In an audacious display of historical revisionism, Pakistan has not only sought to deny Bhagat Singh his rightful place in history but has also taken the extraordinary step of branding him a ‘terrorist.’ This comes despite Singh’s widely acknowledged status as one of India’s greatest freedom fighters and a revolutionary martyr. Bhagat Singh was hanged by the British colonial government in Lahore Central Jail 1931 at the age of 23, but now, the authorities in Pakistan have chosen to brand him a criminal, a designation that is as inaccurate as it is offensive.
This attempt to undermine Singh’s legacy comes with the scrapping of a proposed plan to rename Shadman Chowk in Lahore after him and install his statue there. The proposal was halted in response to the views of a retired Commodore Tariq Majeed, a member of the committee set up by the Lahore district government to oversee the renaming. Majeed’s objections were both insulting and historically inaccurate, claiming that Bhagat Singh was not a revolutionary but a “criminal,” and that in today’s terms, he would be considered a “terrorist.” Singh, according to Majeed, had killed a British police officer and was therefore deserving of execution - an interpretation that gravely distorts the very nature of Singh’s sacrifice.
Majeed’s report went further, alleging that Singh was influenced by “religious leaders hostile to Muslims” and accusing the Bhagat Singh Foundation of promoting an ideology contrary to Islamic values. He also claimed that it was not acceptable in Pakistan to honour a figure who was an atheist, and that human statues, in line with Islamic prohibitions, should not be allowed. The fact that these views were taken seriously by the Lahore government shows not only a deep-seated bias but an active effort to erase Bhagat Singh’s place in history.
This revisionist narrative is an affront to the principles of justice and history. Bhagat Singh’s actions were rooted in a deep sense of nationalistic fervour and a commitment to ending colonial oppression, not religious or ideological extremism. His bomb attack on the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi was intended as a protest against British imperialism, not an act of indiscriminate violence. It was an expression of defiance against the tyranny of colonial rule, not the terror of an insurgent group.
What makes this revisionism even more glaring is the hypocrisy of Pakistan itself, a nation with a long and documented history of sponsoring terrorism. From providing safe havens to groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, to orchestrating violence in Kashmir and Afghanistan, Pakistan has long used terrorism as a tool of statecraft. To then turn around and condemn Bhagat Singh - who fought to free his people from colonial oppression - is not only absurd but deeply insulting.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and the Indian government must respond firmly. Singh’s stature as a revolutionary icon is unquestionable, and India must not allow this travesty to go unchallenged.
Comments