द इण्डियन स्ट्रगल / भारतीय स्वाधीनता संग्राम (नेताजी सुभाष चन्द्र बोस - ऐतिहासिक विश्लेषण)

198 'THE INDIAN STRUGGLE
The same month—in November—the annual meeting of
the Bengal Congress Committee was held for electing office-
bearers, etc. At that meeting it was found that two groups
had formed within the Committee, one following the leader-
ship of the late Mr. Sengupta and the other of the writer.
There was a keen contest and the latter party ultimately won
by a narrow margin. This was the beginning of the Bengal
dispute and the split in the Congress Committee led to a
split among the youths and students as well. The breach
had begun at the time of the Calcutta Congress when the late
Mr. Sengupta supported the Mahatma and wanted the writer
to do so. Since then a separate party had grown up in Bengal
under the leadership of the late Mr. Sengupta which stood for
unquestioning obedience to the Mahatma and his policy.
The majority party in Bengal did not bind itself to the
Mahatma in that way and in its outlook and programme, it
was allied with the Left-Wing opposition to the Mahatma in
the Congress.
The Congress leaders, Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Motilal
Nehru were to meet the Viceroy in December. On the eve of
that interview an unfortunate event took place. There was
an attempt to wreck the Viceroy's train, but fortunately
nothing serious happened and Lord Irwin had a providential
escape. The longed-for interview took place but it proved
abortive. The Congress leaders wanted an assurance from
the British Government, or at least from the Viceroy, that
Dominion Status would be granted to India, but that assurance
was not forthcoming. They had therefore to leave the
Viceroy disappointed and come to the Lahore Congress with
empty hands.¹ The general atmosphere in the country was
in favour of an extremist policy. Throughout the year there
had been unrest. In Punjab, following the arrest of Sardar
Bhagat Singh and his comrades, the Naujawan Bharat Sabha
had done a lot of propaganda on their behalf. The self-
immolation of Jatin Das had further electrified the atmosphere.
¹ It is generally believed that neither the British Government nor
Lord Irwin could give any assurance to Mahatma Gandhi because of the
opposition raised in England by Mr. Churchill, Lord Birkenhead, Lord
Reading and others, soon after the Viceregal pronouncement of October
31st, 1929.