The Modern Review/Volume 38/Number 3/Sir Surendra Nath Banerjea

Sir Surendra Nath Banerjea

Of the distingnished band of veterans who saw the birth of the Indian National Congress and were in a sense its originators, almost the last passed away the other day in the person of Sir Surendranath Banerjea, only Sir Dinshaw Edulji Wacha remaining in our midst.

Sir Surendranath’s early career was a chequered one; but even in those early days of his life the quality of indomitability which led to his being nicknamed “Surrender Not” came into play. He went to England when in his teens, in spite of the objections of his family, for appearing at the competitive examination for the Indian Civil Service. He was successful, but on the alleged ground of his age being higher than the limit fixed, he was not chosen by the civil service commissioners. Nothing daunted he sought the proper legal remedy and was successful. He came out to India as a covenanted civilian and was posted to Sylhet, then forming part of Bengal, as an Assistant Magistrate. At that time, unlike our present-day civilians of indigenous birth, he wore a long coat buttoned up to the chin and a beaver cap. But he and Mrs. Banerjea refused to be treated as socially inferior to the English officials and their wives. It seems that owing to this cause and the dislike which Anglo-Indian (old style) persons of both sexes still generally feel for educated, and specially for high-placed, Indians who want to maintain their self-respect, there was some hostility against him. An occasion soon presented itself to gratify this feeling. Surendranath’s peshkar (a clerk who keeps and presents papers, files, etc.) returned an accused person as an absconder, though the man was not an absconder and ought to have been discharged. The

 

Surendranath Banerjea
(Indian Delegate to the Imperial Press Conference 1909)

young Assistant Magistrate affixed his signature to this paper, along with other papers, inadvertently, without reading its contents. This sort of signing papers without scrutinising their contents has often to be done even now by many busy officers. But this oversight on the part of Surendranath was treated as a serious offence, it being held that he had knowingly and intentionally made a false statement. A commission was appointed for his trial. He wanted to be tried in Calcutta, but that facility and some other facilities which he wanted, were not given him. He was dismissed from the service with a compassionate allowance of Rs. 50 per mensem.

Whether the peshkar made the false entry in sheer ignorance and carelessness or in order to conceal his neglect of duty (because the making of the correct entry was part of his duty), or whether he intentionally laid a trap for the inexperienced young Indian officer to curry favour with the Anglo-Indian superior officers, can never be known. But there can be no reasonable doubt that Surendranath was guilty of no worse fault than inadvertence or oversight, for he bore no grudge against the man returned as an absconder, there was no element of official zid in the case, and Surendranath had no motive for, nothing to gain by, making a false entry. Hence, it cannot but be held that he was unjustly and too severely punished.

But he was not the man to take things lying down. He carried his case up to the higher authorities in England, but without success. Being thus excluded from one career, he qualified for the bar, but the benchers of Middle Temple refused to call him to the bar on the ground of his being a dismissed servant of the Crown. He took steps to have their decision reversed, but could not gain his object.

He now returned to India a disappointed and almost a ruined man. But he was always hopeful and irrepressible and would never give way to despair. In this respect, his life sets an example to all of us, and particularly to those of our boys and young men who weakly give way to despair on failing to pass some petty examination or when they find that some wish of theirs has not been fulfilled. He was made of sterner stuff and was always stout-hearted. His conduct throughout life has been characterised by robust optimism.

It is not our desire in this note to recount even hurriedly all the principal events in his long life of usefulness to the country. We have described in some little detail some incidents in his early career only to bring out that feature in his character which in its later full development and transformation later in life earned for him the soubriquet of “Surrender Not.”

On his return from England after the unsuccessful visit described above, he was appointed by Pandit Iswarchandra Vidyasagar to lecture on English in the Metropolitan Institution (now Vidyasagar College). He made his mark as a teacher and was later appointed to teach English in the Free Church Institution (Duff College), now amalgamated with the Scottish Churches College. He also helped in teaching in the City School, founded by his friend Mr. Anandamohan Bose

 

Surendranath’s Residence at Barrakpur

and others, which has now grown into City College. At this time he acquired a small school in Calcutta which developed under his guidance, care and tuition into the Ripon College, for teaching science, arts and law. He was thus able as a teacher to come in touch with thousands of young men and influence their lives. The Students’ Association, which he founded, was another means of influencing, and awakening public spirit and love of country in the minds of young men. Some of his most notable addresses were delivered in connection with the Students’ Association. At present there is no association like it in Calcutta or Bengal to hold before young men lofty ideals of public spirit and political service.

Four names are associated with the foundation and early activities of the Indian Association; they are in alphabetical order Anandamohan Bose, Dwarakanath Ganguli, Sivanath Sastri and Surendranath Banerjea. Personally we do not know, and do not wish to take sides in a controversy by stating, with whom the idea originated. But there can be no question that so far as the work of political agitation and that of rousing the country are concerned Surendranath occupies the first place in the band of early political workers in Bengal, whether in connection with the Indian Association or in their individual private capacities.

At the time when the Indian Association was founded, the British Indian Association held the field. But it represented mainly if not entirely, the party and other propertied men in the country. Though when it suited the purpose of Government to accept its opinion as that of the country it could not and did not properly give voice to public opinion, such as it was in those days. Therefore an Association to give expression to popular opinion was needed. There was no doubt, already in existence a body known we believe as the Indian League. But it was practically a coterie. Some interesting details regarding its origin and early history are given in Pandit Sivanath Sastri’s Bengali autobiography.

When the Indian Association was about to be founded it met with opposition from the party of the Indian League, which put up the Rev. Kalicharan Banurji to oppose the motion for the establishment of the Association at the inaugural public meeting held for the purpose in the old Albert Hall. Then came to pass an inspiring episode in the life of Surendranath Banerjea which shed a halo of glory round the youthful brow of that ardent lover of his country. On the day on which the inaugural meeting had been arranged to take place it was known that Surendranath’s then only son was seriously ill and that his life was despaired of. It was not therefore expected that he would be able to take part in the meeting. But seeing that the motion for the establishment of the Association was going to be opposed by so able an orator and debater as Kalicharan Banurji, the supporters of the idea became apprehensive

 

Surendranath—Immediately after Death

of its fate and sent word to Surendranath to attend the meeting if possible, and save the situation. When the messenger arrived at Surendranath’s paternal mansion at Taltala the boy was already dead, and the house was ringing with cries of woe. The dead body of the darling of its parents had not yet been carried to the cremation ground for the last rites. It was at such a terrible moment that the patriot received the message from his friends at Albert Hall. Without hesitating for a moment he left the young mother with the dead child and his relatives, and coming to Albert Hall delivered a most impassioned speech and carrying everything before him, overcame all opposition. This produced an electrifying effect on the audience and all else who heard of it afterwards.

So the Indian Association came to be established. This is not the place to give an account of the work done by it. But it may be said without any invidious comparison that no other public association in Bengal has done so much steady work for well-nigh half a century as the Indian Association. What was done under its auspices for the amelioration of the condition of the labourers in the tea-gardens of Assam is particularly noteworthy.

Surendranath undertook long and extensive tours in and outside Bengal more than once for rousing the political consciousness of the educated classes of India and achieved a remarkable degree of success. A few other leaders there have been who have done more political spade work for their provinces than Surendranath; but there is no other leader whose political mission work covered so large a part of India as that of Surendranath in his generation. For this reason, without making any comparison, he may be rightly styled the father of Indian nationalism. Owing to the unrighteous and aggressive selfishness which has come to be associated with the word nationalism, it has acquired a bad odour. But when we use the word nationalism in connection with India, we do so without the least suggestion of encroachment on the rights of other peoples. We only want to get back our lost liberties, rights and heritage, and, above all, we want to do our duty to our country and to the world unhampered by restrictions imposed by any outside authority.

From his youth upwards Surendranath preached the ideal of an united Indian nation. The speeches and writings of no other political leader in India has harped more often and more insistently on the united India ideal.

Surendranath’s earlier addresses show that his political ideals had a spiritual basis. That is why we find him early in his career delivering speeches on the lives of Buddha, Chaitanya and some of the Sikh Gurus. In fact, it was the same wave of the ideal of human liberation which gave an impetus to the work of the Brahmo Samaj that moved Surendranath also to work for human freedom. The Brahmo Samaj, being primarily a religious body, approached the problem of emancipation from the side of spiritual and moral awakening and social reform, whilst Surendranath tackled the problem from the political view-point. But as emancipation is a comprehensive problem and all kinds of improvement and reform are inter-dependent, many members of the Brahmo Samaj have all along been zealous political workers and Surendranath counted some Brahmos among his most active political colleagues. As his autobiography shows, he appreciated in full the value of the work of the Brahmo Samaj.

Surendranath went to England also more than once on political missions and did valuable work there.

That he was a great orator is known to all. The kind of oratory in which he excelled has largely gone out of fashion. But no one in India could surpass or equal him in that magnificent and brilliant specimen of the art. Latterly his voice had lost its power. Therefore, those alone could judge of the quality of his eloquence who had heard him in the full maturity of his powers.

He had a marvellous memory. He delivered his long congress presidential addresses extempore without once looking at thè printed page. As editor of the Bengalee he would often dictate to an assistant at the office of that paper the full text of some speech of his, delivered at some public meeting, either before or after its delivery. We once saw him doing this at the Bengalee office before the delivery of an address.

Though not the founder of the Bengalee he made it the powerful organ that it once was, after purchasing it. The style of the editorials which he wrote was often naturally the same as that of his speeches. But as journalism to be quite effective often requires a less ponderous movement than the majestic variety of oratory, his journalistic productions were not always as forcible and smart as could be desired. It would, however, be wrong to suppose that he could not be argumentative or that he could not handle statistics with ease. which

 

Surendranath’s Dead Body on the Courtyard

he delivered in course of the Bengal Partition agitation, he refuted all the arguments which were brought forward by the bureaucracy in support of that ill-fated measure. That is only one example. As for statistic, his evidence before the Welby Commission and his congress presidential addresses show that he could use them to good purpose when he chose.

He had no taste or talent for niceties and subtleties. He went in for broad and large effects and succeeded to the full measure of his capacity.

Speaking generally, he was not an envious man nor an implacable hater. He could easily forgive and forget the endeavours made by his rivals or would be rivals to injure him or lower him in public estimation. He could be easily placated. There is an anecdote that once upon a time Upadhyay Brahmabandhab, the extremist leader, went to ask him to preside over a public meeting. Now, Brahmabandhab used often to pour on the devoted head of Surendranath the vials of his abusive wrath in Sandhya in choice colloquial Bengali. So Surendranath replied “Bhabani (that was the name of Brahmabandhab before he had become a Sannyasin), how is it that you revile me and at the same time come to ask me to preside at a meeting?” Brahmabandhav replied, “Sir, who else there is in Bengal whom it is worthwhile to abuse, and who else there is who is fit to take the chair at the meeting we are going to hold?” The conversation was of course, in Bengali and more terse, Surendranath smiled and at once agreed to preside.

In fact, for a long series of years, no political or semi-political cause could obtain public attention in Bengal unless Surendranath took it up.

He did not belong to the school of Extremists or of Revolutionaries. But though he would not countenance their activities overtly or covertly, he never hesitated to help them in any way he could when they were in destitution or distress.

Throughout his career he was for constitutional agitation. But this phrase must be understood in a large sense in his case. Constitutional agitation, as practised by him, sometimes went beyond merely making representations, arguing and passing resolutions, etc. When he and the two dozen or more members of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation resigned their membership by way of protest, it was not mere constitutional agitation in the narrow sense. When in the days of the Bengal partition agitation boycott of British goods was adopted as a weapon by him and his colleagues and followers, it was not mere constitutional agitation in the narrow sense. When the Bengali delegates marched in procession, uttering the Bande Mataram cry, to the Barisal Provincial Conference Pandal, in defiance of the orders of Mr. Magistrate Emerson, and when in consequence the conference was broken up by the police by force and Surendranath had to appear before Mr. Emerson, that was not constitutional agitation in the narrow sense. In fact, Surendranath was not at all a Ahimsaist or votary of non-violence on principle; an ardent and sincere admirer of Mazzini, Garibaldi and Cavour, one who spoke inspiringly on the example set by these makers of United Italy, could not possibly have made a religion of non-violence, or of constitutional agitation, for that matter, in a narrow sense. At Bombay in the year when Sir Henry Cotton presided over the Indian National Congress, the present writer heard in a delegates’ tent words from Surendranath’s lips in private conversation and saw a gesture made by him which went to prove that he was not an opponent of a war of independence under any or all circumstances. He was for a peaceful solution of India’s political problem, because in his opinion in the circumstances in which India has been placed no other solution is practicable. That is our inference, which binds nobody else.

He was at the height of his power and popularity when he was sent to jail for contempt of court. The scenes of popular enthusiasm which the precincts of the High Court saw during his trial and which the area before the gate of the old Presidency Jail and his residence saw on the morning of his release from jail, will remain ever memorable in the annals of political agitation in Bengal. On the day of the trial Kumar Indra Chandra Sinha of Paikpara was present at the court room with a full purse prepared to pay any fine, however large, which might be inflicted on the people’s hero. But no fine was imposed. It may be mentioned here that in more recent years propertied people have ceased to show their sympathy for political sufferers in this open manner.

Surendranath was ever an optimist. He believed the people would be able to unsettle the “settled fact” of the partition of Bengal, and he was right.

There is a limit to the growth and adaptibility of every individual’s personality. Therefore the fact that Surendranath could not march with the times to the end of his days, does not detract from the work and achievement of his life. In fact, the most prominent members of the political parties opposed to his, have admitted, what is true, that they were only building on the foundations laid by Surendranath. Names need not be mentioned; but it is abundantly clear to-day that some persons joined the Non-cooperation movement either because they were carried away by the excitement of the moment or because they wanted not to lose their popularity. Some have toyed with Non-cooperation for the latter reason. That Surendranath did neither shows a certain steadfastness of principle. That he accepted a ministership

 

sir surendranath banerjee

prabasi press. calcutta.

 

does not betoken the relinquishment of any principle; because all his life he and his party had agitated for many things less important than the rights which the Reforms gave.

Though our political principles have been at different from those of the hero who has departed from our midst, we have tried as much as we could to place his career in the light in which he would like it to be placed. The time for a fuller and more critical estimate would come hereafter.

We close with what he said to Mahatma Gandhi in the last meeting which he had with him. He said that he belonged to the school of Vidyasagar, and declared that he would devote his energies in the remaining years of his life to the cause of the widows of Bengal. He did not live to do what he intended. The best way to show respect to his memory would be to fulfil his heart’s desire by ceaseless work for the amelioration of the condition of widows.

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