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Suhasini Das

Bengali activist, social worker and politician From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Suhasini Das (Bengali: সুহাসিনী দাস; 1915 - 30 May 2009) was an anti-British activist, social worker and politician from Bangladesh. She was a member of the Indian National Congress and an important figure in East Bengal, before, during and after Partition.

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Biography

Das was born in 1915 in Jagannathpur village in Sunamganj, Sylhet district, Assam Province.[1] Her parents were Parimohan and Shobha Roy; she had two younger brothers and two younger sisters.[2] She was married aged 18 to a businessman, Kumud Chandra Das, who owned the Kuti-Chand Press.[2]

Career

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She turned her house into a centre for thread-making and charkha. In order to fund this she used the wealth inherited after the death of her husband.[2] The charkha became a symbol of Indian independence and on 20 January 1940, Das announced that she would only wear khaddar clothes for the rest of her life.[3]

Das was a supporter of Gandhi.[4] In 1942, she joined the Quit India Movement, which was under Gandhi's leadership; Das was imprisoned alongside other members.[5] In 1943, Suhasini Das was released from jail.[6] She was also a supporter of the Non-Cooperation Movement.[7] She later joined the Indian National Congress.[3] During Partition in 1947, Das travelled widely in the Sylhet area, encouraging Hindu people to stay at home and tried to calm their fears.[8] From 1946 to 1947, Das worked in a relief camp in Noakhali, one of seventeen set up by Leela Roy, following the riots which took place there.[9] Whilst working there she contracted smallpox, and was visited by Gandhi whilst recovering.[5]

After Partition, Das was instrumental in establishing the Rangirkul Ashram, which she ultimately became leader of.[2]

During the war for independence in 1971, it was Das' leadership which protected the ashram.[2] After independence, Das left politics to concentrate on her social and religious work.[3][8] However, in 1973, she still attended a conference of anti-British freedom fighters in Delhi, where she highlighted to role of people from East Bengal in the struggle.[3]

In 1986, Das attended the World Hindu Congress in Nepal.[3] Religious tolerance and understanding was very important to her and in 1990 worked to restore faith between Hindus and Muslims after attacks on mosques and temples.[3]

Awards

In 1997, Bangladesh gave Das its highest award for 'Social Service'.[2]

Death

Das died on 30 May 2009 in Sylhet.[10][3] She had fallen whilst taking a bath on 25 May and was admitted to hospital.[2] At the news of her death, crowds gathered in a vigil outside the hospital.[2]

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Legacy

Das published her memoirs under the title Sekaler Sylhet (Sylhet during the British Raj: Memories of Suhasini Das) in 2005.[4] These are a vital resource for understanding Partition in East Bengal, particularly from a female perspective.[11] These diaries recorded the rising dominance of the Muslim League and the pressures the Hindu minority felt.[12][13] One of the halls at Sylhet Agricultural University is named after her.[14]

References

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