Moolmati: The Unsung Hero – A Story of Courage and Resilience

Can anyone give an example of the best mother? If you ask me, I would say my mother is the best. Likewise, you would say yours is the best. Mothers are always the best for their children. Every mother would care for her child like no one else in the world. She was; She is; She will always be there for her kid. Mother’s love is endless and infinite. Women may be shy, polite or innocent by their nature, but as a mother, she won’t tolerate any kind of illness that would cause her child. She always protects her kid and fights for her child by opposing every other person. She would be a courageous person to stand up for her child in every battle. Like this, we are here going to see about one such courageous mother, Moolmati, the mother of Indian revolutionary, Ram Prasad Bismil.

Personal Life:

Moolmati Devi lived in Shahjahanpur district, North–West Provinces, British India (Present day Uttar Pradesh, India). Her husband’s name was Muralidhar. She was the mother of the great Indian revolutionary leader, Ram Prasad Bismil. They belong to a Brahmin family.

The Turning point of Moolmati’s life:

Moolmati Devi was a very patriotic woman though she came from a humble family background. She was the mother of freedom fighter, Ram Prasad Bismil who was hanged by the British Raj for his role in Manipur Conspiracy and the Kakori Conspiracy.

Moolmati Devi supports her son for his revolutionary ideas to eradicate British Colonialism in India. She not only supported her son, but she also supported his idealism and stood up for his team members.  

Ram Prasad Bismil was sentenced to death for his act in the Kakori Conspiracy that happened on 9th August 1925. Bismil with his other revolutionary friends planned for looting the government treasury carried in a train at Kakori near Lucknow. They stopped the train just before the Lucknow Junction in the station called Kakori. When they were about to open the cash chest, revolutionary Manmath Nath Gupta who was eagerly watching the new Pistol in his hand accidentally fired and one of the passengers, Ahmed Ali was shot dead. Because of this incident, more than 40 revolutionaries were arrested and the persons who were completely unrelated to the incident were also captured. Following 18 months of legal process, Bismil and his some important revolutionaries were sentenced to death. Ram Prasad Bismil was sentenced to be on death row prisoner at Gorakhpur Jail.

While Ram Prasad Bismil was in Prison, Moolmati Devi went to meet his son. On seeing his mother in prison, Bismil broke down and could not control his emotions. But his mother stood cold. She also said that she was very proud to have a son like him. He replied to his mother, “he is not in the fear of death, but he would never see his mother ever”.  Later, on 19th December 1927, Bismil was hanged to death at Gorakhpur jail.

Every mother would be frowned upon for her child’s near-death decision to be a revolutionary. But here we see Moolmati Devi’s very brave acceptance of her son’s idealism from the start. This shows her love and passion for her motherland. After her son’s death, she does not stop her passion towards the country. After her elder son’s death, Moolmati is not devastated. At a public gathering, she made another bold decision by raising her other son’s hand and offering him to the freedom movement.

It is very important to notice that no mother would give such support for her kid to be a revolutionary. Moolmati even after the loss of her first son, dedicated her other son also to the same revolutionary. Without her permission or considerations, we may never have such great leaders like Ram Prasad Bismil. Thus, she was considered one of the bravest mothers in the nation.