First martyr Mangal Pandey remains forgotten

Drimi Chaudhuri & Mou Chakraborty
Kolkata, April 8

For years, he has been honoured as ‘the first martyr’ of the Indian freedom struggle. On April 8, the day he was hanged 150 years back, Sepoy Mangal Pandey of 34th Bengal Native Infantry, however, remains mostly unsung.
While historians continue to squabble over his birthplace and his actual role in the Sepoy Mutiny, the state government and even the Army remained mostly aloof. Barring a few ceremonies, in different parts of the state, the 150th death anniversary of Pandey was hardly observed across the state on Sunday.
On March 29, 1857, Pandey attacked Sergeant-Major Hewson and Lieutenant Baugh inside the military barracks at Barrackpore. Although these are considered to be the first shots of the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, even in the suburban area, about 25 km from the city, the name of Pandey is lost. A bronze bust of Pandey was installed in 2005 at the barracks where he spent his last days, presently housing the state Police Training College (PTC). The column on which the bust stands, bears the legend ‘Sepoy number 1446 of 34th regiment’ who ‘fired at British officers in broad daylight on 29 March, 1857’. The only other sign is a small park by the Hooghly, Mangal Pandey Udyan, named after him in 1978.
Although on Sunday morning, there have been ceremonies like drawing competitions for children; the indifference of the administration has left local residents annoyed. According to them, instead of squabbling over his actual place of birth — Balia or Faizabad in Uttar Pradesh —Pandey should be remembered for his deeds.
“Most locals had no idea how he looked until the figurine was instated. Our children know Pandey’s name, but are not clear about his contribution. It is the government’s job to run awareness campaigns,” said Rathin Sarkar, a local who has been visiting the park for years with fellow evening strollers. He complained that unlike the nearby Gandhi Ghat, where maintaining silence is mandatory, couples have turned the Mangal Pandey Udyan into a lovers paradise.
Inspector General (Training), and PTC in-charge, Gaurav Dutta, said steps are being taken to install a statue of Pandey by the Public Works Department under a banyan tree from which he was reportedly hanged. However, even though the legendary tree still stands, since it is within PTC premises, people are not allowed access. “According to local belief, the banyan tree was where Pandey was hanged, but no one is allowed to visit it because it is within the barracks. Since no one has seen it, the story about the tree continues to spin and at times verges on the absurd,” local resident Biren Chowdhury pointed out.
The scene at the office of Bijoli Kanti Mitra, chairman of Barrackpore municipality, was equally indifferent. “Since we remain busy with civic work, we hardly have time to think of such events. But we are sure the state administration or the Army personnel at Barrackpore have plans to organise events,” a senior official from Mitra’s office said.
The Army, however, was also aloof towards the event. According to Wing Commander R.K. Das, spokesman of the ministry of defence, in Kolkata said, “The Army does not have any ceremony to mark the event because Pandey was not from the Indian Army. However, the Union government has a plethora of programmes lined up to commemorate the event throughout the year.”
The only scheduled programme is by the non-gazetted police workers association, which falls under the office of Inspector General of Police (Control). The association plans to hold programmes till April 8 next year, including sports meets, health camps and various competitions for school children. The apathy of the state administration becomes more obvious with state school education minister Partha De oblivious about the day. While he was not aware what and how the schools planned to mark the day, he passed on responsibility to West Bengal Board of Secondary Education. Board secretary Swapan Sarkar was equally indifferent. “We do not have any immediate plans to observe the day.” Sarkar said.
drimi.chaudhuri@hindustantimes.com
mou.hindustantimes@yahoo.com