Respected president of the reception committee, ladies and gentlemen!

Please accept my heartfelt gratitude for the honour you have bestowed by welcoming me as the president of this Provincial Conference with so much affection. You have always shown your love to the servants of the motherland, which is more glorious than heaven. For the past few years I too have tried to make my life meaningful by serving our motherland. The foreign bureaucracy looks upon such efforts to serve the motherland with suspicion and a patriot has to suffer much humiliation and torture. But you welcome the humiliated servant with honour and love, and shower your affection and best wishes with the natural effervescence of the emotional Bengali race. However, I am compelled to admit that I have accepted this honour not because of my personal qualifications, but as a representative of Bengal’s awakened youth, whom you have really honoured. I am still young and one among the innumerable travellers on the road to freedom. Bless me O sons of mother Bengal, so that I may become worthy of this love and honour you have shown me; so that I can confidently keep walking on this road, which I took at the beginning of my youth, without cowardice, fatigue and any temptation.

The place where we have gathered today is rich in history. This land has in it intricately woven stories of many bright mornings and dark nights; stories of many civilisations have left their footprint here. The memory of that rich heritage is almost lost from the Bengali consciousness. But ignorance of its history cannot lead a nation to its renascence. Therefore, on this ancient and sacred Barendra land, let us lift the veil of time, and re-assess the past glory of Rangpur.

This place is associated with Mahadeva (Shiva) through ancient legends. You have today invited a freedom-seeker in this abode of Shiva. By the conspiracy of time, sons of the immortal being have lost their divinity and are hurtling towards death; we have gathered here today amongst the ruins of that past to meditate on the dead.

During the era of Mahabharat, Rangpur was a part of Kamrup or Pragjyotish. Bhagadatta, one of the kings of Rangpur, supposedly named the place after constructing his palace here. Later, the famous Pal dynasty ruled this area, one of the significant kings of the dynasty being Dharmapal. Manik Chandra defeated Dharmapal and established his own kingdom. Songs about Manik Chandra are still popular in many places. These songs tell us about the miraculous powers of Manik Chandra’s wife Maynamati and the heart-rending stories of their son Gopi Chandra and his two wives - Aduna and Paduna. Subsequently, when the kings of Niladhwaj family ruled North Bengal, Rangpur remained as one of their capitals. During the Muslim rule of Bengal, Rangpur was ruled by Hussain Shah, a wise and conscientious ruler. When anarchy prevailed towards the end of Muslim rule and the beginning of the British era,, hundreds of sannyasis and thousands of fearless patriots sacrificed their lives to achieve freedom, lead by people like Bhavani Pathak and Debi Chaudhurani. These amazing events form the basis of Bankim Chandra’s novels Ananda Math and Debi Chaudhurani – through which he has ushered in the renaissance of the modern age. The Rangpur district has provided so much food for thought and stimulus for creativity to the high priest of nationalism – the poet, artist and litterateur Bankim Chandra! Who can say that seer Bankim Chandra’s vision of the past, present and future India, that he has made immortal through his pen, was not developed in Rangpur?

Any discussion on Rangpur reminds us of Barendrabhum, the dream-like memories of Gaud and Pal kingdom. The Rangpur of today was a part of the Barendrabhum where the kings were known for their valour and heroism, more than thousand years ago; the land where the refinements in art, literature and intellect of Bengalis blossomed. It occupied the place of pride in the Bengalis’ history of glory and valour.

A great conflict between the rulers and people of Barendrabhum in the seventh and eighth centuries resulted in chaos and anarchy. Emerging victorious in the struggle, the people elected Gopal Dev as their king. After some time, the people again became rebellious against the tormenting rule of Mahipal - one of the Pal kings. Mahipal was dethroned and killed in the struggle. In his place the people enthroned Dibbok, a talented individual from the Kaibarta caste. After a few years of Kaibarta rule, the Pals once again usurped the throne. Under Devpal, Bengalis established a vast empire which spread from the Himalayas in the North to the Vindhyas in the South and from the West coast to the Eastern coast. According to the Garuda pillar, Devpal ruled over Utkal, and defeated the Huns as well as Dravid and Gurjar Kings. The war ships of the empire crisscrossed the rivers of India and its commercial ships travelled to Ceylon, Sumatra and Java for trade.

This is the story of almost a millennium ago. This worn out moth-eaten history probably seems like a fantasy to the Bengalis of this age.

Therefore, before I say anything on the duties of Bengalis today, I would like to talk about the course of Bengal’s history, its real nature, its ideals and its endeavours. How can one, who is not aware of the true Bengal, happiness and remorse of the Bengalis, or their hopes and desires, advise them on their duty?

Though there are differences in different districts, the history, society and religion of Bengal is an undivided truth. That is why Deshbandhu Chittaranjan once said – “There is an eternal truth in the soil of Bengal. That truth has expressed itself in novel ways in different ages. It is that eternal truth that has been expressed through innumerable changes, evolution and revolution in Bengal. It is that truth which has proclaimed itself in literature, philosophy, poetry, war, revolution, religion and karma, in ignorance, in unrighteousness, in freedom and in subjection. That is Bengal’s life – Bengal’s soil, Bengal’s water are the external forms of that life.”

The Bengali civilisation did not develop in one day. No flower can bloom in one day. Much preparatory work is essential for its development. Each petal of the lotus of Bengali civilisation contains many songs, many stories. Its fragrance carries sweet memories of many ages and its stalk has in it the experiences of many centuries.

Bengal has an eternal ideal. Bengal has an enduring message to proclaim to the world. The history of the Bengalis has always strived to give expression to that message, and will always do so. We may forget our history, but Bengal’s history and its vital force will never leave us. Bengal has always desired diversity, unity and equality. Bengalis like some uniqueness and novelty in any work they do. They are naturally dynamic and change-seekers – probably it won’t be an exaggeration to call them revolutionaries. Innumerable instances are available to prove this, even during the Vedic age.

During the Vedic age, the eastern region, comprising of Magadh, Banga, etc. was known as the Kirat country. This region was out of bounds of the Aryan civilisation, and any Aryan who entered the region was considered an outcaste. The habitants of this area were in constant conflict with the Aryans. Although the Aryans called them by names such as Anarya, Dasyu etc, the Vedas and the Mahabharat show that they were highly civilised. The gradual expansion of the Aryan civilisation in the Eastern region or Greater Magadh resulted in the establishment of the Smriti culture in the region. Gradually, the Aryans were no more considered outcastes if they entered this region. With the lifting of the taboo on interaction with the Kirat country, the people of this region were assimilated in the Aryan society.

The culture that developed in this region under the influence of the Aryan civilisation can be called Magadhi culture. The initial centre of this cultural development was Magadh, and as Magadh merged with the northern belt (known as Uttarapath), Bengal emerged as the new centre of Magadhi culture. However, after being under the spell of Vedic civilisation for some time, people of the Eastern region could no longer tolerate the religious rituals and the caste system (Varnashram) of the Vedic culture. At that point of time, two revolutionary courses developed and spread out of this region – Buddhism and Jainism. The Greater Maghadh strived to break down the walls in the society and to establish equality (samya) through this revolution. The idea was to reach the pinnacle of humanity through disinterested work (karma) and service focussing on the present life as opposed to focussing on the afterlife practiced by Vedic rituals and culture. Many centuries later, the Vaishnav poet also spread the ideal of this humanism by saying

These ideals of equality and humanism found expression in political principles of the state as well. It was during the Buddhist era when democracy was established in Greater Magadh. Historians have been able to identify around eighty democratic kingdoms during this era. Very few of us remember that most of the Tirthankars - the great men of Jainism, a religion that is now relegated only to the Western parts of India, and a religion that Bengalis have forsaken – were born in the non-Aryan Magadh and Bengal provinces. If the soil and water of the land, which first stood up in rebellion against Vedic religion through Buddhism and Jainism, is favourable to revolutionary outlook, then who is to blame?