Bhagat Singh

Infobox revolution biography
name=Bhagat Singh
Unicode|ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ
بھگت سنگھ
dateofbirth=September 27, 1907
placeofbirth=Lyallpur, Punjab, British India
dateofdeath=March 23, 1931
placeofdeath=Lahore, Punjab, British India


caption=Bhagat Singh at the age of 21
movement=Indian Independence movement
religion= Atheist
influences= Anarchism, Communism, Socialism
organizations=Naujawan Bharat Sabha, Kirti Kissan Party and Hindustan Socialist Republican Association

Bhagat Singh (Punjabi: ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ بھگت سنگھ, IPA2|pə̀gət̪ sɪ́ŋg) (September 27, 1907 [cite web| title = He left a rich legacy for the youth | publisher = The Tribune | author = | date = 2006-03-19 | url = http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20060319/society.htm#2| accessdate = 2008-01-01 ] – March 23, 1931) was an Indian freedom fighter, considered to be one of the most influential revolutionaries of the Indian independence movement. For this reason, he is often referred to as "Shaheed" Bhagat Singh (the word "shaheed" means "martyr").

Born to a family which had earlier been involved in revolutionary activities against the British Raj in India, Singh, as a teenager, had studied European revolutionary movements and was attracted to anarchism and communism.cite journal |last=Rao |first=Niraja |year=1997 |month=April |title=Bhagat Singh and the Revolutionary Movement |journal=Revolutionary Democracy |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages= |url=http://www.revolutionarydemocracy.org/rdv3n1/bsingh.htm] He became involved in numerous revolutionary organizations. He quickly rose through the ranks of the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) and became one of its leaders, converting it to the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA). Singh gained support when he underwent a 63-day fast in jail, demanding equal rights for Indian and British political prisoners. He was hanged for shooting a police officer in response to the killing of veteran freedom fighter Lala Lajpat Rai. His legacy prompted youth in India to begin fighting for Indian independence and also increased the rise of socialism in India.cite web| title = What if Bhagat Singh had lived | publisher = The Tribune | author = Reeta Sharma| date = 2001-03-21 | url = http://www.tribuneindia.com/2001/20010321/edit.htm#6| accessdate = 2008-01-01 ]

Early life

Singh was born into a Jatt Sandhu family to Sardar Kishan Singh Sandhu and Vidyavati in the Khatkar Kalan village near Banga in the Lyallpur district of Punjab. [cite book |title=Panjab Under the British Rule, 1849-1947 |last=Nijjar |first=Bakhshish Singh |year=1974 |publisher=K. B. Publications |location= |pages=p172 |isbn= ] Singh's given name of Bhagat means "devotee". He came from a patriotic Sikh family, some of whom had participated in movements supporting the independence of India and others who had served in Maharaja Ranjit Singh's army. [cite book |title=Encyclopaedia of Political Parties |editor=O. P. Ralhan |year=2002 |publisher=Anmol Publications |location=New Delhi, India|pages=Vol. 26, p349 |isbn=81-7488-313-4] His grandfather, Arjun Singh, was a follower of Swami Dayananda Saraswati's Hindu reformist movement, Arya Samaj, [cite book |title=Bhagat Singh: Making of a Revolutionary: Contemporaries' Portrayals |last=Sanyal| first=Jitendra N. |year=2006 |publisher=Hope India Publications |location=Gurgaon, Haryana, India|pages=p25 |isbn=81-7871-059-5] which would carry a heavy influence on Singh. His uncles, Ajit Singh and Swaran Singh, as well as his father were members of the Ghadar Party, led by Kartar Singh Sarabha Grewal and Har Dayal. Ajit Singh was forced to flee to Persia because of pending cases against him while Swaran Singh was hanged on December 19, 1927 for his involvement in the Kakori train robbery of 1925. [Sanyal (2006), p30.]

Unlike many Sikhs his age, Singh did not attend Khalsa High School in Lahore, because his grandfather did not approve of the school officials' loyalism to the British authorities. [Sanyal (2006), p20.] Instead, his father enrolled him in Dayanand Anglo Vedic High School, an Arya Samajist school. [cite book |title=Students' Britannica India |last=Hoiberg |first=Dale H.|authorlinks=Dale Hoiberg| coauthors=Indu Ramchandani |year=2000 |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. (India) |location=New Delhi, India|pages=vol. 1, p188 |isbn=0-85229-760-2] At age 13, Singh began to follow Mahatma Gandhi's Non-Cooperation Movement. At this point he had openly defied the British and had followed Gandhi's wishes by burning his government-school books and any British-imported clothing. Following Gandhi's withdrawal of the movement after the violent murders of policemen by villagers from Chauri Chaura, Uttar Pradesh, Singh, disgruntled with Gandhi's nonviolence action, joined the Young Revolutionary Movement and began advocating a violent movement against the British. [cite book |title=The Martyr: Bhagat Singh Experiments in Revolution |last=Nayar |first=Kuldip |year=2006 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |location=New Delhi, India |pages=pp20-21 |isbn=8124107009 ]

In 1923, Bhagat famously won an essay competition set by the Punjab Hindi Sahitya Sammelan. This grabbed the attention of members of the Punjab Hindi Sahitya Sammelan including its General Secretary Professor Bhim Sen Vidyalankar. At this age, he quoted famous Punjabi literature and discussed the "Problems of the Punjab". He read a lot of poetry and literature which was written by Punjabi writers and his favourite poet was Allama Iqbal from Sialkot. [ [http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/index.asp?link=problem_of_pb Bhagat Singh Documents] "Problems of the Punjab"]

In his teenage years, Bhagat Singh started studying at the National College in Lahore, [Sanyal (2006), p23.] but ran away from home to escape early marriage, and became a member of the organization "Naujawan Bharat Sabha" ("Youth Society of India"). In the Naujawan Bharat Sabha, Singh and his fellow revolutionaries grew popular amongst the youth. He also joined the Hindustan Republican Association at the request of Professor Vidyalankar, which was then headed by Ram Prasad Bismil and Ashfaqulla Khan.Fact|date=January 2008 It is believed that he had knowledge of the Kakori train robbery. He wrote for and edited Urdu and Punjabi newspapers published from Amritsar. [ [http://www.rrtd.nic.in/sardarbhagatsingh.htm Sardar Bhagat Singh (1907-1931) - Ministry of Information, Government of India] ] In September 1928, a meeting of various revolutionaries from across India was called at Delhi under the banner of the "Kirti Kissan Party". Bhagat Singh was the secretary of the meet. His later revolutionary activities were carried out as a leader of this association. The capture and hanging of the main HRA Leaders also allowed him to be quickly promoted to higher ranks in the party, along with his fellow revolutionary Sukhdev Thapar.Fact|date=January 2008

Later revolutionary activities

Lala Lajpat Rai's death and the Saunders murder

The British government created a commission under Sir John Simon to report on the current political situation in India in 1928. The Indian political parties boycotted the commission because it did not include a single Indian as its member and it was met with protests all over the country. When the commission visited Lahore on October 30, 1928, Lala Lajpat Rai led the protest against Simon Commission in a silent non-violent march, but the police responded with violence.cite book
author= Raghunath Rai
title= History
publisher= VK Publications
location=
year=
pages= p187
isbn= 8187139692
oclc=
doi=] Lala Lajpat Rai was beaten with lathis at the chest. He later succumbed to his injuries. Bhagat Singh, who was an eyewitness to this event, vowed to take revenge.Fact|date=January 2008 He joined with other revolutionaries, Shivaram Rajguru, Jai Gopal and Sukhdev Thapar, in a plot to kill the police chief. Jai Gopal was supposed to identify the chief and signal for Singh to shoot. However, in a case of mistaken identity, Gopal signalled Singh on the appearance of J. P. Saunders, a Deputy Superintendent of Police. Thus, Saunders, instead of Scott, was shot. Bhagat Singh quickly left Lahore to escape the police. To avoid recognition, he shaved his beard and cut his hair, a violation of the sacred tenets of Sikhism.

Bomb in the assembly

In the face of actions by the revolutionaries, the British government enacted the Defence of India Act to give more power to the police.Fact|date=January 2008 The purpose of the Act was to combat revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh. The Act was defeated in the council by one vote.Fact|date=January 2008 However, the Act was then passed under the ordinance that claimed that it was in the best interest of the public. In response to this act, the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association planned to explode a bomb in the assembly where the ordinance was going to be passed. Originally, Chandrashekhar Azad, another prominent leader of the revolutionary movement attempted to stop Bhagat Singh from carrying out the bombing. However, the remainder of the party forced him to succumb to Singh's wishes. It was decided that Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt, another revolutionary, would throw the bomb in the assembly.Fact|date=January 2008

On April 8, 1929, Singh and Dutt threw a bomb onto the corridors of the assembly and shouted "Inquilab Zindabad!" ("Long Live the Revolution!"). [ [http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_24-3-2004_pg7_9 Bhagat Singh remembered - Daily Times Pakistan] ] This was followed by a shower of leaflets stating that it takes a loud voice to make the deaf hear. [ [http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/index.asp?link=april8 Bhagat Singh Writings] "Leaflet Thrown in the Central Assembly Hall"] The bomb neither killed nor injured anyone; Singh and Dutt claimed that this was deliberate on their part, a claim substantiated both by British forensics investigators who found that the bomb was not powerful enough to cause injury, and by the fact that the bomb was thrown "away" from people. Singh and Dutt gave themselves up for arrest after the bomb.Fact|date=January 2008 He and Dutt were sentenced to 'Transportation for Life' for the bombing on June 12, 1929.

Trial and execution

his cause for the independence of India.Fact|date=January 2008 He admitted to the murder and made statements against the British rule during the trial.Fact|date=January 2008 The case was ordered to be carried out without members of the HSRA present at the hearing. This created an uproar amongst Singh's supporters as he could no longer publicise his views.

While in jail, Bhagat Singh and other prisoners launched a hunger strike advocating for the rights of prisoners and those facing trial. The reason for the strike was that British murderers and thieves were treated better than Indian political prisoners, who, by law, were meant to be given better rights. The aims in their strike were to ensure a decent standard of food for political prisoners, the availability of books and a daily newspaper, as well as better clothing and the supply of toilet necessities and other hygienic necessities. He also demanded that political prisoners should not be forced to do any labour or undignified work. [ [http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/index.asp?link=hunger_strike Bhagat Singh Documents] Bhagat Singh and BK Dutt's Demands from the British Government ] During this hunger strike that lasted 63 days and ended with the British succumbing to his wishes, he gained much popularity among the common Indians. Before the strike his popularity was limited mainly to the Punjab region. [ [http://pd.cpim.org/2006/0319/03192006_surjeet.htm Communist Party of India (Marxist)] "Bhagat Singh Remains Our Symbol of Revolution" ]

Bhagat Singh also maintained the use of a diary, which he eventually made to fill 404 pages. In this diary he made numerous notes relating to the quotations and popular sayings of various people whose views he supported. Prominent in his diary were the views of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. [ [http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/index.asp?linkid=30 Shahid Bhagat Singh] "Jail Note Book of Shahid Bhagat Singh"] The comments in his diary led to an understanding of the philosophical thinking of Bhagat Singh. [http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/index.asp?link=quotes1 Shahid Bhagat Singh] "Bhagat Singh quotes from his jail note book"] Before dying he also wrote a pamphlet entitled "Why I am an atheist", as he was being accused of vanity by not accepting God in the face of death.

On March 23, 1931, Bhagat Singh was hanged in Lahore with his fellow comrades Rajguru and Sukhdev. His supporters, who had been protesting against the hanging, immediately declared him as a "shaheed" or martyr. [ [http://pd.cpim.org/2006/0423/04232006_bhagat%20singh.htm CPIM] "Bhagat Singh Memorial Day Observed"] According to the Superintendent of Police at the time, V.N. Smith, the hanging was advanced:

Normally execution took place at 8 am, but it was decided to act at once before the public could become aware of what had happened...At about 7 pm shouts of Inquilab Zindabad were heard from inside the jail. This was correctly, interpreted as a signal that the final curtain was about to drop. [ [http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20051211/spectrum/main1.htm The Tribune India] "Excerpts out of Martyrdom of Shaheed Bhagat Singh"]

Singh was cremated at Hussainiwala on banks of Sutlej river. Today, the Bhagat Singh Memorial commemorates freedom fighters of India. [ [http://pd.cpim.org/2006/0423/04232006_bhagat%20singh.htm CPIM] "Bhagat Singh Memorial Day Observed"]

Ideals and opinions

Bhagat Singh was attracted to anarchism and communism. Both communism and western anarchism had influence on him. He read the teachings of Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin, Leon Trotsky and Mikhail Bakunin. [ [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Bhagat_Singh_no_terrorist_Govt/articleshow/2639054.cms Bhagat Singh no terrorist: Govt] Times of India - December 21, 2007] [ [http://raforum.info/article.php3?id_article=3225&lang=en Asian Anarchism: China, Korea, Japan & India] ] Bhagat Singh did not believe in Gandhian philosophy and viewed that Gandhian politics will replace one set of exploiters by another.cite web| title = Bhagat Singh an early Marxist, says Panikkar | publisher = The Hindu | author = | date = 2007-10-14 | url = http://www.hindu.com/2007/10/14/stories/2007101454130400.htm| accessdate = 2008-01-01 ] Singh was an atheist and promoted the concept of atheism by writing a pamphlet titled "Why I am an Atheist".

Anarchism

From May to September, 1928, Bhagat Singh serially published several articles on anarchism in Punjabi periodical "Kirti". He expressed concern over misunderstanding of the concept of anarchism among the public. Singh tried to eradicate the misconception among people about anarchism. He wrote, "The people are scared of the word anarchism. The word anarchism has been abused so much that even in India revolutionaries have been called anarchist to make them unpopular." As anarchism means absence of any ruler and abolition of state, Singh explained, "I think in India the idea of universal brotherhood, the Sanskrit sentence "vasudaika kutumbam" etc., have the same meaning." He wrote about the growth of anarchism, the "first man to explicitly propagate the theory of Anarchism was Proudhon and that is why he is called the founder of Anarchism. After him a Russian, Bakunin worked hard to spread the doctrine. He was followed by Prince Kropotkin etc."

Singh explained anarchism in the article:

Marxism

Bhagat Singh was also influenced by Marxism. Indian historian K. N. Panikkar described Singh as one of the early Marxists in India. From 1926, Bhagat Singh studied the history of the revolutionary movement in India and abroad. In his prison notebooks, Singh used quotations from Lenin (on imperialism being the highest stage of capitalism) and Trotsky on revolution.

Atheism

During his teenage years, Singh was a devout Arya Samajist. [ [http://www.punjabilok.com/misc/freedom/whyiam_ath.htm Why I Am An Atheist - By Bhagat Singh] ] However, he began to question religious ideologies after witnessing the Hindu-Muslim riots that broke out after Gandhi disbanded the Non-Cooperation Movement. [Nayar, p26.] He did not understand how members of these two groups, initially united in fighting against the British, could be at each others' throats because of their religious differences. At this point, Singh dropped his religious beliefs, since he believed religion hindered the revolutionaries' struggle for independence, and began studying the works of Bakunin, Lenin, Trotsky — all atheist revolutionaries. He also took an interest in Niralamba Swami's [Niralamba Swami was the name taken by Bengali revolutionary Jatindra Nath Banerjee, an early member of the Anushilan Samiti, after he gave up his political activism and became an ascetic.] book "Common Sense", which advocated a form of "mystic atheism". [Nayar, p27.]

While in a condemned cell in 1931, he wrote a pamphlet entitled "Why I am an Atheist" in which he discusses and advocates the philosophy of atheism. This pamphlet was a result of some criticism by fellow revolutionaries on his failure to acknowledge religion and God while in a condemned cell, the accusation of vanity was also dealt with in this pamphlet. He supported his own beliefs and claimed that he used to be a firm believer in The Almighty, but could not bring himself to believe the myths and beliefs that others held close to their hearts. In this pamphlet, he acknowledged the fact that religion made death easier, but also said that unproved philosophy is a sign of human weakness.cite web | first=Bhagat| last=Singh | title=Why I am an Atheist: Bhagat Singh | publisher=People's Publishing House |location= New Delhi, India | url=http://www.sacw.net/DC/CommunalismCollection/ArticlesArchive/bhagatSinghATHIEST.html | accessdate=2007-07-21]

Death

Bhagat Singh was known for his appreciation of martyrdom. His mentor as a young boy was Kartar Singh Sarabha. [ [http://www.tribuneindia.com/2001/20010321/edit.htm#6 Tribune India] "What if Bhagat Singh had lived"] Singh is himself considered a martyr for acting to avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai, also considered a martyr. In the leaflet he threw in the Central Assembly on 9th April 1929, he stated that "It is easy to kill individuals but you cannot kill the ideas. Great empires crumbled while the ideas survived". [ [http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/index.asp?link=april8 Bhagat Singh Documents] "Leaflet thrown in the Central Assembly Hall, New Delhi "] After engaging in studies on the Russian Revolution, he wanted to die so that his death would inspire the youth of India to unite and fight the British Empire.

While in prison, Bhagat Singh and two others had written a letter to the Viceroy asking him to treat them as prisoners of war and hence to execute them by firing squad and not by hanging. Prannath Mehta, Bhagat Singh's friend, visited him in the jail on March 20, four days before his execution, with a draft letter for clemency, but he declined to sign it.

Conspiracy theories

Many conspiracy theories exist regarding Singh, especially the events surrounding his death.

Mahatma Gandhi

One of the most popular ones is that Mahatma Gandhi had an opportunity to stop Singh's execution but did not. This particular theory has spread amongst the public in modern times after the creation of modern films such as "The Legend of Bhagat Singh", which portray Gandhi as someone who was strongly at odds with Bhagat Singh and did not oppose his hanging. ["The Legend of Bhagat Singh" (2002 film)] A variation on this theory is that Gandhi actively conspired with the British to have Singh executed. Both theories are highly controversial and hotly contested. Gandhi's supporters say that Gandhi did not have enough influence with the British to stop the execution, much less arrange it. Furthermore, Gandhi's supporters assert that Singh's role in the independence movement was no threat to Gandhi's role as its leader, and so Gandhi would have no reason to want him dead.

Gandhi, during his lifetime, always maintained that he was a great admirer of Singh's patriotism, but that he simply disapproved of his violent methods. He also said that he was opposed to Singh's execution (and, for that matter, capital punishment in general) and proclaimed that he had no power to stop it. On Singh's execution, Gandhi said, "The government certainly had the right to hang these men. However, there are some rights which do credit to those who possess them only if they are enjoyed in name only." [ "Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi." Ahmedabad, Navjivan. vol. 45, p.359-61 (Gujarati) ] Gandhi also once said, on capital punishment, "I cannot in all conscience agree to anyone being sent to the gallows. God alone can take life because He alone gives it."

Gandhi had managed to have 90,000 political prisoners who were not members of his Satyagraha movement released under the pretext of "relieving political tension," in the Gandhi-Irwin Pact. According to a report in the Indian magazine "Frontline", he did plead several times for the commutation of the death sentence of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev, including a personal visit on March 19, 1931, and in a letter to the Viceroy on the day of their execution, pleading fervently for commutation, not knowing that the letter would be too late. [http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1808/18080910.htm Frontline - Of Means and Ends] "by Paresh R. Vaidya".] ]

Lord Irwin, the Viceroy, later said:

As I listened to Mr. Gandhi putting the case for commutation before me, I reflected first on what significance it surely was that the apostle of non-violence should so earnestly be pleading the cause of the devotees of a creed so fundamentally opposed to his own, but I should regard it as wholly wrong to allow my judgment to be influenced by purely political considerations. I could not imagine a case in which under the law, penalty had been more directly deserved.

aunders family

On October 28, 2005, a book entitled "Some Hidden Facts: Martyrdom of Shaheed Bhagat Singh -- Secrets unfurled by an Intelligence Bureau Agent of British-India" ["sic"] by K.S. Kooner and G.S. Sindhra was released. The book asserts that Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev were deliberately hanged in such a manner as to leave all three in a semi-conscious state, so that all three could later be taken outside the prison and shot dead by the Saunders family. The book says that this was a prison operation codenamed "Operation Trojan Horse." Scholars are skeptical of the book's claims. [ [http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20051211/spectrum/main1.htm The Sunday Tribune] "Was Bhagat Singh shot dead?"]

Legacy

Indian independence movement

Bhagat Singh's death had the effect that he desired and he inspired thousands of youths to assist the remainder of the Indian independence movement. After his hanging, youths in regions around Northern India rioted in protest against the British Raj.Fact|date=January 2008

Modern day legacy

The Communist Party of India (Marxist), a political party in India, acknowledges Bhagat Singh's contribution to Indian society [http://pd.cpim.org/2006/0319/03192006_surjeet.htm Bhagat Singh Remains Our Symbol of Revolution ] ] [http://www.cpindia.org/ Communist Party of India] 25th January 2006, letter to Manmohan Singh ] and, in particular, the future of socialism in India. To celebrate the centenary of his birth, a group of intellectuals have set up an institution to commemorate Singh and his ideals. [ [http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070101/region.htm The Tribune Chandigarh] "In memory of Bhagat Singh"]

Several popular Bollywood films have been made capturing the life and times of Bhagat Singh. [http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mp/2002/06/03/stories/2002060300500100.htm A non-stop show] "The Hindu", June 3, 2003.] The oldest is "Shaheed" in 1965, starring Manoj Kumar as Singh. Two major films about Singh were released in 2002, "The Legend of Bhagat Singh" and "". "The Legend of Bhagat Singh" is Rajkumar Santoshi's adaptation, in which Ajay Devgan played Singh and Amrita Rao was featured in a brief role. "23 March 1931: Shaheed" was directed by Guddu Dhanoa and starred Bobby Deol as Singh, with Sunny Deol and Aishwarya Rai in supporting roles.

The 2006 film "Rang De Basanti" (starring Aamir Khan) is a film drawing parallels between revolutionaries of Bhagat Singh's era and modern Indian youth. It covers a lot of Bhagat Singh's role in the Indian freedom struggle. The movie revolves around a group of college students and how they each play the roles of Bhagat's friends and family.

The patriotic Urdu and Hindi songs, "Sarfaroshi ki Tamanna" (translated as "the desire to sacrifice") and "Mera Rang De Basanti Chola" ("my light-yellow-colored cloak"; Basanti referring to the light-yellow color of the Mustard flower grown in the Punjab and also one of the two main colors of the Sikh religion as per the Sikh "rehat meryada"(code of conduct of the Sikh Saint-Soldier) ), while created by Ram Prasad Bismil, are largely associated to Bhagat Singh's martyrdom and have been used in a number of Bhagat Singh-related films.

In September 2007 the governor of Pakistan's Punjab province announced that a memorial to Bhagat Singh will be displayed at Lahore museum, according to the governor “Singh was the first martyr of the subcontinent and his example was followed by many youth of the time." [ [http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C09%5C02%5Cstory_2-9-2007_pg7_33 Memorial will be built to Bhagat Singh, says governor - Daily times Pakistan] ] [ [http://www.dawn.com/2007/09/26/ed.htm#2 Requiem for a freedom fighter] ]

Criticism

Bhagat Singh was criticized both by his contemporaries and by people after his death because of his violent and revolutionary stance towards the British and his strong opposition to the pacifist stance taken by the Indian National Congress and particularly Mahatma Gandhi. [http://www.punjabilok.com/misc/freedom/sukh_togandhi.htm Punjabi Lok] "Sukhdev's letter to Gandhi"] The methods he used to make his point—shooting Saunders and throwing non-lethal bombs—were quite different from the non-violent non-cooperation used by Gandhi.

Bhagat Singh has also been accused of being too eager to die, as opposed to staying alive and continuing his movement. It has been alleged that he could have escaped from prison if he so wished, but he preferred that he die and become a legacy for other youths in India. Some lament that he may have done much more for India had he stayed alive.

Quotations

:*"The aim of life is no more to control the mind, but to develop it harmoniously; not to achieve salvation here after, but to make the best use of it here below; and not to realise truth, beauty and good only in contemplation, but also in the actual experience of daily life; social progress depends not upon the ennoblement of the few but on the enrichment of democracy; universal brotherhood can be achieved only when there is an equality of opportunity - of opportunity in the social, political and individual life." — from Bhagat Singh's prison diary, p. 124

:*"Inquilab Zindabad" (Long live the revolution) [ [http://books.google.com/books?id=bG9lA6CrgQgC&pg=PA32&vq=inquilab+zindabad&sig=FYPPU91-0bFYEuWPgaJmmQ4tZJ4 The Martyr: Bhagat Singh - Experiments in Revolution] By Kuldip Nayar. Page 32.]

ee also

*Sukhdev Thapar
*Chandrashekar Azad
*Udham Singh
*Rajguru

References

External links

* [http://www.peopleforever.org/NFHomepage.aspx?NFID=2485 Freedom fighter Bhagat Singh]
* [http://www.freeindia.org/biographies/freedomfighters/bhagathsingh/index.htm Bhagat Singh at freeindia.org]
* [http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/ Bhagat Singh Biography and Contains letters written by Bhagat Singh]
* [http://www.boloji.com/spirituality/051.htm Why I Am An Atheist] , an essay by Bhagat Singh
* [http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/itihas/sbsingh.htm Martyrdom of Sardar Bhagat Singh] by Jyotsna Kamat

Persondata
NAME=Singh, Bhagat
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Indian Freedom Activist
DATE OF BIRTH=September 27, 1907
PLACE OF BIRTH=Lyallpur, Punjab, British India
DATE OF DEATH= March 23, 1931
PLACE OF DEATH=Lahore, Punjab, British India