A group of elderly men congregated at the bandstand area of the Freedom Fighters’ Park devoid of noise and recalled stories of the freedom struggle, and the various trials faced by freedom fighters to see India as an independent nation.
Independence movement activist and former MP V S Krishna Iyer recollected the days since 1942 till date and was saddened by the current state of affairs in the country.
“If only we had foreseen the recent developments, probably we might have not fought for the nation’s independence from the British government,” said Krishna Iyer, who represented Bangalore South as MP of the 8th Lok Sabha.
It is time we transform Quit India Movement, also popularly known as the Bharat Chhodo Andolan or the August Kranti, to ‘Quit Corruption’, as corruption has become all pervasive and reached its peak, involving misappropriations to the tune of thousands of crores of rupees, he asserted.
N R Mathad, General Secretary of All India Freedom Fighters’ Samithi said he was 15-years-old when he participated in the Quit India Movement from Belgaum.
His eyes glinted and there was a noticeable pride in his voice as he recounted his meeting with Mahatma Gandhi during his visit to Hudli village in Belgaum district in 1937.
Mathad highlighted the ill-treatment being meted out to the freedom fighters by both the civil society and the State Government. He also observed that fake freedom fighters were enjoying benefits, while genuine fighters were being neglected.
Govindaraj, Association president highlighted the importance of Seppings Road, which lies close to the park, in the annals of the freedom struggle.
“The British cavalry were on an intense search for the freedom fighters along the Seppings Road. To avoid imprisonment we spilled ragi on the road making the movement of the cavalry difficult, in turn providing us with ample time to escape,” narrated Govindaraj.
Each freedom fighter is a repository of numerous such tales of adventure and bravery during the freedom struggle. But, there are hardly any listeners, added Mathad.
It was Gandhiji’s dream to make India a ‘Ramaraj’ but rampant and deep-rooted corruption is only converting the nation into a ‘Ravanaraj,’ he observed.