Life in Multan Jail

We were all sent to the Multan Jail. We were quite a few persons from Delhi, who were handcuffed and taken together from Delhi to Multan (Punjab). It was officially known as National Jail. As it was newly constructed, it was called New Jail. There were twelve wards in that prison, with thousands of prisoners. We were kept in separate cells and were not allowed to go to any other ward. All of us had been given small cells and our beds were made of cement. On that there was a mattress, which was filled up with wheat stalks or bhoosa. Jail clothes were given to us and they took our civilian clothes. We were very happy to have those jail clothes.

I was to be given ‘A’ Class, as per the verdict of the judge. When I reached Multan Jail, I was told that they did not have any provision for ‘A’ class and I was put in ‘B’ class ward. Most of my co-prisoners were from Punjab and Delhi. Probably, we were more than a hundred persons, belonging to different religions and groups — Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Sannyasis, Maulvis, Sanatan Dharma leaders, hakims, vaidyas, doctors, teachers, professors, educationists, social reformers.

From Delhi, there was Lala Shamnath, who became a Deputy Minister in the Government of Independent India. Another was a teacher from Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi. Four or five years ago I went to Jamia Millia and met this fellow prisoner and freedom fighter. Dr. Prakash Chand from Lahore was friendly with me. Choudhary Sherjung was said to be a political dacoit, who had committed dacoities for political purposes. He was a brave youth and was much younger than me. We were in the same ward. In another ward, there were the Sikhs of the ship Kamagata Maru. They had come in this ship and landed at Calcutta and were arrested and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment. There was also a ward for Pathans who were sentenced to life-imprisonment, and they were the most powerful and brave people. Most of them were above six feet in height.

The distribution of the rations was in the hands of the Pathans as they were senior and old people. They wore a yellow dress. There used to be a system in jail that prisoners who underwent long imprisonment were given yellow dress, after wearing black dress in early years. They were all very nice. We were given two or three convicts to help us in cooking food. We had divided our work among political prisoners. Our people used to bring rations every day from the ration department. Even though it took us some days to learn cooking, we were cooking food ourselves. In our free-time we used to play handball and specially badminton for four to five hours everyday.

We were always doing something or the other which would not be palatable to the jail authorities. So the first punishment imposed on me was that my correspondence was stopped. I could not write any letter or receive any letter. After a few days, my interviews were stopped and nobody could come to meet me. After another few days, I was put in handcuffs for about four hours a day. After one month or so, I was put in iron fetters and had to sleep like that. Subsequently, I was removed from the ward and was put in solitary confinement for three months. I was also given eighteen seers of wheat to grind everyday. When I refused to do so, the jail authorities increased the quantity of wheat to twenty seers for grinding.

We were not taken out even to lavatories, and we had to attend to nature calls in the solitary cell itself. Food also was brought there. We had to clean our cells and keep our bedding in proper condition. When the jailor came, we were obliged to stand and salute. Once I was sitting with my back against the door, when the jailor came. I remember that the warden made me stand by force — my legs were stretched, my hands were stretched and my right hand was pulled up and put on my forehead as a salute. Then I was shouting against this ill treatment and crude behaviour. The jailor had come that day with his subordinate officers and asked them to go away. He came into my cell and locked it from inside. He talked to me for more than two hours trying to make me agree to abide by the jail rules and regulations. I retorted: “We have not come here to save our lives and we prefer even to die here. We are not going to obey your rules and regulations which are not proper. We have come to the jail to liberate our country from foreign yoke, we don’t care for petty considerations like personal safety or personal life and all that.” He tried his very best but could not convince me. He went away in anger.

The next day tiktikki was brought and put in front of our solitary cells. It was a contraption to which we were bound and by which our naked bodies were caned. And we were already in bar fetters ... our ankles were so much wounded. Whenever we had to turn, the face of bar fetters had to be turned to this side or that side. After a week or so, they put some medicine on our wounded ankles. They also put leather covering, just exactly as it is put on the horses, so that the iron of the bar fetters do not directly hurt our skin or bones. And one of the leather covers which I used to put on, I brought, and is still with me.

About grinding, I wanted to mention that we did not even touch the chakki (grinding wheel) for the first few days. But one well-wisher advised us: “Please grind some wheat at least. You may grind half a seer or one seer. If you do not grind at all, they can produce you before the magistrate and another six months’ imprisonment can be given. So it is better to grind the minimum quantity instead of not grinding at all.” Even though I was not inclined to do, I had to accede to the advice of my friend. I was enraged by this cruel punishment and shouted at the jail Superintendent: “Who is going to grind? Is it your father who is going to come and grind?” Of course, he was very angry and got my cell opened and started beating me, pulling and making me stand and all that. Then the most cruel punishment, tiktikki, was put for caning our naked bodies. It was to start with me.

In the meantime, the entire Pathan Ward, who were about 150-200 life prisoners, threatened: “If any one is tortured, we will break open the doors and gates of the jail. We will kill all the wardens.” This was the story on our side, and outside the Jail, twenty to twenty-five thousand citizens of Multan came out and collected at the jail main gate and started shouting against the cruelties perpetrated against the political prisoners. The exciting thing that happened was that the jailor’s only son fell very ill with a fever of 104° to 105° F. The jailor’s wife told him: “You are so cruel and that is why our son has fallen sick and there may be a calamity.” Then, probably he was either frightened or some saner counsel prevailed on him. He came to our ward, opened the solitary cells, and got quite a number of new durries put in the lawn where the tiktikki was placed, and the tiktikki was removed. When the durries were arranged on the lawn, we were all taken out. Our bar fetters were broken with hammers with great difficulty. And then, we were sent back to our ward. So this was one side of jail life. The other side was total enjoyment, joking, laughing, playing pranks and dramatising. We enjoyed every bit of our life in the prison.

We used to have shastrartha: some sort of debate. Once it was on meat eating. All the participants were learned persons and from different religions and schools of thought — Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Arya Samajists, Sanatanists etc. Two groups were formed and one was for meat-eating and the other group was against the proposition. It was all in a very hilarious mood and in sportive spirit. The debate continued for about three months. We used to have the debate for more than an hour or two. We had to refer to standard books and, hence, we used to borrow books from libraries and other sources from the Arya Samaj in Lahore, in order to cite quotations and give proofs and arguments in support of the proposition. The other group used to prove by quotations and arguments that meat-eating had been in vogue even in the Ashwamedha yajna and during Sri Rama’s time. And the Rajas and Maharajas used to eat meat. This sort of activity was highly intellectual and a brilliant pastime. It was a novel way of education for us. In the end nobody could finally prove whether meat-eating is good or  bad.

Even though our (Multan) jail was new, the management and arrangements were bad. The latrines were not properly cleaned. We had been complaining often to the authorities about the bad conditions and upkeep of latrines. But they never cared. Then we decided to show an example by cleaning the latrines ourselves. There again, I took the lead. I dressed up as scavenger, with a turban on my head, a basket under my left arm, a broom and other implements in my right hand. I did my job well and others too followed. We enjoyed our work and it became a habit which we kept up until we were released from jail. We could keep the latrines so clean and so nice that we felt even most kitchens are not kept so clean. This was one of the dramas which we enjoyed.

As I was young, naughtiness was part of my nature. The other small mercies were playing cards, games, solving riddles, titbits etc. We were fighting with jail authorities to permit us to sleep outside during the summer. Of course, there was a tough fight. Finally, we won the fight and we were sleeping outside. One night I just got up and took away everybody’s shoes and placed them in the next ward. When they got up next morning, they could not find their shoes. They were bewildered about the disappearance of their shoes. After two or three hours, the warden from the other side came and said: “How is it that your shoes are lying on the other side?” I said, “We do not know how it happened.” The matter was reported to the jail Superintendent. After a number of days, I revealed that I had played the prank. But nobody could imagine or believe it. These were innocent and naughty pranks. Such things, of course, we resorted to often.

Sometimes, we would fuse the electric lights. The lights would be off and there would be darkness in the jail and a lot of shouting and jeers. In those days there used to be two and four anna coins; with these it was easy to fuse the bulbs. We would take out the bulb from the holder, put a chavanni or duvanni i.e. four or two anna coin inside the holder, put the bulb back and then switch it on. Then the electric line would be fused and the lights of the entire jail would be off and then all the shouting and shrieking would start. More than a thousand or two thousand people shouting and shrieking was rocking the entire jail, it was very enjoyable. We used to enjoy these things.

My father and wife came to meet me. I had got married only a year back. My wife used to have a long ghunghat (veil), specially so because she was with her father-in-law. But my interviews were stopped and I was not allowed to go and meet them. But then the jail Superintendent sent a word that I might be allowed to go out to have interviews. But, I refused. I said: “When my interviews are stopped why should I go out? I will not go. First that order should be cancelled.” By chance, one of the senior police officers in Multan was Sardar Narayan Das, who was my cousin. His grandfather and my grandfather were real brothers. So my father went to him and brought him. He came directly to my cell along with the Superintendent of the jail. In spite of my refusal and obstinacy, they just dragged and forced me out to see my father and my wife. Then I went but I did not have any talk with them because I was angry and haughty in those days. So I went out and came away immediately. The solitary confinement did not leave any scar on my mind because it was self-invited for a noble cause. Personally, I enjoyed each and every thing there. Even now, anyone can see my ankles with healed wounds and they are so conspicuous. I was in Multan jail for nine months and was released on account of Gandhi-Irwin pact in 1931.