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Bhagat Singh was a zealous revolutionary of the Indian freedom struggle who made the ultimate sacrifice trying to deliver his motherland from the chains of slavery. He was martyred at a very young age of 23, along with two of his fellow revolutionaries and convicted by the British government of assassinating John Saunders – a British police officer. They were awarded capital punishment and executed by hanging on 23rd March 1931. Despite his short but eventful life, Bhagat Singh left his mark. He is an inspiration to new generations of activists around the world.
Bhagat Singh – Important Details
- Date of Birth – 28th September 1907
- Birthplace – Village Banga, Punjab (now in Pakistan
- Parents: mother – Vidyavati Kaur. Father – Kishan Singh
- Education: DAV High School and National College, Lahore
- Associations: Naujawan Bharat Sabha, Kirti Kisan Party, Hindustan Republican Association, and Kranti Dal
- Death: Executed on 23rd March 1931
- Memorial: The National Martyrs Memorial, Hussainwala, Punjab
Early life
On 28th September 1907, he was born in Banga village of Punjab (now in Pakistan) into a Sikh family. His father was Kishan Singh, and his mother was called Vidyavati Kaur. During his birth, his father and uncles were serving jail sentences for demonstrating against the colonisation bill passed by the British in 1906. The politically infused environment in the family kindled the light of patriotism in the heart of boy Bhagat Singh. Very soon, he joined the Non-Cooperation Movement started by Mahatma Gandhi. He burnt the government. sponsored books. He completed his education at DAV high school and Lahore National College, Lahore. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919 and the 1921 killing of Akali protestors at Nankana Sahib affected him immensely. Initially, like his family, Bhagat Singh had faith in the Gandhian ideology of non-violence to attain swaraj, but such incidents changed his belief.
National Movement and Revolutionary Activities
He was arrested for a 1926 bombing in Lahore. After about 6 months he was released by paying a bond of Rs.60,000/-. The 30th October 1928 brutal lathi charge case which resulted in Lala Lajpat Rai’s death affected Bhagat Singh significantly. Lala Lajpat Rai was leading an all-party protest against the Simon commission. As the procession marched towards the railway station of Lahore, the police to prevent them from advancing any further the police started a brutal lathi-charge. They targeted Lala Lajpat Rai and rained lathis on him. As a result of the injuries, he died on 17th November 1928.
James A. Scott was the British police officer who had ordered the lathi-charge. Bhagat Singh and his associates vowed to avenge this injustice. The revolutionaries mistook J.P. Saunders ASP to be Scott and killed him. Bhagat Singh left the city (Lahore). He also violated the sacred rules of Sikhism and shaved his beard and cut off his hair. In order to protest the making of the Defence of India Act, the HSRA decided to throw a bomb in the premises of the assembly.
Accordingly, on 8th April 1929, Bhagat Singh together with Batukeshwar Dutt threw a bomb in the assembly corridor, pamphlets containing their message were thrown into the air, and raised the slogan of ‘Inqilab Zindabad’. The bomb exploded in the corridor since there was no intention of hurting anyone but some council members were hurt during the commotion. Both the revolutionaries were arrested.
Assembly Incident Trial
The trial began in May 1929. Although Batukeshwar Dutt had Afsar Ali as his counsel, Bhagat Singh preferred to defend himself. He made the stand of the revolutionaries clear, saying – ‘Force when aggressively applied is violence and therefore is unjustifiable, but when used for the furtherance of a legitimate cause it has its moral justification.’ As expected, the court did not rule in favour of the revolutionaries terming their action as ‘malicious and unlawful intent’. The court awarded them a life sentence.
Lahore-Conspiracy-Case and Trial
Soon after, the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association’s bomb factories were raided, and prominent revolutionaries were arrested. Unfortunately, Phanindra Nath Ghosh, Hansraj Vohra, and Jai Gopal turned approvers for the government. As a result, 21 arrests were made, which included Sukhdev, Rajguru, and Jatindra Nath Das. Bhagat Singh was arrested for the Lahore-Conspiracy case, the murder of John Saunders- the ASP, and the manufacturing of bombs. The trial was held in a special sessions court against 28 accused revolutionaries on 10th July 1929. The judge to preside over the case was Rai Saheb Pandit Shri Kishan. Bhagat Singh and his fellow inmates noticed the deplorable condition of the jail, where the condition of the native prisoners compared to the white was pathetic.
The revolutionaries also demanded the political prisoners’ status for themselves. They began a hunger strike to support their demand. Although this garnered public support and the attention of the press, the authorities did not bat an eyelid. After 63 days of fasting, Jatindra-Nath Das died. Bhagat Singh broke his fast on 5th October 1929 after Singh’s father and the congress leadership requested him to do so. As the proceeding took a long time to complete, a special tribunal was formed. Justice J. Coldstream, Justice G. C. Hilton, and Justice Agah Hyder, as a tribunal, were given the power to continue the proceeding without the accused. The legal rights of the accused were ignored as it was a one-sided trial. It found Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev guilty in a murder case. Bhagat Singh agreed to the charges and made burning declarations against British rule in India. The court sentenced them the capital punishment.
Execution
Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev were hanged in Lahore Jail on 23rd march 1931 at 7:30 am. While proceeding to the gallows, they raised slogans like ‘down with British imperialism’ and ‘Inquilab Zindabad’. The three Bravehearts were cremated at the Hussainiwala located beside the river Sutlej.
Shaheed Diwas
Shaheed Diwas, or Martyr’s Day, is celebrated by Indians to pay homage to and honour the commitment and courage of the Bravehearts who made the ultimate sacrifice for their motherland. Shaheed Diwas, besides being celebrated on 23rd March, is also celebrated on 30th January – the day Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated.
