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The private life of GPK
MAR 26 -
(On his escape from the Biratnagar prison in 1950)
I returned to Biratnagar after getting released but was arrested again in July 1950. I was kept at the army barracks in Biratnagar itself. As time went by, I realised it was time for revolution, and that I was useless inside a prison. So, I decided to escape.
I started devising escape plans. The person who brought me food from home used to be my messenger as well. But there were four soldiers with stun-guns outside my cell, which was itself on the third or the fourth floor. There was no way to escape from there, so I had to think of another way.
By now, I had become friendly with my captors. I told them, “The toilet here is extremely dirty. I can’t use it anymore; from now on, I will go outside.” And then, a routine started: I went out every evening in the bushes behind the prison, carrying a stick in fear of snakes. But the four soldiers would still accompany me.
But I had managed to send a message home: to send me khaki pants, shoes, and if possible, a khaki vest as well. Then, I got in touch with Bishwa Bandhu (Thapa), who told me he would keep a horse ready for me at a certain place and time.
One day, I buried the stick in the ground, and hung my prison shirt on it. I took off my pyjamas as well; I was wearing underwear underneath. Then, I slowly moved deeper into the bushes, and onto the main road. I knew even if they fired at me, I could always give the excuse of defecating.
As I came out on the main road, a soldier who had just been relieved of his duty saw me. I stood there for a while; he looked surprised. Then he blew the whistle. And I ran.
I could hear soldiers behind me; even dogs. I entered a village, and saw a tower of hay. I hid myself inside the hay, making sure to cover myself fully. I could see the soldiers shining their torches; they were telling each other, “He must have run off; now we are in trouble.”
(On how, after the 1973 plane hijack, Girija and Chakra Banstola fled to Darjeeling
with the stolen money)
hakra (Banstola) and I were near the Forbesgunj airport. There were two routes for the escape vehicles: one for me, and the other for Chakra.
We heard the plane after a while. It landed safely; we quickly put the cash boxes in the jeep, and sped off in the vehicle. But it broke down near the railway crossing at Bathanaha. It was the same crossing where I had tired when I escaped from the prison in 1950.
The jeep which had gone ahead of me also broke down, this time in front of a police station. The mechanic said the vehicle had stalled because of the heat…we covered the cash box with a scarf…a little further ahead, we took out the cash, and threw the empty box into the canal…
The vehicle ran out of fuel when we reached Siliguri. We didn’t have any cash except for the money that we had just robbed. I told the driver to get fuel; he refused out of fear that he would be arrested. I told him I had enough money to change all the four wheels of his jeep; only then did he agree…
We reached BL Sharma’s house in Darjeeling. BP was in Patna at the time. Sharma ji had a separate room for BP, and put me up in it. I told him, “Sandaju has written so much that the papers have filled a box. Please send the servant to carry the box to the room.” We kept the box under BP’s bed, and told Sharma ji that BP would come and look at the papers himself. Then we left (to get a drink).
(On his marriage to Sushma, despite fierce disapproval from his family members)
n 1950, Nona Bhauju along with other women had opened a school for women in Biratnagar. As there was a shortage of teachers, she called a friend, Sushma, from Benares. Sushma started working as a headmistress; she was well-educated, with a degree from Benares Hindu University. She used to live at our place; I slowly got to know her after this.
Sushma proposed that we get married. I told her, “Let’s wait; I will decide the dates.”...But my mother didn’t agree (to the marriage). I asked Sandaju. He said, “Girija, it’s good that you want to marry, but don’t you think this will affect the elections?”
He said that because Sushma had been married before (and was divorced). I told him, “Sandaju, marriage is a social affair. How will that affect the elections?” Then, he just told me to think again.
Mother had absolutely refused; no one else agreed. Only Kosu Daju (Keshav Prasad Koirala) agreed. I realised we couldn’t get married at home, and that we had to elope.
Nona Bhauju and Kosu Daju told me they will come wherever I decided to get married. I told them they had to come to Calcutta (Kolkata), and left with Yubraj Adhikari. We took an old, rattling vehicle to Forbesgunj, and then left for Calcutta on a train.
We decided to get married at the Botanical Gardens. Only Kosu Daju, Nona Bhauju, Shekhar (Koirala)—who was still a kid at the time, and Yubraj Adhikari were at my wedding. I put a garland around her. She put one around me. That was it. I put sindoor on her forehead, and all the ceremonies were over.
This was in 1952. We then sent a message to Biratnagar saying we were coming back. We thought no one would come to pick us up at Jogbani, but there were a few people. I didn’t know whether the marriage would be accepted; my family was an orthodox Brahmin family.
I told Sandaju to keep the (Nepali Congress) Working Committee meeting in Biratnagar. Sandaju, Subarna ji (Subarna Shumsher), Ganeshman ji, Surje babu (Surya Prasad Upadhyay), etc. were all there. I thought I had to give a party when they were here. Sandaju kept the meeting in Biratnagar.
That was how I got married to Sushma; unfortunately, I didn’t get to spend too many days with her (Sushma died in 1967).
(On his first meeting with King Mahendra, and a plea to release BP)
didn’t know how to speak the language of the darbar. I asked Tarini Dai, “How do I speak to the king?” He told me to start and end every sentence with Sarkar, and anything else will do. “Don’t forget to add sarkar,” he warned me again.
That’s all he taught me. It was my first meeting with a King. I didn’t know
the royal language, or how to speak.
The king (Mahendra) and I sat face to face. He spoke first, “Girija, politics is really pathetic. Look at me; I have had to arrest my best friend.” I told him straight, “Sarkar, you’ve kept him (BP) in jail for eight long years. Why is he still in jail?” Then I told him, “Sarkar, I don’t know how to speak darbariya language. I just like to talk straight.”
Mahendra then said, “You don’t have to be formal here. The formality is only outside these walls.”
Then I told him again, “Sarkar, BP has been in jail for eight years. If you release him, your public standing will rise in stature.” He said, “I have to get some space as well.” I said, “If you are asking for (political) space, what’s the difference between you and us? If the king asks for political space, this problem won’t get solved. Just let him (BP) go. Who will question you after that?”
(Translated by Amish Raj Mulmi)
Posted on: 2010-03-27 08:22
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