When Gandhi missed the train and Nehru pulled up Shastri!

ALLAHABAD: Finally Allahabad Junction has become Prayagraj Junction following the notification to this effect by the Union Home Ministry. In addition, Allahabad Cheoki railway station has now become Prayagraj Cheoki, Allahabad City becomes Prayagraj Rambagh, and Prayag ghat is now Prayagraj Sangam. A report says that changing of these names would mean an expenditure of crores in order to have the records updated all over the world .

Allahabad Junction was established in 1857. Allahabad-Kanpur service started in 1859.The direct Delhi –Howrah service via Allahabad started in 1864 but railway coaches coming from Calcutta were ferried across the Jamuna by boats and thereafter they ran on rails. This arrangement continued till the Naini Jamuna bridge became functional sometime after its construction was complete in 1865 –155 years ago!–and it was opened to public.

Certain interesting events are worth recalling. To begin with, we would like to recall Mahatma Gandhi’s first visit to Allahabad. Gandhiji arrived in Kolkata from South Africa on S.S.Pangola ship on July 5, 1896.

While entraining for Rajkot in Gujarat, he developed terrible pain in his stomach and so when the train halted at Allahabad, he took advantage of the 45-minute halt, hired a tonga and went to Johnstonganj to purchase medicine. As he got slightly delayed, the train departed without him but the attendant had taken down his luggage.

Gandhi was almost an unknown entity. At least the Railway staff couldn’t be knowing him. But the fact that the Railway attendant offloaded his baggage reflects on the high service provided at Allahabad junction then. Gandhi was forced to spend the night at Allahabad as the train had departed without him..

Gandhi stayed in the Kelners Hotel(no longer there). Since there was plenty of time to spare he called on editor Chesney Junior of Pioneer(then published from Allahabad)after fixing an appointment with him. As there was still time, Gandhi also had Triveni Darshan and went round the city too.

An interesting anecdote is recalled by old timers. The Allahabad Junction was given a face lift during the tenure of Lal Bahadur Shastri as Railway Minister. The year was 1958. Prime Minister Nehru had arrived to inaugurate the new building of the Junction Railway station. The mike had failed. A microphone was rushed by a staffer.

Meanwhile Shastri  was attending to guests. When Nehru wanted to tell him something, he did not find Shastri around. Finally he spotted Shastriji standing at some distance explaining things to some women guests. Nehru called out, ‘Lal Bahadur, udhar kya khare ho auraton ke beech mein, jaldi avo (Lal Bahadur, what are you doing there among womenfolk. Come here soon)’.

Nehru didn’t realize that by then the replacement mike was on. And so his remarks were heard by the public. There was suppressed laughter. This was narrated by one guest present.

It was sometime in 1952-53 when film actress Kamini Kaushal was passing through Allahabad by Bombay Mail. She was then at the peak of her popularity with strings of box-office hits like ‘Shaheed’. Shabnam’, Nadiya ke Paar’, ‘Arzoo’—all with Dilip Kumar. Word went round that the mega heroine was passing through Allahabad. University students gathered in large numbers at the Junction station.

They spotted the compartment in which she was travelling. Finding that a big mob was surrounding the compartment, she pulled down the glass shutters. But the youngsters were pressing forward impatiently. One of them was pushed hard by the mob. He tried to support himself by putting his hand on the window pane. And it broke.

The young boy’s hand started bleeding. There was a loud scream. Some said that Kamini Kaushal had screamed. Anyway, before the boys could advance any further, the train steamed away. The next day the news was in the local press about boys ‘storming’ her train!

During the 1962 , 1965 and 1971 wars with Pakistan whenever trains carrying the jawans to the war front or back, social workers in large numbers, especially ladies belonging to women’s national social organizations like NCWI and AIWC as also Rotary Anns were seen offering the jawans packets of sweets and other gifts. The ‘Jai Jawan Jai Kisan’ slogan was given by Shastri at an Allahabad public meeting after the 1965 war was over.