Birth anniversary of Bhagat singh
- India observed the 114th birth anniversary of freedom fighter and revolutionary leader Bhagat Singh on 28 september.
- Born in 1907, Singh was only 23 when he was executed by the British in 1931.
- His idealism coupled with his sacrifice made him a folk hero and an inspiration for many.
Biography
Early life
- Bhagat Singh was born in Punjab, India (now Pakistan), on September 27, 1907, to a Sikh family deeply involved in political activities.
- He quit school at thirteen to devote his life to Indian independence and became involved in several violent demonstrations of political defiance and was arrested several times.
- In time, he would become disenchanted with Gandhi’s non-violent crusade, believing that armed conflict was the only way to political freedom.
Nationalism and Death
- In 1926, Bhagat Singh founded the 'Naujavan Bharat Sabha (Youth Society of India) and joined the Hindustan Republican Association (later known as Hindustan Socialist Republican Association), where he met several prominent revolutionaries.
- In 1928, the British government held the Simon Commission to discuss autonomy for the Indian people.
- Since the Commission had no Indian representatives, it was protested by Indian leaders and Lala lajpat rai died after getting injured by superintendent of police, James A. Scott and died of heart complications two weeks later.
- To avenge Lalaji’s death, Bhagat Singh and two others plotted to kill the police superintendent, but instead shot and killed police officer John P. Saunders.
- In April 1929, Bhagat Singh and an associate bombed the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi to protest implementation of the Public Safety Bill without any intention to injure anyone.
- Singh and his co-conspirators were tried and sentenced to be hanged and was executed on March 23, 1931.