Kartar Singh Sarabha: A Revolutionary Leader's Journey
Explore the remarkable life of Kartar Singh Sarabha, a passionate freedom fighter who inspired generations with his zeal for martyrdom. From his early years in village Sarabha to his activism in the Gadar Movement against British colonial rule, Sarabha's story reflects a deep commitment to the cause of Indian independence and the struggles faced by Indians abroad. Through leadership, sacrifice, and a vision of collective freedom, Sarabha left an enduring legacy that continues to inspire today.
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Ground Rules 1. Punctual attendance 2. The whole book/article of the month must be read 3. Come with an open mind 4. Share your learning and listen to others 5. Keep the discussion relevant 6. Respect each others confidentiality
maintenance of freedom for the people If we are honest towards its maintenance, their souls would be in peace Author's intentions A description of the plight of the people at the time An interesting comment on foreigners Having not taken the country to be their own Indigenous rulers to provide equal opportunity to each and every citizen ? Did this happen
Freedom = Kartar Singh Sarabha Birth and Childhood Inspired Generations Individual vs Collective achievement Rememberance of those who gave their lives Such people never die in the memories of nations, who are conscious of the achievements of freedom lovers . If the people of a country do not have freedom they do not have respect in foreign lands ? Treatment abroad filled him with sentiment of getting rid foreign rulers Born in 1896, village Sarabha brought to prominence thereafter Took two years classes per year/forgery 7 to 9 Moved to Orissa Leadership qualities from the beginning - Captain of football and cricket teams ? 5 foot 8 inches tall - the flying serpent Bengalis more progressive than Punjabis in reading! Influence of enviroment - guiding star Sent abroad to study, reached San Francisco in 1912 Bad treatment of Indians by Americans and English - Conversation with immigration officer; Country rather than Individual focus. Went to Berkeley University Birth of the concept of freedom - flag/old photographs
The Birth of the Gadar Movement Most people going abroad were Punjabis Settled in areas like Punjab Established two companies For sale and purchase of property and land Manual labour Paid less than whites, but still managed to save and send back money to India Slave like treatment in other countries - not just India Barring of Indian immigrants to Canada in 1908-1909 Only 6 Indian people entered Canada in 1909 Stopped entry of family members settled in Canada/Minimum $200 in cash/Direct Ship Indians attempted to challenge orders via court of law Plan to send Indians to Honduras People gathered at a Gurudwara - passed resolutions against this Delegation sent to London then India Similar situation developed in America by 1913 Dogs and Indians are not allowed Indian Famine
Cause of all difficulties lay in foreign rule - was this true? Aiming to create uncertainty in India/Armed Struggle and then establish an American Formation of Gadar Party style of government Brad Ville, Linton Mill, Vienna, Portland, Astoria (Ratio 500:1) Hindi Association became Gadar Party Party fund (1$ per month at least) There will be no room for callous religious discussion Vigilance committee? Delays in establishing the party and the newspaper of a few months at a time Newspaper began publication in Urdu - pretty much solely done by Kartar Singh Sarabha, and funded through his study-money ($200) Kartar Singh doing the actual work - translating, reproducing articles and therefore at the forefront Newpaper published in many languages (Punjabi highest order), pamphlets issued for free English govt banned Gadar Party, Indian govt wrote to Canada and America Libya, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Phillippines, Panama branches established Kartar Singh Sarabha sent to Europe to learn how to fly Baba Jawala Singh's farm was used for arms training/American universities - battlefield department Expectation was that WW1 would begin only in 1925 Declared war against British on 5th August 1914
Call was given to all Indians to return home Spread revolt in ever corner of the country, loot the rich and show sympathy to the poor Kartar Singh Sarabha & Gadar 179 occupants of the ship were arrested, some under house arrest, some put in jail English rulers considered the movement as coming from Punjabi Sikhs only People came from China, Malaysia, Manila and Hong Kong Large numbers of people detained, arrested, jailed, house arrested apart from Colombo lot Kartar Singh Sarabha led those not arrested
Everyone else had been arrested except Kartar Singh People like Gandhi was helping recruit the youth for the English in the army Khalsa Dewan movement similarly People were not interested in the revolutionaries Revolutionary activities in Punjab and Sarabha Expected 30 crore to join them/surprised no movement in India Kartar Singh formed a committee, circulated literature Struggled to agree on date for revolt/struggled to obtain arms Failed attack on Mian Mir Cantt Skirmish ending in hangings Many hurdles The reigns of the movement were not in mature hands Difficulty working with bengalis - they didn t believe in Kartar Singh Emphasis on small groups being formed to avoid large scale arrests
Unable to purchase arms from abroad Could not depend on the Bengalis Decided to perform dacoities - weakness/compulsion Efforts to raise money Nidhan Singh objected Saving girl from being raped Looted a village Villagers resisted them Blamed for dacoities they didn t do
Indian army disheartened They didn t want to go abroad Kirpal Singh was the traitor informing government Efforts to take forces along State of dejection Arrested and hanged in 1915 Not afraid of death, said thank you Death of a lion Inspired generations of freedom fighters My blood will give birth to as many Kartar Singhs as the number of drops it contains and they will all work for freedom.
