"The Bhagat Singh Reader brings into prominence his less widely known intellectual output. It presents in a single volume a collection of all his writings and thoughts: from his letters, telegrams and notices, to articles that chalk out his subversive and progressive ideas, and his mails from prison to the colonial administration and judiciary. His forty-three sketches of Indian freedom fighters throw light on the larger picture of the Independence struggle. This is a book that reveals Bhagat Singh the man and the thinker, the Marxist and the idealist." --
Sporting a sharp handlebar moustache, his hat askew, Shaheed Bhagat Singh has been lionized in Indian imagination as one of the most influential revolutionaries of the Independence movement. Convicted and hanged by the British in 1931 for his role in killing a colonial police officer in the Lahore Conspiracy Case, he became a martyr at the young age of twenty-three, leaving behind an inspiring legacy. Tales of Bhagat Singh's heroism and bravery are part of popular folklore, as it were -- how he exploded bombs at the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi and showered leaflets on the legislators before surrendering himself to the authorities, or how he led Indian political prisoners in a hunger strike demanding better conditions in jail. The Bhagat Singh Reader brings into prominence his less widely known intellectual output. It presents in a single volume a collection of his writings and thoughts: from his letters, telegrams and notices to articles that chalk out his subversive and progressive ideas, and his mails from prison to the colonial administration and judiciary. His forty-three sketches of Indian freedom fighters throw light on the larger picture of the independence struggle. This is a book that reveals Bhagat Singh the man and the thinker, the Marxist and the idealist.
Great son of India; Shaheed Bhagat Singh was executed by the Britishers on 23rd March; 1931. He dedicated his life to free motherland from the cruel clutches of the British. His Jail Diary was handed over; along with other belongings to his father; Sardar Kishan Singh after his execution. After Sardar Kishan Singh’s death; the notebook; along with other papers of Bhagat Singh; was passed on to his another son; Shri Kulbir Singh. After his death; it has passed to his son; Shri Babar Singh. It was the dream of Shri Babar Singh that the Indian masses get to know through this historical diary what were the actual thoughts of Shaheed Bhagat Singh. Also general people can also see the original writings of Bhagat Singh because he is the hero of every caste; religion; poor; rich; farmers; labourers and everyone who loves Bharat. Bhagat Singh’s deep thinking and vision; love for mankind can be seen by his these words; “Our political parties consist of men who have but one idea; i.e. to fight against the alien rulers. That idea is quite laudable; but cannot be termed a revolutionary idea. We must make it clear that revolution does not merely mean an upheaval or a sanguinary strife. Revolution necessarily implies the programme of systematic reconstruction of society on new and better adapted basis; after complete destruction of the existing state of affairs (i.e. regime).” Publication of this Jail Diary is a befitting tribute to the hero of India’s freedom struggle since it will infuse feeling of nationalism; patriotism and dedication among the readers. Bhagat Singh Jail Diary In English is a book authored by Yadvinder Singh Sandhu. It presents the jail diary of the iconic freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, offering insights into his thoughts and experiences during his incarceration. Key Aspects of the Book "Bhagat Singh Jail Diary In English": Historical Document: Presents a historic document in the form of Bhagat Singh's jail diary. Freedom Struggle: Provides a glimpse into the life and ideals of Bhagat Singh during India's struggle for independence. Author's Contribution: Yadvinder Singh Sandhu brings forth this valuable piece of history to a wider audience. Yadvinder Singh Sandhu is the author who has played a crucial role in preserving and sharing the writings of Bhagat Singh.
A discussion with a friend soon turned into a matter of self-assessment, leading to this discourse on why Bhagat Singh chose to be an atheist. Even in the face of death at a very young age, with uncanny observations and sharp questions, he forces us to re-think our foundations to faith in god.
"Bhagat Singh spent the last two years of his life in jail, awaiting execution. During this time, he and his comrades fought one of the most celebrated Court Battles in the annals of national liberation struggles, and used the court as a vehicle for the propagation of their revolutionary message. They also struggled against the inhuman conditions in the Colonial jail, and faced torture and pain. Their heroism made them icons and figures of Inspiration for generations to come. All this is well-known. What is not so well-known is that Bhagat Singh wrote four Books in jail. Although they were smuggled out, they were destroyed and are lost forever. What survived was a Notebook that the Young martyr kept in jail, full of notes and jottings from what he was reading. In the year of his Birth centenary, LeftWord is proud to present his Notebook in an elegant edition. This Edition has been checked against the copy preserved in the National Archives of India. The Notebook is richly annotated by Bhupender Hooja; and the annotations have been revised and updated for this edition. Also included are the most important Texts that Bhagat Singh wrote in jail, Chaman Lal's lucid introduction, the New York Daily Worker's reports and Periyar's editorial on the hanging" -- Provided by publisher.
Extolled for his extraordinary courage and sacrifice, Bhagat Singh is one of our most venerated freedom fighters. He is valourised for his martyrdom, and rightly so, but in the ensuing enthusiasm, most of us forget, or consciously ignore, his contributions as an intellectual and a thinker. He not only sacrificed his life, like many others did before and after him, but he also had a vision of independent India. In the current political climate, when it has become routine to appropriate Bhagat Singh as a nationalist icon, not much is known or spoken about his nationalist vision. Inquilab provides a corrective to such a situation by bringing together some of Bhagat Singh's seminal writings on his pluralist and egalitarian vision. It compels the reader to see that while continuing to celebrate the memory of Bhagat Singh as a martyr and a nationalist, we must also learn about his intellectual legacy. This important book also makes a majority of these writings, hitherto only available in Hindi, accessible for the first time to the English-language readership.
BHAGAT SINGH (1907-1931) lived at a time when India's freedom struggle was beginning to fl ag and when Mahatma Gandhi's non-violent, passive resistance to partial liberation was beginning to test the patience of the people. The youth of India was inspired by Bhagat Singh's call to arms and enthused by the defiance and dare-devilry of the army wing of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association to which he and his comrades, Sukhdev and Rajguru, belonged. His call, Inquilab Zindabad! became the war-cry of the fi ght for freedom. When Bhagat Singh was executed by the British after a sham trial for his involvement in the Lahore Conspiracy Case at the age of twenty-three, he was glorifi ed by the Indians as a martyr - for his youth, his heroism, and his steadfast courage in the face of certain death. It was only many years later - after Independence in 1947 - that his jail writings came to light. Today, it is these works that set Bhagat Singh apart from the many revolutionaries who laid down their lives for India. They reveal him as not just a passionate freedom-fighter who believed in the cult of the bomb but a widely-read intellectual inspired by the writings of, among others, Marx, Lenin, Bertrand Russell and Victor Hugo; a revolutionary whose vision did not end with the ouster of the British, but who looked further, towards a secular, socialist India. In this book, commemorating the hundredth birth anniversary of this iconic young man, Kuldip Nayar takes a close look at the man behind the martyr: his beliefs, his intellectual leanings, his dreams and his despair. The book explains for the first time why Hans Raj Vohra turned approver and betrayed Bhagat Singh, and throws new light on Sukhdev, whose loyalties have been questioned by some historians. But most of all it puts in perspective Bhagat Singh's use of violence, so strongly condemned by Gandhi and many others as being extremist. Bhagat Singh's intent was never to kill the largest number or strike terror in the hearts of the British through the gruesomeness of his attacks; his fearlessness was not fuelled by the empty bravura of guns and youth. It was held together by the wisdom of his reading and the strength of his beliefs.
Jailed at the young age of 23, Bhagat Singh wrote this letter to his father when his case on having killed English Police officer Saunders reached the final stages in court. His father had requested the courts to look into evidences that would prove his son’s innocence, but the letter only goes on to show why Bhagat Singh is a true revolutionary who paved a new path for Indian Independence.
