AN IMPOSSIBLE CRY

THE last part of Lala Lajpat Rai’s speech at Jaranwala we have purposely reserved for separate treatment, not only because of its outstanding importance, but because on no other basis could justice be done to it. During the last month and a half, political India has twice been exhorted to go back to Nagpur, in each case by a leader of the first rank. It required a leader of the first rank to expose the utter futility, not to say, mischievousness of that cry, and it has seldom been our lot to come across a more crushing answer to an impossible suggestion than what is contained in this part of Rai’s speech. Taking certain words from a recent speech of C Rajagopalachari on this subject, Rai says: “I cannot for the life of me understand how we could go back to Nagpur even if we unanimously wished to do so. The Nagpur programme was conceived and based on the idea of ‘Swaraj within one year’. It was on that basis that Mahatma ji asked lawyers to suspend their practice and boys to leave their schools and colleges for one year. The expression ‘suspend the practice’ showed the mentality that underlay the whole programme. The one year has passed. In fact, it had expired before Mahatma ji was imprisoned. Having taken note of this fact, he left Nagpur behind and marched forward to Bardoli. It is thus clear that ‘Back to Nagpur’ is an impossible cry.” To this admirably penetrating analysis of the position, we have only a word of our own to add. There are many thoughtful men in the country, some of them in the ranks of the non-co-operators themselves, who thought that for so colossal an experiment as that decided on at Nagpur even a year was too long a period.