✨ Introduction-Why Bhagat Singh is an Immortal Legend
While there have been many heroes in the freedom struggle in India, Bhagat Singh has remained a very potent symbol of youth, courage, and sacrifice. Shaheed-e-Azam cannot really describe his death; it was fighting against all oppressions.
Born with fire in his eyes and revolution in his mind, Bhagat Singh's journey from a young boy in Punjab to a martyr at 23 is inspiring and thought-provoking.
“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.”
-Bhagat Singh
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🧒 Early Life – Growing To Be A Revolutionary
• Date of Birth: 28 September 1907
• Place: Banga, Lyallpur district, Punjab(now in Pakistan)
• Family: Bhagat Singh belonged to a politically active Sikh family. His uncle Ajit Singh and father Kishan Singh were freedom fighters, and the atmosphere that developed in his home since his childhood played a great part in the making of Bhagat.
At the age of 12, he had an experience of how the British shot unarmed people in the massacre at the Jallianwala Bagh.
📚 Revolutionary Inspiration and Ideology
Bhagat Singh was not just a fighter but also a thinker. Influenced by the ideas of Marx, Lenin, and Mazzini, he wanted an egalitarian society and was also an atheist, secularist, and rationalist.
He rejected superstition and wrote one of his most powerful essays while in jail – "Why I am an Atheist":
“Revolution does not mean bombs and pistols. It means the ultimate goal of establishing a new social order.”
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💣 Turning Point – Lala Lajpat Rai Activist Who Was Killed and The Saunders Case
In 1928, British officer James A. Scott ordered a baton charge on the freedom fighters while they were protesting against the Simon Commission, where Lala Lajpat Rai was injured and later died.
Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev conspired to take revenge for the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. However, they murdered John Saunders, believing him to be Scott.
This came to be known as the Lahore Conspiracy Case, which made Bhagat Singh a household name all over India.
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🔊 The Assembly Bombing – Voice of the Voiceless
On the 8th April 1929, Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt threw two bombs into the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi. The bombs were non-lethal.
Days in Jail: Hunger Strike and Writings
Bhagat Singh went on a hunger strike demanding equal treatment for Indian political prisoners. He was on hunger strike for 116 days, which drew national attention.
He read history, political theory, and other philosophical volumes in jail. He said that the real revolution is in thoughts, not in guns.
He continued to write letters and articles and even drafted a revolutionary plan for Independent India.
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⚰️ Execution and Martyrdom
Despite mass protests, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev were sentenced to death. They were secretly murdered inside Lahore Central Jail on 23rd March 1931---a day before their scheduled hanging.
To prevent an outburst of anger from the public, the British did not tell a soul about the matter. Their bodies were cremated near the Sutlej river.
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🕊️ Legacy – More Than Just a Name
He did not go into the freedom movement for personal glory and profit. Bhagat Singh wanted freedom with dignity, social equality, and justice for India. His dream was not just to remove the British, but to build an India free from casteism, poverty, and communal hatred.
Even today, Bhagat Singh stands tall as a made-for-youth icon. The life of Bhagat Singh is chronicled, debated, and remembered.