Introduction
In the Indian national movement for independence, there are the number of people who gave their lives and blood. Among those was the Bhagat Singh who was considered as the nationalist revolutionary. He was influential among the people who died for the cause of Indian independence from the British rule. He was called as the ‘Shaheed’ which means martyr from some Muslim quarters of the Indian population. The Indian independence movement has its legacies which date back to the demise of Mughal Rule and the start of British rule. The demands and the objectives of the oppressed people with different ethnic backgrounds were initiated after 1857. Various factions and groups of people have contributed to the independence movement of India. Bhagat Singh was one of the influential figures in the revolutionary movement.
Discussion
Born in 1907, belongs to the Banga village of Punjab district of India. Belongs to the Sikh family his other members of the family had also contributed to the independence movement. He did not have the education because his parents consider that schools are loyal to the British’s. They had the idea that school are promoting the agenda of British people. He got some education in the Arya Samaj School, a local institute with local teachers for the training. The role of his grandfather in the Hindu reformist rule had the considerable impact on the mind of Bhagat Singh. In the year of 1919 when the massacre of Jallianwala Bagh incident took place where British army killed dozens of people over their gathering, he visited the area after the incident happened (Bhavnani, 2014).
At the age of fourteen years, Bhagat Singh was among those people who protested against the killing of innocent people of Gurdwara Nankana Sahib. The incidents and the oppression by the British forces have influenced his mind, and he went against the non-violence philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. He then joined the revolutionary movement and became the active advocate against the violent suppression by the British rulers. Singh was also keen on his college activities such as dramatic societies. He was highly inspired by the Italian movement which was initiated by the Giuseppe Mazzini with the name of young Italy.
It was the effect of the Italian movements that he founded the Indian socialist youth organization. Other than the foundation of socialist movement he also joins the Hindustan Republic Association. To avoid his arranged marriage, he left his home and went away to Cawnpore. The letter he wrote to his parents was the reflection of his ideas about his life. He told his parents that he had dedicated his life to the noblest cause which the freedom of his country from the tyranny of British rulers (Chand, 2017). He further wrote in his letter that he has no desire for any worldly affairs or any associated greed for this world. The police arrested the Singh over his influence on the youth.
The arrest of the Singh was due to the suspicions of the police about his involvement in the bombing in Lahore in the year of 1926. He was released from the jail after four weeks of the arrest. He wrote for different newspapers like the Punjabi and Urdu newspapers. In 1928 the government of British had set up the Simon commission to find out the real political situation in India. The Indian political parties had boycotted the commission because of no representation is given to them in the composition of the commission. The massive protest was going on throughout India. On arrival of the commission to Lahore Lala Lajpat Rai arrange a protest against the entry of commission (Chandra, 2017). The police while dispersing the crowd used the frequently the baton charge over the protestors which resulted in the injuries of many demonstrators.
Rai who was leading the protest became severally injured and died of the heart attack. The doctors’ thoughts that death was the result of baton charge and the injuries received by the Rai. Bhagat was the important activist of the Rai’s party. To avenge the death, he conspired with other revolutionary members of the party to kill James Scott senior official of the police. However, he shot the Assistant superintendent of the police instead of shooting the James Scott The reaction to the killing of a senior police officer was not favorable and the attendance at the party gathering was subsequently dropdown. Bhagat Singh has played his role in the number of political protests and the campaigns against the brutal rule of British in India. Other key figures enlighten the Indian independence movement.
The revolutionary movement for the independence of India was comprised of the actions of different underground factions and groups. The oppression and the suppression by the English masters who wanted to colonize the state lead to the protest in various forms. The Indians did not accept the illegal entrance of the British rulers through treacherous business dealing. There was a trade between the Indian continent and the English companies. During the era of Mughal rule, the last king was unable to save his dynasty and the kingdom due to the weak economy and the corruption (French, 2016). The fragile condition of the country provided the British to overthrow the rule of Mughal dynasty.
The joint-stock company of the British was formed to trade with the people of East India. The company had half of the world business. The commodities and the products like cotton, salt, tea, and the opium are frequently exchanged with the Indians. The company has a charter from the Queen to have business with the Indians. The first phase of the company shows that there were no signs of building an empire in India. With the decline in the Mughal rule, the company got to have control over territory along with struggle and the cooperation of French counterpart. In the battle of Plassey, the company defeated the Bengali powers which provide more strength and energy to the Idea of building an empire in the Indian Continent.
With the help of puppet local rulers, the company established its rule in the Indian region. By implying the conspirators and treacherous practices, the company gains its control all over India. At the time of its power, the East India Company had around two lac army for the defense rule over the entire territory (Niemeijer, 2016). With the imposition of the government of India act the company lost its powers, and the formal state of the British was established. The officials and the government machinery has started working with the absorbed army and the political masters. India was considered by the British as the golden sparrow because the continent was full of natural wealth and the ideal routes for the business trade.
Before the start of the format war for the independence, there was the much protest against the rule of British. In the southern India Tamil people, Dheeran Chinnamalai were protesting against the treacherous control of the British. There was also the revolt against the rule of Portugal in Goa. The historians considered the rebellion for the independence by the tribes of the Jharkhand in India as the Pinto Conspiracy. In the same way, the uprising and the protest by the Titumir in the region of Bengal against the unjust rule were also connected with the independence of India. The first war against the government of British was the revolution initiated by the Indian army.
The independence movement that was started by the Indian military personnel continued from 1857 to the end of 1858. There was the number of reason and suppression that lead to the cause of revolt (Niemeijer, 2016). The English rulers were continuously taking control over the lands of Indian people by using the force. They made those areas as the part of British Raj. They disrespected the family of former King and the houses. They imply the particular cartridge for the Indian army which they used for their military. It was the practice by which soldiers have to open those cartridges with their teeth. The cartridge composed of the fat cows and pigs. Muslims are prohibited from eating the pork while Indians consider cows as the sacred animal. Both of the most significant parties turned against the British and organized a massive movement.
British call back its army from different regions and fight started with Indians soldiers in the streets and around Delhi. However, British forces overcome the revolt and take control of the Delhi. The siege of the Lucknow and the massacre of Kanpur was essential, but British army successfully defeated the revolutionary war. The last battle of Gwalior was also failing for the revolutionaries to overthrow the foreign rulers (Ray, 2015). With the innovative attempt by the Indians, the British had formally started suppressing the Indians both Muslims and the Hindus. The first war for the independence was the significant event in the history of India.
The results of the revolution were the end of East India company rule with the induction of viceroy who was the representative of the United Kingdom in India. India became part of the British Empire. The British rulers started interfering in the religious and the political lives of the Indian people. They got control over the remaining lands and the employment for the Indians was considerably low than that of the officers came from the United Kingdom. There was disrespect towards the families and the people that were linked with the revolutionary movements. Colossal oppression was on the Muslims and the Hindus communities which provide many local leaders to devise a plan for the independence of the Indian sub-continent.
There was the number of Indian leaders including the Bhagat Singh, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Jawar Lal Nehru, Muhammad Ali Jinnah which played a significant role in the independence of the India (Sahgal, 2016). The social movements at the local level have helped people to understand their right and fight against the oppression of the foreigners. Indian national congress was founded to fulfill the purpose. In the year of 1905, the partition of Bengal further agitated the emotions of Muslims of India. Indians have called the British rulers that they are implying divide and rule policy. Over the separation of Bengal, people became outraged.
In the same way, the government imposes Rowlatt act as the law to arrest and keep the people in prison without any reason. Newspaper and the print news was confiscated under the law. To silence the press and detaining the political workers along with suspicious individuals the act provided all powers to the Viceroy. Under the bill, the British troops killed 400 unarmed people and injured 1500 who gathered to protest against the enforcement of Rowlatt act. Gandhi, a political leader, had played an essential role in the freedom of India.
The oppression of the British provided the national congress party along with Muslim league launch a broad political movement (Thakur, 2016). The civil disobedience movement made two different ideological factions to get together and oust the British from India. The massive independence movement brought British to handle the Indian region to the locals. The slogan of Gandhi was ‘do or die’ with quitting India movement. After the situation gets out of control for Britain, they decide to hand over India to the Muslims and the Hindus. Lord Mountbatten, the viceroy of India, announced the partition with two states. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Union of India.
Conclusion
Concluding the discussion on the Indian Independence Movement and the Bhagat Singh it is to say that oppression and suppression of British provided ways for the Indian freedom. Many leaders have played their part along with the Bhagat Singh whose life was dedicated to the Indian independence. The unfulfilled demands of the oppressed people along with the economic and social inequalities resulted in the freedom of India from the British Empire.
Works Cited
Bhavnani, Rikhil, and Saumitra Jha. Forging a Non-Violent Mass Movement: Economic Shocks and Organizational Innovations in India’s Struggle for Democracy. Mimeo, Stanford University, 2014.
Chand, Tara. History of Freedom Movement in India-Vol 2. Publications Division Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, 2017.
Chandra, Bipan, et al. India’s struggle for independence. Penguin UK, 2016.
French, Patrick. Liberty or death: India’s journey to independence and division. Vintage, 2016.
Gordon, Leonard A. “Brothers Against the Raj: A Biography of Sarat and Subhas Chandra Bose.” New Delhi (1990): 559.
Niemeijer, A. The Khilafat Movement in India 1919-1924. Brill, 2016.
Rao, Madhugiri SA, ed. Social Movements in India: Studies in Peasant, Backward Classes, Sectarian, Tribal and Women’s Movements. Manohar Publishers, 2000.
Ray, Sugata. “A revolutionary history of interwar India: violence, image, voice, and text.” (2015).
Sahgal, Manmohini Zutshi, Geraldine Hancock Forbes, and Braj Kumar Nehru. An Indian freedom fighter recalls her life. Routledge, 2016.
Thakur, Atul K. “Midnight’s furies: the deadly legacy of India’s partition by Nisid Hajari.” (2016): 150-152.
