News of prison breaks brings jails into public attention, reviving the debate on making them institutions of reform rather than retribution. Popular imagination of prisons, however, continues to be full of graft and violence. Conversely, political prisoners the world over have always welcomed jail terms as a doorway to freedom. In the case of India’s freedom struggle, while it was two decades of living abroad that obtained Mahatma Gandhi his imagination of Hind Swaraj, the national character and vision of the Nehrus evolved during their prolonged jail terms.
Celebrated historian Mushirul Hasan unravels previously unknown facets of prison life of the Nehrus and how that transformed their vision and character. Like a maestro, Hasan makes complex cross-connections using large amounts of literature collated from half-a-century of research on India’s freedom movement. The title When Stone Walls Cry , however, is a mystery as, by the author’s own account, the Nehrus were treated rather well in jail and they also remained extremely productive during those years. Indeed, their determination to put their jail terms to contemplation proved a blessing, making them icons of 20th century India.
The scene is set in post-1857 British rule that rattled the Indian elites. Kashmiri Pandits were quick to adapt, learn Western education and avail of new openings. The Nehrus, the Saprus, the Katjus and the Kunzrus distinguished themselves in the legal profession. Transfer of the High Court from Agra to Allahabad and the founding of Allahabad University in 1887 was a boon for those living in Allahabad as it expanded into a major cosmopolitan city. Being Allahabadi was soon a matter of pride; its identity defined neither by Islam nor Hinduism but by its dialect, cross community networks and its literary milieu.
Hasan presents a balanced picture of Motilal as the rising star with attitude and finesse. He was moderate, detested revolutionary methods and professed allegiance to the ways of the Raj. Motilal remained on the margins of the freedom movement even after Congress held its Allahabad session in 1892. It was the rise of the Swadeshi movement in Bengal and the Surat Split between moderates and extremists that pushed him into action. But as Gandhi is quoted: “Motilal’s love for India was derived from his love for Jawahar.”
The reverse was equally true. Of the influences which moulded Jawaharlal, the earliest was his father, though the two did not see eye to eye on most matters. Motilal’s decision to put his lot with Gandhi did not put an end to their differences. Jawaharlal differed even with Gandhi. Following his visit to the then Soviet Union in 1927, he returned convinced that modern industrial techniques rather than hand-spinning would solve India’s poverty. But Gandhi trusted Jawaharlal’s incorruptible sincerity and that made Jawaharlal most affable.
From the age of 32 to 56, Jawaharlal spent the best part of his life in prisons. Hasan repeatedly quotes Jawaharlal saying the sole purpose of prison was transforming a human into a vegetable: resigned and non-resistant. His frustration makes him see violence outside as atonement for his confinement but Gandhi advises him to look inward, read and learn some handicraft. Thus begins the evolution of Jawaharlal’s creative vision and his writings during various jail-terms. These include Autobiography , Discovery of India , Glimpses of World History and especially his 1,849 pages of 176 letters to his daughter Indira or Indu.
The Nehrus are presented as having a great capacity to gauge the pulse of the times. The Nehru family moves from Delhi to Agra and then to Allahabad where Motilal laid the foundation for the Nehrus. Hasan believes historians have not been sympathetic in their evaluation of Motilal. Later, Jawaharlal emerges as a bridge between the radical youth and conservatives. Often it was he who made the complex ideas of Gandhi intelligible to his followers. But the Nehrus’ political ascendancy also meant that they had to give up their royal lifestyle. Well-known Allahabadi, Madan Mohan Malviya of the Hindu Mahasabha, never discouraged his followers from vilifying the Nehrus as beef-eaters. The non-political prisoners, on the other hand, looked on them as messiahs for jail reforms.
Hasan quotes Edward Thompson who envied the luck of the Nehrus especially their being blessed with ‘charming and splendid women’ who contributed to India’s freedom struggle and broke several taboos on women’s liberation. Swarup Rani (Motilal’s wife) was profoundly stirred by political events and she was hurt in a lathi-charge during protests commemorating the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. This opens the floodgates and in addition to Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Krishna and Shyama (Jawaharlal’s cousins), even frail Kamala served prison terms. But if an outsider ever saw the family talk, joke and laugh, he would not think that the Nehrus had many worries. That is what set the Nehrus apart.
The book presents a blend of lucid reading and complex analysis as it provides a sneak peek into the making of the Nehrus who remain integral to the making of independent India.
When Stone Walls Cry: The Nehrus in Prison; Mushirul Hasan, Oxford University Press, Rs. 695.
Swaran Singh is a professor at School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University.
