Basawon Singh (Sinha)

Basawon Singh (Sinha) has been among the greatest nationalists who joined the freedom struggle at the age of 13 and kept on his struggle for the independence of the country from the colonial yoke and fighting for the rights of the underprivileged, industrial labours and agricultural workers all throughout his life. He had spent more than 16 years in prisons in British India fighting for India's independence. He lived until the age of 80 years and died on April 7, 1989. After his Revolutionary activities in the initial phase of nationalist struggle, he remained committed to Democratic Socialism till the last day of his life. He along with Yogendra Shukla were among the founder members of Congress Socialist Party from Bihar.

Basawon Singh (Sinha) was born in a poor family in Jamalpur (Subhai), Hajipur on March 23, 1909. He used to walk eight miles to go to the nearest school to get education. His formal education came to an abrupt end when he was rusticated from college in just after completing his matriculate because of joining the Nationalist Movement.

Entry into freedom movement
He first participated in the Non-Cooperation Movement after Gandhi's visit to Hajipur in 1920-21 when he was only 13 years old.

Becomes a revolutionary
He joined the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army headed by Yogendra Shukla in 1925. He absconded in 1929 after the famous Lahore Conspiracy Case. He was co-accused in many conspiracy cases namely Bhusawal, Kakori, Tirhut and Deluaha cases. He carried on the movement along with Chandrashekhar Azad and Keshav Chandra Chakravarty. He was arrested and thrown in Bankipore Central jail (June, 1930) from where he escaped on the third day, but was rearrested. He was served a seven -year sentence when he undertook a 57-day hunger-strike against the imposition of cross-bar fetters in jails. He was released in June, 1936 due to frail health due to his fasting.

In October 1932, the Judicial Secretary, A.C.Davies, as directed by the Governor in Council asked the DIG (CID) to suggest the names of the revolutionary convicts with a statement showing the offences for which they had been convicted, the sentence awarded and a brief note showing their connection with the revolutionary movement with a view to transferring them to the Andamans.The DIG (CID) suggested the names of Yogendra Shukla, Basawon Singh, Shyamdeo Narayan alias Ram Singh, Ishwar Dayal Singh, Kedar Mani Shukla, Mohit Chandra Adhikari and Ram Pratap Singh. Yogendra Shukla, Kedar Mani Shukla and Shyamdeo Narayan were transferred to the Andamans in December, 1932.

Joined Congress Socialist Party and begins Trade Union work
He Joined Congress Socialist Party in December,1936 and was appointed its labour secretary. He established trade unions in the coal fields, sugar mills, mica mines and railways of Bihar. He formed Japla labour union in 1937, Baulia Labour union in 1937, organized the workers of Jamalpur Workshop along with Shivnath Bannerjee, formed the Gaya cotton and Jute Mill Labour Union, formed the Tata Collieries Labour Association along with Subhash Chandra Bose, went on to become its president when Bose left India in 1941. He organized coal workers of Talcher with close co-ordination and support of Dukhabandhu Mishra (founder member of HMS union in Talcher coalfields), Rajgangpur (Orissa) and Satna (MP); established Mica Workers Union, Gomia Labour Union (Explosives), later these unions affiliated to HMS. He was active in AIRF since 1936, president of OT Railway Union from Agra to Nefa and NE Railway Mazdoor Union.

He was rearrested in April, 1937 along with Jayaprakash Narayan, Benipuri and others in Patna for "unconstitutional" works for six months. During the Second World War he was the first man in Bihar to be arrested under Defence of India Ordinance on 26 January 1940 in Husainabad, Palamu and released after eighteen months. During the Quit India Movement, after the interception of Jayaprakash Narayan's Deoli letter addressed to him, he went underground in 1941 and went to Afghanistan to collect firearms and ammunition. He attended the Bombay AICC session (9 August 1942) and conducted the movement from the underground. He was held in Delhi on January 8, 1943 to be freed only on 3 April 1946 after which he continued his nationalist and Trade Union work.

In Independent India
One of the architects of the Socialist Party after its break with the Congress. He was a member of the National Executive of the Socialist Party. He is the founder of HMS (Hind Mazdoor Sabha), one of the six national federations affiliated to the Socialists. He was held for Gomia strike in 1965 fighting for the rights of workers.

He won from Dehri-on-Sone in the first General Elections of 1952 and becomes the first leader of the opposition from 1952 uptill 1962. Although being in the opposition,he was personally close to people cutting across party lines because many of them had fought shoulder to shoulder in the freedom struggle. He was well respected by all the nationalists of that era, including Jayaprakash Narayan, Anugrah Narayan Sinha and Sri Krishna Sinha and he was personally close to the Socialists of his era like Jayaprakash Narayan, Narendra Dev, Yusuf Meherally, Minoo Masani, Asoka Mehta, Achyut Patwardhan, Nath Pai, S. M. Joshi and others. He became a Member of the Legislative Council from 1962-68. He became one of the most powerful Cabinet Ministers (Cabinet Minister of Labour, Planning and Industry) in the 1967 Coalition Government. During the Emergency of 1975 he stayed underground for 19 months conducting the movement and his wife was jailed under MISA as a potential "threat" to the Government.

In 1977 he wins from Dehri-on-Sone and again becomes the Cabinet Minister for Labour, Planning and Industry in the Janata Party government in the state. He kept on guiding the Trade Union Movement and kept on fighting to keep the Janata Party intact till the last day of his life. He died on 7 April 1989.

He lived within very frugal means and was respected for his honesty and forthrightness. He was committed to the country for whose independence he was also instrumental. He kept guiding and working for the underprivileged, working class and agricultural labourers till the last day of his life.
He did not believe in the existence of God, much like the rest of his socialist comrades. He did not wear the sacred thread because he did not believe in segregation from the rest. Even his widowed mother supported the ideas of his only son. When he used to take his fellow revolutionaries to his mud house to have food, his mother never inquired about their caste even after being an orthodox Brahmin and used to serve them food. And it was only after his son along with other nationalists was gone that she used to wash the place with gangajal so that their feelings were not hurt.

The room of his house where he was born has fallen down and the whole house was in a dilapidated condition till recently when it was renovated to some extent by his descendants rather than the Government.

Basawon Singh (Sinha) was an extremely handsome personality with six feet five inches in height and extremely sharp featured with wheatish complexion.
[edit]Recognition

The Government of India issued a commemorative stamp in his name on 23/03/2000.There is an indoor stadium in his name in the city of Hajipur in Bihar.