LAL BAHADUR SHASTRI

He shares Mahatma Gandhi's birthday on october 2,though he was born in varnasi many
years later in 1904.All his life,he was devoted to the Mahatma's way of life.He was
independent India's second prime minister and probably the one we know the least about.

                        Do you know who he was? Lal Bahadur Shastri! When Lal Bahadur was just four months old, his paretns - Sharada Prasad and Ramdulari Devi- went to watch the sankranti or spring festival on february 14th on the banks of Ganga at Prayag.The day was warm,the steps along the river side were slippery, the teeming crowd all around them Jostled and buzzed. Suddenly, the baby tumbled out of his mother's arms. While Sharada Prasad hunted desperately for the child they called nanhey or little one,Ramdulari Devi sat on the steps and wept inconsolably. Hours later, they found a childless boatman who had picked up a crying baby in a basket floating by and taken the child for his own!Luckily,Lal Bahadur's parents found their son and reclaimed him.Can you imagine the joy they felt when they re-united with their tiny tot?

                        Sharda prasad was a poor school teacher at varanasi.He and his wife already had two daughters, before Lal Bahadur was born.He soon became everyone's pet.But tragedy came into Lal Bahadur's life early.Sharda prasad died when the child was just one and half years old. Don't you wonder if he ever thought of his father as often as you do of yours?

                        RamDulari Devi and the children soon shifted to Mirzapur to stay with her father. Once he had completed his primary schooling there, Lal Bahadur went to the Harishchandra Vidyalaya in varnasi to study further. Though he stayed with his aunts husband he often felt very homesick, especially when they treated him badly or scolded him without cause. Is that feeling familiar to you?

                        Lal Bahadur's Guru at school was the mathematics teacher, NishKameshwar Prasad Mishra. He did often take his young students to the sandy banks of Ganga. Seated by the holy river, he would explain to them what Bal Gangadhar meant by his slogan,"SWARAJ IS MY BIRTH RIGHT AND I SHALL HAVE IT". This fired Lal Bahadur's imagination. He also loved to hear Patriotic stories about Maha Rana Pratap, Chatrapati Shivaji, Guru Govind Sing and others. Doesn't that make you wish your history lessons were as lively as his were?

                        Mishra quickly perceieved how homesick Lal Bahadur was. He often took him to his own home, so that his wife could bring up the boy as their fourth son. Lal Bahadur thought of mishra as a foster father for rest of his life.

                        Remember,this was at a time when Mahatma Gandhi was stirring Indians to rise against the British rulers. When Lal Bahadur was eleven Mahatma addressed lakhs of people at a gathering at the Banaras Hindu University. Listening to him, the boy> wondered "How can such a gentle man be so magnetic? What is his magic hold on the masses?"
Lal Bahadur soon realised that truth and justice mattered more to him than life.

                        The Champaran Satyagraha of the Indigo farmers took place in 1917. Then came the Rowlatt Act. The terrible Jalianwalla Bagh massacre of innocents followed soon after. That's when the Mahatma asked Indians not to make use of anything foreign,including schools,offices,courts and clothes.He called for non-violent non-cooperation. Thousands left British schools in response to his call.Lal Bahadur was among them.Did he take this step on impulse?Not really.Mishra advised him not to leave school.He reminded his student that Ramdulari Devi and his sisters depended on him.But Lal Bahadur wouldn't listen this time. "THIS IS THE CALL OF MY COUNTRY",he answered,his thoughtful eyes fixed on the future . That's how Lal Bahadur Shastri joined the ranks of Indian Patriots. Aren't you glad that this simple lad from Varnasi led our country for a while?