FANTASTIC 7 WOMAN FREEDOM FIGHTERS STRUGGLER OF INDIA

D.PARTHASARATHY

Old No. 38, New No. 6 McNichols Road, Chetpet Chennai - 600 031 First Published by Notion Press 2019 Copyright © D.Parthasarathy 2019 All Rights Reserved. ISBN 978-1-64546-999-5 This book has been published with all efforts taken to make the material error-free after the consent of the author. However, the author and the publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause. No part of this book may be used, reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

DEDICATION The book ‘Fantastic 7 Woman Freedom Fighters’ is the book dedicated to all indians especially for women to understand their participation in the freedom movement. Hereby, I am dedicating this book to all the Indian Women.

Contents Matangini Hazra Aruna Asaf Ali Lakshmi Sahgal Sucheta Kirplani Kasturba Gandhi Bhikaiji Cama Jhansi Rani Thoughts Of Everyone

45

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Matangini Hazra

Matangini Hazra was a indian born woman who served her life in the independence act and fought brave and shined as a right leader. She was born on 19 October 1870 in Hogla near Tamluk village in Purba Medinipur district of the Bengal Presidency (now as West Bengal) of British India. She was born to Thakurdas Maity - Bhagabati Maity.Her father Thakurdas was a poor peasent who pays tax under feudelism. Accordingly she is economically backward so she did not received a formal education. Later, she was married early and her husband was dead at Hazra’s 18th age. She has no children. The Britih started ruling India from 1858 - 1947 by entering in the name of ‘east india company.’ To get freedom from thee British many of the patriots devasted their life to make the Indian Flag to fly high. She was one of the participant in independece movement. She was very brave and courage. "Whereever we born however we grown but the life is for only nation and our death also for nation." In 1905 she participated in freedom movement of india as a Gandhian.She was in very forward on the sayings of Mahatma Gandhi and she followed his way with a huge fire in her eyes.During her participation in independence act,

the partition of bengal was held. The Bengal Presidency encompassed into Bengal, Bihar, Orissa, Assam by Lord Curzon and the british government seperated Hindus and Muslims. In 1932 she took part in non-violent civil disobedience movement led by Mahatma Gandhi to Dandi starting from Sabarmati Ashram by about 240miles(384 kilometers). He gathered millions of indians behind him. The Matangini was one of the participant in Dandi March and she was arrested by the british police for breaking the salt act and she was prisoned and promptly released. Again she protested for the abolition of tax and arrested again and imprissoned for six months at Baharampur in West Bengal. After release she joined the indian national congress. The freedom struggle in Midnapore was the participation of women, Matangini led a major role in this movement. She wored her own hand spinned khaddar dress. She dedicated her whole life to india and she followed the Gandian act’s that is why she was inspired by Mahatma Gandhi by that way she woved her clothes by herself.She attended the subdivisional congress conference at serampore in Hooghly district of west bengal in 1933, and injured in ensuring baton charge given by the police officials. But she didn’t worried about that all and she again and again raised her voice against the british government with an anger in the moto of getting freedom for india. As a part of

Quit India Movement, the congress members planned to take over the police stations in the Medinipore district and the other government offices to show their opposition to the british government. It was not an voilent act they led it in an quit way by marching towards those government offices and the police stations. Hazra was 71 years old at that time, she led a procession of 6000 supporters behind her the followers were mostly women volunteers, with purpose of taking over the tamluk police stations. The british police ordered them them to disband but she didn’t minded their words and she stepped forward she was shotted once apparently she had stepped forward and appealed her live to the police not to open at the crowd and she saved her beloved followers by giving live. She shouted "VANDE MATARAM" that the meaning is "hail to the motherland". She died with holding the flag of Indian National Congress. She ended her life in the Tamluk police station to India. As through her whole life she thaught only about the nation. She was born in poor family and addressed her name in the history of indian independence movement. The Tamluk government incited open rebellion by praising her "martyrdom for her country". She was also affectionately called as "Gandhi Buri."

Matangini with Indian National Flag

The Biplabi newspaper of the parallel Tamluk National Government commented:

“

Matangini led one procession fromm the north of the criminal court building; even after the firing commenced, she continued to advance with the tri-colour flag, leaving all the volunteers behind. The police shot her three times. She

continued marching despite wounds to the forehead and both

”

hands.

Aruna Asaf Ali

Aruna Ganguly was born on 16 july 1909 in kalka of Punjab for wealthiest bengali brahmo family. Her father Upendranath Ganguly owned a restaurant and her mother Ambalika Devi was daughter of Trailokyanath Sanyal who wrote many Brahmo hyms and more than hundred devotional songs. Her father’s younger brother Dhirendranath Ganguly was one of the earlist film directors. And another brother Nagendranath was a University Professor who married the Nobel Prize winner Rabindranath Tagore’s daughter Mira Devi. Aruna’s sister Purnima Banerjee was a member of constituent assembly of india. She was educated in Sacred Heart Convent in Lahore and her higher studies in All Saint’s College in Nainital of Uttarakhand district. Then worked as a teacher in Gokhale memorial school in Calcutta. There she met Asaf Ali who is a leader of Congress Party in Allahabad. She fell in love him and she married him with the opposition of her family members. While Asaf Ali was twenty years senior to her. Then she changed name as Aruna Asaf Ali.

“My

father was no more when Asaf and I married in September 1928. My paternal

uncle Nagendranath Ganguly, a university professor who regarded himself as my guardian, said to relatives and friends that as far as he was concerned I was dead and he had performed my shraddh.

-Aruna Asaf Ali

”

She became an activist of congress party after her marriage. She participated in Salt Satyagraha and was arrested and she was not released under the Gandhi-Irwin Pact which stipulated the release of political prisoners. She was lately released, public agitation secured her release. On 8 Agust 1942 All India Congress Committee passed the Quit India Movement at the bombay session. Young Aruna presided over the remainder of the session and hoisted the India flag at the Gowalia Tank Maidan. The police fired upon the session to disperse the session. For bravery her act of hoisting the flag she was favouriately called "heroine of 1942 movement."And then she was also called as "Grand old lady of the independence movement" in her later years. For act against the british govenment an arrest warrant was issued in her name by the british police. She heared the news of arrest warrant declared on her and she went underground to evade from the arrest by the police and she started the underground movement in the year 1942 against the british rule. Her

property was seized and solded by the british government. She joined the Inquilab a monthly magazine of congress party as a editor along with Ram Manohar Lohia who was also a member of the congress committee. Due to her activities against the british she was called as "the political children of congress." The british government announced Rupees five thousand to those capture and handover her to the government. At that time unluckly she fell into ill and she hided for a period in Dr.Joshi’s Hospital in karol bagh at Delhi. Gandhi sent her a hand-written hote that contains a schoking words that she didn’t exppected that is Gandhi told her to surrender herself because if through her caught the rewarde prize would be able to given the untouchable communities. She refused and she came out in 1946 when the warrant on her was cancelled. She also find criticism from Gandhi for her supprot on the "Royal Indian Navy Mutiny." Where Gandhi opposed the Mutiny but she supported that, so their thoughts looks like eagle and snake. She played vast role in the freedom movement. After getting freedom she left the congress party and joined to Socialist party in 1948. She left the socilaist party also along with Edatata Narayanan and visited Moscow along with Rajani Palme Dutt. Both of them joined the Communist Party in the early 1950’s. Aruna’s husband Asaf Ali was died in 1953 she felt that