Jatindra Nath Das

Jatindra Nath Das (27 October 1904 – 13 September 1929), also known as Jatin Das, was an Indian freedom fighter and revolutionary. He died in Lahore jail after a continuous hunger strike for 63 days and it shocked the whole of India.

In the Lahore jail, Jatin Das started a hunger strike along with other revolutionary fighters, demanding equality for Indian prisoners and undertrials. The conditions of Indian inhabitants of the jails was deplorable. The uniforms that Indian prisoners were required to wear in jail with were not washed for several days, and rats and cockroaches roamed the kitchen area making the food unsafe to eat. Indian prisoners were not provided with any reading material such as newspapers, nor paper to write on. In contrast, the condition of the British prisoners in the same jail was strikingly different.

The memorable hunger strike started on 15 June 1929 and lasted 63 days. The jail authority took many measures to forcibly feed Jatin Das and the other freedom fighters, beat them and did not even provide them with drinking water. However, Das did not eat. The jail committee recommended his unconditional release, but the government rejected the suggestion and offered to release him on bail. Meanwhile Bhagat singh continued his hunger strike for long, and when he suspended his hunger strike, it was 116th day since 15 June 1929.

Jatin died on September 13, 1929, after his unbroken hunger strike for 63 days. Durga Bhabhi led the funeral procession of Jatin Das from Lahore to Kolkata. As his body was carried from Lahore to Kolkata by train, thousands of people rushed to every station to pay their homage to the martyr. A two-mile long procession in Kolkata carried the coffin to the cremation ground. The hunger strike of Jatin Das in prison was one crucial moment in the resistance against illegal detentions.