|
 On
the 8th August, 1922 A.D., the police
arrested five Singhs for cutting Acacia
wood for langar (community kitchen)
from uncultivated land attached to Gurdwara
Guru Ka Bagh. Everyone was sentenced
to a fine of rupees fifty and mprlsonment
for six months on charge of stealing
wood from the land of the Mahant. Shiromani
Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee started
an agitation against this excess of
the Government. Mr. B.T., the additional
police superintendent started beating
with clubs the Singhs taking part in
the agitation. On the 13th September,
the beating was stopped on motivation
from Reverend C.F. Andrews and Singhs
were arrested and sent to prisons.
One day a squad of army pensioners
led by Subedar Amar Singh Dhaliwal from
Kapurthala state courted arrest. Magistrate
Aslam Khan sentenced those Singhs to
imprisonment of two and a half years
and a fine of one hundred rupees each.
Those Singhs were boarded on a train
from Amritsar to Attak on the night
of the 29th October, 1922 A.D. The train
stopped at Rawalpindi on the 30th October
and moved on after change of staff and
taking water for the locomotive. The
Sikh community of Gurdwara Panja Sahib
on that route got ready food and drink
to serve the Singhs of the squad, took
it to the railway station early in the
morning of the 31st October and started
waiting for the train to arrive.
The station master told them, "The
train shall not stop at this station.
You have made these arrangements for
nothing." Bhai Karam Singh replied,
"Baba Nanak had stopped a mountain
with one hand. Cannot his Sikhs stop
a train ?" At ten o'clock, seeing
the train approaching, Bhai Karam Singh
lay on the railway line. Next to him
Bhai Partap Singh, Sardar Ganga Singh,
Sardar Charan Singh, Sardar Nihal Singh,
S. Tara Singh, S. Fakir Singh, S. Kalyan
Singh and many other Singhs and Kaurs
(female of Singh) squatted on the track.
Seeing the Singhs lying on the track,
the driver of the train blew the whistle
time and again but the Singhs did not
budge as if they had not heard the whistle
at all. The engine ground the bones
of Bhai Karam Singh and Bhai Partap
Singh to pulp and the others suffered
injuries. The train stopped. Bhai Partap
Singh said to Sangat (Sikh devotees),
"Serve the hungry Singhs in the
train first. You can take care of us
afterwards." The train halted for
one and a half hours. The Sikhs served
the Singhs in the train whole-heartedly
and then turned to the injured. Bhai
Karam Singh, thirty year old son of
Bhai Bhagwan Dass Mahant of Kesgarh
Sahib died after a few hours. On the
next day Bhai Partap Singh, twenty-four
years of age, son of S. Sarup Singh
goldsmith of Akal Garh, Gujranwala attained
martyrdom. Before attaining martyrdom
he recited " Kabira sant Muye kiya
Roviye jo apne greh jaye rovo saakat
bapre jo hato haat bikaye" and
instructed his 18 years old wife that
never cry over his death otherwise his
sacrifice will be wasted. It is said
that she never cried her whole live
and bravely recited Gaddi the Chhand
written in honour of these Train Martyrs
and was also engrossed in "Naam
Simran".
when the train-driver was asked the
reason for stopping the train, he replied,
'When the train hit the Singhs lying
on the track, vacuum lever dropped out
of my hand and the train stopped. I
did not apply the brakes."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources provided by:
Sardar HP Luthera (Great Grandson of
Shaheed Partap Singh hpluthera@xtra.co.nz
Santok singh Jagdev of Sikh missionary
society "Bed-Time stories -7"
|
