Mother's Chronicles - Book Six

8

Search and Seizure

The third option was time-consuming.

The government now concentrated on finding some indiscretions on the part of its 'dangerous adversary.' Any statement that Sri Aurobindo made was submitted to the closest scrutiny. The Intelligence Bureau, the police, even high government officers were roped in to analyse his speeches and writings. Oh, if only he would commit a blunder! The British government was ready to pounce on his slightest slip. But neither his actions nor his public utterances seemed to lend themselves to a new charge for sedition.

Months and months passed.

Then on 25 December a second signed letter was published in the Karmayogin (the first one being the Open Letter of 31July 1909) . The Indo-British government thought the article to be a clear legal offence. They could now prosecute their antagonist for this new infringement of the law, and send him to prison. It took over six weeks for the fast-moving bureaucrats to get their act together. A warrant of arrest was got ready against Babu Arabindo Chose. By then Sri Aurobindo had disappeared from view, so he could not be immediately arrested. The warrant

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was held back, and the search of the Karmayogin

Simultaneously, the police swooped down on his papers Dharma and the Karmayogin. The next day, Tuesday 5 April 1910, Amrita Bazar Patrika published the news.

"The Karmayogin office was searched by the police last evening from 5 p.m. to about 8 p.m. Superintendent Creagan, Inspectors of Shyampukur and Burtolla and one or two officers were present.

"A warrant was shown to the Printer, Manomohon Ghosh, and he was arrested on a charge under sub-section 124 A, IPS of having published seditious matter in the issue of December 25, 1909.

"Papers, manuscripts as well as several letters found on the person of the Printer were taken possession of. Bail was refused."

This was the third sedition case against Sri Aurobindo instituted by the British-India government.

The Karmayogin, like its predecessor Bande Mataram, folded up in a rather dramatic fashion. Its last issue is dated 2nd April 1910.

The police did not stop with the raid to the Karmayogin office. The next day, 5 April that is, Calcutta Police searched the Sanjivani Office at 6 College Square, which was also the residence of K. K Mitra. It was too much. Even the Bengalee of Surendra Nath Banerji protested.

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"We hold that there was not the smallest justification for searching the house of Babu Krishna Kumar Mitter. And we ask again when will proceedings of this kind come to an end?" (6 April 1910)

The editorial in the Amrita Bazar Patrika day,

"Why was the Sanjivani office and residential house at all searched? That is the question which is just now agitating the educated community in town very much. The object, it now appears, was this: the police wanted to get hold of a copy of the Karmayogin of the 25th December last and all papers and documents connected with it. Now. the Karmayogin is not printed or published at the Sanjibani office. it having a separate office of its own. It is true that Babu Aurobindo, the alleged writer of the offending article, is a relation of Babu Krishna Kumar and used to live with him. But did that justify the search of Babu Krishna Kumar's house? Would not a mere letter to Babu Krishna Kumar have served the same purpose for which he and his family were subjected to the horrors of a house-search? It seems the authorities have not yet realized the fee ling of bitter resentment which house-searches excite in the minds of law-abiding and peaceful Indians."

Worldwide the courteous ways of the police are legendary. The Calcutta police were no exceptions to the average policemen. "An English policeman accompanied by several constables came and showed my father a search warrant," says Sukumar. "I asked the English officer, 'Why do you want to search the house?' He replied, 'We want the Karmayogin magazines.' I then said, ' If we give you those, you won't search th e house and

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ransack everything?' To which he said, 'No.' I then gathered all the Karmayogin issues both Sarojini-didi [Sri Aurobindo's sister] and I had with us; and gave all to the Police officer. He took them all and then quite as usual searched the house leaving everything in a mess ." Sukumar adds bitterly, "My paternal aunt was a devout Hindu widow. Despite our protests, the police entered her room. She had to throwaway all the cooked food and had to go without food."

One month after the above episode, once again the police raided 6 College Square. This time the raiding party was led by the Assistant Inspector-General of Police himself. He asked Sukumar to hand over all the letters he had received from overseas, including those from British Members of Parliament. When Sukumar brought him the packet of letters, he was made to stand against a wall with an admonition not to move. The thoughtful police had brought a woman with them to guard the ladies of the house. "The next day," narrates Sukumar, "a representative from the Englishman came to in quire about thesearches. He came to know that the police had taken my letters from Members of Parliament." Reuters immediately sent. the news to England, where newspapers published it the very next day.

The British MPs read the news with their breakfast. Some of them wrote to the newspapers protesting against such searches. Need we add the amount of pressure that they exerted on the Secretary of State for India? Those were the letters Sukumar had written during his father's incarceration in Agra Jail to men like Ramsay MacDonald, Keir Hardy, Sir Henry Cotton and others, and the replies he had received from them. "For

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the first time, no doubt under pressure from British Members of Parliament, the police, who never before had returned any object they had taken away, came back after two days to return the letters."

Sukumar Mitra was glad because the letters he had written were drafted by his cousin Auro-dada.

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