PRITILATA WADDEDAR AND KALPANA DATTA IN CHITTAKONG ARMOUR RIOTS 1930 APRIL 18

PRITILATA WADDEDAR AND KALPANA DATTA  IN 

CHITTAKONG ARMOUR RIOTS 1930 APRIL 18

This article is a part of the #IndianWomenInHistory campaign for Women’s History Month to remember the untold legacies of women who shaped India, especially India’s various feminist movements. One Indian woman is profiled each day for the whole of March 2019.

In the 1930s, Gandhi was advocating for women to be the face of his nationalist movement because of their propensity for non-violence and passiveness. Revolutionary women who took up arms against the British proved this generalising, reductive statement wrong. In fact, the story of two Bengali women, Pritilata Waddedar 

and Kalpana Datta, 

who took part in the dangerous Chittagong armoury raid showed India that gallantry and boldness were not exclusively male attributes.

Whether violence was the best way to achieve nationalist goals is still being debated by scholars today. The important thing to note is that these women decided for themselves in spite of the societal pressure to conform to a more traditional femininity. Their lives are a constant reminder to never underestimate the strength of womanhood.

Chittagong Armoury Raid
The Chittagong armoury raid took place on 18 April 1930 and was an attempt at raiding the armoury of police and auxiliary forces, led by freedom fighter Surya Sen.

The volunteers he gathered were part of a revolutionary group of nationalists who believed in using force to fight the British. The original plan was to capture two armouries in Chittagong, subsequently destroying the telegraph and telephone office. The group would then take hostages from the European Club, as most of its members were involved in the colonial government in some form. Amongst these volunteers were two incredible women: Pritilata Waddedar and Kalpana Datta.

The European Club. Image Source: The Daily Star
Pritilata Waddedar
Pritilata Waddedar boldly approached Surya Sen to request to join the Chittagong armoury raid, knowing that it was unusual for women to be involved in dangerous revolutionary activity. A surge in anti-colonial sentiments first occurred in her when her degree in philosophy was held back by the British authorities in Calcutta University, and since then, she had become increasingly involved in anti-colonial groups.

Surya Sen decided that it would be useful to have Pritilata onboard, but even he could not have predicted how much she would contribute to the Chittagong raiders. Pritilata became one of the main masterminds of the raid and created elaborate strategies in preparation for the raid, impressing her comrades with her knowledge and incredible resolve to overthrow the British.


Image Source: Directorate of State Archives

Unfortunately, the raid did not go exactly as they had planned. While they managed to cut some of the telegraph and telephone wires, but they could not locate the ammunition. Furthermore, they had surrounded the European Club, but they were not many members in the building because it had been Good Friday. The Europeans alerted the British troops, who caught the revolutionaries hiding in the hills four days later. 12 died in the fight, but Pritilata and Sen managed to regroup and reorganise the remaining people.

Pritilata’s bust. Image Source: Sam Speak
Pritilata was then given the most important task of her life – to lead 40 men in marching to the Pahartali European club to torch it. This action was taken partly to avenge the massacre in the hills, but also because this particular club had a racist sign that said “Dogs and Indians are not allowed” on it. Pritilata eagerly took up this assignment, and she led the men to the European Club with immense determination and skill.

PRITILATA WAS THEN GIVEN THE MOST IMPORTANT TASK OF HER LIFE – TO LEAD 40 MEN IN MARCHING TO THE PAHARTALI EUROPEAN CLUB TO TORCH IT.

While she and her team managed to torch the club, British troops arrived soon after they had done the deed, and an intense gunfight broke out. Eventually, Pritilata and her team were ambushed by the British soldiers. She and her team fell victim to the troops’ guns, and she was fatally wounded. But Pritilata was not about to surrender to the British. She chose to commit suicide instead of giving herself over to the British, ingesting cyanide at the last moment.

Also read: Begum Hazrat Mahal – Courtesan, Queen And Military Leader | #IndianWomenInHistory

Pritilata exercised agency over her own life up to her very last breath. She was the first Bengali woman to take up arms against the British, and true to her fighting spirit, she wanted to die on her own terms. Pritilata is still known today as the iron lady of Bengal who gave up her life for her country.

Kalpana Datta
Kalpana’s story is one of resilience, strength and survival. She was heavily involved in a semi-revolutionary student organisation called the Chhatri Sangha. It was through this group that she met Pritilata, who later introduced her to Sen. Kalpana was strong-willed and extremely passionate about her country, and signed up to be part of the Chittagong raid. These two women had a strong bond which helped them get through the struggles they faced as part of Sen’s army of teenage revolutionaries.

Image Source: Keyword House
Kalpana was given the responsibility of transporting explosives and other supplies, but she particularly excelled in preparing gun cotton, a certain type of explosive agent. In a way, she was able to use her scientific knowledge to help the cause. Kalpana also assisted Pritilata in planning the raid itself. However, she was captured by the British a week before the raid was carried out. When she was released on bail, she went underground to aid in Pritilata’s plans for torching the European Club. Unfortunately, she was caught together with the rest of the rebels.

KALPANA’S STORY IS ONE OF RESILIENCE, STRENGTH AND SURVIVAL. SHE WAS GIVEN THE RESPONSIBILITY OF TRANSPORTING EXPLOSIVES AND OTHER SUPPLIES AND SHE PARTICULARLY EXCELLED IN PREPARING GUN COTTON.

Even after being arrested twice, Kalpana had not lost her sense of resilience. She successfully escaped from prison and was on the run from the British until they caught her months later. She was sentenced to prison for life, but was released six years later when the British were losing control over India.

Although she lived a relatively quiet life afterwards, Kalpana’s buring spirit manifested in what she passed on to her daughter, Manini Chatterjee. She recounted the entire story of the Chittagong armoury raid to Manini, who was so inspired by her mother that she wrote a non-fiction book called Do and Die: The Chittagong Uprising (1930-34). It is thanks to Manini Chatterjee, another incredible woman, that we know about Kalpana and Pritilata’s legacies today.

Also read: 6 Indian Queens Who Fought Colonialism

In modern society, a man joining the army is seen as chivalrous, almost as if violence in men is expected. These two women were not afraid to put themselves in very real danger, and their choice to do so proves that women are never what society make us out to be.

References
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PRITILATA WADDEDAR ,FREEDOM FIGHTER 1911 MAY 5 -1932 SEPTEMBER 23

PRITILATA WADDEDAR ,FREEDOM FIGHTER 

1911 MAY 5 -1932 SEPTEMBER 23

Pritilata Waddedar (5 May 1911 – 23 September 1932)[1] was a Bengali revolutionary nationalist.[2][3] After completing her education in Chittagong and Dhaka, she attended Bethune College in Kolkata. Pritilata graduated in philosophy with distinction.

After a brief stint as a school teacher, Pritilata joined a revolutionary group headed by Surya Sen. She led a team of fifteen revolutionaries[4] in a 1932 attack on the Pahartali European Club,[5][6] which had a sign board that read "Dogs and Indians not allowed".[7] The revolutionaries torched the club and were later caught by the British police. To avoid getting arrested, Pritilata consumed cyanide and died.[8]
Early life

Matriculation examination certificate of Pritilata

Pritilata was born in a middle-class Vaidya-Brahmin family on 5 May 1911[9] in Dhalghat village in Patiya upazila of Chittagong (now in Bangladesh).[10] Her father Jagabandhu Waddedar was a clerk in the Chittagong Municipality.[2] Her mother Pratibhamayi Devi was a housewife.[11] The couple had six children– Madhusduan, Pritilata, Kanaklata, Shantilata, Ashalata and Santosh. Pritilata was nicknamed Rani.[11] Waddedar was a title conferred to an ancestor of the family who originally had the surname Dasgupta.

Jagabandhu tried to arrange best possible education for their children.[12] He got Pritilata admitted in Dr. Khastagir Government Girls' School of Chittagong. Pritilata was a meritorious student.[13] A teacher in the school, whom students affectionately used called Usha Di, used stories of Rani Lakshmibai to inspire nationalism in her students. Kalpana Datta, a classmate of Pritilata, writes in the biography Chittagong Armoury Raiders– "We had no clear idea in our school days about our future. Then the Rani of Jhansi fired our imagination with her example. Sometimes we used to think of ourselves as fearless...".[14] Arts and literature were Pritilata's favourite subjects.[15] She passed out of Dr. Khastagir Government Girls' School in 1928 and in 1929, got admitted to the Eden College, Dhaka. In the Intermediate examinations, she stood first among all students who appeared in that year's examination from the Dhaka Board.[7][12] As a student in Eden College, she participated in various social activities. She joined the group Sree Sangha, headed by Leela Nag, under the banner Deepali Sangha (Dipali Sangha).[7]

In Calcutta

To pursue higher education, Pritilata went to Calcutta (now Kolkata) and got admitted to the Bethune College. Two years later, she graduated in Philosophy from the college with a distinction.[16] However, her degree was withheld by British authorities at Calcutta University. In 2012, she (and Bina Das) were conferred their certificates of merit posthumously.[3]

As a school teacher
After completing her education in Calcutta, Pritilata returned to Chittagong. In Chittagong, she took up the job of headmistress at a local English medium secondary school called Nandankanan Aparnacharan School.[7][12][17]

Revolutionary activities

Joining Surya Sen's revolutionary group
"Pritilata was young and courageous. She would work with a lot of zeal and was determined to drive the British away."
Binod Bihari Chowdhury, a contemporary revolutionary[18]
Pritilata decided to join the Indian independence movement. Surya Sen had heard about her and wanted her to join their revolutionary group.[18] On 13 June 1932, Pritilata met Surya Sen and Nirmal Sen in their Dhalghat camp.[11] A contemporary revolutionary, Binod Bihari Chowdhury, objected that they did not allow women to join their group. However, Pritalata was allowed to join the group because the revolutionaries reasoned that women transporting weapons would not attract as much suspicion as men.[18]

Inspiration from Ramkrishna Biswas

Surya Sen and his revolutionary group decided to kill Mr. Craig, Inspector General of Chittagong. Ramakrishna Biswas and Kalipada Chakravarty were assigned for this task. But they mistakenly killed SP of Chandpur and Traini Mukherjee instead of Craig. Ramakrishna Biswas and Kalipada Chakravarty were arrested on 2 December 1931.[19] After the trial Biswas was ordered to be hanged till death and Chakravarty to be exiled to Cellular Jail.[20]

The family and friends lacked the amount of money required to travel to Chittagong to Alipore Jail of Calcutta. Since at that time Pritilata was staying in Kolkata, she was asked to go to Alipore Jail and meet Ramkrishna Biswas.[20]

Activities in Surya Sen's group

Along with the revolutionary group of Surya Sen, Pritilata took part in many raids like attacks on the Telephone & Telegraph offices[9] and the capture of the reserve police line. In the Jalalabad battle, she took the responsibility to supply explosives to the revolutionaries.[2]

Pahartali European Club attack (1932)

The Pahartali European Club (shown here in 2010) was torched by the group of revolutionaries
In 1932, Surya Sen planned to attack the Pahartali European Club which had a signboard that read "Dogs and Indians not allowed".[21] Surya Sen decided to appoint a woman leader for this mission. Kalpana Datta was arrested seven days before the event. Because of this, Pritilata was assigned the leadership of the attack. Pritilata went to Kotowali Sea Side for arms training and made the plan of their attack there.[12]

They decided to attack the club on 23 September 1932. The members of the group were given potassium cyanide and were told to swallow it if they were caught.[7]

On the day of the attack, Pritilata dressed herself as a Punjabi male. Her associates Kalishankar Dey, Bireshwar Roy, Prafulla Das, Shanti Chakraborty wore dhoti and shirt. Mahendra Chowdhury, Sushil Dey and Panna Sen wore lungi and shirt.[20]

They reached the club at around 10:45 PM and launched their attack. There were around 40 people inside the club then. The revolutionaries divided themselves into three separate groups for the attack. In the club, a few police officers who had revolvers started shooting. Pritilata incurred a single bullet wound. According to the police report, in this attack, one woman with a surname of Sullivan died and four men and seven women were injured.[20]

Death

In this place Pritilata committed suicide. Now there is a plaque in her memory
An injured Pritilata was trapped by the British police.[2] She swallowed cyanide to avoid getting arrested.[18] The next day, the police found her body and identified her. On searching her dead body, the police found a few leaflets, photograph of Ramkrishna Biswas, bullets, whistle and the draft of their plan of attack. During the post-mortem it was found that the bullet injury was not very serious and that cyanide poisoning was the cause of her death.[20]

The chief secretary of Bengal sent a report to British authorities in London. In the report it was written–[22][full citation needed]

Pritilata had been closely associated with, if not actually the mistress of, the terrorist Biswas who was hanged for the murder of Inspector Tarini Mukherjee, and some reports indicate that she was the wife of Nirmal Sen who was killed while attempting to evade arrest of Dhalghat, where Captain Cameron fell.

Influence

A bust of Waddedar at Pritilata Waddedar primary school, Chittagong
Bangladeshi writer Selina Hossain calls Pritilata an ideal for every woman.[23] A trust named Birkannya Pritilata Trust (Brave lady Pritilata Trust) has been founded in her memory. Pritilata's birthday is celebrated by the trust in different places of Bangladesh and India every year. The trust considers her to be "a beacon of light for women".[24] The last end of Sahid Abdus Sabur Road to Mukunda Ram Hat of Boalkhali upazila in Chittagong has been named as Pritilata Waddedar Road.[25] In 2012, a bronze sculpture of Pritilata Waddedar was erected in front of the Pahartali Railway School, adjacent to the historical European Club.[26][27]

Legacy
Pritilata Waddedar Mahavidyalaya, a college in Nadia district.
Pritilata Shaheed Minar
Pritilata Hall, University of Chittagong

Pritilata Hall, Jahangirnagar University
Pritilata Waddedar Primary School, Chittagong
Khantura Pritilata Shiksha Niketan (Boys'(H.S.), Girls'(H.S.) and Primary section), three schools, Gobardanga, West Bengal,India
In popular media
2010 Bollywood movie Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey was based on Chittagong Uprising where Vishakha Singh played the character of Pritilata.[28][29]
In 2012, the Hindi film Chittagong was released based on the uprising. Vega Tamotia played the role of Waddedar








8 Facts About Pritilata Waddedar - Bengal's First Woman Martyr
Her name might be buried under the dust of time, but if ever it pops up, everyone remembers her as the iron lady of Bengal. After telling you about the story of Jhalkari Bai, let's take our series of India's unsung woman heroes ahead. Introducing Pritilata Waddedar.

Pritilata Waddedar's sacrifice cannot be ignored. She was among the initial lot of revolutionaries who picked up arms against the British Raj and was the first woman in Bengal to do so. Having died at the age of 21, her story is fit for a film's screenplay. 
1. Pritilata was chosen to lead an uprising against a club that had the tenet "Dogs and Indians are not allowed." She, along with a group of others, attacked a European club and set fire to it.
European Club

To avenge the death of innocent Indians in the Jalalabad encounter, a group of revolutionaries plotted a strategy to attack the Pahartali European club which had a sign-board titled – "Dogs and Indians are not allowed." Pritilata was selected to lead a team of 40 people for the mission in September 1932. She dressed as a Punjabi male, while her associates wore lungis and shirts. She succeeded in laying a siege and her team torched the club.

2. After being fatally wounded during the attack, Pritilata preferred to sacrifice her life rather than be caught by the British. She was just 21 years old when she died.

pritilata waddedar

The British officers chased Pritilata and her team in a bloody encounter that followed. She was fatally wounded in this attack. When she saw there was no way to escape from the Britishers, she commanded her fellow fighters to run away and laid down her own life instead. To avoid getting arrested, Pritilata consumed cyanide and died. She refused to be caught by British. She was just 21 when she gave up her life for her motherland.

3. She had a middle-class background and was inspired by several revolutionaries right from childhood.
indian women revolutionaries

TWITTER

Pritilata was born into a middle-class Vaidya-Brahmin family in a village of Chittagong. Her father was a clerk and she had five siblings. Nicknamed Rani, Pritilata's original surname was Dasgupta. She was a meritorious student and highly influenced by the freedom fighters of that time. 


4. Her graduation degree was withheld by the British. She served as a school teacher before becoming a freedom fighter.
pritilata waddedar

Her degree in philosophy was withheld by the British authorities at the Calcutta University. She took up teaching after completing her studies. She was appointed as the first Headmistress of the local English medium secondary school where she worked. In 2012, she was conferred her graduation certificate of merit posthumously.

DON'T MISS
5. Pritilata soon joined the group of Bengali independence fighter Surya Sen. She was at the forefront of many anti-British campaigns.
surya sen

Surya Sen had heard her name but was reluctant to recruit her. But seeing her firm determination to eliminate British supremacy, he finally accepted Pritilata as the woman comrade of his revolutionary group. Her intelligence, strategy and efforts helped Surya and other members attack the armoury raid, telegraph office, railway lines and make the uprising of Chittagong successful. In the Jalalabad battle, she took responsibility to supply explosives to the revolutionaries.  

6. Rani Laxmibai of Jhansi was her role model, and inspired Pritilata to fight against the British right from her childhood.
pritilata waddedar

Rani Laxmibai was an inspirational force for Pritilata to sacrifice her life for the liberation of her motherland. Her classmate Kalpana Datta wrote in the biography Chittagong Armoury Raiders:

"We had no clear idea in our school days about our future. Then the Rani of Jhansi fired our imagination with her example. Sometimes we used to think of ourselves as fearless..."

7. A plaque stands in memory of Pritilata at the spot she committed suicide, 
pritilata waddedar


Now in Bangladesh, the spot has gained popularity. A trust in her name also runs and celebrates her birthday in different parts of India and Bangladesh even today. Chittagong even has a Pritilata Waddedar Road. In 2012, a bronze sculpture of her was erected in front of the school where she taught, adjacent to the historical European Club. 

8. Very few films referred to Pritilata in the past, and it's time for a full-fledged film on her.

pritilata waddedar-bollywood films

Bollywood's 2010 film Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey was based on the Chittagong uprising where actress Vishakha Singh played the character of Pritilata. Even in 2012 film Chittagong, which was based on the same uprising, Vega Tamotia played the role of Pritilata. But her story has not been done justice to. It's high time we had a proper film to commemorate Pritilata's life and spirit. 

While wondering who would be best suited to play the braveheart revolutionary, I could only think of Deepika Padukone. We have seen her in the historical film Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey, but playing a different character. She has even pulled off period dramas getting the nuances of that era right.  

deepika padukone

TSERIES

Let's hope our filmmakers take a hint and get cracking on a saga on Pritilata Waddedar.