Nazrul's 116th birthday tomorrow
On November 23, 1922, one journalist was arrested from Commilla for his writing in a biweekly magazine called Dhumketu, which had shaken the core of the British rulers in the then Indian subcontinent.
Later he was to become the national poet of Bangladesh -- Kazi Nazrul Islam, whose writings inspired the freedom struggle of India in 1947 and the freedom fighters of Bangladesh in 1971.
While celebrating his 116th birthday at a time when journalists are still being persecuted at home and abroad (157 journalists are currently languishing in jails in various countries in the world), a brief look at the poet's journalistic career might provide the community with the inner strength to continue their fight for justice and humanity.
Born on May 25, 1899, Nazrul's adventurous nature led him to different kinds of jobs in his childhood, including one in the army, but it was journalism through which he hoped to influence people and awaken the society against oppression.
Though Dhumketu, the political magazine he launched in 1922, landed him in jail, the writer had come under the scrutiny of the British ruler since the very beginning of his journalistic career at the evening daily Nabajug in 1920.
Nazrul was the joint-editor of the newspaper, owned by Sher-e-Bangla A K Fazlul Haq, a veteran politician of undivided Bengal and later of erstwhile East Pakistan.
The noted leftist politician Muzzafar Ahmed, who worked alongside the poet at the paper, wrote about him in his book, Kazi Nazrul Islam Smritikotha (Memories of Nazrul):
“Surely it was for Nazrul's powerful writing that the paper gained popularity on the very first day. Both Hindus and Muslims bought the paper.
“Nazrul had never even entered the office of a daily paper. Yet he began to shorten the long news in his own language after reading them…. We were astonished by his ability to shorten the long news.”
Ahmed also wrote how Nazrul made the newspaper popular with his eye-catching headings, in which he would often use lines from different poems, including those of Rabindranath Tagore and the other master poets of Bangla literature.
But the vocal editorials of Nabajug soon caused the then British government to issue warnings against the paper. Ahmed wrote: “The last time we received a warning was for a write-up 'Mujahirin Hotyar Jonno Dayi K?' (Who is responsible for the killing of the refugees?). The essay was written by Nazrul Islam.”
The article was about a group of Muslims who, protesting the oppression of the British rule, decided to go on self-exile and were leaving for Afghanistan. On their way they got into a scuffle with police who shot at the group killing one person and injuring another, according to the statement of the then government.
Nazrul wrote:
“We ask which country's law allows for shooting thrice to retaliate one strike? You do not have any scarcity of the army in that bordering country. You could have easily arrested the 40 unarmed men if they really had committed any crime. Instead of doing that, you shot at them!”
The security deposit of Nabajug was forfeited soon after the publication of Nazrul's article. A penalty had to be paid later to solve the problem but Nazrul left Nabajug in December 1920.
According to Ahmed, Nazrul worked in Shebak for a while before launching Dhumketu on August 12, 1922. “It was the mouth-piece of the anti-British terrorist movement,” said Prof Rafiqul Islam, noted Nazrul researcher.
“Dhumketu was the first magazine which demanded in writing complete independence for the then Indian subcontinent in 1922,” he said. “He was a pioneer in that.”
Ahmed too in his book said that complete independence was demanded by many political parties in their party manifestos which remained within party circles. But Dhumketu publicly demanded independence:
“I do not understand Swaraj or Twaraj because the meaning of the word is different to different intellectuals. Not a single atomic portion of the Indian subcontinent will be under foreign rule…” wrote Nazrul in Dhumketu.
According to Ahmed, police raided the Dhumketu office in Kolkata on November 8, 1922 showing a government proscription order on the September 26, 1922 issue of the paper which published Nazrul's poem Anandomoyir Agomon.
On November 22, 1922 the poet, who was on the run, was arrested.
Nazrul served a year in prison but even after his release he continued his fiery writing and the next weekly (Langal) he joined gave voice to farmers, fishermen, weavers and day labourers, said Rafiqul Islam.
Nazrul was the chief editor of Langal, which started its journey on December 16, 1925. It was the mouthpiece of the Sramik-Praja-Swaraj Dal, which aimed to eradicate class differences in society. The paper was later merged with Gonobani.
After Langal Nazrul took a long break from journalism, but returned again to Nabajug as the chief editor in 1941 only a year before illness took away the poet's voice, said Prof Islam.
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