The Alipore Bomb Trial

A Short History Of The Case

During the Viceroyalty of Lord Curzon 1899-1905 a most unpopular administrative measure was carried out known as the Partition of Bengal. It was effected in the teeth of the most strenuous opposition not only of the people of Bengal but also of the whole Indian people who sympathised with the Bengalis. They looked upon the measure as calculated to break the solidarity of the great Bengalee nation. All manner of constitutional agitation was resorted to to bring about its annulment, but to no effect. In despair the people resorted to Swadeshi agitation and declared Boycott of British goods on 7^th August 1905 to draw the attention of the great English people to their legitimate grievances. The newly created government of East Bengal and Assam as well as the Government of India during the administration of Lord Curzon and his successor Lord Minto issued circulars and passed legislative measures and ordinances which would have the effect of suppressing the movement. Lawlessness followed repression and a very few of the more ardent spirits took to unconstitutional methods. The Criminal Intelligence Department (known as the C.I.D,) became very active and directed its attention to bringing several offending newspapers before Courts of Law. During the whole of 1907 the vernacular Press of Bengal came in for a large measure of its attention and several prosecutions followed. The C.I.D. had information that there were secret societies which was holding the thread of discontent-but could get no definite information to spot them. In this state of things several overt acts followed which brought matters to a head. On the night of the 6^th Dec.1907 an attempt was made to blow up the train in which the Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal was at a place called Narayangarh in the District of Midnapur. Though some coolies working on the line were convicted yet the newspapers and other articles found near by made it very improbable that the work was done by coolies. The next incident was an attempt on the life of the Mayor of Chandernagore which took place on the night of 11^th April, 1908. The Mayor had stopped Swadeshi meeting from taking place. The Police as well as spies were then watching some persons in Calcutta and they had their suspicious. Matters were however brought to a head by an occurrence which

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took place on 30^th April 1908 at Mazafferpur. Mr. Kingsford was the District Judge there. He had in the previous year incurred the displeasure of the secret society by sending several newspaper men to jail while he was the Chief Presidency Magistrate in Calcutta and by ordering the whipping of a boy named Sushil Chandra Sen for a fracas with the Police. In attempting to kill Mr. Kingsford, Mrs. Kennedy were murdered by a bomb thrown at their carriage, while they were coming out of the club, by a boy named Khudiram Bose. Acting on more definite information the Police obtained search warrants and on the early morning of 2^nd May 1908 simultaneously searched several places in and about Calcutta. Principal of those places were: —

1. 32 Muraripukur Road, Maniktolla.

2. 48 Grey Street.

3. 33/4 Raja Navakrishen Street.

4. 15 Gopimohan Dutt's Lane.

5. 134 Harrison Road.

32 Muraripukar Road was a garden-house belonging to Aravinda Ghosh and his brothers. The property found here included rifles, guns, revolvers, a large quantity of ammunition, bombs, detonator, picric acid and other explosives, tools, zinc, copper, Revolutionary literature, etc. The persons arrested there were Barendra Kumar Ghosh, Ullaskar Dutt, Indubhuson Rai, Bibhuti Bhuson Sarkar, Narendra Nath Buxi, Paresh Chandra Moulik, Kunjo Lal Sah, Bijoy Kumar Nag, Sachidra Kumar Sen, Purna Chandra Sen, Hamendra Nath Ghose, Nalinykanta Gupta, Sishir Kumar Ghose and Upendra Nath Banerjee, all educated young men belonging to respectable families. The search went on here for several days and hidden things were also dug out of earth.

At 48 Grey Street a large number of letters and documents, newspaper articles and cuttings were found. Arvinda Ghose was arrested upstairs and Abinash Chandra Bhattacharjee and Sailendra Bose were arrested in the ground-floor.

At 38/4 Raja Navakrishen Street several bottles containing chemicals, tubes, etc, were found and Hem Chandra Das was arrested . At a search next day several instruments, file, chisel, nails, percussion cap and documents were found.

At 15 Gopi Mohan Dutt's Lane several documents were found and its inmates Nirapodo Roy and Kanai Lal Dutt were arrested.

At 134 Harrison Road several trunks and cane baskets were found. Their contents were false beard, loaded cartridges, dynamite cartridges, coils of fuse, coil of electric wire, earthen bomb moulds, copper bomb shells, pipe, brass cocks, fittings, an iron screw bomb with spikes, 2 bomb with detonating studs, bottles of picric acid, nitrate of potash, chemical glycerine, Ammonium chloride, 2 empty copper bomb cases, one brass shell

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bomb, several manuscript plans, 3 live bombs and one partly made bomb, glass funnels and bulbs, liquid mercury, carbolic acid, large quantity of document etc. Its inmates, Asoke Chandra Nandy, Nagendra Nath Gupta, Dharani Nath Gupta, Bejoy Ratna Sen Gupta and Moti Lal Bose were arrested. Din Doyal Bose was arrested at Shambazar in the premises of the Tramway Company.

All these accused were produced before the Commissioner of Police and on the next day Mr. L. Birley, the District Magistrate of Alipur (24 Purghannas District) by a written order took up the case himself.

On the 12^th May, another search was going on at Beniachong in the District of Sylhet. A large number of letters and documents, some explosive, a note book containing signs of cypher code and instruction for making dynamite and bomb, maps &c. were found. Three brothers named Birendra, Hem and Sushil Sen (the boy who was whipped by the orders of Mr. Kingsford) were arrested and sent down.

On the 4^th May the house of Narendra Nath Gossain at Serampur was searched and he was arrested and on 10^th May, Hrishikesh Kanjilal was arrested also at Serampur. Documents were found at both the places. On the 10^th May, at Sudhir Kumar Sircar was arrested at his father's house at Khulna.

On the 11th May , a house known as Boral's Koti in Deoghar was searched and several documents were found. On the 14th May at Sagordari in District Jessor one Birendra Nath Ghose was arrested and brought down.

On the 12th May Krishnajibon Sanyal, a lad of 16, was arrested at his house at Kansat in District Malda and 39 copies of the news-paper Juganter was found in his house. He was brought down to Calcutta.

On the 28^th May (when the preliminary enquiry had already commenced) a house called Seal's Lodge in Jasidhi was searched and several documents were recovered.

Several of the accused persons made detailed confessions and statements which were recorded by Mr. Birley. When the latter took up the case the pleader for the defence (Babu Bejoy Krishna Bose) took objection to his going on with the inquiry as he had no jurisdiction to withdraw the case from the file of the C.P, Magistrate and he had recorded confessions after so taking cognisance and there was no complaint; the objections were overruled and Mr. Birley inquired into the case and examined 222 witnesses and committed the accused to the court of Sessions at Alipur on 19^th August 1908.

In the meantime a second batch was being formed by the subsequent arrests that took place and the persons thus arrested

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were – Debabrata Bose, Charu Chandra Roy, Indra Nath Nandy, Nikhileshwar Rai Moulik, Bijoy Chandra Bhattacharya, Provas Chandra Deb and Balkrishna Hari Kani (a Marhatti). 55 witnesses were examined in this case and they were committed to the Court of Sessions on 14^th Sep. to take their trial along with those previously committed.

The trial of both the batches commenced before Mr. C P. Beachcroft, I.C.S., Additional Sessious Judge, Alipur on 19^th October 1908. Various objections were taken to the form of the charges, the joint trial, admissibility of evidence and other matters. Charu Chandra Roy who was a French subject brought from Chadranagore on an extradition warrant was ordered to be discharged on 5^th November as Government withdrew from his prosecution. Kanai Lal Dutt was in the meantime sentenced to be hanged before this trial began for murdering the approver Narendra Nath Gossain in the Alipur Jail compound on 31^st August 1908.

Altogether 206 witnesses were examined and cross-examined at length and then both sides argued the case at great length. The court was thus engaged till the 13^th April 1909. On the 14^th April the opinion of the Assessors were taken and judgment was delivered on the 6^th May 1909.

Accused Barindra Kumar Ghose and Ullaskar Dutt were sentenced to be hanged under sections 121, 121A, and 122 I. P. C. Accused Hem Chandra Das, Upendra Banerjea, Bibhuti Bhusan Sarkar, Hrishikesh Kanjilal, Birendra Chandra Sen, Sudhir Kumar Ghose, Indra Nath Nundy, Abinash Ch. Bhattacharjya, Sailendra Nath Bose and Indra Bhusan Roy were sentenced to be transportation for 10 years under Sections 121 A and 122 . The properties of all these accused were also forfeited to Government. Ashoke Chandra Nandy, Balkrishna Hari Kane, Sushil Kumar Sen were sentenced to transportation for 7 years. Krishna Jibon Sanyal was sentenced to one year's rigorous imprisonment. The rest of the accused, viz. Naliny K.Sen Gupta, Sachindra K.Sen, Kunjo Lal Shaha, Bejoy Kumar Nag, Narendra Nath Bukshi, Purna Ch.Sen, Hemendra Nath Ghosh, Aravinda Ghose, Dindayal Bose, Birendra Nath Ghose, Dharani Nath Gupta, Nagendra Nath Gupta, Hem Chandra Sen, Debabrata Bose, Nikhileswar Roy Moulik, Bijoy Ch. Bhattacharya and Provas Chandra Dev were acquitted.

Thus the enquiry before Mr. Birley occupied 76 days and the trial in the Court of Sessions took 131 days. It will be seen hereafter that the appeal in the High Court was heard during 47 days and the reference by a Third Judge for 20 days. The mass of documents filed if counted individually were over

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four thousands and the material articles exhibited, i.e., bombs tools, revolvers etc. were between three to four hundred.

A word may be said here with reference to the marking of the Exhibits and their numbers. Those found at 32 Muraripuker Road on 2^nd May were marked Ex.1—232, 387—465 and 1128. The place was searched again on the 6^th. 7^th and 8^th May and things found were marked Ex.233-282.

Things found in 15 Gopee Mohan Dutt's Lane were exhibited as 373—386 and 710—716. Those found at 48 Grey Street were marked as Ex.283-319, 1208 and 1209; those found at 38-4 Raja Navakrishen Street were Ex.320-329 and articles 717-734. This place was again searched the next day and Ex.330-372 and 1134 were recovered. Things found at Harrison Road were Ex.572-709, 739 and 740. ( See List of Exhibits).

On the 2^nd May the following things were also found at the following places on search:—(1) At 30/2 Harrison Road Ex.760-764 and 1262 and 1263. The prosecution case was that this place was a sort of receiving post office for the conspirators. (2) 4 Harrison Road , a shop called Jugantar Pustokaloy, was searched, but nothing found, as the case was that shop had been removed 2 or 3 days before the 2^nd May. (3) 23 Scott's lane, where Aravinda Ghose lived up to 28^th April when he removed to 48 Grey Street. Nothing was found. (4) Shibpur Engineering Collage, the quarters of Babu Durga Das Dutt, Professor there and father of Ullashkar was also searched but nothing was found.

A search took place at 4 Raja's Lane where one Tara Nath Roy Chowdhury used to live. Some letters Ex.1071-1081 and a box of arms and ammunition Ex.1447 were found and there. Things found at Seal's Lodge were marked 767-777 and 1127.

The two accused sentenced to be hanged filed their appeal before the High Court on the 13^th May 1909 and the rest also did the same subsequently. On the 9^th August the Chief Justice, Sir L. H. Jenkins. Kt. And Mr. Justice Carnduff began hearing the appeal and the arguments lasted till the 12^th October. Their Lordships delivered separate judgments. They agreed in acquitting B. H. Kane. With regard to 12 others they upheld their convictions. Under sections 121-A only viz. Barindra, Ullaskar, Upendra, Hem Das , Indra Rai, Sishir, Poresh, Bbhuti, Nirapada, Abinash, Sudhir and Harishikesh— but the sentences were reduced. Regarding 5 others, Sailendra, Krishna Jiban, Biren Sen, Sushil Sen and Indra Nundy the Chief Justice was for acquittal, but Mr. Justice Carnduff for upholding their convictions under section 121A. A reference therefore had to be made to Justice Sir Richard Harrington who heard the case for 20 days from 3^rd January 1910 and in the end agreeing with the Chief Justice he acquitted Krishna

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Jibon, Sushil and Indra Nundy but upheld the convictions of Birendra Sen and Sailendra Bose.

While fully realising that a History of the Trial is not complete unless at least most of the important documents upon which the Crown relied are printed in this volume, the author refrained from doing so for very good reasons. Public policy, future peace and safety of the country alike demand that the Notes on Drill, the formulae for making bombs and explosives, outlines of military attacks and bayonet charges and many other allied subjects which were noted down with skilful and masterly hands and found at the various places of the conspiracy should not go before the public— though as a historical study they might be instructive to the few. For the same reason it was though not expedient to reprint all the venomous articles appearing in the Jugantar and Sandhya newspapers and to inflame the minds of the impressionable youths over again with them. As the most important figure among the accused was Arabinda Ghose, one who by his talents and by his high education from a long residence of 14 years in England and by his position in the country, was looked upon as a prominent leader of the Nationalist movement, though he was acquitted by the Trial Judge, a brief synopsis of the remarkable address by his counsel Mr. C.R. Das is given in this book for study as a piece of instructive and interesting literature. Full arguments dealing with the most intricate points of law and facts both by the Crown Counsel and those engaged by the defence, before the appeal Bench in the High Court are given for close study by all students of Constitutional History.

BEJOY KRISHNA BOSE,

Vakil.

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