Leaders and activists of various parties and groups, including communist parties, trade union activists, women’s activists, academicians, youth and students came together to enthusiastically participate in the Ghadar Jari Hai meeting organized jointly by the Lok Raj Sangathan and the Bangladesh-Bharat-Pakistan People’s Forum (BBPPF) in Kolkata on June 15, 2008. The meeting was held at the Moulali Yuva Kendra, in the heart of Kolkata city and carried on till late in the evening, with the audience swaying to the vibrant songs and dances from Bangladesh and various parts of Eastern and North Eastern India and the strains of Sufi music from Pakistan.

Attractive posters announcing the program could be seen in many prominent parts of the city for days before the program. On the day of the program, the auditorium wore a festive look, with large crowds gathered around the literature display, browsing through the latest publications and animatedly discussing the latest political developments.

Among the participants was the delegation from Bangladesh, which included prominent women trade union leaders, political and social activists in various fields. Leaders and activists of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, All India Forward Bloc, BBPPF, Lok Raj Sangathan, CPI, Workers Party, SUCI, CPIML (New Democracy), CPIML (Liberation), Nepali Janadhikar Suraksha Samiti, Forum against State Terrorism, and other organisations took part in the program. The proceedings were conducted by Manik Samajdar, convenor of BBPPF.

The program was inaugurated by Comrade Debabrata Biswas, Chairman of the Bangladesh Bharat Pakistan Peoples Forum, and general Secretary of the All India Forward Bloc, who spoke of the common ties of history, heritage and culture amongst the peoples of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. The great Ghadar of 1857 has an important place in this common heritage, he said, and invited the representative of the Communist Ghadar Party of India to make an audio-visual presentation on the theme Ghadar Jari Hai.

Comrade Sucharita of the Communist Ghadar Party of India held the attention of the audience for the next nearly three hours, with a powerful and soul-stirring power point presentation titled Ghadar Jari Hai. The presentation consisted of four sections.

The first section dealt with the conditions prevailing under British colonial rule prior to 1857 and the numerous struggles of all the people of Hindostan against British colonial rule before and leading upto 1857, breaking the myth that the great Ghadar of 1857 was a spontaneous outbreak.

The second section, on the great Ghadar of 1857, brought out the meticulous planning and organisation involved, the political outlook and advanced vision of the Ghadar, Hum hain iske maalik, hindostan hamara, i.e. that the people of Hindostan will themselves decide what kind of rule they want in the future. This effectively smashed the perception spread by the British and many sections of the Indian ruling class that the revolt of 1857 was a reaction of feudal forces who wished to preserve the old feudal order and were opposed to progress and enlightenment.

The third section showed how the British consolidated their direct rule in India following the great Ghadar of 1857, how they systematically went about grooming a class in whose interests it would be to continue the British rule in India, how Indians were taught to look down upon their own culture and heritage and believe that all wisdom and progress had their source in the West. This Eurocentric outlook persists even today, the speaker pointed out. The colonial policy and practice of ‘divide and rule’ was also clearly explained through numerous examples.

The fourth section had the entire audience in rapt attention. It dealt with the transfer of power from the British to their groomed successors, the present day Indian ruling class in 1947. It dealt with the institutions that were set up or retained, to continue the exploitation and plunder of the workers, peasants and toiling masses, by a privileged handful.

The Indian Constitution was framed by people elected under British colonial supervision, to run the colonial administration. It does not guarantee even the most basic rights of the people. A political system of multi-party representative democracy has been put into place, wherein the big bourgeoisie wields political power through political parties that uphold its class interests while the masses are kept out of political power.

Following the footsteps of the colonial state, the Indian state is declared a "secular" state, while the people are divided according to religion, caste, etc. While the state deliberately inflames passions on the basis of religion, caste, language, etc, it makes out that it is "secular" and it is the people who are "backward."

The present Indian state refuses to recognise the existence of nations and peoples in this multinational country of ours. The smallest demand of people for their national rights is met with force of arms and state terrorism. The slogan of "danger to unity and territorial integrity of India" is raised to justify brutal suppression of the people's rights. In this manner, the forcible annexation of numerous nations and nationalities into the Indian Union has been "justified".

The speaker elaborated on how all these, together with the Eurocentric outlook, constitute the colonial legacy which weighs heavy on all of us today. Without getting rid of this colonial legacy, our struggle to become the masters of our destiny cannot advance, she pointed out. That is why we say – Ghadar Jari Hai! (the struggle continues!) she concluded, amidst thunderous applause.

A discussion on the presentation followed, during which speakers from Bangladesh and India spoke at length about the colonial legacy and the lessons of the great Ghadar that we must draw today, in order to advance our struggle. This session was chaired by Ram Kishore, convener of UP chapter of BBPPF. Ms. Lovely Yasmin, a militant woman trade unionist from Bangladesh elaborated on how people from both our countries face similar problems at the hands of our ruling classes. Rupan Chowdhry of SUCI, Bipas Basu of AICCTU and Mehboob Alam, journalist and political activist, leader of the delegation of BBPPF from Bangladesh were among others who spoke up against the colonial legacy.

Prakash Rao, spokesperson of the Communist Ghadar Party of India and convener of Lok Raj Sangathan, concluded the discussion. He welcomed the suggestions made by the various speakers and pointed out that the work to get rid of the colonial legacy demands the effort of more and more people in the movement for enlightenment and for becoming masters of our own destiny.

Learning from the experience of the great Ghadar of 1857, the British divided society into ‘secular’ and ‘communal’, as part of their efforts to consolidate their rule. The British colonial state was declared ‘secular’ while the Indian people were divided into Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs and declared to be communal. The task for us communists, he pointed out, is not to divide people as being ‘secular’ or ‘communal’, but to overthrow this state and the colonial legacy, he emphasised.

Imperialism is deliberately targeting people of Muslim faith as ‘terrorists’ because after the fall of Soviet Union it is among the Islamic peoples that there has been great resistance to imperialism and Eurocentrism. We should not attack religious people but learn from 1857 how to unite all forces that can be united to create a new India, he concluded.

A spirited cultural program followed. There was fusion music from Bengal, accompanied with songs portraying the joys, sorrows and aspirations in the lives of the working people. The cultural team from Bangladesh performed several group dances using traditional folk as well as modern dance forms. They also sang songs to a vibrant beat. Popular sufi themes from Pakistan, rendered powerfully and with full emotion, had the audience enthralled.

In the concluding ceremony, Debabrata Biswas congratulated the cultural artistes, who were felicitated with flowers and scrolls of honour. Manik Samajdar, convenor of BBPPF delivered the vote of thanks. The program ended with the powerful message that unity of the peoples of our subcontinent must be strengthened, in order to eliminate the colonial legacy and work for a future in which we will become the masters of our destiny.