India -- History -- British occupation, 1765-1947; India -- Politics and government -- 1765-1947
It is clear even from this summary that the only two provinces where the
revolutionary propaganda took root and resulted in more than occasional
outrages were Bengal and the Punjab.
In the Bombay Presidency, revolutionary outrages did not exceed three
within a period of 20 years (from 1897 to 1917), two murders and one
bomb-throwing. Besides, three trials for conspiracies are mentioned all
within a year (1909-1910), two in Native States and one in British
territory. Altogether 82 men were prosecuted for being involved in these
conspiracies. The total result comes to this, that in the course of 20
years about 100 persons were found to be involved in a revolutionary
movement in a territory embracing an area of 186,923 square miles and a
population of 27 million human beings. This is surely by no means a
formidable record justifying extraordinary legislation such as is
proposed.[2] The net loss of human life did not exceed three, though
unfortunately all three victims were Europeans.
Bihar and Orissa formed part of the province of Bengal during most of
the period covered by the revolutionary movement of Bengal, viz., from
1906 to 1917. It was in Bihar which was then a part of Bengal, that in
1908, the first bomb was thrown. The only other revolutionary outrage
that took place in Bihar was one in 1913, resulting in the murder of two
Indians.
In the United Provinces of Agra and Oude, the only tangible evidence of
revolutionary activity recorded by the committee is the Benares
Conspiracy that came to light in 1915-1916. The only outrage noted is
that of the alleged murder of a fellow revolutionary by a member of the
same gang.
To the Central provinces the committee has given a practically clean
bill.
In Madras the revolutionary outrages consisted of one murder (of a
European Magistrate) and one conspiracy involving nine persons.
The conspiracies and intrigues detected in Burma are ascribed to people
of other provinces and not a single outrage from that province itself is
reported.
So we find that in the period from 1906 to 1907, both inclusive,
outside the provinces of Bengal and the Punjab, the revolutionary crime
was limited to three outrages and three conspiracies in the Bombay
Presidency, one outrage in Bihar, one outrage and one conspiracy in the
United Provinces, one outrage and one conspiracy in Madras and some
intrigues and conspiracies during the war in Burma. Thus the only two
provinces in which the revolutionary movement established itself to any
appreciable extent was Bengal and the Punjab.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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