Ignorant scholars: Most college, varsity students clueless about Kakori case
Students in higher educational institutions are ignoramuses when it comes to the Kakori Train Action Plan. Some have their facts lopsided and others are all at sea, finds an HT reality check
Lucknow: Ask a college or university student about what he or she knows of the Kakori Train Action case and its importance in modern Indian history and after much dithering, the reply would be either in the context of melt-in-the-mouth Kakori kebabs or mangoes or worse still, a fete organized in the town during winter. Ironically, the names of martyrs Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqullah Khan, Chandrashekhar Azad and Rajendra Lahiri etc, would be unknown to them, illustrating that the young adults are not only unaware of modern Indian history but also of the significant contributions of freedom fighters in throwing off the foreign yoke.
Mannan Chhabra, a 4th year BA.LLB student at Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University (RMLNLU) confused the Kakori Train Action Plan with the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre. “The massacre by General Dyer was in Kakori, a town near Lucknow,” Chhabra said.
Tanya, another 4th year BA.LLB student at RMLNLU said that she was not sure about Kakori. “I have heard of Kakori in two contexts – kebabs and the movie ‘Rang de Basanti’. I haven’t watched the movie, but I think it is related to some historical event, but I am not well connected with history right now. If I speak about this after six months, I am sure I will be able to have a better understanding about it ,” she said .
Tejaswi Singh and Mohammad Ashraf, students of MAJMC and MA respectively of Shia PG College (SPGC) also said that the town was known for kebabs. Ashraf said that Kakori was known for a rebellion against the British government.
Three friends Akash, Shiwet and Shalin, all B.tech 2nd year students of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University said that they had neither heard of the place nor read about it in textbooks.
Similarly, Aditya Sharma, a 3rd year BA Economics student and Aman Mishra, a 3rd year Bsc. student in Lucknow University said that it was the first time they heard about Kakori.
Dharmendra Kumar, a 2nd year student of MA English in LU said that being an avid traveller all he knew was that Kakori was a famous place near Lucknow.
Maneka Rastogi, a student who visited LU to complete the paperwork for her admission in B.com (NEP) said that Kakori was known for mango farms. “I don’t have any idea about the historical relevance of the place,” said Rastogi.
Anuj Kumar, BA 2nd year student, said that he had been to a Kakori Shaheed Smarak near Dubagga. “A train incident occurred in the town in the 1800s in which several people got martyred ,” said Kumar.
Srishti Tripathi, a 2nd year MSc. zoology student in IT College said that she had heard of Kakori in the context of an annual fete.
Prithvi, another student of MSc. of IT College said that the Kakori railway station was known for a train incident. “There was a king who was getting his gold transported to another place when the train was looted. I don’t remember the names of the people who were involved in the incident,” said Prithvi.
Nisha Yadav, another 2nd year MSc. student in IT College said that she was aware that the town was associated with the Kakori Train Action Plan. “It has been quite a few years, and I am not able to recollect facts related to the incident,” said Yadav.
HT tried asking over 50 students of prominent institutes of the city about the incident . Some among them even tried coming close to the facts.
Akriti Verma, a BSc. 5th semester student of SPGC said that a train robbery was organized in Kakori on August 9 by the freedom fighters against the colonial government. “Bhagat Singh and Mangal Pandey were involved in the incident,” said Verma.
Almas Beg, a 3rd year student of SPGC said that Kakori, a town near Lucknow, was known for a train action plan and revolutionary freedom fighters, including Ram Prasad Bismil, were involved in the incident.
“The plan was to use the ammunition of the British government to wage war against them. Bismil, along with his companions, including Ashfaqullah Khan, pulled the chain to stop the Saharanpur Express and loot weapons,” said Beg.
Saurabh Kumar, a 5th year student at RMLNLU said that the Kakori Train Action Plan was a train robbery which was held about 100 years back.
“The ammunition and money were looted by some members of Hindustan Republican Association (HRA). I don’t remember the names of the revolutionaries involved in the incident, but they were in need of arms and ammunition to fight the British forces so, I think it was justified to do so,” said Kumar.
Fact File -
1. Held on August 9, 1925, Kakori Train Action Plan is also known as Kakori Kand or Kakori Train Robbery. It occurred about 16 kms away from the city centre.
2. Members of the Hindustan Republican Association formed by Shachindranath Sanyal (whose mission was to liberate India from colonial rule through a revolution) were involved in the incident.
3. The main objective of the robbery was to gain funds for the HRA by taking money from the British Administration through force and creating positive image of HRA among people by attacking British officials
4. Planned by Ram Prasad Bismil and Ashfaqullah Khan, it was executed by Bismil, Khan, Chandrashekhar Azad, Rajendra Lahiri, Shachindra Bakshi, Keshab Chakravarty, Murari Lal Khanna, Banwari Lal, Mukundi Lal Gupta and Manmathnath Gupta.
5. Over 40 people were arrested for the incident, but Chandrashekhar Azad could not be captured, and the HRA was reorganized.
6. Death sentences were awarded to Bismil, Khan, Thakur Roshan Singh and Lahiri.