78. Ba alone could stand Bapu

On August 9, 1942, after Bapu had been arrested in the morning, Ba and Sushilabehn also were arrested later in the evening and taken to Arthur Road Prison in Bombay. The room, in which Ba was lodged, was ill-ventilated and damp. Furthermore, the lavatory was stinking, because it had gone out of action.

Suddenly Ba had an attack of dysentery. This made her very weak. Maybe, the sudden arrest of Bapu and others was also weighing heavily on her mind. Then she began to have temperature, too. Therefore, both she and Sushilabehn were removed to the Aga Khan Palace, in Poona.

By the time the train reached Poona, Ba had become extremely feeble, because of the continued dysentery. To help her alight from the train, a chair was placed on the platform near the compartment, in which she had travelled. But Ba refused to use it and walked down the platform.

When Bapu saw Ba standing in front of him he wondered, at first, whether, not being able to bear her separation from him, she had forgotten her duty and come there. So he asked her, "Did you apply to the Government to keep you near me? Or did the Government send you here on its own?"

Ba remained silent for some time, not knowing what exactly Bapu had implied in his query.

Whereupon Sushilabehn informed Bapu that it was the Government, who had transferred her from Bombay to Poona. Ba then understood what Bapu meant and so forth with said, "No, no, I did not make the request to be brought here. It is the Government which sent me up here."

This gave great satisfaction to Bapu.