Page:The Life of Lokamanya Tilak.djvu/185

 mission of Swaraj he was in any way responsible to the aUen rulers." Babu Arabindo Ghosh was arrested on a charge of sedition, and on November ist, 1907 the Seditious Meetings Act was passed, despite the opposition of the Hon. Mr. Gokhale and of the Hon, Mr. Rash Behari Ghosh, and it was rumoured that the liberty of Press was also on the point of being taken away.

On November 11th, 1907, Lala Rajpat Rai and Sirdar Ajit Singh were released. This news, welcome in each respect, tended to make the Congress " confusion worse confounded." At once, as if by instict, the cry went round that Lajpat Rai was the fittest man to preside. At Surat on November 21st, the Reception Committee was formed and the office bearers of the Congress were appointed. To prevent many of the Congress-men in Maharashtra from attending the meeting, it was announced that the Presidential Election would be made •on November 24th. Though thus out-manoeuvred, the young Nationalists of Surat and adjoining places stoutly suggested the name of Lala Lajpat Rai for the Presidential post. Mr. Gokhale argued, coaxed, appealed ; and when every device proved unavailing, he removed the velvet glove from off his mailed list, and challenged the younger Nationalists to secure Lala Lajpat Rai's election in the face of the packed majority of the Moderates. The Nationalists were in a fix. They could not allow the Hero of the hour to be humiliated by the unworthy tactics of the Moderates. Silently and sullenly they allowed Dr. Rash Behari Ghose to be ' unaniomously ' elected President.

The selection of Dr. Ghose for the Presidential chair -was only part of a wider plan of going back upon the