विभूतिमूर्ति

Patna University Centenary Celebrations : October,1917-2017

REMEMBERING Dr RAJENDRA PRASAD

The Patna University is celebrating its Centenary in October, 2017. Sadly enough, neither the University nor the organizers of the glorious event have cared to remember Dr Rajendra Prasad who was the person behind the establishment of Patna University. In my forthcoming biography of Dr Rajendra Prasad, THE HOUSE OF TRUTH, there are references particularly to the two great occasions which bring to our mind the close association of Dr Prasad from the inception of the University till the very last day in Dr Prasad's life. The first brief extract relates to the Lucknow session of the Congress (1916) where the resolution for the Patna University Bill was passed, and the second extract recounts the events on the very last day in Dr Prasad’s life, the day on which he was to address the Convocation function of Patna University.

Among  the delegates at the Lucknow session of the Indian National Congress from Bihar (December, 1916) were two eminent lawyers, Braj Kishore Prasad and Rajendra Prasad, accompanied by Pir Muhammad Moonis and Rajkumar Shukla, two representatives of the agitating indigo farmers of Champaran.

The Bihar delegates had come to the Lucknow session with two aims: they wanted the Congress to adopt two resolutions, one on the Patna University Bill and another on the question of the indigo planters of Champaran.

Both these resolutions – the first one on the Patna University Bill moved by R.P. Paranjpye of Bombay, and the second one on the Champaran indigo farmers, by Braj Kishore Prasad -  were unanimously passed at this session.

Regarding the Patna University Bill, a lot of sustained political campaigning against several objectionable provisions in the Bill had preceded its passage in the Lucknow Congress. Meanwhile, the Bill in its modified form had ultimately been passed by the Imperial Legislative Council, leading to the establishment of the University at Patna in 1917. The Bihar government, in recognition of the vital role played by Rajendra Prasad in the establishment of the Patna University, had later nominated him as a member of the new University’s Senate….

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The last day in his life: 28 February, 1963

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The story of the last two months in Dr Prasad’s woe-filled life of retirement in Patna remains largely under a shadow….Consistent improvement in Dr Prasad’s health continued through January and February and Dr Prasad was even planning to go out to some healthier place in the second week of March. Now feeling much better, he had also given his consent to address the Patna University convocation on 28 February. But on that very day since early morning he complained of fever and stomach upset and his condition started deteriorating rapidly.

 “He was in quite good health till 27 February evening”, writes Dr Vishwanath Prasad, one of his close associates and elder brother of Dr Raghunath Sharan, the attending physician. “He had even met some visitors that evening. He could now take short walks in the adjoining courtyard and looked fully recovered. The next afternoon, on 28 February, he was to deliver his convocation address at Patna University. The printed copies of the speech had already arrived and he intended to have a look at the printed speech the same night. When it got late, he said he could have a look at his speech early next morning. But around 4.30 in the morning on 28 February, the nurse found Dr Prasad in some discomfort with slight fever and stomach upset. Medicines were given for the stomach ailment but the fever persisted. He complained of severe headache around 10 which would not go and the restlessness grew as the day advanced. Worried about his convocation address, he wanted the Vice-Chancellor to be informed of his illness and suggested that his printed speech could be read out at the convocation, on his behalf,  by the Bihar Assembly Speaker, L.N. Sudhanshu.”

   

The convocation address was an impassioned appeal to the youth of Bihar, in particular, to stand unitedly against ‘the unabashed aggression by a neighbour’ as their foremost duty. He also emphasized the increased importance of a more cohesive relationship between the students and the teachers in a healthy educational system. In his view the university education system should devise a method by which the most talented among the students should be provided the best facilities for proper advancement in their careers; something that could be fostered ‘even if it means some curtailment in expansion’. Such diversification could profitably be introduced at the initial stage itself so that ‘every deserving pupil [could] go up to the highest standard while others may be diverted to other lines best suited to them’. Care should also be taken to inculcate among the students a moral and secular disposition especially in view of ‘a certain decline in the moral standards’ creeping into the mindset of our people in general. Defining the inclusive rather than exclusive nature of secularism in our country with diversities of religion, language  and culture, Dr Prasad said that true secularism is based on a conviction that all religions have ‘equal status’ and that ‘no preference is to be shown to any one of them’. At the same time, it must be remembered that ‘religion has [always] sustained morality all the world over’, and the two must go hand in hand in every way. It is with such equipment of moral and secular disposition that the modern generation of youth graduating from the universities must enter into a life of full dedication and service to the nation….

© Dr BSM Murty

All photos: courtesy Google & Rashtrapati Bhawan Photo Archives

 No part of this extract can be used in any way so as to infringe pre-publication rights.

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Dr BSM Murty, 302, Block-H, Celebrity Gardens, Sushant Golf City, Ansal API,     LUCKNOW : 226030  // Mob. 7752922938 / 7985017549 /  9451890020 
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Other extracts from the book which are available on this Blog (Scroll by year and date)

2011: May 28 : The Indigo Story; July 8: The Butcher of Amritsar; July 17: A Planter’s Murder

2014: Sep 14 : The Seven Martyrs; Dec 3 : Early childhood in Jeeradei

2015: Jun 30: Congress in disarray; Aug 27: Clash of Convictions; Oct 8: Presidential Itineraries;Dec 20: Congress at crossroads

2016:  Mar 15: Election for Second Term; May 13: Visit to Soviet Union; Aug 25: Limits of Presidency
             Aug  28 : The Last Phase
2017:  Apr 15: Champaran Saga (The Indigo Story: Repeat of 28 May 2011); 13 July: Dr Rajendra Prasad: On Kashmir Problem; 25 July: The Swearing in of Dr Rajendra Prasad

Other Important blogs

Sahitya Samagra : 5 Oct 2010 / On Premchand: 26 May 2011 / Has Hindi been defeated by English? :  Shivpujan Sahay : 7 Dec 2011 / Memoirs on Prasad and Nirala : 25-26 Oct 2012 / Shivpujan Sahay Smriti Samaroh: 27 Jan 2014 / On Amrit Lal Nagar: 18 Aug 2014 / On Bachchan : 27 Nov 2014 / On Renu: 3 Mar 2015 / On Trilochan: 1 Apr 2015 /Odes of Keats + Shantiniketan: 25 May 2015 / Premchand Patron Men: 3 Aug 2015/  Suhagraat: Dwivediji's poem: 13 Nov 2015/ Dehati Duniya: 8 Aug 2016/ Three stories of JP: 6 Jul 2016/ On Neelabh Ashk: 24 Jul 2016/ Dec 25 2016: Anupam Mishra: Paani ki Kahaani : 2017:  July 10: Doctornama: memoirs of Shivpujan Sahay    Sep 2 : Has Hindi been Defeated by English? 

ALL MATTER AND PHOTOS PUBLISHED ON THE BLOG (AS INDICATED) ARE (c) Dr BSM Murty