Freedom fighter Udham Singh tore 8-page statement before judge
RELATED
SUNAM: While facing the historic trial in England for killing former Punjab lieutenant governor Michael O'Dwyer, freedom fighter Udham
Singh had prepared an eight-page statement, which he wanted to read out
in the court. However, the judge interrupted him. Angered over this, Udham tore the pages and hurled them towards the judge.
Taken aback, the court employees put together the bits of the torn paper to make them legible as the judge realised the undertrial may have wanted to say something. Today, those glued-back pages can be found in the national archives.
A new book on the martyr - hailing from Punjab's Sunam town - has thrown up such little known facts about Udham, which add more punch to his powerful persona.
The book titled 'Azadi di shama da parwana, Mahan Ghadri Inqulabi Shaheed Udham Singh' has been written by Rakesh Kumar. Rakesh, too, is a resident of Sunam.
The book brings to the fore the making of a revolutionary, who had shot Dwyer on June 5, 1940 avenging the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar on April 13, 1919.
Member of Ghadar Party - Udham -- as stated in the book -- said his aim was not just to assassinate Dwyer, but he wanted the world to know that India needed Independence. "My only aim was not to kill Dwyer. If it was so I could have killed him earlier and didn't have to wait for 21 long years to shoot him in Caxton Hall of London. Dwyer used to go for morning walk in a park and I too used to go there. I easily could have gunned him down, but I wanted to show to the whole of world that India wanted to break free and chose Caxton Hall to highlight the viewpoint of most of the Indians," Udham had averred as the book says.
Rakesh said Udham had even shown his anger towards the British rule in India and stated during the trial that he did not care about the death sentence. "I do not care about dying. We are suffering from the British Empire. I am not afraid to die. I am proud to die for my country. I want to help my native land in getting freedom and I hope when I am gone, my countrymen will drive out the Englishmen," the book quotes Udham.
Rakesh has further highlighted in his book that Udham did not just wander for 21 years to kill Dwyer, he had joined the Ghadar Party and worked for it at various places in England and Europe.
Taken aback, the court employees put together the bits of the torn paper to make them legible as the judge realised the undertrial may have wanted to say something. Today, those glued-back pages can be found in the national archives.
A new book on the martyr - hailing from Punjab's Sunam town - has thrown up such little known facts about Udham, which add more punch to his powerful persona.
The book titled 'Azadi di shama da parwana, Mahan Ghadri Inqulabi Shaheed Udham Singh' has been written by Rakesh Kumar. Rakesh, too, is a resident of Sunam.
The book brings to the fore the making of a revolutionary, who had shot Dwyer on June 5, 1940 avenging the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar on April 13, 1919.
Member of Ghadar Party - Udham -- as stated in the book -- said his aim was not just to assassinate Dwyer, but he wanted the world to know that India needed Independence. "My only aim was not to kill Dwyer. If it was so I could have killed him earlier and didn't have to wait for 21 long years to shoot him in Caxton Hall of London. Dwyer used to go for morning walk in a park and I too used to go there. I easily could have gunned him down, but I wanted to show to the whole of world that India wanted to break free and chose Caxton Hall to highlight the viewpoint of most of the Indians," Udham had averred as the book says.
Rakesh said Udham had even shown his anger towards the British rule in India and stated during the trial that he did not care about the death sentence. "I do not care about dying. We are suffering from the British Empire. I am not afraid to die. I am proud to die for my country. I want to help my native land in getting freedom and I hope when I am gone, my countrymen will drive out the Englishmen," the book quotes Udham.
Rakesh has further highlighted in his book that Udham did not just wander for 21 years to kill Dwyer, he had joined the Ghadar Party and worked for it at various places in England and Europe.
No comments:
Post a Comment