The Cortege That Shook The Raj: Kanailal Dutta

10th November, 1908

Around late morning, a procession of lacs made their way through the streets of Calcutta (Kolkata), India. Some were chanting “Vande Mataram” others blew conch shells and Ululation filled the air. Flowers were being showered from all directions and garlands made their way through the crowd, being thrown at the procession in the middle. Bhagwat Gita and Ananda Math (Novel by Bamkim Chandra) were offered. No, this was no “Sobha Jatra” or celebration. This was no religious festivities either.
That dawn, the Alipore Jail, which opened only two years back, witnessed the hanging of Kanailal Dutta, a twenty-year-old member of the “Jugantar Dol” an anarchist group that was set up primarily by Aurobindo Ghosh (Later Rishi Arabindo) his brother Barindra and their associates. Kanailal hailed from Chandannagore and although he was not present in most of their meetings in Kolkata he was still one of their early members from Chandannagore, then a French province. 
“Jai Kanai” filled the air of Calcutta that day and poured out public support for the movement for the first time in the 1900s. The British realised it was not about a few people spread across the length and breadth of the Bengal Province any more. It was about the common people supporting those who wanted to pick up arms against the British Raj and its atrocities. It was a call for freedom which the people answered. A realisation of being colonised that now ran in the blood of the masses.
Kanailal wanted the procession as soon as his death sentence was given. He had expressed that to his surviving elder brother Dr. Ashutosh Dutta and his associate member of Chandannagore, Motilal Ray. He wanted people to remember the day. Not because he wanted to be immortal in any way, but because he wanted the British to know that the people of India were ready to fight. The message to the government would be clear. No death in the gallows would be forgotten. More importantly, he wanted the Indians to know that the likes of Mir Jafar and Jagat Seth betraying their kind would not be spared. But why was he being celebrated at death? How did it stir an empire of colonisers?

State archive picture of Funeral

Why was Kanailal in Jail?

On the evening of 30th April 1908, Khudiram Bose, 16 (He was officially declared as 20 years old to be trialled as an adult and hanged) and Prafulla Chaki, 19 bombarded the carriage of Kingsford at Muzaffarpur unfortunately killing his guests Mrs and Miss Kennedy. Kingsford lived yet another attempt at his life, after an unsuccessful parcel bomb was delivered to his home a few months back. Both the men had escaped in different directions only to be caught by mid-day, within twenty-four hours of their attack on Kingsford’s carriage. 

Khudiram Bose

Two months before Kanailal’s death, Khudiram was hanged. Prafulla Chaki had committed suicide as instructed by his group even before he was caught. Khudiram identified his body as per the official court documents. But when Khudiram’s signed confession was put forward in the court of law, he refused to acknowledge it and claimed that he was tricked and forced by torture to sign the documents, True or not, he did not provide any names of his associates, court proceedings for anarchists were just a farce show of law. Long before them, Khudiram was already in the gallows, ready to be hanged.

With Khudiram’s death came a new wave of nationalism among the Bengalees across the cities and villages of the province especially in Medinipur. According to many accounts, Khudiram’s death prompted Pitambar Das (not the later politician of the same name) to compose the famous lines every Bengali child grows up listening to -
“Ekbar Biday De Ma Ghure Ashi” (Mother, bid me farewell, I will come back soon) in his honour. Villages across Bengal sang this song of glory, in the hope of a free motherland, when thousands of teenagers, like Khudiram understood the need to join the movement.

Khudiram during one of his hearings

Although officially they were part of the Anushilan Samiti formed in Dhaka, East Bengal (another anarchist group) the connection between the two groups was Hemchandra Kanungo, a chemistry teacher residing in Medinipur,  who had chosen one of his students, the orphaned Khudiram for the mission. Hem Chandra also used to make bombs for the anarchist groups and taught the same to the young men of the Yugantar Dol at Barindra’s garden house at 32, Muraripukur Road, Calcutta. In connection with Hem Chandra Kanungo, the members of Yugantar who were already on the radar because of their published papers “Yugantar” and “Vande Mataram” was arrested. Kanailal was hiding in one of the known addresses of the Yugantar and was among the 38 listed men who were caught.

Some of the Accused (Courtesy Facebook Page: Alipore Bombing Case)

Hemchandra after his release

A Betrayer amongst Anarchists

Barindra Kumar Ghosh (Fourth person in the middle row of the picture), the brother of Aurobindo Ghosh decided to take the full blame for making the group and executing the failed plan to target Kingsford but that did not convince the British Police. They had no hard evidence of their involvement mostly because all major anarchist groups in Bengal, from the Anushilan Samiti (1907) to the Bengal Volunteers (1928) all left no paper trials of their anarchist activities and targets. The British were clueless about how they managed to get revolvers or the equipment to make bombs. Hence arose a need for a key witness from within the group to make sure the court proceedings went smoothly. 

Narendranath Goswami (also called Naren Gossain in the local dialect) was one of the men caught by the British in the raids through the addresses of Anushilan Samiti and Yugantar Dol hideouts. He, along with the other members, had endured torture in the cells of Alipore Jail and unlike the others he was ready to stand witness against them. The moment the British found their way in, Narendranath was removed from his cell in one of the units of the jail which was near the others and moved to the Jail Hospital across the lawn from their unit. The British wanted to make sure their key witness was safe. When the others came to know of this betrayal their blood boiled. But most of them had by then accepted their fate to either be hanged or jailed for life in the cellular jail of Kalapani (Andamans). But Kanailal had other plans.

Initially, when there was no evidence against them, Kanailal had planned with Satyendranath Bose, 26, a fellow member of the Yugantar, that they would plan a jailhouse break and escape for all the members. The Irish Jailer who was in charge of their unit was particularly sympathetic towards them due to his motherland fighting for their liberation against the British, and they had made quite extensive connections inside the Jailhouse to plan an escape. If they were not found, the cases against them would weaken to a point of no impact. With this thought in mind, Kanailal had spent his days trying to convince a reluctant Barindra Ghosh, Upendranath Bandopadhyay and Ullashkar Dutta about his plans. However, everything changed when Naren decided to speak.

Kanailal took Lathi lessons as a student

Kanailal was well-versed in the history of the subcontinent. He knew that merely 150 years ago, a Nawab of Bengal, Siraj Ud Daulah had been betrayed by his kin Mir Jafar alongside a Gujarati merchant, Jagat Seth and his brothers who led Robert Clive and his British East India Company into Bengal. If not for internal betrayals, the history of the nation would have been different. Kanailal wanted to provide a message to his fellow countrymen, that betrayal would be punished.

None of the anarchists present in the jail mentions in their accounts how Kanailal had access to guns. Some state it was Motilal who helped him by simply bringing a gun in when the relatives of prisoners came for their Sunday visits, while others claimed it was an extensively planned operation to poach arms inside the jailhouse, by ways of bribing Indian guards and hiding them in fruit baskets and parcels. True or not, Kanailal managed to get two guns inside the jail.

Satyendranath Bose, who was not ready to accept defeat and be jailed for life at Kalapani alongside him, agreed to the plan of being his companion in this operation. Some accounts suggest it was Jatindranath Mukherjee famously known as Bagha Jatin, also a member of this group, who planned their operation from the outside. Other historians suggest it was Barin Ghosh who asked his defence lawyer to help smuggle arms to Satyen Bose. However, in three of his autobiographies and experiences, Barin Ghosh only mentions trying to take the blame for things to avoid severe punishment of others and claims to be in the dark about this plan. Barin Ghosh was born in England and hence was a British Indian citizen the law of the time did not allow the death penalty for British Citizens in colonised countries so Barin was sure that he would only get a jail sentence while others could be hanged. True or not as to whoever planned the attack, it was Kanailal who set out to put this plan in motion.

Old Prison Cells near Gallows (Courtesy: Alipore Jail Museum)

The Execution

Satyendranath Bose was the first to write a letter to Narendranath Goswami from his cell in the hospital ward, stating his willingness to stand as a witness against the group alongside him. He stated that he was tired of the torture and could no longer take the imprisonment. Believing that Satyen’s statement would emphasize his own, Naren wanted to see him. Satyen stated he had also convinced Kanailal to do the same. In mid-August, 1908, Kanailal told Upendranath Banerjee, his cellmate, that he was never going to accept defeat. He would do something to shake the British to their core. Before Upendra could fathom his words, Satyen and Kanai were led by the British guards to the hospital for their safety. Some accounts however contradict this chain of events. Barindra and Motilal both wrote in their accounts that it was Satyendra who wanted to be witnessed while Kanailal feigned being sick to be led to the hospital. The two-storey red-bricked building was about to witness history.

Hospital Corridor ( Alipore Jail Museum Archives)

Kanailal was kept in a shared ward on the ground floor while Satyen met with Naren on the first storey of the building to discuss their statements to the police. Two guards led them to this meeting and stood witness to the events to be unfolded.

The day was 31st August 1908 around midday when Naren came to see Satyen in the corridors. Satyen wasted no time in taking out the revolver that was hidden in the waist of his dhoti. Naren realised he was duped and ran for his life. Satyen fired three bullets, two of which hit his back and one on his right leg. Naren was not going to slow down. The gunshots were heard across the jailhouse prompting guards to run to the hospital. The ones in their cells heard rumours of shots being fired by guards, the hospital being attacked from outside and even people dying as they waited with baited breath for some more information. Satyen had managed to hurt the guard who snatched his revolver while the other caught him. Kanai, along with the other inmates, was in the downstair corridor when he saw Naren stumbling down the stairs and running out towards the open lawn. Kanailal made his move. The guard was already at the door about to shut it when Kanai showed him the revolver and asked for the gates to be opened. The young guard was an Indian. Whether he was an accomplice willingly or scared for his life was hard to tell as he let Kanailal out of the hospital premises. Kanailal ran across the lawn, following Naren who had by this time stumbled to the ground bleeding in front of the office. Kanailal stood over him and emptied the six bullets into his body. By the time Kanailal ran out of bullets, Naren Gossain was dead, but his autopsy suggested that the first bullet that hit him from the back proved somewhat fatal as it pierced through his lungs. The fatal wound to his heart was caused by Kanailal who made sure he could not survive. A few officials alongside the jailer were hiding behind the printing press, a few feet away, unsurely. When they heard the gunshots silenced they came out of their hiding and captured Kanailal. There was no doubt that they would be sentenced to be hanged but Naren was dead and it led to many more assassinations across the land, of betrayers of their tribes. Kanailal’s message was successful.

A funny incident among this as narrated by Upendranath Bandopadhyay in his autobiography “ Nirbashiter Atmakatha” was that immediately after Kanailal was caught, a devout Brahmin police officer of the British Crown Police had led him into the interrogation room within the jail premises at Alipore. He was asked the first and most important question, “How did you get the gun?” Kanailal was known for his humour and sarcasm and that characteristic did not die on him even in such grave hours. He let the police officer know, in all seriousness, that it was Khudiram’s ghost who came to him and instructed him to kill the betrayer and provided him with the gun. Horrified by his confession, the staunch believer in ghosts and spirits, this policeman, reported the same to his British senior officer which resulted in his demotion. But this confession led to many entertaining rumours among the inmates. Many believed it was indeed possible for a soul as pure as Khudiram’s to have the extraordinary power to bring guns and give heavenly interventions to his fellow freedom fighters. The British officers, however, were not amused and this audacity at humour led to Kanailal being whipped for his misdemeanour. Kanailal's statement to the District Magistrate about his motive was stated as:

"I wish to state that I did kill him. ... I do wish to give a reason. It was because he was a traitor to his country."

The Magistrate’s final statement read, as follows:

"The two revolvers were brought into the office and examined and the smaller one (Exhibit I) was found to have in the chambers four discharged cartridges while the larger (Exhibit II) had five discharged cartridges and one loaded cartridge. Thus we may assume that all nine shots were fired. Four bullets were found — two inside the dispensary, one just outside the dispensary, and one was extracted from the dead body of Norendra. From the medical evidence, it appears that this was the bullet which caused Norendra's death. It entered fairly high up in the back and severed the spinal cord and almost completely penetrated the breast in front but spent its force before doing so and lay embedded under the skin of the breast. Exhibit VII is this bullet (contained in a glass bottle sealed by Captain Daley). An examination of this bullet shows that it was fired from the larger of the two revolvers (Exhibit II). The evidence of Linton shows that the revolver was the one used by Kanai Lall Dutt. Thus the fatal shot was fired by Kanai Lall Dutt." (Source: State Archives)

Satyen (left) and Kanailal (in specs) with the Irish Jailor after being caught

The Death of a Martyr

The sentence of death for both the men came after three unsuccessful appeals, in October. They were kept in separate cells, near the gallows in solitary confinement until their death. Kanailal was only allowed to meet his brother once before he was hanged and his cellmates the evening before the fateful day. He conveyed his respect to his widowed mother and let his brother know that his battle was over, and he was finally at peace with his fate. Dr. Ashutosh Dutta was truly moved by his brother’s unfazed happiness hours before his hanging and he mentions, as do many others, that Kanailal not only looked happy as he faced death, but he had even gained a few pounds in the week leading to his death. 

It was a practice during the times, to drag fellow inmates and cellmates to the cells adjacent to the gallows to watch an execution as a message to them about the consequences of their actions. However, watching the demeanour of the men who were caught in the Alipore Bombing Case, as they laughed in the face of death, this ritual was not followed during the execution of Kanailal who walked from his cell to the gallows, chained, chanting “Vande Mataram.”

The Gallows at Alipore Jail

Kanailal’s body was released to his devastated elder brother around two hours after he was hanged, with two conditions. They were not to take the body out of the main entrance of the jail where protestors were expected and that his body would be covered, face hidden from view. Motilal, who had accompanied his brother to the jail, described Kanailal’s face as calm, his eyes open but not bewildered, his fists closed. He looked like he had faced death without fear for his motherland and Motilal wanted that message to be seen by everyone else. But the British officers were strict with their rules to release his body. The body was carried out, covered in a customary white cloth and saffron Namaboli through the back gates of the jail beside the Tully Nalah (Canal) and the moment they reached the main road leading to the Keorahtala Crematorium they were shocked to see thousands of men, women and children on either side of the road, chanting praises to the motherland and its bravest sons. People who had never seen or known Kanailal mourned him like their sons, tears in their eyes, mothers showered their blessings on him, and women lamented his youthful loss. Inspired youth, men and women, witnessed the procession with “Vande Mataram” on their lips, praying for a death or life as glorious as those who lived for the nation. Thousands of garlands covered his body and people requested to see his face. Halfway to the final destination, his face was revealed and the crowd stood two folds in numbers by noon when they arrived at the crematorium. Thousands participated in his cremation, bringing sandalwood and ritualistic symbols to his last rites. The British Police stood witness to this one-of-a-kind spectacle they had never witnessed in the capital city. 

Most accounts say that his pyre burnt well into the night as if he was refusing to let go of the flame of rebellion his soul was entangled in. His ashes emerged into the Adi Ganga (a small tributary of the Bhagirathi Hoogly near Kalighat) and the members of his group visited his grieving inconsolable mother at dawn.

When Satyendranath Bose was hanged on 21st November 1908 the British did not make the same mistake as they did with Kanailal. In fact, for every other martyr who embraced their death in the gallows of Alipore Jail and Presidency Jail, their bodies were cremated within the jail premises to avoid any publicity. This practise too was however later scrutinised as inmates often suggested that many who were tortured to death, or died of disease within jail premises after this incident were thrown into the Tully Nalah overnight from the barracks of the jail, and later provided with an official statement that they had tried to escape. Even the famous Dinesh Gupta, of the Writer’s attack, was denied a proper cremation ceremony because of the rules laid down after Kanailal’s last journey shook the British Government to its core.

Satyendranath Bose

Parting words

Many contemporary Historians, newspapers of the 1900s and even some of the members of Congress had been critical of the rise of anarchist groups in Bengal between 1905 to 1934. Many of these groups worked together while others maintained their own identities and published papers to make people aware of British atrocities. All of them believed that Freedom was not to be begged for in conferences. Their liberal ideologies led to many martyrdoms by the likes of Khudiram, Prafulla Chaki, Kanailal, Satyendranath, Charu Chandra, Birendra Dutta Gupta, Gopinath, Pramod Ranjan, Bagha Jatin, Surya Sen, Ramkrishna Biswas, Binay-Badal-Dinesh but not in vain. Their political murders, attacks and loots shook the British to the core and even prompted them to shift their capital from Calcutta to Delhi. These anarchist parties were often tagged extremists for their actions but we must remember that these small groups existed not in unison but in difference of opinions as well. Though all of them believed in armed rebellions, they were divided in their political ideologies of Leftist and Rightist politics. But these clashes of ideologies never stopped them from working, even in unison, towards the dream of building a free state with respect for difference and diversity. Many would call the anarchism of Bengal a romantic far fetched idea of a unified armed protest against the British but they forget that these were the roots of Subhas Chandra Bose’s ideas of armed rebellion, his Forward Bloc Party and later the idea of Azad Hind Fauz ( Rashbehari Bose also being one of the anarchists) that became the base of the Indian National Army.

Books to read (Bengali):

Anushilan Samiti by B. Dasgupta

Bengal Volunteers by Madhumanti Sengupta

Khudiram O Prafulla Chaki: Mul Nothi Theke (Court documents) compiled by Chinmoy Chowdhury

Nirbashoner Atmakatha by Upendranath Bandopadhyay

Agniyug by Barindrakumar Ghosh

Amar Kara Jibon by Ullashkar Dutta

Amar Dekha Biplob o Biplobi by Motilal Ray