Remember Bhagat, comrades!

[Spirit of Spartacus]

March the 23rd is the anniversary of Bhagat Singh's death at the hands of the British colonial rulers of the India-Pakistan region.

Bhagat Singh, one of our earliest South Asian Marxists, was inspired by the Leninist Russian Revolution, as well as anarcho-communists from the 19th century. He remains an ideal and a hero for all South Asian Marxists, and a symbol of unity for Indian and Pakistani communists.

He was hanged at the age of 23 for his part in the murder of a British colonial police-constable who was responsible for violence against Indian anti-colonialist protesters. The execution took place on March the 23rd, 1931.

Bhagat immediately became a hero for revolutionary youth in South Asia.

Here is a short biography of this heroic leader:

http://www.marxists.org/glossary/people/b/h.htm#bhagat-singh


His article "Why I am an atheist" is a must-read for all Marxists. He wrote it while in jail, awaiting his execution.

http://www.marxists.org/archive/bhagat-singh/1930/10/05.htm


His article "To Young Political Workers" is his advice and legacy to communist youth in South Asia, but it expresses principles which all revolutionary leftists will find useful.

http://www.marxists.org/archive/bhagat-singh/1931/02/02.htm


And finally, his "Last Petition" was to the British colonial rulers. He expressed in beautiful terms his defiance of imperialism, and ended the petition with a request to shoot him instead of hanging him.

http://www.marxists.org/archive/bhagat-sin...931/x01/x01.htm (http://www.marxists.org/archive/bhagat-singh/1931/x01/x01.htm)


Also, here are some quotes from his prison note-book:

http://www.shahidbhagatsingh.org/index.asp?linkid=30

The comrades would do well to read these works by Bhagat Singh. We must never forget him, his comrades-in-arms and what he stood for.

Bhagat Singh was our Che, and much more. He was the epitome of everything which a revolutionary leftist could aspire to be, and much more.

Let us push on with our struggle, and let us inscribe his words on our banners, and let us proclaim:

Shaheed Bhagat Singh, zindabad!
Samraj murdabad!

Long live the martyr, Bhagat Singh!
Death to imperialism!


Comrades, let us move forward with the samw words with which Bhagat Singh went to the gallows:

INQUILAB ZINDABAD!

LONG LIVE THE REVOLUTION!

[RevolutionaryMarxist]

He was a true hero

[Cryotank Screams]

:hammer: Inquilab Zindabad! Sounds like a good comrade, I shall read more on him, thank you for the post!

[Spirit of Spartacus]

Great!

The reason I started this topic was, I feel Bhagat Singh hasn't received the level of recognition internationally in the Left as he deserves.

Of course, all the martyrs to the working-class movement ought to be remembered and honored, but Bhagat Singh, due to his youth, bravery and brilliance holds a special place for South Asian communists.

I think its time he was recognized internationally.

[The Grey Blur]

I mentioned him in discussion today with a Hare Krishna, when she raised Gandhi. Doing my part to keep his memory alive - inquilab zindabad.

[Cheung Mo]

And he passed at 23. He is the youthful prodigy to revolutionaries that Alexander the Great is to imperialists.

[Spirit of Spartacus]

Some of you may be interested in reading what Gandhi wrote about Bhagat Singh.



Bhagat Singh and his two associates have been hanged. The Congress made many attempts to save their lives and the Government entertained many hopes of it, but all has been in a vain.

Bhagat Singh did not wish to live. He refused to apologize, or even file an appeal. Bhagat Singh was not a devotee of non-violence, but he did not subscribe to the religion of violence. He took to violence due to helplessness and to defend his homeland. In his last letter, Bhagat Singh wrote --" I have been arrested while waging a war. For me there can be no gallows. Put me into the mouth of a cannon and blow me off." These heroes had conquered the fear of death. Let us bow to them a thousand times for their heroism.

But we should not imitate their act. In our land of millions of destitute and crippled people, if we take to the practice of seeking justice through murder, there will be a terrifying situation. Our poor people will become victims of our atrocities. By making a dharma of violence, we shall be reaping the fruit of our own actions.

Hence, though we praise the courage of these brave men, we should never countenance their activities. Our dharma is to swallow our anger, abide by the discipline of non-violence and carry out our duty.

March 29, 1931

[RedStarOverChina]

Hence, though we praise the courage of these brave men, we should never countenance their activities. Our dharma is to swallow our anger, abide by the discipline of non-violence and carry out our duty.

??? :blink: Who wrote this?


*edit: Oh. It was Gandhi. No wonder it sounds so fucked up.

[Spirit of Spartacus]

You would also do well to see the Indian film "The Legend of Bhagat Singh". It has some beautiful revolutionary music from South Asia.

There are some scenes associated with Bhagat's life that have become very famous.

One of these is the young Bhagat cutting his long hair to disguise himself from the British colonial authorities. This is also like a symbolic gesture showing that now he has rejected religion (Sikh people have long hair).

Another famous scene is Bhagat collecting blood-soaked earth from the site of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, where British colonial authorities shot hundreds of Indian protesters in cold blood.

And of course, there is the scene that shows him walking towards the gallows with his head held high...another iconic image.

[Ezekiel]

You would also do well to see the Indian film "The Legend of Bhagat Singh". It has some beautiful revolutionary music from South Asia.That's one of my favorite movies. A sort of revolutionary communist musical. I would recommend it.
It sheds a lot of light on Gandhi's policies of capitulation and backstabbing too.
For those in the US and anywhere else netflix is, you can get it from them.

[Spirit of Spartacus]

One of the best songs in "The Legend of Bhagat Singh" was actually written by one of Bhagat's comrades and a member of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army, Ramprasad Bismil. He too, was hanged by the British.

The title of the song is "Sarfaroshi ki tamana" (the desire for death). It basically talks about how a revolutionary is prepared to give the ultimate sacrifice for the revolutionary cause, i.e. death.

Bhagat used to sing that song in jail before his execution. Its presented in a slightly shorter version in the movie, but its beautiful nevertheless.

[Louis Pio]

Bhagat Singh was truly remarkable and I agree not enough people know him. The actions of the workers and other revolutionaries like him was what kicked the british out. Not because of any actions of a small bald man with glasses. A shame the revolutionary movement was chrushed so the subcontinent had to suffer under the effects of partition and capitalism.

[blazeofglory]

I am so glad when I read this because the world has in a way forgotten Bhagat's contribution to the left, distinctly socialism. He realised that it was the only option against the world's biggest disease poverty.

Spirit of Spartacus is RIGHT. Bhagat Singh's achievements are not taken into deep consideration nowadays.

Martyr Bhagat Singh's "WHY AM I AN ATHEIST" IS THE BEST essay ON THE MATTER that I have ever read. "

[Spirit of Spartacus]

Martyr Bhagat Singh's "WHY AM I AN ATHEIST" IS THE BEST essay ON THE MATTER that I have ever read. "


It was the first essay on this issue that made me seriously reconsider my theistic beliefs, and eventually, as I read more on the subject, I was able to ditch them totally.

That's why I always recommend it to new comrades.

[Nothing Human Is Alien]

Remember Indian revolutionary communist hero Bhagat Singh! (http://www.freepeoplesmovement.org/fpm/page.php?279)

[Spirit of Spartacus]

That's a nice piece, CdL.

OK, I've been receiving some PM's about Bhagat, so I searched for some videos about him on Youtube.

There's some good stuff here, I hope people can take a few minutes to look through these.


1. We have here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuOVLmeu6Kg) a clip from a fairly recent Indian movie, which shows Bhagat and his comrades swearing to drive the British imperialists out of India, and participating in anti-imperialist protests.
See if you can spot him near the beginning, with his turban and all. You will also see him cutting his long hair (Bhagat was born into a Sikh family but became an atheist as he studied revolutionary theory).
The scenes from the protests show him getting hit in the head by a cop and then getting up again and leading slogans of "Inquilab Zindabad" (long live the Revolution).

2. A clip from a movie I recommended earlier in this thread, here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hzveq_AFoUs) you can see how the South Asian revolutionaries suffered in jail. This clip is especially important because it contains the revolutionary song "Sarfaroshi ki tamana". There are subtitles in English so you can understand what's going on.

3. Over here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FT4u8iT0H0), you can watch a short trailer about Bhagat and his comrades. This trailer ends with the slogan "Inquilab Zindabad".

4. Over here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTuqe8dLhEg), you can see a TV report about the death anniversary of Bhagat Singh, which was commemorated this year in Lahore, in Pakistan. You can see people with candles at the place where he was hanged (modern-day Pakistan).