Children Bharat the ‘Golden Bird’ of yore , has been one of the most prosperous and advanced cultures.But the web of English Imperialism tangled Bharat in it and colonised the land of bounty and sapped the rich natural resources and cultural heritage . Centuries saw the rise of valiant men and women, who put their own lives at stake to free their beloved motherland from the cruel foreign yoke. Bhagat Singh , Sukhdev and Rajguru are among those shining stars . They were arrested by the British police for raising voice against British Imperialism. Despite great popular pressure and numerous appeals by political leaders of Bharat, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru were accorded death sentence and hanged in the early hours of March 23rd1931. They were cremated at Hussainiwala at the banks of the Sutlej River in Ferozepur. Bhagat Singh was just 23 years old at that time. Old timers say that in many places, not a single hearth fire burned on that day. .
Sardar Bhagat Singh (May 23, 1907- March 23 1931) was born at Kalyanpur, Punjab in a reputed family of freedom fighters.Bhagat Singh completed his primary education in Bengal after which he was admitted at Lahore DAV High School .On the call of Gandhi he left the school and joined the Non Cooperation Movement and soon came in contact with revolutionaries such as Yashpal,Batukeshwar Dutt,Yogesh ChandraChatterjee and Chandra Shekhar Azad.
TheGhadarMovement left a deep imprint on his mind.KartarSinghSarabha, hanged at the age of 19, became his hero. The massacre atJallianwalaBaghon April 13th, 1919 drove him to Amritsar.
In search of revolutionary groups and ideas, he metSukhdev and Rajguru. Bhagat Singh, along with the help ofChandrashekhar Azad, formed theHindustanSocialist Republican Army (HSRA). The aim of this Bharatiya revolutionary movement was now defined as not only to make Bharat independent, but also to create a socialistBharat.
A brutal attack by the police on veteran freedom fighter LalaLajpatRaiduring the protest against theSimon Commission caused his death onNovember 17th1928, in Lahore angeredBhagatSingh. He was determined to avenge Lajpat Rai’s death by shooting the British official responsible for the killing, Deputy Inspector General Scott. However, he shot down Assistant Superintendent Saunders instead, mistaking him for Scott. Then he made a dramatic escape from Lahore to Calcutta and from there toAgra, where he established a bomb factory.
The British Government responded to the act by imposing severe measures like the Trades Disputes Bill. It was to protest against the passing of the Bill that he threw bombs in the Central Assembly Hall (now called Lok Sabha) while the Assembly was in session. The bombs did not hurt anyone, but the noise they made was loud enough to wake up an enslaved nation from a long sleep.
After throwing the bombs, Bhagat Singh and his friends deliberately courted arrest by refusing to run away from the scene. During his trial, Bhagat Singh refused to employ any Defence counsel.
Shivram Hari Rajguru (August 15 , 1908 – March 23,1931) was born in an average middle-class Hindu Brahmin family at Khera in Pune District in 1908. He came to Varanasi at a very early age where he learnt Sanskrit and read the Hindu religious scriptures. He had a great admiration for Shivaji and his guerrilla tactics.
At Varanasi, he came in contact with revolutio naries. He joined the movement and became an active member of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army (HSRA). Rajguru had a fearless spirit and indomitable courage. The only object of his adoration and worship was his motherland, for whose liberation, he considered no sacrifice too great. He was a close associate of Chandrashekhar Azad and Bhagat Singh and his field of activity was UP and Punjab, with Kanpur, Agra and Lahore as his headquarters.
Rajguru was a good shooter and was regarded as the gunman of the party. He took part in various activities of the revolutionary movement, the most important being Saunder’s murder. Chandrashekhar Azad, Rajguru, Bhagat Singh and Jai Gopal were deputed for the job. On December17, 1928, while Saunders came out of his office and started his motorcycle, he was shot dead in front of the police headquarters at Lahore by Rajguru.In the mission of the bomb –action in Delhi Assembly Rajguru assisted Bhagat Singh.When he was planning to murder the Governor at Pune,he was arrested.
At the time of his martyrdom, Rajguru was hardly 23 years of age.
Sukhdev Thapar (May 15,1907- March 23,1931) Born in Ludhina Sukhdev was a famous Indian revolutionary who played a major role in the India’s struggle for Independence. Sukhdev Thapar was a member of theHindustan Socialist Republican Association(HSRA), and organised revolutionary cells in Punjab and other areas of north India. A devoted leader, he even went on to educate the youth at the National College in Lahore. He along with other renowned revolutionaries started the ‘Naujawan Bharat Sabha’ at Lahore that was an organisation involved in various activities, mainly gearing the youth for the struggle for independence and putting an end to British Imperialism and communalism.
Sukhdev himself took active part in several revolutionary activities like a prison hunger strike in 1929; however, he would always be remembered in the chronicles of the Indian Freedom Movement for his attacks in theLahore Conspiracy Case(December 18, 1928). Sukhdev was the accomplice ofBhagat Singh, andShivaram Rajguruwho were involved in the assassination of Deputy Superintendent of Police, JP Saunders in 1928 in response to the death of veteran leader,Lala Lajpat Raiowing to excessive police beating in the Conspiracy case. After the CentralAssembly Hall bombings in New Delhi (April 8,1929), Sukhdev and his accomplices were arrested and convicted of their crime, facing the death sentence as verdict.
—Aniket Raja
