WHO’S THAT?

-Prakriti Prakash

On 23 March 1931, three Indian revolutionaries became martyrs. Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Hari Rajguru and Sukhdev Thapar laid down their lives to break the shackles of colonialism. This revolutionary trio had become a constant source of tension to the exploitative British government. Their rebellious acts were seen as dangerous to the existence of the imperialistic British. To eliminate these emerging signs of danger, it was deemed fit by the colonial judiciary to execute these three youngsters.

But as Shaheed Bhagat Singh famously said, “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”.

Image source – https://www.shutterstock.com/search/indian+freedom+struggle

MEET THE UNSUNG HEROES! 

The youth of today is unaware of the myriad acts of bravery carried out by the freedom fighters whose names fail to find a place in our history books. These personalities have become footnotes in our texts, at best. Or they have just disappeared, at worst. Try taking the names of Durgawati Devi or Baji Rout and the next sentence you will hear would surely be – ‘Who’s that?’ The situation is worse when it comes to female freedom fighters. 

This is an extremely sorry state of affairs. India will turn 75 years old this year. Let us try and remember. Let us remember those unknown freedom fighters who bled for this freedom we enjoy today. Let us commemorate those unsung heroes. Not that they would have wished to be remembered. They did it out of their love for this motherland. But can we give them the recognition they deserve? Or is it too much to ask? 

Ask yourself. Do we know the story of Shaheed Sukhdev? Do we know from where Shaheed Rajguru hailed? Do we know the beliefs of Shaheed Bhagat Singh despite knowing his name? How long is the list of those unknown freedom fighters? 

LAUNCHING THE SERIES 

SKCF is launching a series on the unsung heroes of the Indian Independence movement titled ‘Who’s that?’ We aim to give due recognition and respect to these unknown freedom fighters. We will post a new blog every Wednesday and Sunday for the upcoming three weeks. Our first blog of this series ‘Who’s that?’ will be posted on 23 March 2022 on the occasion of Shaheed Diwas. We will begin with Shaheed Bhagat Singh. To know what’s in store for the upcoming week, stay tuned!

Must Read – https://skchildrenfoundation.org/beyond-the-tea-gardens/