Our Bapu - Mahatma Gandhi

Our Bapu
Jawaharlal Nehru, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, and Sardar Patel - had been sent
to prison, and no less than ninety thousand men and women were in jail. The
British Government were trying every means of crushing the Congress. But their
repressive policy had the very opposite effect on the people. They became all
the more determined to win freedom for their country. Finally, Gandhiji was
arrested and put in jail again. The Government had hoped that with Bapu in
jail, the people would lose courage and become disunited. They did not know
that the flame of patriotism Gandhiji had lighted burned steadily in every
Indian heart, and that it was not possible to put it out by violence. No doubt,
people had to face more severe hardships everyday, and Bapu could only show
his anger and distress over the sufferings of his countrymen. When he saw no
other way of stopping the highhandedness of the Government, he decided to
fast unto death. The Government thereupon released him. As soon as Gandhiji
came out of the jail, he called off the civil disobedience movement and
devoted all his energies to the uplift of the Harijans."
"Why are the untouchables called Harijans, mother?"
"This name was given to them by Bapu. The word, 'Harijan' means the servant
of God, and since the so-called untouchables work very hard and are therefore
the best servants of God, Bapu preferred to call them Harijans rather than
untouchables. Hari, my dear, you can see by this what a kind heart Bapu had!"
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