Sukhdev Thapar (15 May 1907 – 23 March 1931) was an Indian revolutionary. He was a senior member of
Hindustan Socialist Republican Association. He was hanged on 23 March 1931 at the age of 23. Sukhdev, born in Nau ghara Mohalla of Ludhiana, Punjab to Ramlal Thapar and Ralli Devi in a Khatri family. Sukhdev's father died and he was brought up by his uncle Lala Achintram.
 |
| Sukhdev Thapar |
Sukhdev was subjected to physical abuse as a child, some of it self-inflicted. Under the influence of socialist communism, he once used Nitric acid to remove a tattoo of the Hindu symbol ‘Om’ on his skin.
He was subjected to caning at school for not saluting a British military officer. He reportedly gave himself the nickname ‘
Maarkhaana’, which was the equivalent of the English term ‘
punching bag’. Sukhdev had witnessed the brutal atrocities that the Imperial British Raj had inflicted on India, which then led him to join the revolutionaries, vowing to set India free from the shackles of British dominion.
As a young student at Lahore’s National College, he started study circles to delve into India’s past and scrutinize the revolutionary movements happening around the world. It was at this college that he first met
Bhagat Singh and
Yashpal.
 |
| Revolutionary students of Lahore National College |
Hindustan Socialist Republican Association
Sukhdev was the chief of Punjab unit of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA), and organised revolutionary cells in Punjab and other areas of North India, vowing to set India free from the shackles of British rule.
He also played an active role in several revolutionary activities but he is best remembered for his courageous attack in the
Lahore Conspiracy Case.
 |
| Actual Photograph - Sukhdev Thapar |
Lahore Conspiracy Case
In February 1928, the Simon Commission arrived in India to suggest constitutional reforms. The unfair and insulting decision to not have a single Indian member in the Commission led to much anger and disappointment among Indians.
 |
| British Police confront Protesters in Lahore |
In the resulting protests, veteran leader
Lala Lajpat Rai was killed in a brutal cane charge by the police. Seeking revenge for the death of the much-loved freedom fighter, the HSRA planned to assassinate Superintendent of Police
James Scott, the British police officer responsible for the cane charge on the senior freedom fighter.
On December 17, 1927,
Bhagat Singh and
Shivaram Rajguru shot and killed Assistant Superintendent of police
John Saunders. They were supported in this act by their compatriots
Sukhdev Thapar and
Chandrashekhar Azad.
Soon after,
Bhagat Singh and fellow revolutionary,
Batukeshwar Dutt, threw two bombs and leaflets inside the Central Legislative Assembly (Now Indian Parliament) before offering themselves up for arrest. These were the two charges that were clubbed together by the British Raj in the Lahore conspiracy case that led to the arrest of the young leaders of HSRA.
Court Proceedings and Hunger Strike
Three individuals,
Hans Raj Vohra,
Jai Gopal and
Phanindra Nath Ghosh turned approvers for the Government which led to a total of 21 arrests including those of
Sukhdev Thapar, J
atindra Nath Das and
Shivaram Rajguru. Sardar
Bhagat Singh was re-arrested for the Lahore Conspiracy case, murder of Assistant Superintendent Saunders and bomb manufacturing.
In the last two years of their life in jail,
Bhagat Singh,
Sukhdev and
Rajguru fought one of the most celebrated court battles in the annals of India’s national liberation struggle. Other than using the court as a vehicle for the propagation of their revolutionary message, they also put the spotlight on the inhuman conditions political prisoners faced in colonial jails.
In jail, Bhagat Singh and his fellow inmates declared an indefinite hunger strike in protest of the prejudiced difference in treatment of the white versus native prisoners and demanded to be recognized as 'political prisoners'.
 |
| Nehru meets Bhagat Singh - Lahore Jail Hunger Strike |
The hunger strike received tremendous attention from the press and gathered major public support in favor of their demands. Death of Jatindra Nath Das, after 63 days long fast, led to the negative public opinions intensifying towards the authorities.
Bhagat Singh finally broke his 116-day fast, on request of his father and Congress leadership, on October 5, 1929.
The Trial & Sentencing
Trial started against 28 accused in a special session court presided over by Judge
Rai Sahib Pandit Sri Kishen, on July 10, 1929. At the time of their execution,
Bhagat Singh and
Sukhdev Thapar were just 23 years old while
Shivaram Rajguru was only 22.
 |
| Hanging Site - Lahore Jail |
The rafters were removed from under their feet. The dead bodies of the three remained hanging on the scaffold. They were brought down and examined by the doctor and declared dead.
During the dusk time there bodies were loaded in the truck for cremation and cremated near Ganda Singh Wala village in Ferozepur on the edge of Sutlej. When the villagers reached on the spot, the half burnt bodies were thrown in the Sutlej river by the British soldiers.
 |
| Final Cremation by Villagers |
Several thousand people gathered at various places to pay homage to India’s beloved sons after they were hanged on March 23, 1931 and cremated on the banks of the Sutlej River at Hussainwala., Punjab
Remembering Sukhdev Thapar
After 76 years of this martyr’s sacrifice, the house stood as a testimony to the lackadaisical attitude of governments and needed immediate attention. Though relatives of Sukhdev had agreed in principle to donate the house for preserving it as a memorial, they rue that state and central governments did not bother to pay attention to it.
‘’
They make plans and announce but none mooted by the government has seen the light of the day. We are disgusted and stopped saying anything" , said Mr Bharat Bhushan, a nephew of the martyr, whose father once lived with the former in a joint family in the Nau Ghara house.
To rekindle the spirit of patriotism and propagate the contribution of Sukhdev in the freedom struggle, the Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar Memorial Trust was founded in 1950. A hawan yagna is performed each year on May 15, the birthday of Sukhdev, to pay tribute to this great martyr.
 |
| Home of Sukhdev Thapar |
Had it not been for an NGO—-
Shaheed Sukhdev Yadgar Committee, Ludhiana—-which had constructed the front portion of the house without any assistance from any government agency, the house would have crumbled. The NGO preserved the outer portion of the house and also put up a bust of the martyr outside but could not do anything for the inner side as it has been occupied by a tenant family for years together.
The Hindustan Times report “Pak preserves Shaheed Bhagat Singh’s house, Punjab betrays martyr Sukhdev” (September 14) contrasted the Pakistani and Punjab efforts to preserve the memory of two freedom fighters who had gone to the gallows together. Following that story, the state government notified in various newspapers on October 17 that it would preserve the entire building in Ludhiana’s Mohalla Nau Ghara.
Taking cognizance of the Hindustan Times report highlighting how the Punjab archeology department was doing only partial restoration of the house of martyr Sukhdev in Ludhiana, the state government has started the process to acquire the entire building for conservation. The birth place of Sukdev Thapar evacuated by paying 3.50 Lac. rupees to the evacuator by Trustee & Mandir Chuhamal Thapar Baradhari. Laterly, the birth place of Sukdev Thapar was renovated by the government.
UPDATE - June 6, 2019: Condemning the provocative actions of
Shaheed Sukhdev Thaper Brigade
Anti-Terrorist Front who stirred a controversy by organizing a hawan to pay tribute to Army General AS Vaidya, who had led
the Operation BlueStar. The event was led by front present Ashok
Thaper. The members also burnt the pictures of assassins of former Chief
Minister Beant Singh. Police personnel were deployed near the venue to
prevent any untoward incident.
The pious soul of Sukhdev Thapar would be anguished to see how the religious fanatics are using his name to provoke Sikh community by glorifying those who attacked Harmander Sahib in Blue Star Operations and killed thousands of Sikhs in fake police encounters. SHAME SHAME
 |
| Martyr Statues - Husainiwala, Pu jab |
Though we cannot repay the freedom fighters, at least we can make an effort to know about them and also educate our children about them.
Reference
https://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070318/spectrum/main3.htm
Comments
Post a Comment