government of India used various acts to justify physical repression or elimination of political activists not necessarily involved in armed movements. (autobiography - Kashtokalpito). He spent two years hiding out with the family of a fisherman sharing their life (Kashtokalpito). During the Quit India movement of 1942 he was arrested and lost one eye in jail, as a result of police action on detainees inside the jail on protest strike when a baton was inserted into one eye. During the same period he contracted spinal tuberculosis and had to be hospitalized. He suffered from mis-advertent administration of drugs while in jail, but reportedly officially forgave the British surgeon in charge when the latter apologized (autobiography - Kashtokalpito). On his release he was diagnosed with severe malnutrition and was instructed to maintain a minimal body weight by the reputed physician and Congress leader and the second Chief minister of West Bengal of independent India, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy (autobiography-Kashtakalpito). He became editor of the weekly Janasevak in 1945. It was converted to a daily in 1949.
For some time he worked in the Hooghly bank, founded by the Congress leader Dhirendra Nath Mukherji. In 1947, he organized a Congress Seva Dal camp at Howrah station to assist elderly AICC members. When the Radcliffe Commission, empowered to draw the boundary line across Bengal, started functioning, he along with Dhirendra Nath Mukherji, Jadabendra Nath Panja, Dr Nalinaksha Sanyal
Nalinaksha Sanyal
Nalinaksha Sanyal was an Indian politician, economist and activist.-Education:He studied at Krishnath College, Berhampur University and Presidency College, Kolkata and taught economics at Krishnath College...
, Sukumar Datta and others founded the New Bengal Association. The Association told Radcliffe that “the districts of Murshidabad and Nadia must be allotted to the Indian side of Bengal for the protection of the Calcutta Port, the lifeline of Eastern India.”
At the helm
In 1948, he became general secretary of the West Bengal state Congress committee, assuming charge as its president two years later. He joined the Congress Working Committee in 1950. In 1952 he was elected to the Lok Sabha from BardhamanBurdwan (Lok Sabha constituency)
Burdwan is one of the 543 parliamentary constituencies in India. The constituency centres on Burdwanin West Bengal. Results of elections held in the constituency were as follows:-Assembly segments:...
, and in 1957 and 1962 from Asansol
Asansol (Lok Sabha constituency)
Asansol is one of the 543 parliamentary constituencies in India. The constituency centres on Asansol in West Bengal.-Assembly segments:...
. In 1967, he lost the Bankura parliamentary seat.
He also served as the treasurer of the AICC (All India Congress Committee) for some time. He lent his support for the selection of Lal Bahadur Shastri
Lal Bahadur Shastri
Lal Bahadur Srivastava Shastri was the second Prime Minister of the Republic of India and a significant figure in the Indian independence movement.-Early life:...
as prime minister after Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...
’s death and then of Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
. When the Congress old guard fell off with Indira Gandhi, he was with them as part of what was called the ‘syndicate’ and then formed Congress (Organisation).
Retirement days
In 1971, he retired from politics and led an active life spending much of his time founding and organizing the B.C.Roy Memorial Committee under whose auspices land was acquired in eastern Kolkata to form a children's garden and activity centre named the Bidhan Shishu Udyan. Although detached from active politics, he maintained friendly relations with many of his former political colleagues, such as Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, who visited the Udyan when he was the President of India. Although he used to be heavily criticized by the communists and socialists in his active days, it was the Communist Party of India (Marxist)Communist Party of India (Marxist)
The Communist Party of India is a political party in India. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2011, CPI is leading the state government in Tripura. It leads the Left Front coalition of leftist parties in various states and the national parliament of...
leader Benoy Choudhury
Benoy Choudhury
Benoy Choudhury was a revolutionary freedom fighter and politician, belonging to the CPI, who played a major role in land reforms in the Indian state of West Bengal.-Early life:...
, who often met him in his retirement days.