Gandhiji's unpublished letter surfaces days before 150th birth anniversary
Kolkata: The discovery of an unpublished letter written by Mahatma Gandhi to a 24-year-old youth in Kalighat, expressing his doubts about starting a monthly magazine exclusively for the Harijans in Kolkata 85 years ago, has shed light on a new revelation before the 150th birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation, which falls on October 2.
Sudhir Kumar Mitra, a resident of Kalighat, wrote a letter to Gandhiji who was then at Yerwada Jail in Pune, to start a magazine exclusively devoted to Dalits. Mitra, who was 24-years-old then, had seen two Dalit women being denied entry into Kalighat Temple in 1933. Most of the people who used to reside in the areas surrounding the temple were Brahmins and they looked down upon the Dalits.
Mitra, a graduate of Scottish Church College, began a movement along with some local Brahmin youths, demanding that Dalit women be allowed to enter Kalighat Temple.
He wrote a letter to Gandhiji on April 10, 1933, expressing his desire to start a magazine exclusively for the untouchables and sought his blessings.
On April 14, Gandhiji sent a reply to Mitra that read: "I have your letter of 10th instant. I doubt very much if a monthly magazine exclusively devoted to untouchability is called for. You would therefore forgive me for not blessing your venture in anticipation."
It may be mentioned that Gandhiji had started a weekly journal called Harijan in English on February 11, 1933, from Yerwada Jail. He also published Harijan Bandhav in Gujarati and Harijan Sevak in Hindi.
However, the refusal of Gandhiji to support his cause did not dampen Mitra's spirit. He was the key person in setting up Satyacharan Institute, a library in 1930 in Kalighat. The library is now a state government sponsored unit. Mitra's unflinching respect for Gandhiji also continued.
On February 14, 1948, just a fortnight after the assassination of Gandhiji on January 30, 1948, Mitra brought out the first biography on Gandhiji in Bengali. It was published by Sri Guru Prakashani.
After 70 years, the book has been edited by Pallav Mitra, Sudhir's son and will be published by Parul Prakashani On Monday. The reprinted version contains 12 poems on Gandhiji by Rabindranath, Kazi Nazrul, Sukanta Bhattacharya and Buddhadeb Basu among others.
