Women freedom fighters led from the front in the freedom struggle and their social contributions after independence in the sphere of national reconstruction is indeed massive, writes Satyabrata Mishra
Independence is the birthright of every individual. The word freedom, as history shows, has been at the epicentre of violent strife and revolution. Every human being craves for freedom – he may be a tribal living in a remote village encircled by mountains and forests or an intellectual from a metropolitan area. He may be a farmer or a workman in a factory or a housewife who takes care of her family – everyone needs independence.
From 1857 till 1947 Orissa took a vital role in the independence struggle. Historical evidence suggests that Orissa was the last state to be included to the British Empire. The Paika mutiny of 1817 and the Ghumusar mutiny of 1835 are considered the first wars of Indian Independence and not Sipoy Mutiny of 1857 which nationalist historians claim was the First War of Independence.
Many sons of the soil showed their bravery and courage and left their homes, families and friends and sacrificed their lives fighting for the motherland. Many spent innumerable years in the dark rooms of colonial jails, tortured brutally by the police. Under the aegis of the British the Gadajat rulers and the Jamindars of Mogulbandi exploited the people by means of illogical taxation, false police cases, arbitrary rulings and, moreover, rape, torture and intimidation. Such illegitimate governance had devastated the social and economic fabric as well as the morale of the Oriya people.
In 1920 under the leadership of Gopabandhu Das many intellectuals like Gopabandhu Choudhury, Nabakrushna Choudhury, Biswanath Das, Nilakantha Das, Harekrushna Mahatab and Surendra Nath Dwibedi joined the Indian National Congress.
Like their male counterparts, during 1885 to 1905 many women leaders were also influenced and attracted to the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi and Gopabandhu Das. Amongst them Nishamani Devi, Nitambini Devi, Champamani Devi and Ashamani Devi are prominent figures.
When freedom fire engulfed entire Orissa at the wake-up call of Mahatma Gandhi and Gopabandhu Das, many women leaders spearheaded movements in central and coastal Orissa. In the beginning of the 20th century Orissa saw the evolution of women leaders like Sarala Devi, Rama Devi, Malati Choudhury. Janhabi Devi, Hironmayi Devi, Godabari Devi, Radhamani Devi and Parvati Devi, who commanded a large following and vehemently opposed British atrocity. They not only created awareness on women’s education, child marriage, the purdah system, and widow marriage but also focused on spreading the message of human freedom, national unity and a republican form of governance.
Rama Devi
Born December 3, 1899 in Cuttack, Ramadevi Choudhury was considered the foremost amongst women freedom fighters of Orissa. She was the daughter of Gopal Ballav Das and the niece of Utkal Gaurab Madhusudan Das. She was arrested several times in 1921, 1936 and 1942 with other women activists like Sarala Devi and Malati Choudhury. After independence Rama Devi dedicated herself to the cause of Bhoodan and Gramdan movements of Acharya Vinoba Bhave. In 1952 she along with her husband travelled on foot about 4,000 km across the state to propagate the message of donating land and wealth to the landless and poor. During the 1951 famine she and Malati carried out relief operations in Koraput. She worked on aiding soldiers affected by the Indo-Chinese war of 1962. During the Emergency inposed by Indira Gandhi she protested by bringing out her own newspaper along with Harekrushna Mahatab and Nilmoni Routray.
Sarala Devi
Granddaughter of Debendranath Tagore, Sarala Devi was the daughter of Janaki Nath Ghosal of Calcutta. Her mother Swarnakumari Devi was the first successful woman novelist of Bengali literature. Swarnakumari was the daughter of Maharshi Debendranath Tagore, a leading Brahmo leader and scholar, and the elder sister of Rabindranath Tagore. Sarala Devi introduced a festival in the honour of the memory of Pratapaditya. Her object was to rouse nationalist fervour and revive the political strength of Bengal. About the year 1897 she took the lead in organising a physical training movement in Bengal similar to the one she had seen in Maharashtra. She set up a gymnasium and appointed a famous gymnast of Goa to train the members in sword and lathi play. However, to Sarala Devi, the purpose of martial arts training was to develop physical strength and manly attitudes. To Jatin, Barin, and Sri Aurobindo, it was a step towards establishing militias for guerrilla warfare. Sarala Devi broke with the society of the time over this issue.
Malati Devi
Malati Devi Choudhury (1904-1998) was an Indian civil rights and freedom activist and noted Gandhian. She was born in 1904 in an upper middle-class Brahmo family. She was the daughter of barrister Kumud Nath Sen, whom she lost when she was only two and a half years old, and Snehalata Sen, who brought her up. After her marriage, Orissa became her home and her area of political activity. She joined Mahatma Gandhi’s famous salt Satyagraha. As an activist she used principles of education and communication in creating a conducive environment for Satyagraha. Even as a prisoner, she taught fellow prisoners, organised choral singing and disseminated Gandhiji’s teachings. In February 1933 she organised the Utkal Congress Samajvadi Karmi Sangh, which later became the Orissa Provincial Branch of the All India Congress Socialist Party. In 1934, she accompanied Gandhiji in his ‘padayatra’ in Orissa. After a daylong walk, he was obviously too tired to visit a Harijan village which was in the itinerary. The villagers, who had waited long, were disappointed, but were prepared to forgive Gandhiji for the minor lapse. Malati Choudhury did not spare Gandhiji, and told him point blank, “Bapu, you have not done the right thing.” Gandhiji apologised, and cooled her down with his disarming smile. She was arrested several times in 1921, 1936, and 1942 with other women independent activists like Sarala Devi, Ramadevi Choudhury and others.
Annapurna Maharana
Born November 3, 1917 Annapurna Maharana was an independence activist and a close associate of Mohandas Gandhi. Maharana began actively campaigning for independence when she was 14 years old. She joined Gandhiji on his ‘Harijan Padayatra’ through Orissa from Puri to Bhadrak. Maharana was arrested several times, including the August 1942 Quit India Movement.
After independence she opened a school in Rayagada district for the children of the area’s tribal population. She also became involved with the Bhoodan movement or the Land Gift Movement. She further campaigned to integrate the dacoits active at Chambal Valley. During the Emergency she protested by helping Ramadevi Choudhury with their newspaper published by Gram Sevak Press.
Rambha Devi
Rambha Devi was deeply influenced by Ramadevi and Sarala Devi and on several occasions accompanied them to different villages. Along with the duo she visited several places and spread the message of freedom to illiterate people and women in the villages and sought to rope them into the freedom struggle. She was arrested and allegedly put behind the bars on the allegations of rabble-rousing against colonial rule. She devoted her life in to the service of the people of Orissa by founding the Haridashpur Ashram and Seva Hospital.
Women leaders of western Orissa also played a prominent role in the freedom struggle. Leaders like Parvati Giri, Anjana Devi, Jambobati Devi, Prabhabati Devi and tribal women leaders undertook the charge of the movement in the region along with their male counterparts.
Anjana Devi
Anjana Devi, sister of Vir Surendra Sai, operated the ‘guerrilla’ camps in the absence of his brother and provided the people there food, medicine, secret instructions and news of the movement raging outside. Jambobati Devi was the first woman Satyagrahi from Sambalpur. Initially, Jambobati helped her husband Bhagirathi Pattanaik who was a prominent freedom fighter but later on influenced by Ramadevi she joined the struggle. She used to travel from village to village to spread the message of freedom and motivated women to join the movement. She actively participated in the salt Satyagraha and was arrested and sent to Sambalpur jail and Central jail. She was again arrested in Bihar’s Tunki in 1942 during the Bharat Chodo movement. After exactly a year in 1943 she died in Bihar. Because of her motherly attitude and affectionate behaviour she was fondly called “mother” by the rebels in Bihar.
Parvati Giri
Known as ‘Banhikanya’ Parvati Giri was born in Samaleipadar of Bargarh district January 19, 1926. At the age of 16 she joined the ‘Bharat Chodo’ movement of Gandhiji. She motivated women to join freedom struggle and the authorities put her behind bars for two long years. She initiated an orphanage for the destitute in Paikmal village after the independence and spent her life in providing good moral values to children. She was also known as the Mother Teresa of western Orissa.
