By: Khalid Bashir Ahmad
The great economic depression unleashed by the First World War had also impacted a place like Kashmir. However, the sufferings of its labour class were deep rooted in history.
Looking back in time, the first labour protest in Srinagar against economic exploitation was held on 6 June, 1847 when about 4000 shawl weavers came out on the streets to protest against their pitiable condition. Eighteen years later, on 29 April 1865, another protest was held by the hand-to-mouth-living shawl weavers against their exploitation by an official of the Dag Shawl Department, who fleeced them and took away Rs. 5, out of their meager income of Rs. 7 or 8, as tax.
Significantly, the Srinagar labour agitation preceded by 21 years the world’s first celebrated labour agitation at Wisconsin, USA. The agitation was crushed by brute force that led to killing and drowning of dozens of agitators in the Keta Kol, an outflow channel of the Jhelum near Zaldagar in downtown Srinagar. As many as 28 bodies were returned by the army. Leaders of the uprising including Ubli Baba, Sheikh Rasool, Qudda Lala and Sona Bhat were arrested, severely tortured and thrown into a dungeon. Two of them died of torture while the remaining two were externed and imprisoned in the Bahu Fort, Jammu.
In 1924, the workers of the Silk Factory who were paid four and half annas as daily wages, protested against their economic exploitation and took out a large procession, joined by women, children and general masses. The demonstration resulted in commotion in Srinagar and the city was handed over to the army. The workers were able to secure a raise of few paisa in their wages. The labour unrest in Kashmir led to setting up of some trade unions whose objective was the economic emancipation of the labour and peasant class. Besides shawl weavers, tonga drivers, motor drivers, boatmen and carpet weavers had formed their individual associations.
In 1937, these associations were brought under one umbrella organisation namely the Mazdoor Sabha (The Labourers Assembly). G. M. Sadiq, Muslim Conference leader and Member Praja Sabha, who later became the Prime Minister of Jammu & Kashmir in 1964, was the President of the Mazdoor Sabha with Prem Nath Bazaz as the Secretary.
In the meanwhile, the workers of the Silk Factory had been subjected to a wage cut recently, which they resented. Additionally, their workload had been doubled as a consequence of the economic depression. Although, the Government, through official communiqué, announced that it was ready to withdraw the cut, the resentment did not subside. An official handout or press release was then called an official communiqué.
On 4 October 1937, the Mazdoor Sabha organised a joint procession of labourers and peasants in Srinagar. Thousands of workers from different trades, led by Sadiq and Bazaz, participated in the procession. The Civil & Military Gazette described the procession as “mammoth”. However, the number of processionists given by different newspapers varied from 5000 to 7000, of which 3000 were from the Silk Factory.
The Tribune, Lahore, described the event as the “greatest upheaval among the labourers and unemployed” in the history of Kashmir. However, what made the procession big news was introduction of an entirely new factor into the politics of Kashmir – hoisting of red flags. It was the first time in the history that a red flag was hoisted in the Muslim majority Valley. Newspapers in India ran headlines like ‘Red Flag Procession in Kashmir’, ‘Red Flags in Kashmir’ and ‘Red Flags Displayed in Kashmir’, highlighting the development as the first such occurrence.
Formed into batches, the workers paraded through all the main streets of Srinagar. Every worker carried a red flag. The processionists also carried placards with the following slogans: (1) We will change the order of the society which does not recognize the labourers as human beings, (2) We want bread, (3) One earns 17000 a day while a labourer gets one paisa, (4) No Government has authority to rule so long as there are unemployed, and (5) Though the land is full of mineral riches, we are starving.
In the evening, a meeting was held in which three resolutions were passed. The first resolution demanded “responsible Government in the State as the only method for the amelioration of the economic condition of the workers and peasants.” The second resolution demanded “a living wage for all workers whether in Government factories or private factories”. The third resolution, related to the peasants, demanded “a reduction in land revenue by 50 percent and abolition of all other taxes.” A statement jointly issued by Sadiq and Bazaz expressed ‘much resentment at the Government communiqué regarding operatives employed in the Silk Factory and the unsympathetic attitude of the Director Silk Factory towards the labour leaders.
The display of red flags on 4 October 1937 inspired trade unions in Kashmir to permanently adopt red as the colour of their flags. Two years later, on 11 June 1939, the largest political party of Kashmir, the National Conference also adopted red as the colour of its flag.
Come to think of the decade of 1930s, it was a period of enormous political and cultural developments in Kashmir. No decade of the 20th century has been as momentous. It was during this decade that a barbaric incident like the indiscriminate killing of two dozen civilians on 13 July 1931 took place which resulted in political awakening of the people of Kashmir, and a mass movement against autocracy. The first political party of Kashmir’s majority community, the Muslim Conference, was established in 1932, a huge development in itself. However, the party became victim of its own founder’s politics and was wound up in 1939, and replaced by the National Conference.
Other significant developments of these ten years include introduction of compulsory primary education (1930), the appointment of the Glancy Commission (1932), the Roti Agitation of the Kashmiri Pandits (1932), inauguration of the first cinema hall, the Palladium, (1932), establishment of the Amar Singh Club, the first club in Jammu & Kashmir (1933), foundation of the Mujahid Manzil, the headquarter of the Muslim Conference (1933), promulgation of the J&K’s Cinematographic Act (1933), Sheikh Mohammd Abdullah’s marriage (1933), Abdullah’s first meetings with the leaders of Indian National Congress, influencing his future political course (1934), growth of print media through launching of newspapers like Vitasta, Jahangir, Haqeeqat (1932), Rehbar (1933), Islam, Sadaqat, Islah (1934), Hamdard, Martand, Quomi Dard (1935), Kaisri, Millat, Tawheed (1936), Hidayat, Vakil (1937), Khalid, Kashmir Times (1938) and Kashmir Chronicle (1939)], construction of the Srinagar Aerodrome, election to the first Praja Sabha or Assembly (1934), Cholera of 1935 causing 3805 deaths, opening of the Banihal Cart Road to public motor vehicles (1935), visit of the Viceroy of India, Lord Linlithgow and his wife, Doreen Maud Milner (1936), establishment of the Jammu & Kashmir Bank (1938) and the Kashmiri Pandit Agitation on Durganag Temple (1939).
(The writer is an author, poet and a former Kashmir Administrative Services (KAS) officer. He is the author of much-acclaimed book – Kashmir: Exposing the Myth Behind the Narrative and Jhelum: The River Through My Backyard)