Nod for memorials to Namdhari martyrs

Written by Varinder Walia, Tribune News Service, Amritsar

Friday, 21 September 2007

After a long wait of 136 years, finally the Punjab government has accepted the demand of raising memorials to five Namdhari martyrs of Amritsar Saka in their native villages on the pattern of Kuka martyrs of Malerkotla. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal made the announcement while addressing a shaheedi conference organised to commemorate the martyrdom anniversary of these Namdharis. The function was organised as a part of year-long state-level celebrations to mark the 150th anniversary of Baba Ram Singh’s Kuka movement. Interestingly, the Kuka movement is considered as the first effective agitation for India’s independence that adopted non-cooperation as a tool against the British rulers, which was later adopted by Mahatma Gandhi. It was on September 15, 1871, in Amritsar, Kukas assassinated several Muslim butchers involved in cow slaughtering. As a result, the British administration sentenced five Kuka disciples, Sant Hakam Singh Patwari, Sant Fateh Singh, Sant Lehna Singh, Sant Jhanda Singh and Sant Beehla Singh Narli, to death. The then deputy commissioner of Amritsar opened a slaughter house outside the city. The butchers were asked to follow these instructions, “The cows will be slaughtered at a particular place within an enclosure. No butcher would bring beef inside the city for sale. Transgressors of these rules will be punished.” Opening a slaughter house at Amritsar was a signal for opening many more in different towns of Punjab. This led to the development of strained relations between the Hindus and the Muslims because the butchers started selling beef openly in the streets of Amritsar. Peeved at this, Namdharis came forward to punish the butchers and embraced martyrdom during the British era. However, except for old Bohar tree, the other buildings have lost their original contour. The heritage structure, which was once a part of historical Rambagh and later served as jail during British time, has been plastered without consulting conservationists or heritage experts. Even a part of the building is presently being used for round-the-clock “simran.” The old well on the premises has also been plastered from inside and a modern well has been added in the “langar” section. The boundary wall of the memorial has been constructed to separate it from the Summer Palace complex. Comments (1) >> Show/Hide comments Dr Shivinder Singh Sandhu said:   Dear Patriots I salute the efforts of the Punjab heritage news for highlighting the important heritage issues of Punjab. The punarjyot organization after establishing a successful--Maharaja Ranjit Singh Hockey club has now taken upon itself the responsibility of opening a hockey club in memoryof Baba Beela Singh Ji Narli in the ancestral village as"Baba Beela ji Hockey Academy--Narli. September 23, 2007 Write comment You must be logged in to post a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.

 

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