This article is about spending the last few hours to one of the most revolutionary freedom fighters in the history of India’s Independence, Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh. Born on 28 September 1907 in the current day Punjab in Pakistan, he is a socialist revolutionary. He brings the concept of Purna Swaraj in the timeline of India’s struggle of Independence. Bhagat Singh was sentenced to death in the John Saunders case. He was given capital punishment along with his revolutionaries friends Shaheed Sukhdev and Shaheed Rajguru. Although we all are aware of his life and the work he did to bring out the zeal of patriotism inside the Indians.
The commencement of the day of capital punishment
However, the day of 23 March 1931 starts as the other day would have been. Moreover, in the morning the day experience the storm. Although the storm doesn’t know that by the evening a bigger storm of revolution is about to hit the Indian heart, mind, and soul. In the Lahore Central Jail ( an important part of undivided revolutionary India) everything is going at its own pace. But suddenly the Jail Warden, Charat Singh tells the prisoners to go inside the barrack at around 4 PM. The orders were given by the Jail officials. The Jail Barber, Barkat tells everyone that the British government wants to give capital punishment a day before. Every prisoner inside the Lahore Jail wants to collect the belongings of Bhagat Singh. They want it to show their children that they are with the epitome of revolution. Barket also brings belonging of Shaheed-e-Azam.
Literature Love continues until the end
Bhagat Singh was a keen literature lover and read books during his time in the prison. Moreover, his friend Jaydev Kapoor arranges several books from Dwarka Das Library so that he can read inside the prison. State and Revolution by Vladimir Lenin, The Rights of Man by Thomas Paine, Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky are among the few books read by him.
Barrack No14 was the new address of Inquilab
Barrack No14 was the barrack in which Bhagat Singh was kept in Lahore Central Jail. However, the space is quite small but the ideas of the person who is inside the barrack were very huge. “Inqualabiyo ko Marna hi Hota hai, Jisse Unka Abhiyan Majboot Hota hai” the word by him is very motivating. 2 hours before his capital punishment, his friend and an advocate Pran Nath Mehta met him for the last time. His last words with Mehta were ” Samrajyawad Murdabad, Inquilab Zindabad”. He also sends his Thanks to Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and Subash Chandra Bose. As both are deeply involved in his case.
The Final Journey Begins
After Mehta went from the Lahore Jail, the prison officials told Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, and Rajguru that their death sentence is preponed 12 hours. So instead of 24th March at 6 AM, they will be sentenced to death on 23rd March at 7 PM. Although he was not afraid of dying as he firmly believes that his death will definitely bring a big revolution in the country. This will surely result in the Independence of India. But he was sad that he was unable to eat food from the home of Bebe. Bebe was a Muslim sweeper of the Lahore Jail. He once told him that he before going for his last journey, wants to eat food from his home. But sadly he was unable to do so as the date was preponed and Bebe wasn’t allowed to enter the jail at that time.
In his last few hours, he was reading the book “State and Revolution by Vladimir Lenin”. He also stated the jailors that, can’t he finish the book. In addition to he also stated that” a revolutionary wants to meet another revolutionary”. But he wasn’t allowed to do so. The officials order him and his friends to take a bath and wear black clothes. After that, the three lights of revolutions start chanting, “Kabhi Vo Din Bhi Ayega, Jab Azad Honge Hum, Apna Watan Hoga, Apni Zamin Hogi”. As they reach the spot from where his biggest wish to sacrifice his life to the motherland was about to complete, they start chanting, “Inquilab Zindabad, Hindustan Azad Ho”. Following the chant, whole prisoners in the Lahore Central Jail starts chanting.
The last Chant
He once gave a promise to her mother that at the time he was about to hang till death, he will chant in a louder voice. The voice was so louder that, Pindi Das Sondhi who lives near the Prison can hear the chants clearly. After the death of all three, a truck was coming by breaking the wall of the prison and along with the officials of the prison, their bodies were sent secretly. However, on the bank of Satluj people where the officials are about to burn the bodies completely, people reached the spot.
And thus the three key revolutionaries gave their lives to bring out the revolutionary ideas in the minds of each and every Indian. Stay tuned for my next series on Shaheed Bhagat Singh.
By:-
Prakhar Sharma
Founder, Upgrading India
2 Comments
Very true sir. He was a legend. I saw a movie directed by Rajkumar Santoshi and it fits exactly with your description.
Yes.. Thank You sir