God’s Beloved Land 29The news of the shocking assault spread like wildfire and dominated
the media for weeks to come. The government immediately issued a
communiqué closing down the college indefi nitely. This order was is-
sued without consulting the principal, who went to the Writers’ Build-
ing to remonstrate with the member in charge of education on the
governor’s council. Another communiqué was issued suspending the
principal for showing “gross personal insult” to the honorable member.
Before his own suspension could take effect, James summoned the sus-
pected students to his of fice. Turning toward Subhas, he snarled, “Bose,
you are the most troublesome man in the College. I suspend you.” The
governing body con firmed the principal’s order and expelled Subhas
from Presidency College. His appeal to the university for permission to
study in another college was turned down. For all practical purposes,
he was “rusticated” from Calcutta University.^37
Had Subhas ac tually taken part in the physical assault on a profes-
sor? In his deposition before the Enquiry Committee, Subhas did not
admit his own guilt, but steadfastly refused to name any others or criti-
cize the action of the students. His mother maintained that striking a
blow at a teacher was completely out of character for Subhas and that
he could never have done such a thing. In his autobiography, written in
1937, Subhas described himself as “an eyewitness” to the incident, even
though in a letter written to Sarat in 1921 he had stated that he should
have taken responsibility for the assault in a more forthright manner
instead of simply remaining silent and refusing to implicate others.
When prodded later in life on this question, especially by his young
nephews, he simply smiled and did not give a direct answer.^38 If he did
lay hands on Oaten, it can only be explained in terms of the peer- group
psychology inciting the behavior of a number of agitated students.
The Oaten incident took place at a time when relations across the
racial and generational divides were fraught with tension. The after-
math of the antipartition Swadeshi movement of 1905–1908 had po-
larized the views of the colonizers and the colonized on what consti-
tuted proper demeanor on the part of Indian youth. Professors like
Oaten often harbored beliefs about Britain’s racial superiority and civi-
lizing mission in India that were anathema to the proud post- 1905
generation in Bengal. Even the of fi cial Enquiry Committee mentioned