Bina Das - Erased from history the courageous freedom fighter

Bina Das is one such notable figure among Indian revolutionaries, such as Bhagat Singh, Chandra Shekhar Azad, and Rajguru, who fought fiercely against the British Raj for India’s freedom.

Today, India is celebrating its 79th Independence Day. This is very common among the masses to be aware of the men revolutionaries, but in the context of women, except for some, most people don’t even know about the women revolutionaries, like Bina Das and others. Many women revolutionaries, such as Kalpana Dutta, Preetilata Wadekar, Suniti Chaudhry, etc., have been equally active during the freedom movements, like other leaders.

Bina Das was one such young revolutionary from Bengal who fought against the British Raj. As per the Zubaan published book Bina Das: A Memoir, Bina Das’s involvement was in the shooting of the British Governor of Bengal, Stanley Jackson, at the Annual Convocation Meeting of Calcutta University in 1932. She had done this revolutionary act at the very young age of 21. She became one of the first women in Indian history who take up arms against the British Raj.

Who was Revolutionary Bina Das?

Bina Das was born in 1911. She was the daughter of Neta ji Subash Chandra’s teacher, Beni Madhab Das. Her mother, Sarala Devi, was a social worker. She completed her schooling at St. John’s Diocesan Girls’ Higher Secondary School. She was active in the revolutionary activities since the beginning.

Because of her political interest, she joined Chhatri Sangha (Women Student Association) established in 1928 upon completion of her secondary school education, and became a permanent member. Chhatri Sangha was a semi-revolutionary outfit for women in Kolkata at that time. It helped women to raise their political awareness who were dedicated to India’s independence, with the skills to become revolutionary figures.

It was also a group of 100 members from Brahmo Girls’ School, Victoria School, Bethune College, Diocesan College, and Scottish Church College, operational in Kolkata, which trained women revolutionaries. It arranged study groups through which the women were taught everything, from lathi and swordplay to cycling and motor driving. Bina Das got her B.A. degree in English from Diocesan College.

Assassination of British Governor: A big Revolutionary Act at the age of 21

On 6 February 1932, Bina Das, with all her courage, entered the Senate House of Calcutta University, where the British Governor Stanley Jackson was a guest for the university’s convocation speech. She wisely hid the revolver under her skirt, waited for a perfect place to shoot.

As the Governor started his speech, she put the revolver carefully and opened fire at him. She fired a total of five bullets shot to the Governor. Her revolutionary act as a girl became a popular headline at that time. It became the source of motivation for other Indian women to actively participate in the freedom struggle of India. After this, she was arrested and jailed for nine years; these years were very rigorous for her.

After nine years of punishment, she was released from jail. She would again be active in freedom movements. Bina Das joined the Quit India Movement with full passion and also joined the revolutionary Club, Jugantar. She again went to jail for three years.

After the Independence of India, she was continuously active in social activities. She married a freedom fighter, Jyotish Bhowmick, in 1947. After the death of her husband, she left Kolkata and started life in Rishikesh, where she died anonymously. Bina Das was awarded the Padma Shri award in 1960 for her extraordinary contribution to India’s independence and social work.