I, Sreemati Ranibala Debi, daughter of Sj. Kailash Chandra Chakraborty of Vill : Kethuri, P.S. Ramganj, Dist. : Noakhali beg to state that on the night of the 19th October 1946, 2000 Musalmans of our locality entered our house and we entered the adjacednt jungle to save our lives. I am a married girl of 14 and my sister Sreemati Narayani Debi is a married girl of 17. Both of us were snatched away by the Musalman goondas and they committed outrage on us one after another and we were completely senseless for sometime.
Seeing this two of my brothers could not tolerate and they fought with the goondas who killed them. When we regained our senses we moved to the paddy field and with great difficulty walked to a short distance. On the next day we kept ourselves concealed in the paddy field and during the next night we advanced to a great extent towards Chandpur. On the third night we with the greatest distress caused by hunger and fatigue reached Chandpur. When the two brothers died my father who is aged 60 yrs. was senseless.
On the way to Chandpur, we were helped by some Hindu gentlemen who carried us with them to Chandpur where we put up in a relief centre. The members of the relief centre took much care for my father and brothers, the volunteers of the relief centre managed to go to our village and bring my father and brothers to us. With my father and one brother I and my sister reached Calcutta and are residing at the Kashi Biswanath Seva Samiti. The authority of this Samiti is taking utmost care for us and we do fare well here in all respects.
Sreemati Ranibala Debi
23.10.46
P.S. This letter was written to Gandhiji by Sreemati Ranibala Debi
Source: Satchallisher Diary – Prof Nirmal Kumar Basu
