Professor Chaman Lal Dated: — 25th October, 2011
Former Chairperson
Centre of Indian Languages (SLL&CS)
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi-110067
Visiting Professor on Hindi Chair
The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine campus
Trinidad &Tobago
Prime Minister of India
PM Office, New Delhi
Subject: Regarding Ensuing Gadar Party centenary and Gadar memorial sites in USA-Canada
Dear Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh,
I have recently visited Gadar memorial site in San Francisco in California State of United States of America (USA), where I was invited to deliver a lecture on Gadar party hero Kartar Singh Sarabha on 22nd May,2011, Sunday, to commemorate Sarabha birth anniversary due on 24th May. Apart from visiting this historic site, I got an opportunity to visit Sacramento Cemetery, where not only Gadar party senior activist Maulvi Barkatullah was buried, many more freedom fighters from Punjab were also buried there. I was also taken to historic Stockton Gurdwara, which was meeting place for Gadarites in 1913-1947 and which is now under the control of Khalistani elements, who have dumped the Gadar party heroes photographs in one corner neglected room of the Gurdwara and have filled common eating place-langar with the photographs of Khalistani armed fundamentalists. I could even visit Holt farm of Gadar party Vice President Jawala Singh, who used to offer scholarships top Indian students. In University of California’s Berkeley campus, I was able to look at Gadar archives documents in The Bancroft library and also contacted Centre for South Asian Studies, being looked after by Prof. Raka Ray. Prior to reaching at San Francisco, I visited Vancouver in Canada to visit Kamagatamaru sites, which again was related to Gadar movement and has its tragic happenings in year 1914.
This whole journey was not only emotionally touching for me, being so deeply interested in the history of revolutionary aspects of India’s freedom struggle, it was enriching in terms of collecting some documents and having first hand feel of the locations of that historic movement fought by our ancestors for the cause of freedom of India. As you are well aware that Gadar party was launched by migrant Indians, mostly Punjabis, but was inclusive of Indians from all parts of India as Darisi Chenchiah from South, Pandurang Khankhoje from West India, Jatinder Lahiri, Taraknath Das from East India, Maulvi Barkatullah and Pandit Permanand Jhansi from Central India. It was formed in USA in early twentieth century and was announced in March 1913 meeting in St. Jones as ‘Hindi Association of Pacific Coast’ as described by its founder President Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna in his autobiography-‘Jivan Sangram’( Struggles of Life), written in Punjabi. However the name of the party became more popular as ‘Gadar Party’ as from 1st November the party launched the journal called ‘Gadar’ in Punjabi, Hindi, and Urdu and in many more Indian languages from’ Yugantar Ashram’ at 5 Wood Street San Francisco, the very building, which is now named as ‘Gadar Memorial’. The party took its name ‘Gadar’, consciously to identify it with 1857-first war of Independence, which Britishers used to call ‘Gadar’ and the party wished to turn that contemptuous nomenclature to a respectable one by calling itself ‘Gadar party’! It was most advanced secular democratic movement of its time, whose tradition was upheld and appropriated by Bhagat Singh later with further addition of socialist ideology. After looking at all the places and meeting various people in relation to these, I have made some observations, which I want to share with you. These observations demand serious attention of the Government of India, as the centenary celebrations of the formation of Gadar party are beginning next year and you are also receiving lot many representations in this connection. My observations are as followed by:
- The condition of the building which is now called ‘Gadar Memorial’, located at 5, Wood Street, San Francisco, has lost its heritage character; even the original name of the building-‘Yugantar Ashram’ finds no reference anywhere. The name ‘Yugantar Ashram’ was again to identify the movement with early revolutionary movement in Bengal with the name ‘Yugantar’. The original name of the building was written in Urdu, Punjabi and English, now only English and Hindi language changed name is painted on the front wall with no Punjabi or Urdu version. The building was handed over to Govt. of India after the independence of the country and when Gadar party was formally dissolved. Presently it is under the administrative control of the Counselor of India. A peon or driver of some Indian official has been put up there, which has no respect or awareness about the significance of this historic site. There is no proper care taker of the building, very important documents and items of the Gadar movement, including the artificial arm of Gadarite Harnam Singh Tundilat, who, lost his arm during movement, and who became famous with his surname-‘Tundilat’(Broken arm Lord) are under display in glass cases without any lock and key. I suspect that many of the documents could have disappeared under these circumstances. I am attaching two photographs here of the building, one original heritage site in 1913 and the other drab-unaesthetic reconstructed building. Most of the time building remains closed, even when someone wants to visit it for historic site seeing, he or she can’t see it. It needs special permission from Consulate, which as usual Indian Bureaucratic style has no sensitivity for such things, except if some rare sensitive official is posted. Lot many writers have written about it and your office also must have received many complaints in this regard. The building has been converted into a single hall with some kitchen, toilets and a room, used by the peon/driver of consulate.