“They may kill me, but they cannot kill my ideas. They can crush my body, but they will not be able to crush my spirit.”
India’s freedom struggle from the British encompassed many ideologies. There were many freedom fighters who advocated more militant methods of delivering India’s freedom. One among these revolutionary freedom fighters was the inspirational figure –Bhagat Singh, born on 28th September 1907. In per-partition Punjab’s Banga, Bhagat Singh is considered amongst the tallest leaders of the Indian freedom struggle.
Bhagat Singh was born to a politically active Sikh family in Lyallpur district of the undivided Punjab province. His father and uncles were active supporters of the Ghadar Party and had been imprisoned due to their political activities. They were released from prison on the day that he was born. The young Bhagat Singh was enrolled in the Dayanand Anglo Vedic High School. There he was exposed to the philosophy of the Arya Samaj movement that advocated the purity and universal truths of the Vedas and opposed the corruption and obscurantism of many later Hindu religious practices.
He began to protest British rule in India while still a youth and soon fought for national independence. He was a contemporary of young political leaders such as Chandrashekhar Azad, Ram Prasad Bismil, and Ashfaqulla Khan of the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA). He has been credited with popularising the slogan-“Inquilab zindabad” (meaning long live the revolution). He was convicted for taking revenge for the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. He refused to bow down to the atrocities of the British Empire and attained martyrdom at the age of 23.
Today, we remember his courage and indomitable fight for freedom. He may not be here,but his sacrifices scream loud the silence we as a nation enjoy today.
We honour the great heroic deeds of the legend Shaheed Sardar Bhagat Singh on his birth anniversary.