Martyr’s nephew Prof Jagmohan Singh says there is more to Bhagat Singh than the popular image of a gun-totting extremist. He was an intellectual and the youth need to see him in this light. Our correspondent talks to some youth to find out that this concern is not unjustified
Chandigarh: Bhagat Singh is one icon who needs no resurrection of any sort, for the simple fact that his image never faded from public consciousness. Be it the turbulent days of terrorism when Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale used him as a symbol or the present times when youth in Punjab celebrate his memory with gusto, his posters sell like hot cakes, books on him and papers written by him are being churned out faster than religious cassettes, his stickers dot windscreens and even his moustache style is in vogue.
However, this year, when the world observes his 76th martyrdom day on March 23 and 100th birth anniversary on September 28, the intelligentsia are concerned that the great legend is being wrongly interpreted. For them, there is more to Bhagat Singh sporting a pistol as they want the youth to see Bhagat Singh with a pen.
Their concern is not unjustified. Bhalinder Singh (22), a student at S.C.D. Government College for Boys, Ludhiana, says, “He is the kind of leader we want in the present times. He urged the youth to take up arms and fight for their rights.” And how will this translate in present times. “It is so simple. There is so much corruption around us and now is the time to effectively use what Bhagat stood for. Kill the corrupt,” adds Kulwinder Singh, a Khalsa College student in Ludhiana. And does violence pay. “This is the only way by which some sense can be knocked into the heads of the corrupt. People do not understand the language of love and compassion. We need to treat them the way Bhagat Singh treated the Britishers,” argues Yudhveer Singh, another student.
Amidst this talk, Gandhi as the other role model is bound to emerge, but is trashed immediately as Sukhdeep Kaur, a PAU student, says, “This Gandhigiri stuff looks good in cinema and not in real life. Gandhi is not real while Bhagat Singh for us youth is very real.”
This is exactly what worries Prof Jagmohan Singh, nephew of Bhagat Singh, who has extensively researched his maternal uncle. Prof Jagmohan Singh explains, “People need to understand that when Bhagat Singh took to violence, he was just 19 years old. The real Bhagat Singh bloomed when he was in jail. It is here that he realised and admitted that no revolution can take place without being logically sound. Each step and action needs to be evaluated and acted upon logically and not mindlessly, as all those young Sikh boys did under Bhindranwale. Bhagat Singh with a pistol was just a small part of him; he was an intellectual and the youth need to see him in this light.”
On the emergence of Bhagat Singh in public minds, Prof Jagmohan Singh says, “This is an indication of mass depression. Whenever society is in collective depression, as we are these days (farmers are not happy and nor are the employee class), we look for heroes. In such a scenario, an icon like Bhagat Singh is sure to emerge.”
He adds, “He is not what the youth take him to be - as a symbol of anakh da rakha (question of self-respect) or the one who believe in mucch da sawaal (question of pride). He was and is much more than that.” To bring this Bhagat Singh to light, Prof Jagmohan is busy these days “compiling the list of books that he read and quoted from during his lifetime. I want the youth to see that this young boy during his 197 days of jail read more than 50 great authors”.
Balram, a playwright and a thinker adds, “Bhagat Singh is a symbol who panders to our egos. I do not agree to the idea of a collective depression. But yes, society on the whole is confused and lacks a direction. In such a state, Bhagat Singh panders to our egos. The youth are in love with the history of Bhagat Singh, but have no clue whatsoever about what Bhagat Singh himself was. He was an intellectual and a very loveable character.”
Balram also warns that “the way youth today see Bhagat Singh is a dangerous sign”. “We need to check this energy and I am not talking about sheer physical energy. Every human, besides physical energy, has psychological energy which should also be addressed,” he says.
Source: Express News Service