Sardar
Vallabhbhai Patel
Date of Birth : Oct 31, 1875 Date of
Death : Dec 15, 1950 Place of Birth : Gujarat
Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel was
born at his maternal uncle’s house in Nadiad, Gujarat. His actual date of birth
was never officially recorded – Patel entered October 31st as his date of birth
on his matriculation examination papers. He was the fourth son of Jhaverbhai
and Ladba Patel, and lived in the village of Karamsad, in the Kheda district.
Somabhai, Narsibhai and Vithalbhai Patel (also a future political leader) were
his elder brothers. He had a younger brother, Kashibhai, and a sister, Dahiba.
Patel helped his father in the fields, and bimonthly kept a day-long fast,
abstaining from food and water – a cultural observance that enabled him to
develop physical tougheness. He entered school late – parental attention was
focused on the eldest brothers, thus leading to a degree of neglect of Patel’s
education. Patel travelled to attend schools in Nadiad, Petlad and Borsad,
living self-sufficiently with other boys. He took his matriculation at the late
age of 22; at this point, he was generally regarded by his elder relatives as
an unambitious man destined for a commonplace job. But Patel himself harbored a
plan – he would pass the Pleader’s examination and become a lawyer. He would
then set aside funds, travel to England, then train to become a barrister.
During the many years it took him to
save money, Vallabhbhai – now a pleader – earned a reputation as a fierce and
skilled lawyer. He had also cultivated a stoic character – he lanced a painful
boil without hesitation, even as the barber supposed to do it trembled. Patel
spent years away from his family, pursuing his goals assiduously. Later, Patel
fetched Jhaverba from her parent’s home – Patel was married to Jhaverba at a
young age. As per Indian custom at the time, the girl would remain at her
mother’s house until her husband began earning – and set up his household. His
wife bore him a daughter, Manibehn, in 1904, and later a son, Dahyabhai, in
1906. Patel also cared for a personal friend suffering from Bubonic plague when
it swept the state. After Patel himself came down with the disease, he
immediately sent away his family to safety, left his home, and moved into an
isolated house in Nadiad (by other accounts, Patel spent this time in a
dilapidated temple); there, he recovered slowly. Patel took on the financial
burdens of his homestead in Karamsad even while saving for England and
supporting a young family. He made way for his brother Vithalbhai Patel to
travel to England in place of him, on his own saved money and opportunity. The
episode occurred as the tickets and pass Patel had applied for arrived in the name
of “V. J. Patel,” and arrived at Vithalbhai’s home, who bore the same initials.
Patel did not hesitate to make way for his elder brother’s ambition before his
own, and funded his trip as well. In 1909, Patel’s wife Jhaverba was
hospitalized in Bombay to undergo a major surgical operation for cancer. Her
health suddenly worsened, and despite successful emergency surgery, she died.
Patel was given a note informing him of his wife’s demise as he was
cross-examining a witness in court. As per others who witnessed, Patel read the
note, pocketed it and continued to intensely cross-examine the witness, and won
the case. He broke the news to others only after the proceedings had ended.
Patel himself decided against marrying again. He raised his children with the
help of his family, and sent them to English-medium schools in Mumbai (then
Bombay). At the age of 36, he journeyed to England and enrolled at the Middle
Temple Inn in London. Finishing a 36-month course in 30 months, Patel topped
his class despite having no previous college background. Patel settled in the
city of Ahmedabad, and became one of the city’s most successful barristers.
Wearing European-style clothes and urbane mannerisms, he also became a skilled
bridge player at the Gujarat Club. His close friends would include his
neighbours Dr. Balwantray and Nandubehn Kanuga, who would remain dear to him,
and a young lawyer, Ganesh Vasudev Mavlankar. He had also made a pact with his
brother Vithalbhai to support his entry into politics in Bombay, while Patel
himself would remain in Ahmedabad and provide for the family. According to some
of Patel’s friends, he nurtured ambitions to expand his practise and accumulate
great wealth, and to provide his children with modern education.
Vallabhbhai Patel was a major
political and social leader of India and its struggle for independence, and is
credited for achieving the political integration of independent India. In India
and across the world, he is known as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, where Sardar
stands for Chief in many languages of India. Patel organized the peasants of
Kheda, Borsad, and Bardoli in Gujarat in non-violent civil disobedience against
the oppressive policies imposed by the British Raj – becoming one of the most
influential leaders in Gujarat. He rose to the leadership of the Indian
National Congress and at the forefront of rebellions and political events –
organizing the party for elections in 1934 and 1937, and leading Indians into
the Quit India movement. He was imprisoned by the British government on
numerous occasions, especially from 1931 to 1934, and from 1942 to 1945.
Becoming the first Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of India, Patel
organized relief and rehabilitation efforts in the riot-struck Punjab and
Delhi, and led efforts to restore security. Patel took charge of the task to
forge a united India from a plethora of semi-independent princely states,
colonial provinces and possessions. Patel employed an iron fist in a velvet
glove diplomacy – frank political negotiations backed with the option (and the
use) of military action to weld a nation that could emancipate its people
without the prospect of divisions or civil conflict. His leadership obtained
the peaceful and swift integration of all 565 princely states into the Republic
of India. Patel’s initiatives spread democracy extensively across India, and
re-organized the states to help transform India into a modern federal republic.
His admirers call him the Iron Man of India. He is also remembered as the
“patron saint” of India’s civil servants for his defence of them against
political attack, and for being one of the earliest and key defenders of
property rights and free enterprise in independent India.
On 29 March 1949, a plane carrying
Patel and the Maharaja of Patiala lost radio contact, and Patel’s life was
feared for all over the nation. The plane had made an emergency landing in the
desert of Rajasthan upon an engine failure, and Patel and all passengers were
safe, and traced by nearby villagers. When Patel returned to Delhi, members of
Parliament and thousands of Congressmen gave him a raucous welcome. In
Parliament, MPs gave a thunderous ovation to Patel – stopping proceedings for
half an hour. Till his last few days, he was constantly at work in Delhi.
Patel’s health worsened after 2 November 1950, and he was flown to Bombay to
recuperate. After suffering a massive heart attack – his second – he died in
Bombay on December 15th, 1950. In an unprecedented gesture, more than 1,500
officers of India’s civil and police services congregated at Patel’s residence
in Delhi on the day after his death to mourn him – they pledged “complete
loyalty and unremmitting zeal” in India’s service. His cremation in Sonapur,
Bombay, was attended by large crowds, Nehru, Rajagopalachari, President Prasad and
many Congressmen and freedom fighters.
No comments:
Post a Comment