Choice of profession and career as a lawyer.
In the year 1893 Chitta Ranjan came back to India and joined the
Calcutta Bar. The profession of law was not to his taste, for his
literary talents dictated him to take up the role of a teacher. But
the consideration of the heavy liabilities of his father left him no
other alternative. He thought that in the legal profession alone was
there any chance of clearing off his paternal debts. To choose a
profession is always a perplexing business and it was doubly so in the
case of Chitta Ranjan. It is especially perplexing if to choose a
profession means to discover one's own capability and to do the work
one is fitted to undertake in life. "How unfold one's little bit of
talent; and live, and not lie sleeping while it is called To-day."
That is the great problem. But it occurs only to those who are
troubled with a sense of duty and not to those whose ambition is to
"get on". It was therefore no small embarrassment for Chitta Ranjan to
choose the legal profession.
Within a short time of his joining the Calcutta Bar, Chitta Ranjan
took upon himself the responsibility of all his father's debts; but as
a newly enrolled Barrister, he earned very little and therefore could
not hope to clear the heavy debts of his father immediately. This
forced him at the very commencement of his professional career to join
his father in seeking the protection of the Insolvency court. It was
not because he wished to get rid of the liabilities but in the absence
of any other alternative he declared himself as an Insolvent which act
weighed heavily on his mind and was the source of much uneasiness.
However it was not only a filial duty, but a point of honour with
Chitta Ranjan to share the indignity with his father. This was the
first instance of Chitta Ranjan's honesty and uprightness during his
professional career.
The first stage of a professional career is very tormenting. There
lies all around only palpable darkness where occasionally beams forth
the flickering light of hope. At that time the whole future life
appears to be a desert where the faint ray of hope glimmers like a
mirage. But it is almost unconceivable how tormenting must have been
the state of mind when over and above this uncertainty there was the
uneasiness arising from heavy liabilities and consequent loss of
social prestige. But one thing haunted his mind day and night and
caused him the greatest pain. By his insolvency he was very seriously
handicapped not only in his professional but also in his public life.
But for it, Chitta Ranjan would have long ago thrown himself into all
political and patriotic movements of his country and won the position
of leadership which has now fallen upon him and to which he was
entitled by his capacity, patriotism and uncommon talents.
Though his exceptional abilities were universally recognised, from the
very beginning of his career, as a member of the High Court Bar, he
could not secure adequate scope for them for a good many years;
pecuniary struggles forced him to abandon the chances of a successful
practice in the High Court for the mofussil practice which is more
profitable to a junior Barrister. Indeed at that time he was put into
such pecuniary difficulties that he could not even meet his house-hold
expenses with all his exertions and on many an occasion he had to walk
the whole way to the court for want of tramfare. But his was a spirit
which the frowns of adversity could not daunt. By dint of energy and
perseverance he pushed on and on till at last he became one of the
most prominent and honoured members of the Bar. True genius does not
long remain concealed, it waits for an opportune moment to reveal
itself. Chitta Ranjan's genius as a lawyer waited for such an
opportunity and in no time manifested itself before the admiring gaze
or the public.
The years 1907 and 1908 are ever memorable in the history of Bengal.
The current of a new spirit had flowed in, inundating every nook and
corner of the province. The soul of the nation became awake. A divine
touch had just broken the eternal sleep of the nation. Lashed into
action by the high-handed measures of Lord Curzon, the lethargy of the
people died away, they tried for the first time to stand upon their
own legs and boldly face the world without fear of death. In an evil
moment Lord Curzon sanctioned the partition of Bengal against the
united voice of the people. This led to the manifestation of a new
spirit in Bengal. A heavy out-burst of Anti-European feeling followed;
a strong hatred against every form of Europeanism, a revengeful
attitude to their commerce and industry, a growing apathy to
everything associated with them, led to the repudiation or abandoning
immediate Anglicised past, and a new spirit entered into politics and
created a mighty and dynamic yearning towards a truly national future.
This had for its realisation at its basis Swaraj, National Education
and Boycott.
Persecutions were inaugurated by the Bureaucratic Government. On the
third of May 1908 in the still hours of night Srijut Aravinda Ghosh,
the leader of the national movement of Bengal, along with other
brilliant young men were arrested on a charge of being implicated in a
conspiracy against the established government. Evidence of all sorts
was piled up by the prosecuting counsel. At this critical moment
Providence sent Chitta Ranjan to take up the case in defence of
Aravinda and other accused. The prosecution dragged on for more than
a year. For this long period Chitta Ranjan conducted the defence case
at a great personal sacrifice. This celebrated conspiracy case pushed
Chitta Ranjan into the fore front of the Calcutta Bar. For more than
six months he was engaged in this case, and even for his house-hold
expenses during these months, he had to incur a large debt. The
acquittal of Aravinda at once raised the reputation of Chitta Ranjan
in the eyes of his countrymen. After this he took up the defence of
the famous Dacca Conspiracy case without charging any fees at a great
personal loss and also volunteered to defend the boycott cases of
Bengal earning thereby the lasting gratitude of the whole nation.
Providence also rewarded him amply for his good work and from the very
day that he came back to take up the broken threads of his High Court
practice, he found himself on the high road to both fame and wealth.
We have already said that under peculiar circumstances Chitta Ranjan
was forced to take shelter in the Insolvency Court. But it was never
his intention to deceive his creditors and no one could with propriety
ascribe this motive to Chitta Ranjan who spent his earnings right and
left for allaying the distress of the needy and the poor. Consequently
as soon as he found his position in the legal profession secure,
Chitta Ranjan's first thought was to remove the stain of insolvency
from his father's name and his own and he started to pay off every pie
of those old debts. "This is the first time", said Mr. Justice
Fletcher, "that a discharged insolvent publicly accepted his old
liabilities and applied for a formal discharge of his insolvency."
This unusual act of strict uprightness raised Chitta Ranjan Das to the
position of a great moral hero.
During his professional career Chitta Ranjan conducted many cases.
Since the release of Aravinda he was engaged in almost all the
note-worthy cases of the High Court and of the mofussil on one side
or the other, his daily fees exceeding a thousand rupees. His
reputation as a profound lawyer spread even outside Bengal. In the
long-drawn Dumraon Raj case he has all along been engaged on the side
of the Dumraon Raj. When Mr. Vaidya, the then secretary of the Home
Rule League in the Central Provinces was sentenced to eighteen months'
rigorous imprisonment, Chitta Ranjan went to Nagpur to defend him. Mr.
Vaidya was acquitted and Chitta Ranjan became very popular in the
Central Provinces. On the acquittal of Mr. Vaidya, Chitta Ranjan
addressed many meetings on Swaraj and although he earned nothing in
the case, he gave a large donation to the local Home Rule League. The
citizens of Nagpur as a mark of deep gratitude and respect presented
to him an address in a silver casket. After a few months of this case
Chitta Ranjan went to Rangoon to defend Dr. Mehta and his co-workers
in the national cause who were convicted under the Defence of India
Act. Mr. Das addressed the court on the illegality of the Act itself
securing thereby the release of Dr. Mehta and others. Shortly after
this he was engaged by the Kutubdia Internees at Chittagong. Those
young men were kept in a house infested with serpents and they were
compelled to fly away for fear of death. But this was a grave offence
in the eyes of the Government.
In all these cases Chitta Ranjan charged no fees, but conducted them
with the utmost zeal. Whenever he was engaged in a case he made it a
point to bring all his intelligence and capacity to bear on it. It was
not rare in his life that he meditated on a case for hours together
before coming to any conclusion. He would then be so deeply immersed
in contemplation that he lost all external consciousness like a _Yogi_
wrapt in meditation upon something serene and divine.
He had often returned briefs of cases to which he thought he would not
be able to give proper attention. Legally he was not bound to return
the fees but moral scruples dictated him this course. For such acts of
honesty he was much respected by the litigants. Often he had taken up
the cases of the poor without charging them any fees and thereby
earned the lasting gratitude of his countrymen. It was for his honesty
and integrity apart from his legal acumen that the Government of India
selected Chitta Ranjan from among the leading counsels of India to
conduct the Munition Board case even when they knew him to be the
leader of the extremist party in Bengal. At first Chitta Ranjan
hesitated to represent the Crown and told the Government that unless
he was allowed to follow the dictates of his conscience to the best
interests of his country he would not accept the brief. When the
Government agreed in all these conditions he gave his consent to the
contract. The accused party knew that Chitta Ranjan had not yet
received brief for the Crown, they came to his house, placed before
him a cheque of several lacs and entreated him again and again to come
to their defence. But Chitta Ranjan, true to his words, said with a
smile, "Gentlemen, I am sorry I cannot comply with your request, when
I have once given the Government my words of consent, I am morally
bound to take up their case." The greedy merchants were taken aback at
such indifference to money and faithfulness to his promise; they could
not but admire this act of Chitta Ranjan, though they had to go away
disappointed.
Throughout his professional career he showed courage and independence.
We shall here cite an instance of his uprightness. In a case at
Noakhali one Mr. Cargil, the local magistrate, was an witness for the
Crown. He was given a special seat in the Court. Chitta Ranjan was on
the defence-side, his searching cross examinations annoyed Mr. Cargil
who in an insulting tone called him "Babu." Chitta Ranjan would not
tolerate this. He said with a retort "Mr. Cargil, you know that out
of courtesy I have allowed you a special seat instead of making you
stand in the witness box. I hope you will not fail to return the same
courtesy to others." Chitta Ranjan was not made of such stuff as to
bear any insult. Whenever there was any injustice done in a court, he
would protest against it fearlessly and if it was not rectified he
would leave the court unhesitatingly. It was for this reason that
Chitta Ranjan left the court in the Dacca Conspiracy case when in
spite of his protests the court was not just to his cause.
As a lawyer Chitta Ranjan earned a good deal. For the last three years
his income was about fifty thousand rupees a month. Many are of
opinion that no lawyer of India had ever earned so much. More over
there is no doubt that his income would have been much enhanced if he
could exclusively engage all his time in the legal profession. He took
up the political cases almost without any fees and also served on the
Punjab Enquiry Committee for more than four months at a great personal
sacrifice. This unrivalled practice he has given up unhesitatingly at
the call of his mother country.
Such was the career of Chitta Ranjan at the Bar for about a quarter of
a century, rich in details, famous for acuteness and noble in
uprightness.