MATANGINI HAZRA
Gandhi Buri

Matangini Hazra was an extraordinary woman and an Indian revolutionary who was devoted to the cause of the country’s freedom from British rule. Like the Mahatma, her frail body did not deter her from being an inspiring force in the freedom movement, and she was so influenced by Gandhiji’s beliefs, that she earned the name “Gandhi Buri” (the old Gandhian woman).

Little is known about Matangini Hazra’s early life, except that she was born in the village of Hogla, near Tamluk (in the current state of West Bengal), in 1869, and she did not acquire a formal education as she was the daughter of a poor peasant. She was married off young but became a widow at the age of eighteen. She then returned to her village and devoted her time and energy to helping people in her community. In the early 1900s, the Nationalist movement began to gain momentum across the subcontinent, as Gandhiji himself crisscrossed across the region, raising awareness and inspiring the countrymen to join the freedom fight. In 1905, Midnapore’s Gandhi Buri became actively involved in the Indian independence struggle. It is said that the participation of women in the liberation struggle from this region was significant.

She participated in the Non-Cooperation movement in 1932 and was arrested for her role in the Salt Satyagraha movement. Though she was quickly released, she persisted with the demand that the Salt Tax be repealed. She was arrested again and imprisoned in Baharampur for six months. In 1933, she was hurt in a police baton charge after attending a subdivisional Congress convention in Serampore. Such was her determination that she remained resolute in her fight despite her incarceration numerous times.

Hazra has been described as a passionate supporter of independence. In an incident that dates back to 1933, where one afternoon in the scorching heat, Hazra was part of a freedom march that was held in the district capital. Its destination was the palace of the Governor, who himself stood resolutely on his balcony, observing the march dispassionately, as though it were a cricket match or some native ritual going on. Matangini marched in the parade’s vanguard, holding the freedom flag high. As they approached closer to the Governor’s balcony, she suddenly broke through the cordon, evading the soldiers and brandishing her banner, shouting, “Go back, Laat Sahib”. Hazra was beaten up by British police for this daring act and severely injured.

Her fearlessness and spirited actions were at the forefront when on 29 September 1942, 73-year-old Hazra led a large procession of around 6,000 protesters, mostly women, to take over the Tamluk police station from British authorities. The police tried to stop the march, and amidst the mayhem that ensued Hazra appealed to the police force to refrain from shooting at the protestors. Her pleas went unheard, and she was brazenly shot at thrice. She continued marching till she collapsed and died.

Hazra’s martyrdom did not go in vain. Her contribution to the country's freedom, to which she dedicated her entire life, has not been forgotten. She was the first woman revolutionary to have her statue erected in the Kolkata Maidan in 1977. As a tribute, several schools, neighbourhoods, and roads, including a significant stretch called the Hazra Road in Kolkata, have been named after her. Matangini Hazra was one of those women from a humble background who has left her footprints in the annals of India’s freedom struggle.