Rupnath Brahma was a remarkable social worker, poet, essayist, and politician of the 20th century. He did a lot of work for the Bodo community in various fields during his lifetime. He also made significant contributions in politics, especially for the people of Assam. His contributions to society and his dedication to the people are really memorable, and future generations have endless lessons to learn from his biography.
Birth and Marriage: He was born on June 15, 1902, to Bodo speaking family in the village of Owabari, Goalpara now part of the Kokrajhar district. His father’s name was Dhajendra Brahma, and his mother’s name was Khwdwmshri Brahma. His father was a timber merchant and closely related to Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma.
In 1920, he married a girl named Damanthi Brahma. After his first wife passed away, he married another woman named Swaranamoyee Brahma. He had a total of ten children. He passed away on January 23, 1968, at the age of 66 due to hearth attack at RNB Hospital, Kokrajhar.
Education: The education wasn’t really a priority for the Bodo people that time. There weren’t any schools in the village and awareness for the education. People were more interested in eating, drinking, and having fun, so life in the village wasn’t great. But Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma was trying to change things. He preached Brahma Dharma among the Bodos and gave importance to education. Rupnath Brahma’s father accepted Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma’s teachings and sent his son to school for better future.
Rupnath Brahma studied Kokrajhar Upper Primary School, Kokrajhar Higher Primary School and passed with meritorius scholarship. He passed his matriculation examination in 1921 with first division. He went on to study at Cotton College, Guwahati and passed his BA Degree in 1925. He enrolled in Calcutta University to pursue both Law (LLB) and MA. He completed his Law Degree in 1928 and started his legal practice in the lower court at Dhubri. He was the first Law graduate among the Bodo community.
Literary: In 1923, he co-published a book called ‘Khonthai Methai’ with Madaram Brahma. He had always been encouraged by Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma to write, and the book was dedicated to him.
In 1919, Bodo Chatra Sanmilan was formed under the guided of Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma. Rupnath Brahma was an active worker of the organization. In 1924, the Bodo Chatra Sanmilan published the first magazine in Bodo language called ‘Bibar’. It was edited by well-known social wprker and dramatist Satish Chandra Basumatary. In the magazine, Rupnath Brahma wrote several prose and poetry in Bodo and Assamese language.
Some of his poetry are Angni Khwina, Mwnhasoywi, Iswrni Munga Gwdwi etc. His writings talk about devotion to God, guidance on behavior, encouraging education, and advice to love language, culture of his own tribe.
Politics: In 1929, Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma said that the Bodo people should have political rights and be able to engage in politics. Following his advice and inspiration, Rupnath Brahma became the leading politician among the Bodos. He was elected as one of the representatives in the 1937 General Election, and won from the Sidli Constituency on the ticked of The Tribal League. He served as Health Minister of Assam from 1938 to 1967.
In 1967, he elected as Member of Parliament (Lokh Sabha) from Kokrajhar Constituency, but he could attend only one session of Parliament before his death.
He worked hard for the Bodo community, the tribes, and the people of Assam, serving as a minister in politics for nearly thirty years.
Back then, some people wanted the district Goalpara (which today Kokrajhar, Dubhri, Bongaigaon and Chirang) to be merged with West Bengal. But Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma disagreed and sent a memorandum to the Simon Commission in 1929, saying there was no point in joining the district in Assam with West Bengal.
Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma often talked about this matter with Rupnath Brahma and other educated tribal students. He always wanted the tribal people within Assam to stay united.
Runath Brahma was the president of All Assam Plain Tribal League. During his tenure he sent a memorandum to His Excellency the Viceroy stating that the proposed of Assam with Bengal has naturally created a sense of great disapproval and resentment and that the Tribal people of Assam are unanimously against the inclusion of Assam with Bengal.
He also played a big role in India’s Independence Movement, wanting people to get involved and helping the nation. He created Kokrajhar Sub Division in 1957.
Culture: The Bodos have always been a community that enjoys celebrating. Their festivals are full of Bodo singing and dancing. Keeping this beautiful Bodo culture alive and sharing it with the world was important to Rupnath Brahma, and he would often talk about it with his friends. One of the most famous Bodo traditional folk dances is the Bagurumba (butterfly dance). They aimed to make it the national dance of the Bodo community in Assam.
In 1952, under the sponsorship of Rupnath Brahma, the artists of Kokrajhar district Bithorai Afad represented Bugurumba dance during India’s Republic Day celebration in New Delhi. The dance was mostly led by well-known cultural figures Astad Kamini Kumar Narzary and Madaram Brahma.
Religion: Rupnath Brahma always followed the guidance and actions of Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma. From a young age, he was inspired and guided by Gurudev Kalicharan Brahma. He devoted himself to worshiping Brahma Dhama with love and sincerity. Even as a youngster, the principles of Brahma Dharma motivated him to care for, nurture, and serve others. He did his best to support and promote the work of spreading the Brahma religion among the Bodo community.
He was the earliest politician and the longest-serving minister among the Bodo people. The people often called him the ‘Boroni Manthri (Minister of the Bodos)’ because of his work and dedication to politics. His contribution to tribal rights, education, literature and public service remain in the Assam state. His contributions to the political rights of the tribal communities, and serving the public will definitely be remembered forever in Assam’s history.