This article tries to cover lesser known facts about this Great Warrior on his birthday.
Seed of Revolution
Bhagat Singh was a great follower of Satyagraha Movement till Jalianwala Bagh incident took place. Soon after which, Singh became disillusioned with Gandhi's philosophy of non-violence and joined the young revolutionary movement to overthrow British Government from India.
A keen Reader
Very few people know that Bhagat Singh was a very keen reader who even demanded the British to provide Newspapers to all his fellow freedom fighters when they were put behind the bars. A few foreign books read by Singh includes Irish, British, European, American and Russian.
An Ideal Youngster
Bhagat Singh lead a life which can be accounted as an ideal life for every youngster. The reason for his ideals was his idol Sri.Kartar Singh Sarabha, the founding member of Ghadar Party and always regarded him as his hero.
Singh & His Autobiography
Bhagat Singh in his autobiographical note “Why I am An Atheist?” says,
Upto (1925) that time I was only a romantic idealist revolutionary. Up till then we were to follow. Now came the time to shoulder the whole responsibility. For some time I was afraid that someday I also might not be convinced of the futility of our own programme. That was a turning point in my revolutionary career. “Study” was the cry that reverberated in the corridors of my mind. Study to enable yourself to face the argument advanced by opposition. Study to arm yourself with arguments in favour of your cult. I began to Study. My previous faith and convictions underwent a remarkable modification. The romance of the violent methods alone which was so prominent among our predecessors, was replaced by serious ideas. No more mysticism, no more blind faith. Realism became our cult.
He further writes that, “The most important thing was the clear conception of the ideal for which we were to fight. As there was no important activities in the field of action, I got ample opportunity to study various ideals of world revolution."
An Inspiration
The patriotic songs created by Ram Prasad Bismil, "Sarfaroshi ki Tamanna" and "Mera Rang De Basanti Chola" are largely associated with Singh's martyrdom.
Date That Immortalized The Hero
29th March 1931 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were hanged before time and cremated near Satluj river by jail authorities. Also, Bhagath Singh, Raj Guru and Sukh Dev embraced a long hunger strike for 116 days which surpassed the 97 day World Record for Hunger Strike by an Irish Revolutionary. However, before their death, they succumbed the British to their demands through the hunger strike.
Stamp of The Hero
In 1968, a postage stamp was issued in India commemorating the 61st birth anniversary of Singh.
Words cannot describe the greatness of Bhagat Singh. However, every Indian should take a bow to the young gun who sacrificed his life for the country, so that people like us could breathe in free India. A million salutes to 'Shaheed Bhagat Singh,' a great actor, scholar, writer and warrior who played a key role in India’s freedom and gave the slogan “Inquilab Zindabad”. May he inspire every Indian and May he live in every Indian!
