34. ‘Parliament Passes Detention Bill: Measures to Deal with Emergencies’, Times of India, 26 February 1950, Bombay, p. 1.
35. Member from Assam.
36. ‘Parliament Passes Detention Bill: Measures to Deal with Emergencies’, Times of India, 26 February 1950, Bombay, p. 1.
37. ‘Parliament Passes Preventive Detention Bill: Measure Necessary for Security of State’, Times of India, 27 February 1950, Bombay, p. 9.
38. Within a few months, the Supreme Court would extend the power of judicial review over preventive detention cases through its judgement in the case of the communist detainee A.K. Gopalan. See also, A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras, AIR 1950 SC 27.
39. Jawaharlal Nehru to Sardar Patel, 4 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 462.
40. Madhava Menon to Sardar Patel, 17 February 1950, Durga Das, ed., Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Vol. IX (Ahmedabad: 1973), p. 296.
41. ‘Rioting in Salem Jail’, Times of India, 13 February 1950, Bombay, p. 1.
42. ‘Survivor of Salem prison massacre recalls the black day’, The Hindu, 13 February 2006, Chennai, https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/survivor-of-salem-prison-massacre-recalls-the-black-day/article18408295.ece (accessed on 25 November 2018). Amazingly enough, the inquiry commission found the firing justified.
43. Sardar Patel to Madhava Menon, Minister for Education, Law and Jails, 16 February 1950, Durga Das, ed., Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Vol. IX (Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House, 1973), pp. 295–96.
44. Jawaharlal Nehru to Sardar Patel, 15 February 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1994), p. 458.
45. Jawaharlal Nehru to Sardar Patel, 4 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1994), p. 462.
46. Brother of Romila Thapar, the distinguished historian.
47. Arudra Burra, ‘Civil Liberties in the Early Constitution: CrossRoads and Organiser cases’, 2017, pp. 9–11, http://www.academia.edu/37231132/Civil_Liberties_in_the_Early_Constitution_the_CrossRoads_and_Organiser_cases (accessed on 25 November 2018).
48. See Cross Roads, 17 March 1950.
49. See Cross Roads, 7 April 1950.
50. Arudra Burra, ‘Civil Liberties in the Early Constitution: CrossRoads and Organiser cases’, 2017, http://www.academia.edu/37231132/Civil_Liberties_in_the_Early_Constitution_the_CrossRoads_and_Organiser_cases (accessed on 25 November 2018).
51. See Organiser, 27 February 1950.
52. For example, Myron Weiner, Party Politics in India: The Development of a Multi-Party System (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1957), p. 77.
53. Jawaharlal Nehru to Sardar Patel, 20 February 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 48.
54. Head of the Gorakhnath mutt. Digvijainath would later be elected to Parliament from Gorakhpur, inaugurating a political tradition continued by his successors Mahant Avaidyanath and Mahant Adityanath.
55. Jawaharlal Nehru to Chief Ministers, 2 February 1950, G. Parthasarathi, ed., Letters to Chief Ministers, 1947-1964, Vol. 2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1986), p. 6; Pattabhi Sitaramayya’s statement to Congress Working Committee, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 76.
56. Jawaharlal Nehru to Jayaprakash Narayan, 23 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 141.
57. Jawaharlal Nehru to B.C. Roy, 16 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 124.
58. ‘Nehru Condemns Distortion of Facts’, Hindustan Times, 27 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 9; Statement to the press, 26 April 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 73.
59. Jawaharlal Nehru to Sardar Patel, 26 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), pp. 148–49.
60. Jawaharlal Nehru to C. Rajagopalachari, 16 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 126.
61. Jawaharlal Nehru to Chief Ministers, 1 March 1950, G. Parthasarathi, ed., Letters to Chief Ministers, 1947-1964, Vol. 2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1986), p. 41.
62. ‘Validity of Order Challenged: Delhi Editor’s Petition’, Times of India, 11 April 1950, Bombay, p. 5.
63. See Brij Bhushan v. State of Delhi, AIR 1950 SC 129.
64. Malkani was the first and longest-serving chief editor of Organiser. He was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard and the first man to be arrested when the Emergency was declared by Nehru’s daughter Indira. He was later elected as an MP to the Rajya Sabha and served as the governor of Puducherry.
65. Organiser, 6 March 1950.
66. Organiser, 13 March 1950.
67. Interestingly, N.C. Chatterjee’s son Somnath Chatterjee became a prominent communist leader and was Speaker of Parliament from 2004 to 2009.
68. ‘Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression: Editor’s Plea in Supreme Court’, Times of India, 26 April 1950, Bombay, p. 9.
69. See Arudra Burra, ‘What self-styled nationalists could learn from the Hindu Right’s own past record on free speech’, Scroll.in, 27 January 2016, https://scroll.in/article/802327/what-self-styled-nationalists-could-learn-from-the-hindu-rights-own-past-record-on-free-speech (accessed on 22 November 2018).
70. Brij Bhushan v. State of Delhi, AIR 1950 SC 129.
71. Romesh Thappar v. State of Madras, AIR 1950 SC 124.
72. ‘Apathy Towards Civil Rights Deplored: Socialist Leader’s Warning’, Times of India, 17 April 1950, Bombay, p. 5.
73. ‘Personal Liberty in a Democracy: Mr. M.C. Chagla Emphasizes Supreme Importance’, Times of India, 2 May 1950, Bombay, p. 5.
74. Brother of the nationalist leader C.R. Das, a Congress stalwart popularly known as Deshbandhu. C.R. was a prominent figure in the Non-cooperation movement, and defended Aurobindo Ghosh during the Alipore Conspiracy Case.
75. ‘One Party State Cannot Be Democratic: Criticism at UP Convention’, Times of India, 15 May 1950, Bombay, p. 9.
76. Interestingly, K.N. Katju’s grandson is the outspoken Justice Markandey Katju, and his sometime grandson-in-law was the Congress leader Shashi Tharoor.
77. ‘Care for Democracy Needed While Maintaining Law: Dr. Katju Wants Utmost Liberty of Expression’, Hindustan Times, 20 May 1950, New Delhi.
78. Romesh Thappar v. State of Madras, AIR 1950 SC 124.
79. ‘Madras Ban on Bombay Paper: Order Quashed’, Times of India, 27 May 1950, Bombay, p. 11.
80. Romesh Thappar v. State of Madras, AIR 1950 SC 124.
81. Sardar Patel to Jawaharlal Nehru, 3 July 1950, Durga Das, ed., Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Vol. X (Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House, 1974), p. 358.
82. ‘Supreme Court’s Judgements: Freedom of the Press’, Times of India, 5 June 1950, Bombay, p. 6.
83. ‘Apathy Towards Civil Rights Deplored: Socialist Leader’s Warning’, Times of India, 17 April 1950, Bombay, p. 5.
Chapter 2: Will the People Wait?
1. In present-day Jharkhand.
2. The state was only taking over the power to manage properties—collect rent and arrears, appoint employees, let out properties and evict tenants—rather than acquiring the property itself. Thus, the state would have no power to sell, distribute or otherwise alienate property but would simply control it, and pay the proprietor 20 per cent of its revenue.
3. ‘Alleged Contempt by Bihar Govt.: Injunction Order Violated’, Times of India, 20 January 1950, Bombay, p. 8.
4. Ibid.
>
5. State of Bihar v. Kamakhya Narain Singh, AIR 1950 Pat. 366.
6. Kameshwar Singh v. State of Bihar, AIR 1950 Pat. 392.
7. See Jawaharlal Nehru to V.K. Krishna Menon, 20 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 129; Jawaharlal Nehru to Rajendra Prasad, 20 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 130; Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 20 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 132; Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 12 April 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 27.
8. Sardar Patel to Jawaharlal Nehru, 28 March 1950, Durga Das, ed., Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Vol. X (Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House, 1974), p. 19. Like many of Nehru’s critics, Patel believed that ignoring what was happening in Pakistan and its effects in India meant relying solely on coercion and suppression to deal with prejudices against Pakistan and Indian Muslims. ‘Our secular ideals impose a responsibility on our Muslim citizens in India—a responsibility to remove the doubts and misgivings entertained by a large section of the people about their loyalty founded largely on their past association with the demand for Pakistan and the unfortunate activities of some of them,’ he stated to Nehru.
9. See a condensed report of the Hindustan Times on how the Bengali press had presented Nehru: ‘Calcutta’s Mixed Reception to Nehru-Liaquat Pact’, Hindustan Times, 12 April 1950, Bombay, p. 12. The Bengali press remained almost universally critical of the prime minister and his approach to Pakistan.
10. Jawaharlal Nehru to Sardar Patel, 26 March 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/1 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1992), p. 148.
11. Sardar Patel to Jawaharlal Nehru, 28 March 1950, Durga Das, ed., Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Vol. X (Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House, 1974), p. 20.
12. Ibid.
13. Sardar Patel to Jawaharlal Nehru, 3 July 1950, Durga Das, ed., Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Vol. X (Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House, 1974), p. 358.
14. The Pakistani government had complained that despite the Nehru–Liaquat Pact and the creation of a new editorial consultative mechanism, the tone of the West Bengal press had not improved; that they continued to print material doubting the bona fides of the East Bengal and Pakistani governments and indulged in anti-Pakistan propaganda.
15. Jawaharlal Nehru to Zafarullah Khan, 20 May 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 111. Nehru even assured Zafarullah Khan that every effort was being made to improve the tone of the West Bengal press.
16. ‘Amendment to UP Zamindari Abolition Bill Rejected’, Hindustan Times, 1 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 3.
17. Ibid.
18. ‘Amendment to UP Zamindari Bill: Proposal to Limit Debate’, Times of India, 8 April 1950, Bombay, p. 5.
19. ‘UP Land Bill Changes’, Times of India, 28 July 1950, Bombay, p.6.
20. ‘Time Limit on Discussion of Bills: Debate in UP Assembly’, Hindustan Times, 23 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 12; ‘Battle Royal in UP Assembly’, Hindustan Times, 24 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 6. There were, after all, several rajas ranged against the Congress in the assembly.
21. Purushottam Das Tandon, a senior Congress leader and future Congress president.
22. ‘Deadline for Passing Zamindari Bill: 40 Days Allotted for Further Discussion’, Hindustan Times, 26 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 6.
23. ‘UP Assembly Debates Zamindari Bill’, Hindustan Times, 6 May 1950, New Delhi, p. 8; ‘Zamindars Entitled to Compensation: Socialist Amendment Lost in UP Assembly’, Hindustan Times, 9 May 1950, New Delhi, p. 8.
24. ‘Zamindars’ Vain Bid for Higher Compensation Rate’, Hindustan Times, 13 May 1950, New Delhi, p. 8.
25. ‘UP Land Bill Changes’, Times of India, 28 July 1950, Bombay, p.6; ‘Cash Compensation for Big Zamindars Doubtful’, Hindustan Times, 14 June 1950, New Delhi, p. 8.
26. For representative examples, ‘Benefits of Zamindari Abolition: Cultivators Urged to Become Bhumidars’, Hindustan Times, 30 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 12; ‘Contribution to ZAF Urged: UP Minister’s Call’, Hindustan Times, 1 June 1950, New Delhi, p. 6.
27. ‘Zamindari Abolition in UP: Kisans Urged to Acquire Bhumidari Rights Soon’, Hindustan Times, 15 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 8.
28. Farmer willing to buy the land at ten times his annual rent.
29. ‘End of ZA Fund Drive on June 30th’, Hindustan Times, 19 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 8.
30. ‘Educating Peasants on Agrarian Reforms: Congress Committees to Launch Campaign’, Hindustan Times, 29 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 5.
31. ‘Zamindari Abolition: A Great Reform’, Hindustan Times, 26 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 6.
32. ‘UP Newsletter: ZAF Drive’, Hindustan Times, 10 July 1950, New Delhi, p. 6; Walter Crocker called this nationalist propaganda about a new heaven as soon as the British had gone: Walter Crocker, Nehru: A Contemporary’s Estimate (New Delhi: Random House, 2011).
33. ‘More Clauses of Bihar Land Reforms Bill Passed’, Hindustan Times, 14 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 8.
34. ‘Bihar Land Reforms Bill: 8 More Clauses Passed’, Hindustan Times, 20 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 6.
35. ‘Bihar Land Reforms Bill Passed’, Hindustan Times, 23 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 1.
36. ‘Bihar Newsletter: Land Reforms’, Hindustan Times, 28 April 1950, New Delhi, p. 5.
37. ‘Zamindar Walk-Out in UP Assembly: Land Reforms Bill’, Times of India, 15 May 1950, Bombay, p. 3.
38. Kameshwar Singh v. State of Bihar, AIR 1950 Pat. 392.
39. ‘Bihar Management of Estates Act Invalid: Interim Injunctions against Government Made Permanent’, Hindustan Times, 7 June 1950, p. 3.
40. Kameshwar Singh v. State of Bihar, AIR 1950 Pat. 392; ‘Bihar Land Act Held Invalid: Decision by Patna High Court’, Times of India, 7 June 1950, Bombay, p. 5; Gopal Sankarnarayan, ‘The Fading Right to Property in India’, Law and Politics in Africa, Asia and Latin America, Vol. 44 No. 2, p. 225.
41. ‘Right to Spread Disaffection against Party Govt.: Allahabad High Court’s Ruling’, Hindustan Times, 3 June 1950, New Delhi, p. 8.
42. Ibid.
43. Interestingly, Matthai was the uncle of Verghese Kurien, the man responsible for Amul and the White Revolution. His son, Ravi Matthai, was the founder director of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
44. ‘Matthai’s Statement on Resignation’, Hindustan Times, 3 June 1950, New Delhi, p. 4; ‘Grave Misgivings on Delhi Pact: Dr. Matthai’s Reasons for Resignation’, Times of India, 3 June 1950, Bombay, p. 1.
45. ‘Pandit Nehru Refutes Charge of Authoritarianism’, Times of India, 2 June 1950, Bombay, p. 1.
46. ‘Cause of Dr. Matthai’s Exit from the Cabinet: Resignation “Demanded” by Prime Minister’, Times of India, 6 June 1950, Bombay, p. 1.
47. Ibid.
48. Ibid.
49. The fact that Matthai shunned political office and rejoined the Tata group lent him further credence in the public eye.
50. See Jawaharlal Nehru to John Matthai, 4 June 1950, p. 234; Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 5 June 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 234, p. 246; Jawaharlal Nehru to Sardar Patel, 5 June 1950, p. 244; Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 5 June 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 246.
51. Jawaharlal Nehru to C. Rajagopalachari, 4 June 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund,1993), p. 239. Interestingly, Nehru took some newspapermen along for a holiday aboard the naval ship as well.
See also Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 5 June 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 246.
52. ‘Unabated Hostility to Pact’, Times of India, 15 June 1950, Bombay, p. 6.
53. Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 12 April 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 27; Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 15 April 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 44; Jawaharlal Nehru to V.K. Krishna Menon, 4 June 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 241; Jawaharlal Nehru to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, 5 June 1950, S. Gopal, ed., Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Vol. 14/2 (New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, 1993), p. 245.
54. See B. Shiva Rao, ed., The Framing of India’s Constitution: Select Documents, Vol. II (New Delhi: 1967), pp. 231–40; Gopal Sankarnarayan, ‘The Fading Right to Property in India’, Law and Politics in Africa, Asia and Latin America, Vol. 44, No. 2, p. 225.
55. For example, see ‘Contribution to ZAF Urged: UP Minister’s Call’, Hindustan Times, 1 June 1950, New Delhi, p. 6. C.B. Gupta would become chief minister of UP three times in the 1960s.
56. Sahay also had his own axe to grind. He had an accident with a truck, which he alleged had been ordered by Maharaja Kameshwar Singh of Darbhanga to kill him. See ‘Land Reforms: Loop full of holes’, Hindustan Times, 26 July 2004, https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/land-reforms-loop-full-of-holes/story-aesBOfmlsJ3IAKnwjGJq6J.html (accessed on 1 May 2019).
57. ‘Another Estate Plan for Bihar’, Times of India, 10 June 1950, Bombay, p. 7.
58. Ibid.
59. ‘Observance of Constitutional Morality: Dr. Ambedkar’s Views’, Times of India, 11 June 1950, Bombay, p. 14.
60. ‘Land Reform in Bihar: Zamindars Anxious to Cooperate’, Hindustan Times, 12 June 1950, New Delhi, p. 5.
61. ‘Unconstitutional Laws’, Times of India, 22 June 1950, Bombay, p. 6.
Sixteen Stormy Days Page 24