Khudiram hit a bomb on the chest of British rule: If punished, he said to the judge - if you get time, I will teach you how to make bombs

 This story starts from 1905 when 14 year old boy dreamed of independent India. In 1906, he was arrested by the British from a rally against the partition of Bengal, beaten up in jail. He came out, learned to make bombs and in the very next year in 1907, bombed the Governor of Bengal. He did not agree to this and escaped in January 1908 by throwing bombs on two British officers. A few months later, on 30 April 1908, Judge Douglas Kingsford's wagon was blown up and arrested.

Three months later, on August 11, at the age of just 18, he was hanged smiling. The judge survived the blast, but this boy showed the way to many Chandrashekhar Azad, Bhagat Singh and Ashfaqullah. The name of this boy was Khudiram Bose, the youngest martyr. The man who looked into the eyes of the judge who was serving the sentence said, 'I can teach you to make bombs too.'

Khudiram Bose on his way to trial. When the judge pronounced the verdict in the court, Khudiram smiled. On this the judge said that it seems that you did not understand the meaning of punishment. Then Bose said – I have completely understood the meaning of the verdict and if given time, I will teach you to make bombs too.

Khudiram Bose was born on 3 December 1889 in a small village named Habibpur in Midnapore, Bengal (now West Bengal). About 80 km from Patna is Muzaffarpur district, here is the road where Khudiram had given sleepless sleep to the British rule due to a blast. While battling the traffic jam, when I reached the Company Bagh area of ​​the city, I saw a memorial of Khudiram Bose adjoining the wall of the Civil Court. It is written on it, 'Memorial site of India's youngest revolutionary Amar Shaheed Khudiram Bose.'

There are statues of Praful Chand Chaki and Khudiram on the wall of Muzaffarpur Civil Court. Prafulla shot himself on 1 May 1908, while Khudiram was hanged on 11 August.

Two lovers of freedom are seen in front. Wide chest, outstretched arms, self-respecting statues are present in the face, but in front of these idols there are trees, mossy fountains, colorless boundary walls, fuse bulbs... tell the story of neglect. However, there are many stone plaques competing to take the credit of building this monument.

Even after 114 years, Khudiram and Prafulla are standing against injustice.

Company Bagh is still one of the most important areas of Muzaffarpur. It has all the necessary government offices and district courts. This is the place where Khudiram reached with his companion Praful Chand Chaki after traveling 600 kms. Both reached Muzaffarpur and stayed in a Dharamshala for 8 days. On 30 April 1908, the two companions hid behind a mango tree and waited for Judge Kingsford's wagon. As soon as the wagon was spotted, a bomb was thrown at it and they fled.

114 years have passed since this incident, but all the buildings during that time are still telling that story in this city. The club where British officers used to drink alcohol, the judge's house and office are also present here. Kingsford was to return to the wagon from this club, but two women returned in his place and he survived. That mango tree is no more, behind which both the revolutionaries were hiding and waiting for Kingsford all day.

This is a picture of the main gate of the club where British officers used to drink alcohol. It was leased by the British government in 1885.

Not Pusa Road Railway Station, Khudiram Bose Railway Station Say Sir

After throwing the bomb, Khudiram Bose and Prafulla thought that they had killed Kingsford, but later it was discovered that in this carriage were sitting in their place the wife and daughter of a British barrister Pringle Kennedy. Both were killed in this attack.

The police was behind Khudiram and Prafulla. They wanted to return to Midnapore via the tracks. Like both of them, I walk 40 km from Muzaffarpur in the direction of Midnapore, then I get to Vaini Pusa village. Here is the railway station where Khudiram Bose was arrested. When I ask for the route to this station, a local youth interrupts me and says, 'Pusa Road railway station nahi, Khudiram Bose railway station kahiye sir. Will not be able to reach by this name.

After throwing a bomb at the judge, both Khudiram Bose and Prafulla Chaki started walking by holding the railway line, avoiding the police. After walking overnight, both reached Pusa Road station on the morning of 1st May 1908.

Local people say that when Bose and Prafulla got hungry after throwing bombs, they stopped here to eat Murhi and Kachri. During this, something happened that the police recognized him. Bose was caught and Prafulla left from here as well.

Prafulla was again surrounded by police at Mokama station, about 53 km from Pusa Road railway station. He fought and when he felt that he would be caught, he killed himself by killing himself with the last bullet. The British constable beheaded Prafulla and took him to Muzaffarpur jail, where Khudiram bowed to him. That's it, the identification is complete.

Not a jail, it is a pilgrimage for us, sir!

The next twist in this story takes me to Muzaffarpur Central Jail, now also known as Khudiram Bose Central Jail. One cell of this jail is still vacant. It is written on his wall- 'Once upon a time, give a farewell to mother Ghure Aasi...' That is, 'Give me farewell once, mother, I will come back soon. People from all over India will see me and I will hang to the gallows laughing. There is also the hanging site of Bose.

Apart from his cell in the jail, the rope from which he was hanged is kept safe even today.

Khudiram Bose was hanged in this jail. It is said that whenever the jailer used to see Khudiram, he used to meet smiling. The jailer used to wonder that how can he who has to be hanged be so careless.

Dr. Ajit Kumar, Head of the Department of History at Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bihar University, says that Khudiram was prosecuted for only 5 days. Khudiram himself had confessed that he had made and thrown the bomb.

Shankar, who set up a paan shop outside the jail, says that even today when the country is sleeping, on every death anniversary of Bose i.e. on August 11, we line up to enter the jail at 2 o'clock in the night. For people this is a prison, for us consider it a pilgrimage. However, entry into Khudiram Bose's cell is not easily allowed.

British judge was also surprised by the courage of Khudiram Bose

On June 13, 1908, when Khudiram Bose was sentenced to death in this case, the judge asked him, 'Have you understood the meaning of this decision?' To this Khudiram replied, 'Yes, I understand, my lawyers say I am too young to make bombs. If you give me a chance, I can teach you how to make bombs too. The judge was also surprised to hear this answer of Khudiram.

One of the stories scattered around Muzaffarpur Jail is that the executioner who hanged him was not ready for it. He was forced and after that he kept crying for a long time.

Khudiram was hanged on 11 August 1908. Later his elder sister came to Muzaffarpur from Midnapore in Bengal and performed his last rites. Hundreds of people came from Bengal and took away his ashes, made amulets out of his ashes and wore them.

After his martyrdom, Khudiram became so popular that the weavers of Bengal started weaving a special type of dhoti, on the edge of which 'Khudiram' was written. In Bengal, the youth used to wear that dhoti with pride.

On the wall of the prison, Khudiram Bose wrote in Bengali - "Once send me off mother, I will come back soon." People from all over India will see me and I will hang to the gallows laughing. This scene is illustrated by Dainik Bhaskar's artist Gautam Chakraborty.

Why was Judge Douglas Kingsford the only target?

Curzon announced the partition of Bengal in 1905. In protest against this decision, large-scale non-violent movements were being organized, under which Holi of foreign goods was burnt.

Khudiram Bose and his other revolutionary companions often held meetings secretly from the British officers to formulate the strategy of the movement. Aurobindo Ghosh of Bengal was publishing the news of burning Holi of foreign goods in a newspaper named 'Vande Mataram', but the repression of the British government was also going on.

Then Judge Douglas Kingsford was quite infamous in Calcutta (now Kolkata). The reason was that from openly whipping the revolutionaries to cruel punishments of various kinds. It was from here that Khudiram Bose decided to take revenge on him and followed him till Bihar.

Khudiram was the ideal of Bhagat Singh-Azad

Dr. Arun Kumar Singh, former Head of Political Science at RDS College, Muzaffarpur, says that before throwing the bomb on Kingsford, Khudiram had also unsuccessfully tried to throw a bomb on the Governor of Bengal. During that time, where the Congress was advocating to talk to the British government, after the martyrdom of Bose, such revolutionaries came out who directly clashed with the British rule. In 1907, the Congress was split into the Extremist Party and the Moderate Party.

Be it Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Ashfaq Ullah Khan, or Chandrashekhar, who were involved in the tradition of the Garam Dal, the influence of Khudiram Bose is visible on all of them. When Lokmanya Tilak wrote an editorial related to this incident in his newspaper Kesari, he was sentenced to 6 months.

Ajit Singh believes that the youth of Bihar were also affected by this martyrdom for a long time. For 20 years, new revolutionary activism was seen in the whole of North Bihar.

Why did Nehru refuse to come to Muzaffarpur?

CK Parashar, who made a documentary on Khudiram Bose, narrates another anecdote. According to him, the dispute about Khudiram continued in India even after independence. The Memorial Committee wanted the then Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to inaugurate Bose's memorial. Nehru's secretary, in a letter, replied that Bose was a supporter of radical revolution and Nehru believed in non-violence, he would not be able to come. After this the then CM of Bihar inaugurated this memorial.