An Unsung Hero…. who lost in pages of History

This post is dedicated to my hero, the only person whom I admire in this world. I am talking about a 23 years old guy, who did not top in the university exam; neither, he was the CEO of a MNC at such a young age.  Rather what he did was much beyond these things. He died in 23 March 1931, fighting for the freedom of his motherland, his only love “India”.  But with time, name of this man lost somewhere in the pages of history. Still some of you may have guessed his name right. My hero is no one other than Bhagat Singh, an Indian freedom fighter.

Bhagat Singh, Indian Freedom Fighter

• Bhagat Singh was born in 28^th September 1907 in a village called Lyllapur district of Punjab; which is now known as Faisalabad of Pakistan.
• At the age of 13, Bhagat Singh began to follow Mahatma Gandhi’s non co-operational movement & burnt his school books & British imported clothing. But in1922, Gandhi’s withdrawal of the movement Bhagat singh lost his faith on Gandhi’s idol-ism of non-violence. He realized that armed revolution is the only way to get freedom practically.
• Then he went to National College in Lahore to pursue his studies, which was founded by Lala Lajpat Rai. During this period he came in to contact with revolutionaries such as Bhagwati Charan, Sukhdev and few others.
  

  image source: Wikepedia

• In 1928 the British Government created a commission under Sir John Simon to report on Indian political situation, which led to protest all over the country; as not a single Indian was not in that committee. In October 30th 1928 while Lala Lajpat Rai and his followers were protecting peacefully, police brutally Lathi charged responding to order given by superintendent of police, James A. Scott.
• After 3 weeks of this Incident, Lala Rajpat Rai died. Bhagat Singh was determined to take revenge of Lajpat Rai’s death by killing James Scott, who was assumed as the reason behind Lala Rajpat Rai’s death. At about 4:15 p.m. on December 17, 1928 John P. Saunders, an Assistant Superintendent of Police was mistaken as Scott and shot by Rajguru and Bhagat Singh. To escape from death punishment Bhagat Singh went from Lahore to Howrah.
• Meanwhile to combat revolutionary like Bhagat Singh, the British government enacted the Defense of India Act to give more power to the police Which was defeated in council by one vote. The Act was then passed under the ordinance which claimed that it was in the best interest of the public.
• In response to this act, the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association planned to explode a bomb in the Central Legislative Assembly where the ordinance was going to be passed. It was decided that Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt, another revolutionary, would throw the bomb in the assembly.
• On 8 April 1929, Singh and Dutt threw two bombs onto the assembly and shouted “Inquilab Zindabad!” (“Long Live the Revolution!”). The had no intention to kill anybody, they only wanted to be a loud noise to be produced, which would echo all over India. All happened according to their plan, not a single person in the assembly was injured or dead. This was followed by a shower of leaflets stating that it takes a loud noise to make the deaf hear and also it was written that “It is easy to kill individuals but you cannot kill the ideas. Great empires crumbled while the ideas survived“. Singh and Dutt gave themselves up for arrest after the bomb. After the trail, He and Dutt were sentenced to ‘Transportation for Life’ for the bombing on June 12, 1929.
• While in prison, Bhagat Singh and two others had written a letter to theVice-roy asking him to treat them as prisoners of war and hence to execute them by firing squad and not by hanging. Prannath Mehta, Bhagat Singh’s friend, visited him in the jail on March 20, four days before his execution, with a draft letter for clemency, but he declined to sign it.
  

  Bhagat Singh in Prison

• On 23 March 1931 at 7.30PM Bhagat Singh was hanged in Lahore Jail with Rajguru and Sukhdev.
  

  Bhagat_Singh's_execution_Lahore_Tribune_Front_page (Image Source : Wikipedia)

  Some people may argue that the path which Bhagat Singh Choose to give  India its freedom may not be the correct one. Now as people say every argument has 3 sides- your side, my side & the right side. For me it’s not important what is your side and what is right side; for me he was a person who has the guts & desire to fight for his country’s freedom at such a young age. He set the example what patriotism is all about for the generations to follow.

  I am nearly equals to his age. Still the thoughts like patriotism, fight for your motherlands freedom,to  set example in front of others at the cost of your own life never come to my mind. Yes I may say that all the patriotism in me comes out when India plays cricket or hockey against another country. At his age people like me and others only care about our own family, friends. But when Bhagat Singh was pressurized by his family, which wanted him to get married, Bhagat Singh left his house in Lahore and went to Kanpur. In a note left behind for his father, Bhagat Singh said: “My life has been dedicated to the noblest cause, that of the freedom of the country. Therefore, there is no rest or worldly desire that can lure me now….”. How could a person be so unselfish from such a young age, How could a person had not fear of death in him? How could a person had so much belief on his strength at the age of 23 to dare fight against the British force.  May be that’s why he is a hero. Why he did not dream about a good job, a beautiful wife just like us. May be the circumstances or condition of India at that time made him like that only. We can only  analyze & respect that person for those qualities in him from such a young age….

  These are few of those quotes & notes from Bhagat Singh’s Jail notebook-

  Man and Mankind 
  “I am a man and all that affects mankind concerns me”
  – (Page 43 of Jail notebook) 

  
  Aim of life 
  “The aim of life is no more to control mind, but to develop it harmoniously, not to achieve salvation here after, but to make the best use of it here below, and not to realize truth, beauty and good only in contemplation, but also in-the actual experience of daily life; social progress depends not upon the ennoblement of the few but on the enrichment democracy or universal brotherhood can be achieved only when there is an equality of opportunity of opportunity in the social, political and individual life.” (Page 124 of Jail notebook)
  

  
  

  “Lovers, Lunatics and poets are made of same stuff.” 
  ― Bhagat Singh
  

  Images taken from- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhagat_Singh

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