Maulana Bhasani: A Dauntless Defender of the Repressed Bangalee Peasantry in Assam
mwzaman
AGAINST THE COLLECTIVE VICTIMIZATION OF THE REPRESSED
BANGALEE PEASANTRY IN ASSAM: AN APPRAISAL
M. Waheeduzzaman Manik
The cherished yearning of Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani's life long
struggle was to free the marginal cultivators, sharecroppers, and
agricultural laborers from the yoke of the local landlords and their
intermediaries, and the money lenders. He was aptly called "Majloom
Janoneta" (leader of the oppressed) for his life long struggle for and
dedication to the cause of the underprivileged and disinherited
segments of the society. He became the dauntless champion of the most
underprivileged Bangalee peasantry in Assam. Indeed, the professed
goal of Maulana Bhasani's political struggle in Assam was one of total
elimination of the line system and a moratorium on the Bangal Khedao
movement. His relentless fight for the salvation of the toiling
masses and his uncompromising resolve to fight against all forms of
discrimination, oppression, exploitation and injustices gave voices to
the most repressed Bangalee peasantry.
On the Twenty Fifth Anniversary of his death, the intent of this
commentary is to discuss the crucial role that he played as the
dauntless defender of the Bangalee peasantry in Assam. Once the
context within which the infamous line system was introduced in Assam
is pinpointed, the strategies and tactics of Maulana Bhasani's
protracted struggle against the line system and Bangal Khedao movement
will be discussed.
MAULANA BHASANI'S DEFIANCE OF THE LINE SYSTEM AND BANGAL KHEDAO
MOVEMENT
Many marginal peasants and landless agricultural laborers of various
districts of East Bengal had started migrating to the western and
southern districts of Assam province since the beginning of the 20th
century. In those days, most of the regions in Assam were inaccessible
and barren lands, full of jungles. The availability of cheap and
fertile land had chiefly attracted the hardworking peasants from
Bengal in thousands to Assam. In spite of the introduction of the
infamous 銑ine System' in 1920, this flow of Bangalee migrations to
Assam (majority of them were Bangalee Muslim peasants from East
Bengal) had continued throughout 1920s and 1930s. However, the
backlash of the Ahomi people against the Bangalee settlers was
conveniently exploited by the diehard anti-Bangalee segments of the
political leadership in Assam. Being constantly goaded by the upper
class Ahomi nationalists, the British Government had introduced the
銑ine System' in 1920. Pursuant to this infamous act, "separate
areas" were demarcated for Bangalee migrant settlers in various
districts of Assam's Brahmaputra valley. The intent of creating
"separate blocks" in the villages for Bangalee migrant settlers in
Assam was to deny or curb the tenancy or occupancy rights of those
settlers outside the "demarcation lines" of the designated areas. A
"cut-off date" was also arbitrarily fixed for differentiating the
"illegal settlers" from the "legal migrants."
The implementation of the infamous line system, an instrument of
collective victimization, gave birth to the brutish 腺angal Khedao'
(Eviction of Bangalees) movement in 1930s and 1940s. In fact, the
Bangal Khedao movement was nothing but a brutal way of "evicting" the
Bangalee settlers from their lands and homes. Many of those tormented
settlers were branded as the unauthorized or illegal land encroachers
despite the fact that they might have lived in Assam since the last
decades of the 19th century. Indeed, thousands of Bangalee settlers
in Assam were deliberately segregated, harassed, repressed,
terrorized, evicted, disinherited and dispersed through the
indiscriminate execution of the obnoxious line system.
A deliberate policy of perpetual discrimination and repression against
the vulnerable Bangalee peasantry had reached its peak during the
years between 1937 and 1947. As a savior of his fellow Bangalee
migrants in Assam, Maulana Bhasani had organized a viable resistance
movement against both the line system and Bangal Khedao movement.
Indeed, he was the most trusted voice during the agonizing years of
tears and fears of the repressed Bangalee peasantry in Assam. He
relentlessly fought for establishing their rights in the desolated
regions of Assam. He dedicated himself for a period of two decades
for ventilating their fair grievances and articulating their
legitimate demands. The emergence of Maulana Bhasani as the most
charismatic peasant leader in Assam at such a critical juncture was
nothing short of a miracle to the discriminated and repressed Bangalee
peasantry. His defiance of the infamous line system and the vicious
腺anglal Khedao' policies and ploys of the Assam Government made him
the most charismatic leader there and a 素olk hero' in his own time.
After being expelled by the then Bengal Government from various
districts of Bengal province, Maulana Bhasani settled in Char Bhasan
(Gaghmari) of Assam in 1926 (according to some accounts, he took
permanent residence there in 1928). Although Maulan Bhasani had
become a legendary political figure in Assam in mid-1930s and 1940s,
he had Assam connection before he settled there in later part of
1920s. Born in 1885 (circa 1886) at Dhangora village of Sirajgunj
subdivision (under the then Pabna district), as a young disciple of
Pir Syed Nasiruddin Boghdadi, he visited and stayed in Assam in the
early years of 1900s (his first visit to Assam was believed to be in
1904). He was also a frequent visitor to Brahmmaputra valley of Assam
in mid-1920s. He had numerous disciples in Assam even before he
permanently migrated there.
Maulana Bhasani was already a recognized 叢easant leader' throughout
Northern Bengal before he made the Brahmmaputra valley in Assam his
place of residence and struggle. It is, therefore, fair to say that
he had first hand knowledge about the deplorable plight of the
Bangalee settlers in Assam before he moved there to live. For
example, in 1924, Maulana Bhasani organized a large meeting of
Bangalee peasants at "Bhasan Char" (Bhasan Island) of Dubri district.
He was also intimately familiar with the devastating effects of the
so-called line system on the Bangalee peasantry. Soon after he
settled there, he observed that the hardworking Bangalee settlers in
Assam were themselves unorganized. There was a total absence of any
dedicated leadership committed to further the just causes of the
migrant settlers in Assam. He also felt the acute need for mobilizing
and organizing the Bangalee settlers throughout the Brahmmaputra
valley. He decided to take that responsibility upon himself to
protect the humblest peasants against the overweening powers of the
vested interests.
Maulana Bhasani's strategy at the initial stage of his struggle
against the line system and Bangal Khedao movement was to prepare and
mobilize the unorganized and vulnerable Bangalee settlers in Assam.
He held numerous public meetings throughout Assam for forming a viable
resistance movement against the vested interests. Naturally, his
intent of holding public gatherings was also to garner mass support
and the public opinions in favor of the disinherited Bangalee
peasantry. He formed many grass root level peasant organizations for
articulating their demand. For instance, Maulana Bhasani organized a
huge 銭rishak Shommelon' (Peasants' Conference) at 舛har Bhasan'
(Bhasan Island from which the word Bhasani was added to his name) in
1929. The chief resolutions of this Conference were as follows:
abolition of line system, moratorium on the Bangal Khedao (Eviction of
Bangalees) initiatives, the redress the atrocities of Raja Probhat
Kumar Barua (the Zamindar of Gouripur) over the Bangalee Muslim
migrants, and the introduction of uniform of weighing system
throughout Assam (In fact, Maulana Bhasani's serious efforts later led
to the adoption of uniform weight system).
Maulana Bhasani also assembled the 腺angla-Assam Proja Sommelon'
(Bengal-Assam Tenants' Conference) in 1931 at Sirajganj of the then
Pabna district. One of the objectives of holding this kind of
inter-provincial tenants' conference was to sensitize the people of
the neighboring Bengal about the discriminatory policies and
initiatives of the Assam Government against the Bangalee settlers.
Maulana Bhasani devoted most of his efforts from 1929 through 1935-'37
to build up grass-root level organizations throughout Brahmmaputra
valley. He also organized the agricultural laborers and landless
peasants of Assam through the formation of "Assam Chashi Majoor
Samiti" in 1937.
The execution of the line system and Bangal Khedao movement took
vicious shape soon after the Assam provincial Government was formed in
1937. Once the autonomy status was granted to Assam (pursuant to the
Indian Act of 1935), the anti-Bangalee Ahomi movement started
exhibiting communal symptoms of collective punitive measures against
the vulnerable migrant settlers in Assam. Maulana Bhasani also
decided to adjust the strategies and tactics of his resistance
movement against the evils of the line system and Bangal Khedao policy
of Assam Government. He felt the need for organizing support groups
both inside and outside the provincial legislature for protecting and
enhancing the interests of Bangalee peasantry. He also fully realized
the need for influencing both the executive and the legislative
branches of the Assam provincial Government for accruing tangible
benefits for the repressed Bangalee settlers. In April, 1937, he was
elected to the Assam Legislative Assembly from South Dubri, a
constituency which he effectively represented in the Assembly till
1945. He relentlessly fought both inside and outside the Assembly for
safeguarding the legitimate rights of his constituents.
The fragile coalition Governments which were formed several times from
1937 through 1945 under the Prime Ministership of either Syed
Saddullah (his fragile coalition Government fell five times within a
period of eight years!) or Goopinath Borduloi, a die hard
anti-Bangalee and anti-Muslim Congress leader in Assam. Immediately
after the 1937 election, the parliamentary factions of both Syed
Sadullah and Goopinath Borduloi started softening their hard-line
stand on the issues of the line system and Bangal Khedao movement.
The chief intent of such mockery was to wooing support of the Muslim
legislators for forming the coalition government. With the assistance
of Maulana Bhasani and other Muslim leaders, Syed Sadullah was
successful to form the first coalition Government in Assam in 1937.
Although several motions for abolishing the line system were raised
and debated by various members during the first session (which
continued only for three days) of Assam Provincial Assembly in 1937,
no agreement could be reached. Yet, Maulana Bhasani made a clarion
call to the legislators to rescind the infamous line system "for the
sake humanity."
In spite of heavy pressure from Maulana Bhasani, Syed Saddullah's
first cabinet had failed to rescind the infamous line system. Syed
Saddullah was often characterized by his fellow Muslim leaders as an
opportunist and power hungry politician whose shaky coalition Ministry
could subvert several votes of no confidence in the Assembly only
through unprincipled political maneuverings. Unfortunately, the
issues pertaining to the line system and Bangal Khedao movement became
the casualties of such unprincipled politics of logrolling.
Due to intense internal squabbles and dirty intrigues, Syed Sadullah's
fragile League coalition cabinet had to resign in September, 1938.
Goopinath Borduloi formed a Congress-led coalition Government in
Assam. Aimed at challenging Borduloi's congress-led coalition
Government, Syed Sadullah quickly formed the "Assam United Party," a
combined parliamentary front of several political parties including
the Muslim League, United Peoples' Party, and Progressive Party.
Since the Congress-led coalition enjoyed only a slim margin in the
Assembly, the newly assorted Assam United Party brought at least 56
votes of no confidence against Borduloi's Government.
A life long reputed politician, Gopinath Borduloi was not willing to
give in to such pressures. He started to lure some of the Muslim
legislators in support of his coalition Government. His cohorts
started shedding crocodile tears for the "victims" of the line system
and Bangal Khedao movement. The self-serving leaders of his coalition
Government expressed that it was "thousand times better" if the
impediments of the line system could be removed with exchanges of
"goodwill and love" between and among the people of all cultures in
Assam. The provincial Assam Congress party also took part in this
power seeking maneuverings. For instance, contradicting the adopted
official policy statement of the Congress-led coalition, the
provincial Assam Congress started propagating that the Congress party
was " not wedded to policy of maintaining the (line) system for all
time."
Despite the prevalence of anti-Congress stance among most of the
Muslim members of the Assam Provincial Assembly, Gopinath Borduloi and
his cohorts had easily penetrated the hardcore leadership of the newly
formed Assam United Party. To the of chagrin of Maulana Bhashani and
other Muslim leaders with integrity, Barduloi's fragile cabinet could
somehow subvert a defeat in the 宋ote of no confidence' in the
Assembly by luring away several Muslim League members (three of them
were added to the Ministry--- one of those renegades was Mahmud Ali,
the Secretary of the provincial Muslim League!).
Although the first cabinet of Prime Minister Gopinath Borduloi was
sensitive about the outright execution of the line system, the
Congress-led cabinets under him in the following years were not
willing to accede any concessions to the 宋ictims' of the line system
and Bangal Khedao movement. Rather, the hidden agenda of the
Congress-led coalition Government got exposed when it announced its
"Immigration Policy" in November, 1939. One of its key provisions had
clearly stated that the Bangalee migrants "who settled in Assam twelve
years prior to April 12, 1939 would not be evicted from their
settlements." Branding the legitimate Bangalee settlers in Assam as
the "land encroachers" and "land grabbers," the Borduloi's cabinet
declared that no "grazing lands will be allotted to the landless
Bangalee peasants."
The grass-root level community leaders of Muslim peasantry rejected
the so-called immigration policy of the Broduloi Government. Neither
the cut-off date nor the discriminatory provisions of the Immigration
Policy were acceptable to the victimized Bangalee immigrants. Maulana
Bhasani virulently criticized the unilaterally drafted Immigration
Policy of Borduloi Government. He compared Borduloi's tactics of
"collective victimization" of Bangalee peasantry in Assam with that of
Hitler's Nazi tactics in Germany. He also accused Borduloi Government
of spreading "communalism" through the imposition of various forms of
collective punitive measures against the Muslim peasants in Assam. He
urged the Bangalee Muslim peasantry to remain organized and vigilant
against all types of provocations, tactics and ploys of deception and
retaliation of the Congress-led government of Gopinath Borduloi.
Maulana Bhasani's relentless attacks on Congress-led coalition
Government's deliberate anti-Muslim and anti-Bangalee initiatives led
to the downfall of Borduloi's cabinet. It was then possible for Syed
Sadullah, once again, to form a Muslim dominated coalition Government.
Although Maulana Bhasani was fully aware of Syed Sadullah's
non-committal stance on the issues related to the line system, there
is no doubt that he accrued some strategic and tactical concessions
for the Bangalee settlers during the Muslim League coalition
Government. He held a strategic meeting of the leaders and working
members of various peasant organizations at Ghaghmari of Goalpara
district in November, 1939. Being essentially goaded by Maulana
Bhasani, Syed Sadullah, the Prime Minister of Assam, addressed the
meeting in whiche had assured the audience to 喪escind the
resolutions' of the previous Government pertaining to the line system.
He also promised that the Revenue Portfolio in his Cabinet would be
reserved for a Muslim member.
It needs to be underscored that Syed Sadullah's cabinet had rescinded
most of the 租ecisions' of the previous Government pertaining to the
eviction of Bangalee settlers. As the head of the coalition
Government, he also kept on posturing as an 双pponent' of the infamous
line system. His cabinet also decided to shelve the 訴mmediate'
implementation process of the line system. He even promised to
distribute huge tracts of virgin land in various parts of Assam among
several hundred thousand landless Bangalee peasants. Although those
promises could raise hopes of the landless Bangalee immigrant
settlers, such generous offers and pronouncements were making him very
unpopular among the upper class Assamese and indigenous Ahomis.
In spite of the fact that Syed Saddullah slowed down the process of
Bangal Khedao policy, the collective victimization through Bangal
Khedao policy was not declared null and void. Maulana Bhasani, the
dauntless defender of the oppressed peasantry, was not willing to be
content only with lofty promises. Therefore, he kept on pressing Syed
Sadullah to translate his pious pronouncements into meaningful
action-oriented plans and programs toward ameliorating the grievances
of Bangalee peasantry. He demanded for the equitable distribution of
the promised barren land among the landless Bangalee peasants. He
also kept on passionately urging Syed Sadullah's coalition Government
"to rescind the line system" without wasting time.
In view of dirty political bickering and maneuvering within the
Assembly, the "Governor's rule" (pursuant to a provision of the 1935
Indian Act) was promulgated throughout the province of Assam.
However, after the Governor's rule was withdrawn, Syed Sadullah, once
again with Maulana Bhasani's blessing, formed another coalition
Government in August, 1942. At this stage, Maulana Bhasani's constant
pressures yielded some tangible benefits for the repressed Bangalee
settlers in Assam. Syed Sadullah's coalition Government took some
concrete steps toward ameliorating the genuine grievances of the
victims of the line system and Bangal Khedao movement. Pursuant to an
official order of August 23, 1943, the 鼠ine system' was apparently
softened to "such an extent that the Line System became totally
defunct." In fact, Syed Sadullah's cabinet emphasized that the
relaxation of the 疎busive procedures' associated with the line system
would encourage the immigrants, the majority of whom happened to be
Bangalee Muslims, to contribute to the production of more food in
Assam. Several initiatives were taken to identify suitable grazing
land for settlement and cultivation by the landless Ahomis and
Bangalee immigrants.
Syed Saddullah's Government also commissioned a fact finding Committee
under the leadership of Mr. F. W. Hokenbul, a senior British officer,
to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the line system. While the
findings of this Committee recognized the "positive contributions" of
the Bangalee migrants to Assam's agricultural development and economy,
one of the specific recommendations of the Committee was in favor of
"continuation of the line system" (for details, see Syed Abul Maqsud,
Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani, pp. 44-45).
Maulana Bhasani was quick to realize that the "proposed measures" to
create some "land development projects" for "exclusively" protecting
the special privileges of "Ahomi landed class" seemed to have had
negative impact on the Bangalee peasantry. He characterized the
introduction of the proposed "development projects" exclusively for
Ahomi landed class as a "subtle way" of implementing the nasty
provisions of the infamous line system. Maulana Bhasani refused to
compromise the interests of his fellow Bangalee peasants.
Instead of lending unconditional support to the Muslim League-led
coalition Government, he pointed out that it was Syed Sadullah's
vacillation and timidity that led to the "shameful continuation" of
the infamous line system. He started saying publicly that so far the
line system was concerned, there was hardly any difference between
Syed Sadullah and Gopinath Borduloi. He emphasized that the "apparent
difference" between these two political leaders was, in fact, a matter
of a 禅upee' (a cap on Sadullah's head) and a 禅iki' (a bunch hair on
the rear end of Borduloi's head). In the face of such virulent
attacks from the most charismatic leader of the Bangalee Muslim
peasantry of Assam, it was getting increasingly difficult for Syed
Sadullah's fragile cabinet to survive a series of votes of no
confidence in the Assembly. While Maulana Bhasani kept on castigating
Syed Saddullah for not keeping his promises, the Congress-led
coalition under the leadership of Gopinath Borduloi had mobilized
enough support in the Assembly to unseat Syed Sadullah's cabinet.
Immediately after the fall of Sadullah's cabinet, Gopinath Borduloi
formed the Government. The Muslim peasants at this phase became the
exclusive targets of government sponsored demolition of houses,
rampage, and siege. Pursuant to a decision of Borduloi's Cabinet,
various "tribal blocks" were quickly created in the designated areas
with heavy concentration of Bangalee Muslim immigrants for restricting
their interactions and activities. Various procedures were
implemented for evicting the Bangalee immigrants from their
settlements. All types of punitive measures were taken for inflicting
collective pain on the Bangalee settlers.
The government sponsored punitive measures against the Muslim
immigrants took a communal twist. There is no doubt that the new
cabinet of Borduloi was goaded by the Hindu communal forces to
re-ignite the flame of Bangal Khedao movement. The die-hard Hindu
organizations in Assam took the full advantage of mobilizing public
opinion of all groups of the non-Muslim population throughout the
province against the Bangalee Muslim settlers. For instance, the
"Ahom Jatiyo Mohashabha," the largest Hindu organization of Assam,
took over the leadership role of the Bangal Khedao movement during
1945-'47 period. The political situation became very volatile because
of the frequent confrontations between the supporters of Ambikagiri
Roy Chowdhur (the General Secretary of the Assam Hindu Mahashabha and
the chief leader of the communally motivated Bangal Khedao movement)
and the supporters of Maulana Bhasani, the undisputed leader of the
Bangalee Muslim peasantry in Assam.
In his seminal book titled Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani,' (pp.
46-47), Syed Abul Maqsud aptly observed that the "Ahom Jatiyo
Mohashabha" rekindled the Bangal Khedao movement at that time for
apparently realizing the following 7-point demands: "i. The removal of
disparity between Ahomis and other Assamese people; ii. Special
privileges in land ownership and educational facilities must be
guaranteed for Ahomis; iii. A strict immigration policy must be
adopted for the purpose of restricting free flow of immigration from
outside; iv. The residents of Sylhet district should be immediately
removed from all of their jobs and services in the province of Assam;
v. The civil rights of those non-Ahomi residents who are engaged in
anti-Ahomi activities should be suspended and they should be issued
new "non-resident (alien) certificates;" vi. All privileges and
provisions for the 双utsiders' for holding jobs and engaging in
business activities should be rescinded; and vii. New land laws should
be passed for restricting the land transfers to the outsiders and
aliens in Assam."
The Government sponsored Bangal Khedao movement in 1945-'46 was so
vicious and so ghastly that many Hindu leaders with sense of integrity
and fairness, and several newspapers in Assam, vehemently protested
the Congress-led Government's carnage and brutalities that were
deliberately and mercilessly inflicted upon the victims of the line
system. It is fair to say the name of Goopinath Brduloi still lives in
infamy because of the fact that during his tenure as Prime Minister of
Assam he ordered the police to "evict the settlers", and then to
demolish (often using elephants) and burn the homesteads of thousands
of Bangalee Muslim settlers throughout Assam.
In a communally charged situation, the result of the 1946 general
elections brought more miseries for the Muslim settlers in Assam.
Although an overwhelming majority of the Muslim peasantry was garnered
by Maulana Bhasani for the Muslim League candidates (who won all but
three Muslim reserved seats) in the 1946 Assembly election, they did
not have enough partners to form a coalition Government. On the other
hand, Gopinath Borduloi had an upper hand to enlist support from most
of the non-Muslim parliamentary factions to form a coalition
government at a critical juncture of Assam's history. Instead of
slowing down the eviction of Bangalee settlements, the Government
sponsored Bangal Khedao movement was intensified in a volatile
atmosphere in later part of 1946 and in early 1947. For instance,
Borduloi's newly installed Government had demolished and burnt homes
and households of several hundred thousand Bangalee Muslim settlers in
different areas including Mongoldoi, Borpeta, and Gouhati.
Despite extreme provocations from the exponents of the of the infamous
Bangal Khedao movement and Borduloi's politics of vengeance, it was
Maulana Bhasani who kept on safeguarding the rights of the defenseless
Bangalee immigrants in Assam. Without resorting to communalism,
violence or terrorism, he kept on his vigorous mass campaigns to
organize those poor Bangalees to stand up against the unjust and
oppressive policies and programs of Assam Government. He kept on
protesting the Government sponsored atrocities on the Bangalee
settlers. He urged the displaced settlers to reconstruct their houses
in the same areas wherefrom they were evicted. In protest of those
indiscriminate evictions and demolitions of Bangalee settlements,
Maulana Bhasani did observe hunger strike for almost a month at
Borpeta in May 1946. He held a huge public meeting at Mongoldoi in
which he urged all Muslim immigrants to defy Government sponsored
evictions. He called for violation of Government laws. He even
threatened to stop payment of taxes. Maulana Bhasani also urged them
not to "yield even an inch of their land." He advised them to
cultivate and construct their homesteads wherever they could find a
piece of barren land in Assam. He cautioned: "the oppressive
Government of Gopinath Borduloi should be unseated the way the British
Government will be kicked out of India." He compared Borduloi's
Government with the "germ of tuberculosis." In response to communally
motivated evictions of Muslim settlements, he characterized Borduloi's
Government as a "government not of men but of beasts."
As the Government sponsored Bangalee evictions had been intensified,
Maulana Bhasani's resistance movement also started gaining popularity
among the Muslim population throughout the Assam. However, at that
phase of his resistance movement against the Bangal Khedao policies
and procedures started converging to his support for Pakistan
movement. For example, the Muslim peasantry along with the Muslim
population of Assam (Muslims counted for approximately 34% of total
population of Assam in 1946) observed the "Direct Action Day" on March
16, 1946. Despite the prevalence of serious Hindu-Muslim tension
immediately before, during and after the observance of Direct Action
Day, no communal riot broke out anywhere in Assam mainly due to
non-communal nature of Maulana Bhasani's struggle against the line
system and Bangal Khedao movement. Of course, a host of dedicated
Hindu leaders in Assam (most of them were also critics of Hindu
Mahashabha's communal policy) did lend support to Maulana Bhasani's
genuine effort of maintaining friendship and goodwill between Hindus
and Muslims even in the communally charged situation.
As the brutal evictions of Bangalee Muslim migrants from their
settlements continued, the resistance movement against the Bangal
Khedao also took more volatile shape in early 1947. Maulana Bhasani
called for "armed resistance" and "civil disobedience movement"
against the atrocities of Assam Government. Being alarmed by the
growing strength of Maulana Bhasani's forces, the Borduloi's
Government in Assam sought assistance from the Central Congress party
and the Congress dominated Central Government of British India. On the
other hand, Maulana Bhasani sought immediate assistance from both the
Bengal Provincial Muslim League and the Central Muslim League.
There is no doubt that the top leaders of both the Congress and the
Muslim League urged the Hindu-Muslim leaders of Assam to maintain
harmony among various communities. Despite the fact that Pakistan
movement was going on in full swing in earlier months of 1947, some
Congress leaders and several pro-Congress newspapers in Assam and
elsewhere vehemently criticized Assam Government's "premeditated
atrocities" against the Bangalee Muslim peasantry. The Muslim League
leaders throughout India had condemned the Assam Government's brutal
evictions of Bangalee immigrants. However, no substantial help from
any external sources ever reached Assam in support of Maulana
Bhasani's resistance movement against the collective victimization of
Bangalee Muslim peasantry.
In March, 1947, Maulana Bhasani added a new twist to his resistance
movement for the salvation of the Bangalee peasantry by urging the
people of Assam to fight for the "independence" of Assam. For
accomplishing this objective, he urged the Muslim League leaders to
form "Non-violent and Non-communal Resistance Committees" throughout
Assam. He also urged everyone to observe "Assam Day" on March 10,
1947. In a mammoth gathering on March 10, 1947 (or March 9, 1947), he
emphasized that his fight was not directed against any particular
religious or racial groups of Assam. He said: "My struggle is against
the British imperialism and the misrule and atrocities of the Assam
Government." Maulana Bhasani asked his followers to "break laws for
establishing their legitimate rights on the basis of non-violent and
non-co-operation movement." He passionately instructed his followers
"to embrace deaths instead of passively accepting brutal evictions
from their homesteads and settlements. You will be buried wherever you
are killed. Don't vacate your homesteads as per order of the
Government. Go back to those settlements wherefrom you have been
evicted."
Maulana Bhasani's call for "independence" was not at all welcomed by
the leaders of the central Muslim League. Neither the Assam
provincial Congress nor the all India National Congress did appreciate
Maulana Bhasani's call for Assam's independence. While the
non-Bengali dominated All-India Muslim League leadership had preferred
to ignore Bhasani's demand for Assam's independence, the Congress
party took his demand seriously. In a swift retaliation, the Assam
Government put Maulana Bhasani behind bar "immediately" after the
public meeting was over (on March 10, 1947).
There was an outcry against Maulana Bhasani's arrest throughout Assam
province. Numerous violent demonstrations took place throughout Assam
demanding his immediate release. The Bengal Provincial Muslim League
leaders also protested his arrest. Maulana Bhasani was released from
Gouhati jail on June 21, 1947. By that time, due to the failure of the
proposed Cabinet Mission Plan, the non-Bengali dominated central
leadership of the All-India Muslim League already accepted the
formulae of division of India. With the exception of Sylhet district,
there was no provision in the fateful partition plan for holding
referendums in any other Muslim dominated areas of Assam province.
Nor was there any scope in the imminent partition plan for carving out
an independent status for Assam along with greater Bengal.
Although Maulana Bhasani worked hard for enlisting support for the
Muslim League during the historic referendum on Sylhet, he kept on
organizing numerous meetings and demonstrations in the Muslim
dominated areas of Brahmmaputra valley to articulate the legitimacy of
the demands of the Muslim immigrants. Many of those immigrant
settlers became the victims of physical attacks and torments at that
time. He also became the target of police surveillance and false
propaganda and ridicule. He fully understood that his days in Assam
were numbered under the changed political environment. The Assam
police arrested him once again in early August, 1947 on a concocted
charge, and he was not released from jail till early November, 1947.
Being released from jail, Maulana Bhasani left Assam in November, 1947
for Santoosh, Tangail (East Bengal). Obviously, the most volatile and
articulate defender of the Bangalee Muslim peasantry in Assam was
deliberately kept behind bar at a critical juncture of the
sub-continent's history. While the Congress leadership in Assam put a
lid on Maulana Bhasani's political activities since March, 1947, the
anti-Bengali central leadership of the All-India Muslim League totally
ignored him when the partition plan was negotiated. Doubtless, he
might have felt used, and deeply hurt and betrayed, by the All-India
Muslim League leadership.
Concluding Remarks
Maulana Bhasani had left Assam empty handed. The infamous 鼠ine
system' was kept well and alive for years to come as an instrument of
collective victimization of Bangalee Muslim peasantry in Assam.
Yet, Bangalee peasantry in Assam survived years of government
sponsored terrorism through their relentless struggle. Indeed, it was
Maulana Bhasani who left behind a legacy of that relentless struggle
against all odds. Doubtless, his selflessness and relentlessness in
the epoch-making struggle against the collective victimization earned
him the admiration of millions throughout Bengal and Assam provinces.
He was "every inch a fighter." Notwithstanding the protracted nature
of his struggle against the infamous line system and brutish Bangal
Khedao movement, his dedication as a tireless fighter for establishing
the legitimate rights of the trampled Bangalee immigrants made him a
legend before he was forced out of Assam. Indeed, Maulana Bhasani's
legacy of establishing and realizing the legitimate rights of the
people through a struggle against all forms of injustices have
remained to be the driving force for the toil-worm Bangalee peasants
of Assam during their agonizing years of tears and fears.
[This article is based on my on-going research on Maulana Bhasani's
Life and Struggle. This revised version appeared in The Independent
(part I on November 21, 2001). A detailed earlier version of this
article also appeared in the Daily Star, News From Bangladesh,
November 17, 2000].
G.Sub
demographic invasion of muslims from east bengal
In 1971, he fell at the feet of Indira Gandhi asking help from the islamic
brethren of west pakistan
The root of the problem is why the heck were bengali muslims producing too
many children
Gopinath Bardoloi was far sighted in expelling muslims, seeing that in East
bengal hindu% has fallen from 28% in 1941 to 10% today
"mwzaman" <mwz...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:46db51ba.01112...@posting.google.com...
> infamous 'Line System' in 1920, this flow of Bangalee migrations to
> Assam (majority of them were Bangalee Muslim peasants from East
> Bengal) had continued throughout 1920s and 1930s. However, the
> backlash of the Ahomi people against the Bangalee settlers was
> conveniently exploited by the diehard anti-Bangalee segments of the
> political leadership in Assam. Being constantly goaded by the upper
> class Ahomi nationalists, the British Government had introduced the
> 'Line System' in 1920. Pursuant to this infamous act, "separate
> areas" were demarcated for Bangalee migrant settlers in various
> districts of Assam's Brahmaputra valley. The intent of creating
> "separate blocks" in the villages for Bangalee migrant settlers in
> Assam was to deny or curb the tenancy or occupancy rights of those
> settlers outside the "demarcation lines" of the designated areas. A
> "cut-off date" was also arbitrarily fixed for differentiating the
> "illegal settlers" from the "legal migrants."
>
> The implementation of the infamous line system, an instrument of
> collective victimization, gave birth to the brutish 'Bangal Khedao'
> (Eviction of Bangalees) movement in 1930s and 1940s. In fact, the
> Bangal Khedao movement was nothing but a brutal way of "evicting" the
> Bangalee settlers from their lands and homes. Many of those tormented
> settlers were branded as the unauthorized or illegal land encroachers
> despite the fact that they might have lived in Assam since the last
> decades of the 19th century. Indeed, thousands of Bangalee settlers
> in Assam were deliberately segregated, harassed, repressed,
> terrorized, evicted, disinherited and dispersed through the
> indiscriminate execution of the obnoxious line system.
>
>
> A deliberate policy of perpetual discrimination and repression against
> the vulnerable Bangalee peasantry had reached its peak during the
> years between 1937 and 1947. As a savior of his fellow Bangalee
> migrants in Assam, Maulana Bhasani had organized a viable resistance
> movement against both the line system and Bangal Khedao movement.
> Indeed, he was the most trusted voice during the agonizing years of
> tears and fears of the repressed Bangalee peasantry in Assam. He
> relentlessly fought for establishing their rights in the desolated
> regions of Assam. He dedicated himself for a period of two decades
> for ventilating their fair grievances and articulating their
> legitimate demands. The emergence of Maulana Bhasani as the most
> charismatic peasant leader in Assam at such a critical juncture was
> nothing short of a miracle to the discriminated and repressed Bangalee
> peasantry. His defiance of the infamous line system and the vicious
> 'Banglal Khedao' policies and ploys of the Assam Government made him
> the most charismatic leader there and a 'folk hero' in his own time.
>
>
> After being expelled by the then Bengal Government from various
> districts of Bengal province, Maulana Bhasani settled in Char Bhasan
> (Gaghmari) of Assam in 1926 (according to some accounts, he took
> permanent residence there in 1928). Although Maulan Bhasani had
> become a legendary political figure in Assam in mid-1930s and 1940s,
> he had Assam connection before he settled there in later part of
> 1920s. Born in 1885 (circa 1886) at Dhangora village of Sirajgunj
> subdivision (under the then Pabna district), as a young disciple of
> Pir Syed Nasiruddin Boghdadi, he visited and stayed in Assam in the
> early years of 1900s (his first visit to Assam was believed to be in
> 1904). He was also a frequent visitor to Brahmmaputra valley of Assam
> in mid-1920s. He had numerous disciples in Assam even before he
> permanently migrated there.
>
>
> Maulana Bhasani was already a recognized 'peasant leader' throughout
> huge 'Krishak Shommelon' (Peasants' Conference) at 'Char Bhasan'
> (Bhasan Island from which the word Bhasani was added to his name) in
> 1929. The chief resolutions of this Conference were as follows:
> abolition of line system, moratorium on the Bangal Khedao (Eviction of
> Bangalees) initiatives, the redress the atrocities of Raja Probhat
> Kumar Barua (the Zamindar of Gouripur) over the Bangalee Muslim
> migrants, and the introduction of uniform of weighing system
> throughout Assam (In fact, Maulana Bhasani's serious efforts later led
> to the adoption of uniform weight system).
>
>
> Maulana Bhasani also assembled the 'Bangla-Assam Proja Sommelon'
> somehow subvert a defeat in the 'vote of no confidence' in the
> Assembly by luring away several Muslim League members (three of them
> were added to the Ministry--- one of those renegades was Mahmud Ali,
> the Secretary of the provincial Muslim League!).
>
>
> Although the first cabinet of Prime Minister Gopinath Borduloi was
> sensitive about the outright execution of the line system, the
> Congress-led cabinets under him in the following years were not
> willing to accede any concessions to the 'victims' of the line system
> meeting in whiche had assured the audience to 'rescind the
> resolutions' of the previous Government pertaining to the line system.
> He also promised that the Revenue Portfolio in his Cabinet would be
> reserved for a Muslim member.
>
>
> It needs to be underscored that Syed Sadullah's cabinet had rescinded
> most of the 'decisions' of the previous Government pertaining to the
> eviction of Bangalee settlers. As the head of the coalition
> Government, he also kept on posturing as an 'opponent' of the infamous
> line system. His cabinet also decided to shelve the 'immediate'
> official order of August 23, 1943, the 'line system' was apparently
> softened to "such an extent that the Line System became totally
> defunct." In fact, Syed Sadullah's cabinet emphasized that the
> relaxation of the 'abusive procedures' associated with the line system
> of a 'Tupee' (a cap on Sadullah's head) and a 'Tiki' (a bunch hair on
> provisions for the 'outsiders' for holding jobs and engaging in
> Maulana Bhasani had left Assam empty handed. The infamous 'line