This is an interpretation of Ranjit Singh Kuki Gill’s article titled ‘ਦੇਸ਼ ਅਜ਼ਾਦੀ ਦੇ ਕਿਸ ਨਾਇਕ ਨੂੰ ਦੁਬਾਰਾ ਮਿਲਣਾ ਚਾਹੁਣਗੇ?‘.
66 years on from the emancipation of the sub-continent from British Imperialism, it is no more difficult to ascertain which political parties are fighting for the rights of the people and which are merely claiming to do so. A few days ago, a ruling party here commemorated the 84th anniversary of Bhagat Singh’s martyrdom. As always, those occupying seats of power in the Indian State paid tribute to Bhagat Singh on the site of his cremation, telling the people whom he fought to free that they stand by what he stood for, and that so many decades on they are working hard to fulfill his dream. And yet what is not spoken of is Bhagat Singh’s ideology itself, one that was not restricted to the slogan of Inquilab-Zindabad alone (commonly depicted as ‘Long Live Freedom’), but an intention to see it borne out practically whatever the cost – on this dream and how it fits into the World today, politicians are silent.
It is of the utmost importance in an Indian State where just 15% of the population hold real power, and essentially prevent the rest of the people from emancipation. It is a new slavery installed despite the work of Bhagat Singh and his cohorts to instigate freedom, where the remaining 85% of the population are kept from mastering their own destiny by demeaning programmes of free resources and food stuffs (many across India rely on the State for basic ingredients whilst others are bought off with ‘free’ electricity). The people are provided with just enough to keep them from progressing further or questioning the status quo, thereby keeping them in a space of subjugation.
On 15 August, 2010, the Times newspaper in India published a lengthy piece to celebrate 63 years of ‘independence’ in which they asked leading personalities and thinkers what they thought of the direction India was going in and its state at that time. One of the key questions asked was which of the heroes from the struggle to oust the British they would most want to meet (consequently which they would most like to return). The most popular response was Bhagat Singh. In a similar light, the Reserve Bank of India had conducted a survey to ask people which personality they would most like to see appear on the bank notes of Indian currency, aside from Mohandas Gandhi. A whopping 71% responded with Bhagat Singh.
Although Bhagat Singh was from a Sikh household, he was to some extent influenced by the Arya Samaj whom his family were broadly supportive of which at that time was not uncommon. After his execution, Bhagat Singh was also aligned as an atheist and when these two half-truths combined, he was seen as being removed from the Sikh movement. However, when one reads the work he authored whilst imprisoned it becomes clear that his heroes were Kartar Singh Sarabha and the Gadhar leaders (referred to as the Gadhari Babay). Both Sarabha and the Gadharites engaged in the freedom struggle as Sikhs, their ideology firmly based on the teachings of Guru Nanak. The workings of an individual like Bhagat Singh can therefore be traced not to communism or socialism, but to the path trodden by Sikhs for not only the decades, but two centuries before.
Bhagat Singh’s place in South Asian history is one that few are graced with. Like Udham Singh, these heroes become embedded in the minds of the people, but more importantly become the bedrock on which nations are built. The weak pillars of society that are today’s politicians stand upright purely on the base of these solid foundations. They utilise the anniversaries of these heroes to serve their own interests, but have only the capacity to pay tribute, not even coming close to walking in their footsteps. They care not for the freedom of the people, but of pitying them with paltry offers of free leftovers and cast-offs.
Bhagat Singh is not spoken of as a martyr by the State and powers that be (famously rejected by Mohandas Gandhi during incarceration by the British) just as the great Sikh hero Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was deemed an outlaw in our recent past. But having become an outlaw myself, albeit humbly a lesser one, Bhagat Singh was and is a hero to me, just as he remains in the hearts of the people. Across the World there are many heroes like this who have truly fought for freedom and won a place in the peoples hearts. Their legacy is one that cannot be broken. Despite the wars that are propagated in the names of religion and corporations pitting brother against brother, the World still cries out for heroes like Nelson Mandela or Che Guevara to relieve us from the shackles of this slavery. We need more Bhagat Singhs to bring about true freedom for the people.
