Rudyard Kipling"
āWhen you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldierā
General Douglas MacArthur"
āWe are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.ā
āIt is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.ā āOld soldiers never die; they just fade away.
āThe soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.ā
āMay God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .ā āThe object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
āNobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
āIt is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
But on 18th August, A Hindu decided to resist the Muslim mobs! He was a Bengali Brahmin & his name was Gopal Mukherjee. His friends used to call him Patha coz he used to run a meat shop.
He used to live at Malanga Lane in the Bowbazar area of Kolkata.
Gopal was 33 year old that time, & a staunch nationalist, and firm follower of Subash Chandra Bose & critique of Gandhiās principle of non-violence.
Gopal used to run a street organization Bharat Jatiya Bahini. He had 500 - 700 people in his team - all were well-trained wrestlers.
On 18th Aug Gopal decided that they will not run away, & will will do a counter attack on the Muslims.
He called his wrestlers, gave them weapons. A Marwari businessman decided to finance him, & gave him adequate money.
His plan was first to secure Hindu areas by counter attacks.
His words were āKill 10 Muslims for every 1 Hindu!ā
Thr Muslim League had lakhs of jihadis, while Gopal had only few hundred fighters, but they made a plan, & decided to fight till end to save Kolkata becoming a Muslim city.
They made the rules that unlike Muslims they will not touch any enemy women n children.
Gopal himself was having 2 pistols that he had got from Azad Hind Fauj. From the afternoon of 18th Aug, Hindus under leadership of Gopal, started to fight back.
On 18th, when the Muslims came to Hindu colony to kill Hindus, they were greeted by Gopalās team.
Gopalās team killed each n every Muslim mobster who came to kill the Hindus & by the 19th, they had secured all Hindu colonies.
It was a complete surprise for Suhrawardy.
He didnāt think that Hindus will resist in this way.
When by 19th August they had secured Hindu areas, their revenge started from 20th August.
They marked all Jehadis who killed Hindus on 16th and 17th August & attacked them on 20th August.
By 19th the message was passed (reached) to all Hindus, that Hindus under the leadership of Gopal, were fighting the Muslims!
So by 21st August, a lot of Hindus had joined him, now started the revenge of the Hindus!
They killed so many Muslims in 2 days, that by 21st, deaths of Muslims outnumbered the deaths of Hindus!
The game had changed by 22nd August now! The Muslims were running away from Kolkata.
Suhrawardy accepted his defeat, & rushed to Congress leaders to request them to stop Gopal Patha, who had become Yamraj for the Muslims.
Gopal got ready on the conditions that all Muslims surrender their weapons to him, that Suhrawardy accepted.
Jinnah's plan to capture Kolkata was shattered by 22nd August.
The Bhagwa Flag was flying in Kolkata.
After Kolkata, Gopal did not dissolve his organization, and kept saving Hindus of Bengal.
When everything was over, as Police comes at the end of a feature film, Gandhi met to Gopal with his lessons of non violence, and Hindu-Muslim Unity, and asked him to surrender his Shastras (weapons).
Gopalās words were āGandhi called me twice, I didnāt go. The third time, some local Congi leaders told me that I should at least deposit some of my arms. I went there. I saw people coming and depositing weapons, which were of no use to anyone, out-of-order pistols, that sort of thing!"
Then Gandhiās Secretary said to me: āGopal, why donāt you surrender your arms to Gandhiji?ā
Gopal replied, `"With these arms, I saved the women of my area, I saved the people. I will not surrender them. Where was Gandhiji, I said, during the Great Calcutta Killing? Where was he then? Even if Iāve used a nail to kill someone, I wonāt surrender even that nail!ā
Suhrawardy said āWhen Hindus make up their minds to fight back, they are the most deadly and lethal race in the world!"
Gopal Patha and Syama Prasad Mukherjee were the two legendary heroes who saved the Hindus of Bengal from Jehadi Muslim mobsters!
But before reading this, how many of you were aware of Gopal Patha?
Since Gopal did not follow Gandhiās principle, his name was removed from books of history.
But he is the unsung Hero of India, who saved lives of lakhs of people.
