Dr. Ruma Bhattacharya
Associate Professor
Department of History, Ramthakur College
Agartala, Tripura (India)
Deputed to Sri Aurobindo General Degree College
Kunjaban, Agartala, Tripura (India)
Abstract
As East Bengal was a neighboring territory of Tripura, therefore the wave of the national movement percolated in the state from the surrounding British territories of East Bengal. They were mostly students of Umakanta school. At that time there was no scope for higher education in Tripura. So after completion of matriculation from Umakanta School, students of Tripura used to go to neighboring East Bengal for higher education. It was during this period that they got directly involved with the revolutionary ideas. They were instrumental in channelizing those ideas into Tripura after their return. Thus the revolutionaries of Tripura continued their activities keeping a close touch with those of the neighbouring districts of East Bengal evading careful eyes of the British police. But they could not escape their watchful eyes for long. Some of them were ultimately arrested and put to jails. They were either put behind bars or transported to the Andamans. During their jail lives, their political thinking underwent a radical change. When they came out from jails, some of them became followers of Gandhian politics while some embraced Marxism. These two distinct political courses in Tripura became apparent more and more as days passed away. The aim of this study is to narrate works and activities of Shachin Singh and Biren Dutta who were instrumental in contributing to the rise of Right and left wing politics respectively in Tripura during colonial period under them.
