Irawat the Legend
- Part 3 -
Joyshree Usham *
A Statue of Hijam Irabot as seen at Jiribam town in second week of October 2014 :: Pix - RC Mangang
With India's independence and the overthrow of the British Raj there was
a fresh breath of air and this had reached Manipur too. Finally, Irawat was able to
return to Manipur. Upon his arrival, he started organising a number of mass
organisations like the Praja Sangh, Krishak Sabha and also the communist Party.
In
order to unify the struggle of the hills and plains people, Irawat called a meeting of
representatives of nine parties and associations of the tribal people on 30th
November, 1947, which came to a common understanding about their various
demands. This I would say is the act of a true son of the soil, a selfless leader unlike
our many present generations leader fuelled by their selfish drives and greed trying
to take advantage of the various diversities we have in our state.
The first Great
Patriots' Award for the year 1986 was posthumously awarded to Irawat on the
Patriots' Day, the 13th August 1987 for his supreme sacrifice for the great cause of
our people and Motherland with the spirit of patriotism and peaceful co-existence
Irawat also won the first election held in Manipur in 1948 conducted under
the Constitution Act of 1947.
He was among the five candidates who won out of 23
candidates put up by the Manipur Krishak Sabha party. He contested from the
Utlou Assembly constituency. It was around this time that Sardar Patel was going
ahead with the proposal of forming a north-eastern frontier province under the
name 'Purvanchal Pradesh' including Manipur, Cachar, Lushai Hills and Tripura.
There was a strong protest in the state against this and thus the government
banned all meetings.
A protest meeting was organised by Irawat and his followers
on 21st of Sept 1948 at Manipur Dramatic Union Hall, Yaiskul. People from all over
the state started coming there. The police attacked the procession where several
members of Krishak Sabha and Praja Sangha from the eastern part of Imphal Valley
were proceeding on foot to the reach the venue of the meeting.
One such clash took
place at Pungdongbam wherein a police officer was killed. Irawat was at his residence
preparing to go for the meeting when all this happened. On the pretext of this
incident, ban orders were passed and arrest warrants were issued against Irawat
and many other leaders of Krishak Sabha.
Thus, Irawat and other leaders went underground. Despite the
government's announcement for a cash reward of Rs. 10,000 on Irawat's head, he
couldn't be arrested and he continued his work from underground. It is said that
when the British paramountcy was about to lapse in India one Reginald Coupland,
Professor of Constitutional History of India at Oxford University, had written to the
Political Agent of Manipur to keep the hill regions of Manipur as British Territory
like Hong kong under colonial rule, and to this Irawat vehemently protested and
stood for the territorial integrity of Manipur comprising both the valley and the
Hills as an independent state.
During his underground period, under the influence of sectarian line
followed by the party, many armed struggles were going on even in other states
including Manipur. Thereby the government set up police camps in all the villages.
Irawat in order to get help to this movement was sent to Burma to contact the
guerrillas functioning there. He started his journey in the hot summer of May,1950,
and stayed there for almost a year doing works for liberation for his motherland. He
tried to seek help for his cause. At that time Civil War was going on in Burma (now
Myanmar).
The Communist Party of Burma under Thakin Than Tun, the Burmese
Communist Party under ThakinSoe, the People's Comrade Party, the karens, Mons,
Shans, Arakanese, and a host of other armed groups were fighting among themselves
and against the reactionary regime of U Nu. There he met all the revolutionary
leaders and convinced them to unite against the common enemy and a tripartite
unity conference of the CPB, BCP and PCP was held on June 1951.
Irawat also
convinced them to materially help and support the Manipur's Struggle. After his
mission in Burma, Irawat decided to return to Manipur to his parent unit. But
unfortunately he was attacked by Typhoid fever when he reached the twin Burmese
village of Tangbo-Shwedo and died on 26th September, 1951 after a short illness of
just five days. He was no doubt given a funeral with military honours by the
Burmese guerrillas.
Hemango Biswas (Irawat's colleague and friend) recalled that when he
went to a village nearly 8 km from Imphal to attend a rural cultural gathering in 1955
which was organised by the Kisan Sabha , none believed that Irawat was dead,
"Irawat will come", was the general feeling.
He said he was moved to tears when he
heard a song on Irawat sung by a soprano in the traditional KhullangIshei in a
doleful tune.
Irawat, our beloved leader
Manipur wants you to come back
You have sacrificed everything for us
14 Irabot Day Observance 2016 Irabot Day Observance 2016 15
You have suffered for us
Oh! You come back.
It is said, 'You are not rich enough until you have something which money can't
buy.' Hijam Irawat Singh our versatile leader, the son of the soil, the visionary
leader of Manipur might not have accumulated wealth and properties like the leaders
of our present day, but he would be the richest man because he got something
which money can't buy and that is the love, respect and admiration of his people.
His deeds and sacrifices will be remembered for ages to come. He will live forever in
the hearts and mind of his children, his people. He is a legend and legend never
dies.
References:-
1. Irawat –Sentinel of the East
2. Immortal Heroes, Lives of Communist Leaders
3. Souvenir of Birth centenary celebration of Jananeta Irabat Singh,1996
4. Resistance Tuesday October 5, 1976
5. Select Documents of Jananeta Hijam Irawat vol-1, Manipur State Archives
6. Freedom Fighters Records in the Manipur State Archives, 1986
Concluded....
* Joyshree Usham (M. Sc. Applied Psychology, B. Ed.) wrote this article for a booklet publication of Irabot Day Observance Committee Delhi 2016
This article was posted on October 13, 2016.
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