It was a well-attended meeting. There were some three hundred of them -- politicians, authors, journalists, intellectuals, teachers, students, lawyers etc. The political participants included the CPI, which seemed to be running the entire show, the SP, the SSP, the RSP and last but not least, some CPI-oriented Congressmen. The CPM abstained from the meeting though a few of its sympathisers could be seen 'spying', from the gallery.
In a nutshell, it was a mixed gathering of revolutionaries, not-so-revolutionaries, lesser revolutionaries and those who claimed to be once-upon-a-time revolutionaries. It was perhaps for the last tribe that convener R. K. Garg wrote in his invitation: "You will appreciate that all of us at one time or the other challenged the established order in our way". Most of the speakers, especially the Dange Communists, recalled how once upon a time they too had "taken to arms against the establishment".
Though the meeting was called for the "defence and release of Naxalite prisoners" and it was emphasised time and again that "this is neither the time nor the place to discuss ideological questions" almost all the speakers, barring an exceptional few, utilised the opportunity to criticise what they thought was 'ultra-leftism'. The Marxist gentlemen particularly seemed to be in a fit of philanthropy in guiding these "misguided" young men and women.
All the Dange Communists -- ranging from P. C. Joshi to Bhupesh Gupta -- said that they too could bring armed revolution, but were only waiting for the right time. CPI theoretician Mohit Sen went one step ahead by branding Naxalites "brother revolutionaries" and disclosed that the differences between the two boiled down to a question of the timing of insurrectionary methods and not to one of the methods as such.
It was very ironic indeed hearing those Congress MPs on how the Government and its law and order wing was committing inhuman atrocities, violating even the law of the land, on the communist revolutionaries.
Was it a change of heart, or behaviour for that matter? No, declared the old-time fellow traveller, Mr Amrit Nahata. Was not the great Indian National Congress on friendly terms with terrorist fighters for independence? After all their paths might be different but the goal was the same. Had not Gandhi demanded the reprieve of Bhagat Singh? (At this point there was a great uproar in the hall, people calling it a travesty of truth, Mr Nahata had to stop his speech several times and the organisers threatened to adjourn the meeting if others' views were not heard.
Perhaps such double-talk provoked the Hindi writer, Mr Mudrarakshas -- an uninvited speaker -- to comment: "I wonder whether there is any conspiracy behind the entire game when those who have justice talk in terms of a fair deal." There were some political simpletons too. The SSP's S. D. Gupta revealed that "even we political workers were not aware of the fact that 30-32 thousand people are rotting in jails".
Enough of this cynicism. There were some good people too. And let us take these 'humanistic' gentlemen and women at their face value. All of them admitted: that Naxalites are honest to their cause, theirs is a political case and the Government is denying them a fair deal even in utter violation of the law of the land. Reinforce at least the constitutional safeguards for political agitators, this was the consensus.
The meeting resolved to hold an all-India convention in defence of Naxalite prisoners in March and to build an all-India movement demanding their release as well as rehabilitation. A preparatory committee was set up in this connection and the following were chosen members: Amrit Nahata and D. P. Singh of the Congress, Bhupesh Gupta, P. C. Joshi and Mohit Sen of the CPI, Sunil Bhattacharya (RSP), R. K. Jain (SP), S. Das Gupta (SSP), Ramsvey Verma (Revolutionary Youth Front). O. P. Sangal (Editor, New Wave), Bodhayan Chatterjee (Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University), S. C. Agrawal and R. K. Garg (Advocates, Supreme Court) and Mudrarakshas (Writer).
In a resolution, unanimously passed, the Committee said that there was "no justification" for continuing the long detention of Naxalites on one pretext or the other and "their liberty must be restored to them forthwith." In the cases the Government finds it "impossible" to order their immediate release, trials must immediately. commence
The Committee expressed its "deep concern" over the treatment meted out to the Naxalite prisoners in various jails in the country, their detention for unusually long periods, as well as attempts at further delaying their trials on flimsy excuses to avoid basic human rights and civil liberties."
It said thousands of political prisoners are rotting in jails. In the recent past, many have been killed by police lathis and bullets in jails. Many more have been murdered even before they were taken into custody. Many are tortured in police custody and detained without trial, including those who simply protested against the violence of the police. Even some of those who appeared in the defence of the Naxalites have been harmed in various ways and even involved in rigged cases.
The Naxalites have been categorised as dangerous criminals, they have been put in fetters. In jails, there are no adequate arrangements for the supply of provisions, medicines, clothes, newspapers, and other necessities of life to them. Many of them have become seriously ill, some even mentally deranged as a result of the unhealthy atmosphere and inhuman treatment.
Was the meeting of any use? Yes, said a spokesman of the Revolutionary Youth Front: "A few months ago our comrade, Charan Shandilya, was arrested at Meerut only because he had taken out a procession demanding the release of Naxalite prisoners. Can they do anything of this sort now?"
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