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In the “Jungle
Satyagraha” (Jungle=forest, satyagraha=literally, “insistence upon truth;
this was the peaceful civil disobedience movement, led by Mahatma Gandhi
against the British Junta in India) of 1930, P.P.Doctorjee vigorously led the
contingent from the city of Akola in Vidharba area of Central Provinces. He
was promptly arrested and jailed by the British. The jailor in charge of
Akola jail was one Mr. Ford, who was also the jailor for P.P.Doctorjee’s
imprisonment in previous Satyagrahas of 1920’s. He knew P.P.Doctorjee well.
In the 1920’s, P.P.Doctorjee organized several mini-Satyagrahas in the jails.
He successfully put an end to the practice which required that the inmates were to instantly come to
“attention” position and salute any Britisher, even a policeman, as soon as
he was within 50 feet. They were to remain frozen in that position until he
passed by and was more than 50 feet away. Failure to comply was punished by 25
lashes on the non-complier’s naked body at high noon on the next day, in the
presence of all inmates. P.P.Doctorjee’s hunger strike and Satyagraha
successfully ended this highly insulting practice. P.P.Doctorjee similarly
put an end to the confiscation of the “Yagnopaweeta” (the sacred thread),
which was automatically done to all prisoners as a rite after their entry
into the prison. This show of self-respect pleased Mr. Ford very much, since
he was an Irishman, and he did not have any sympathy for the empty rituals of
the British imperialist regime.
In the 1930 stint, P.P.Doctorjee used his persuasion to stop the weekly
“Parade” of inmates in front of the Britishers. He successfully reasoned with
Mr. Ford that many of the so-called “Prisoners” were indeed scholars, professors
and other highly respected people. In comparison, the British policemen were uncouth,
uncivilized brutes who lorded it over the scholars, who were political
detainees, not criminals. Mr. Ford agreed and this practice of weekly inmate
parade and salute stopped immediately.
Mr. Ford honored P.P.Doctorjee immensely and told about these incidents to
all his British friends. Most Indian inmates, needless to say, were so highly
respectful of P.P.Doctorjee that they became active Sangha workers right in
the jails themselves! Many of them became lifetime pracharaks (dedicated,
bachelor workers) after their release from the prison.
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