On This Day

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

December 3rd

1849 Maharaja Dalip Singh meets Lord Dalhousie.

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

December 4th

1705 Seige of Anandpur ended. The seige of Anadpur initiated on May 3, 1705 ended. In response to beseiger's continuous pleas to vacate the fort of Anandpur in return for safe passage, Guru Sahib sent rubbish covered brocades, loaded over bullocks. In violation of the solemn oaths on the Quran, the goods were looted. Ashamed at their sordid behavior, the Mughal commanders now sent a message in the Emperor's name, expressing regret at the behavior of the imperial troops and reiterated the agreement on safe conduct if Guru agreed to quit Anadpur.

1926 SGPC initiated activities to seek control of 750 Sikh Shrines.

December 5th

1705 Guru Gobind Singh Ji bid farewell to Anandpur. Accompanied by members of his family and 1500 other singhs/singhnees, Guru Sahib was leaving Anandpur with the promises of the Hindu Hill Rajas and the Muslim Mughal forces that they shall not attack this entourage. However, these promises soon evaoprated and the Sikhs were not only attacked but pursued.

1710 Sikh forces, under the leadership of Baba Gurbakhash Singh (Banda Bahadhur), fought Mughal forces in Sadora

1872 Bhai Vir Singh, a great Sikh scholar, was born.

==> Bhai VIR SINGH (1872-1957) born on Dec. 5, 1872, was a great poet, scholar, and a spiritual leader. He edited and published for the first Prachin Panth Prakash, the work of Rattan Singh Bhangu. As K.N. Subramanyam commented "He was essentially a product of the best aspects of Sikhism." He was conferred the degree of Doctor of Oriental Learning Honoris Causa, in 1949, in absentia by the Punjab University. He was awarded the Padame Bhusham in 1956. He died on June 10, 1957.

-Ref. The Illustrated History of the Sikhs (1947-78), by Gur Rattan Pal Singh.

1966 Fateh Singh announced that he would immolate himself on Dec. 27, 1966, if Chandigarh was not transferrred to Punjab. However, neither Chandigarh was transferred nor Fateh Singh kept his promise.

1982 The President of the Akali Party said in a press statement that the police had, until then, killed 79 Sikh young men in fake police encounters.

-Ref. THE SIKHS' STRUGGLE FOR SOVEREIGNTY, An Historical Perspective By Dr. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer and Dr. Awatar Singh Sekhon Edited By: A.T. Kerr Page 110-119

December 6th

???? Bhai Bachittar Singh and his group, while going towards Ropar, engaged the Rangars of Malikpur and the Pathaans of Ropar. Bhai Bachittar Singh was critically injured, and his adopted son, Zorawar Singh, was also hurt. Bhai Bachittar Singh was another son of Bhai Mani Singh, and is famous for attacking the elephant of Hill Rajas, astride his own horse, with the "naagni barchhaa" (given to him by Guru Sahib) in the battle of Anandpur. Sahibzada Ajit Singh, who was a member of this contingent, brought this injured and decimated group, to the hacienda (garhi) of Nihang Khan.

1778 Khalsa Dal, the combined forces of 11 Sikh Misls, attacked Ruhel Khand, U.P.

1921 Kishan Singh Garhgaj delivers an anti-British speech at Haripur.

1947

Winston Churchill sent a note to S. Baldev Singh suggesting him to stay in London for couple more days and let Jawaharlal Nehru go back to India, hoping that by talking to the British govt. and the Muslim League they could possibly find a solution, "So as to enable the Sikhs to have political feet of their own on which they may walk in the current of World-History."

S. Baldev Singh mentioned this to Nehru and then called a press conference and read a statement (apparently prepared by Nehru) that the Sikhs demand nothing from the British. Whatever the Sikhs want will get it from the Congress and the only demand of the Sikhs is that the British leave India.

Ref. - Sachi Sakhi by S. Kapur Singh.

December 7th

1715 Baba Gurbakhash Singh (Banda Bahadhur) along with 740 of his men were arrested from Gurdas Nangal. A Fierce fight took place between Baba GurBakhash Singh and Abdus Samad Khan. Baba GurBakhash Singh and his men were besieged in the Gurdas Nangal fortress near Gurdaspur. The unbreakable siege lasted for 6 months. In Dec, the entire food stock and ammunition exhausted and the Mughal forces captured Banda Bahadur with 740 men. All taken to Delhi.

==> BABA GURBAKHASH SINGH (BANDA BAHADHUR): born on KatakSudhi 13 sunmat 1727 to Rajput father Ramdev who was a resident of the Rajori village in Jammu. He was named Lashman Dev by his parents. Since childhood, he exhibited extremely fondness for sanskrit literature and hunting. However, he plunged into deep remorse after killing a pregnant deer. As a result he discarded all his hunting tools and became a disciple of Vaesnav JankiPrasad. He shed all his material wealth, started onto the seekers path for enlightenment, and adopted the new name, Madho Dass.

Wondering in search of enlightenment, when he traveled towards south India and reached the banks of Godawari, he fell in love with this beautiful new place. He established his Ashram and started living here. In sunmat 1765, when Guru Gobind Singh Ji reached Nandaedh, he was extremely impressed and influenced by Guru's preaching. He offered himself as "Satguru Da Banda" (Satguru's person). Guru Gobind Singh Ji introduced him to Amrit and changed his name to Gurbakash Singh. However, he remained popularly known in our Panth as "Banda".

To eradicate the prevalent injustices, Guru Gobind Singh sent Baba GurBakhash Singh accompanied by the following five GurSikhs to Punjab:

Baba Binod Singh

Baba Kanh Singh

Baba Bajh Singh

Baba Bijae Singh

Baba Ram Singh

Baba Gurbakhash Singh went to Punjab in sunmat 1765 accompanied with a Hukamnama from Guru Gobind Singh addressed to all the GurSikh. In this Hukamnama, Guru Gobind Singh asked GurSikhs to help Baba Gurbakhash Singh in his efforts. Before departure, Baba Gurbakhash Singh received three arrows from Guru Gobind Singh and the following instructions:

1) Remain celibate ("Jatt rakhana")

2) Live, operate, and act under the dictates of Khalsa ("Khalsae dae Anusari hokae rahna")

3) Never consider yourself to be Guru ("Aap nu Guru na manenna")

4) Eat only after serving others ("Vartakae Shakana")

5) Help the orphas, poor, unprotected, helpless, destitute, or disolate. ("Anatha di sahiata karni")

Upon reaching Punjab, Gurbakash Singh strictly followed Guru Sahib's instructions and successfully punish all who had previously mistreated the Khalsa Panth. On the 1st Hadh sunmat 1767, after conquering Sirhind, Wajir Khan was punished and eventually killed for the mistreatment of Sahibzadas.

However, Gurbakash Singh became popular among the Khalsa Panth, his self-godliness started awakening. As a result he started adopting and engaging in practices that were against Gurmat. In sunmat 1771, Baba Gurbakhash Singh expressed desires to establish his own Gadhi in Sri Harmindar Sahib and sought his self-worhsip. He started a new slogan of "Sachae Sahib ki Fateh" in contrast to the traditional "Vaaheguru Jee Kee Fateh". This resulted in a severe split among Khalsa Panth. Those following the principles as laid by Guru Gobind Singh came to known as "TattKhalsa" while the followers of Gurbakash Singh were known as "BandaiKhalsa". Today there are very few Bandai Sikhs. They do not believe in any other holy scriptures other than Sri Guru Granth Sahib. All their practice are according to Gurmat principles.

Eventually, Baba Gurbakhash Singh was cornered by the pursuing enemy forces at "Gurdaspur de Gadhi". It is also popularly known as Bhai Duni Chand di Hawaeli. After months of sustained attacks from AbdalSamadKhan and others with a force of over 20,000, Baba Gurbakhash Singh was arrested along with his companions and taken to Delhi. He accepted Shahadat on Chaet Sudhi 1st sunmat 1773.

-Ref. Mahan Kosh

December 8th

1922 Letters of the Sikh solidiers printed in the "Babbar Akali Doaba".

1933 The Babbar Akalis murder Bela Singh of Zian. The early 20th century was a time of great turnoil for Sikhs in Canada - the first wave of immigration had arrived, the notorious Komagta Maru incident happened, Sikhs had to contend with openly racist laws and societies, and the Ghadar movement was underway.

In these tumultous times Bela Singh was a traitor, the first Sikh murderer in Canada, and one of the most notorious figures in the very early Canadian Sikh community. Very few people know of him now, but his story is interesting.

Many of the early events revolve around William Hopkinson, who was an Indian-born, Anglo-Indian (english father and punjabi mother) as well as an opportunist and profiteer who exploited Sikhs. He was an informer to the government and immigration authorities. He and Bela Singh ran a gang in the East Indian community for extortion and intimidation. On August 31, 1914, the murdered body of one of the gang of goondas, Harnam Singh (who had started out as a priest) was found in Vancouver with his turban tied around his ankles. Another friend of Bela Singh's, Arjun Singh, also died of accidental gunshot that week. In retaliation, and immediately after the cremation, Bela Singh went to the Gurdwara and opened fire with two revolvers, hitting seven people. Two, Bhai Bhag Singh, and Bhai Battan Singh, died. Bela Singh was arrested and became known as the "Two gun East Indian" in the media.

With the help of William Hopkinson, somehow Bela managed to get acquited (self-defense claimed). The Sikhs were furious andHopkinson was killed by Sardar Mewa Singh in retaliation. At his trial, Mewa Singh paraphrased Guru Gobind Singh "He is truly a hero who fights on the side of the weak, gets questered and cuts limb by limb, but does not flee." On Jan 11, 1915 Mewa Singh became the first (and I believe only) Sikh executed in Canada. His portrait hands to this day in the Ross St. Gurdwara. Bela Singh continued his hooligan ways and was eventually sentenced to one year in prison for blowing up a house, and attempted murder on June 12, 1915. In the meantime, one Nawab Khan of Ludhiana who was a British spy in the Ghadar party managed to get Bela sent back to Punjab. In Punjab he was responsible for identifying many freedom fighters who were revolutionaries with the Babbar Akalis. At least six freedom fighters were hanged because of Bela Singh, who had an armed guard with him at all times, and used to say no one could touch him in the Raj. Finally, in 1933, fate and the Akalis caught up to him. He was shot by three Akalis, including a childhood friend of his, and his body decapitated.

1946 During the violence instigated by India's partition, Muslims killed 102 members of a Sikh family in Ughi Nagar.

1990 International Conference on Sikh Studies was held at George Washington University, Washington, DC. Some of the topics covered at this conference include: "Sikh Fundamentalism and Punjab Problem; Western Approaches to the Sikh Tradition; Sikh Mysticism; Sikhs in Americam - Stress and Survival; Sikhism and Modern Technology; and Evolution of Sikh Philosophy and Misinterpretation of Sikhism in Western Writings". Nearly 200 people attended this conference.

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

December 9th

1710 Baba Gurbakhash Singh (Banda Bahadur) escapes Mughal forces.

1946 Nehru introduces assurances for Sikhs in Constituent Assembly.

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru introduced the following statement at a Constituent Asembly:

"Adequate safeguards would be provided for minorities in India. It was a declaration, a pledge and an undertaking before the world, a contract with millions of Indians, and therefore, in the nature of an oath, which we must keep,"

(Framing of Indian Constitution by B. Shiva Rao, pp. 181)

During the same assembly, he urged the announcement of the following statement;

"That the various territories of the union of India would be autonomous units with residuary powers,"

However, subsequent history has proven these statements to be a well-planned hoax.

1979 The Dal Khalsa in its first annual conference at Gurdaspur passed a resolution demanding the declaring of Amritsar as a "Holy City." The Youth (Dal Khalsa and the Sikh Students Federation) had long since been demanding the declaration that Amritsar was a Holy City. The SGPC chief, G. S. Tohra,' had met the Indian Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, on September 24, 1980, and had asked her to make a declaration to that effect. When more than six months had passed and there was no movement in that case, the Sikh Youth decided to organise a procession to press the Sikh demand. A joint meeting of the Dal Khalsa and the Sikh Students decided to take out such a procession on May 31, 1981.

The Hindus opposed the Sikh demand asking for the declaration of Amritsar as a "Holy City." Simply to oppose the Sikh demand, the Hindus took out a procession at Amritsar on May 29, 1981. Ten thousand armed unruly Hindus raised abusive slogans against the Sikhs and Sikh symbols. One of the Hindu slogans asked the Sikhs to "get out of India: as India belonged to the Hindus." Besides provoking, insulting and vulgar slogan raising, the Hindu processionists attacked some of the Sikh buildings and wounded a large number of Sikh passersby.

-Ref. THE SIKHS' STRUGGLE FOR SOVEREIGNTY, An Historical Perspective By Dr. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer and Dr. Awatar Singh Sekhon Edited By: A.T. Kerr Page 110-119

December 10th

1710 Bahadhur Shah issued the orders to kill Sikhs.

1841 Battle for the conquest of Tibet by Sikhs.

1988 Conference on Sikh Studies, Long Beach

December 11th

1705 Guru Gobind Singh escapes Mughal forces in Macchiwara.

1710 Baba Gurbakhash Singh (Banda Bahadur) escaped unhurt from the fort Lohgarh.

1836 Sardar Zorawar Singh captured Ladakh.

1845 Sikhs cross Sutlej River and surprise British, causing outbreak of Anlo-Sikh War.

1991 Khalistan Flag was hoisted at CSU Chico.

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

December 12th

1704 SHAHEEDHI, Chotae Sahibjadhae, Sakka Sirhind.

1762 Abdali left Sikh Homeland after defeat. Sikhs became de facto rulers of their land.

1841 Zorawar Singh dies while fighting the Lhassa force.

1844 Dogra Hira Singh attempted to escape to Jammu. Sham Singh and Jawahar Singh with 6000 troops caught up with and killed the fleeing Dogras.

1920 Inaugral meeting of SGPC at Sri Akal Takhat.

1921 Master Dalip Singh of Gossal attended a diwan at Rukha Kalan and delivered a lecture.

1922 Shahadat of Sardar Banta Singh and Juyala Singh Babbar.

1923 Munder carnage takes place.

1987 Akalis refuse to talk with Goverment of India unless their 5 points were fulfilled.

[Babbar_Singhsta]

Gurbar Akaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaal

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

daas apologizes for not updating this thread with the history of our beloved khalsa.

got a bit busy with many things, and haven't been able to post on here regularly.

will start up with the seva again tomorrow.

bhul chuk maaf.

[AvnitK]

thank u veerji was hoping to see this thread again

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

January 20th

1706 Guru Gobind Singh Sahib reached Talwa(n)Di, where he set camp, outside the village, is the location of Gurduara damdamaa Sahib. dam damaa means breathing place. That is take a breather after the many battles he had been through.

1841 After Gulab Singh left Lahore, Sher Singh occupied the fort. Dhian Singh became the Wazir. The Sandalwalia Sardars, hostile to the ruling group, started entering into intrigues.

1926 The British Government announced the judgement in Babbar Akali case. As a result, 5 Babbar Akalis were ordered to the hanged, 11 were sentenced to life imprisonment, and 38 were imprisoned four years. Approximately 90 religious, high spirited, daring fighters formed the Babbar Akali group. They had promised freedom to the masses and vigorously fought the British, especially in the Duaba and Malwa regions.

==> BABBAR AKALI MOVEMENT: Babbar is an Arabic word which means a lion. Sher and Akali are Punjabi words which mean lion and without death, respectively. In Sikh context Akali is a Sikh who worships the Almighty and who is without death or fear. When combined with word Babbar, word Akali means a Sikh who is without death and is fearless and brave, like a lion. This is how the Babbar Akalis really were. They defied death, fought with great courage, and received martyrdom. They fought the holy war without any selfish motive.

Babbar Akalis had established their rule in the Doaba region of Punjab in the early 20s. Commissioner Towshed of Jalandhar wrote a long letter to the Governor of Punjab,

The British rule is over in Doaba. No one is ready to cooperate with the government for the fear of the Babbars. There are some people, loyal to the British goverment, who visit my residence in a very secret manner and utter the news, in a low tone, into my ear.

In addition ot the brave men of Doaba, several Sikhs from the Majha and Malwa region also gladly accepted martyrdom. Those include Babu Santa Singh son of Sardar Suba Singh of village Shoti Harion (Tehsil Samrala); Babbar Nikka Singh son of Sardar Buta Singh, village Alowal, Tehsil Tarn Tarn.

Source - Babbar Akalian da Itihas by Dr. Bakhshish Singh Nijjar.

There are some books available on the Babbar Akalis. Two prominent books about this topic are by Dr.' Bakhshish Singh Nijjar (M.A. PhD in history, M.A. Punjabi, M.A.M.L.O. Farsi). He is a Rtd. director of Punjab State Archives and curently living in USA. His books are:

1. Babbar Akalian da Itihas (Punjabi)

2. Babbar Akali Lehar da Itihas

3. History of the Babar Akalis

There is another gentleman, Dr. Gurcharan Singh Aulakh who recently wrote his PhD thesis on the Babbar Akalis. His book is called, Babbar Akali Movement and is published by Aman Publications, Punjab.

Two other useful books on the Akalis and Babbar Akalis are:

Babbar Akali Lehar (Punjabi) by Sunder Singh Babbar

Akali Lehar (Punjabi) Partap Singh Giani.

1986 Sentences handed in the case of Indian Airline hijacking.

To protest against the invasion of the Indian army on the Darbar Sahib, nine Sikhs belonging to the Sikh Students Federation hijacked an Indian Airliner from Jammu to Lahore on July 5, 1984. The hijackers were:

. Parminder Singh Harfam Maula (Leader)

. Dalip Singh,

. Manjit Singh Babbar

. Gurdip Singh Pardesi

. Malaghar Singh Babbar

. Harbhajan Singh

. Harminder Singh

. Gurvinder Singh

. Ravinder Singh

On this day, three of them were sentenced to death, two were sentenced to life-imprisonment and four were acquited. Later in 1989 the death sentence was commuted to life-imprisonment under the orders of a general amnesty. Two of the four acquited were killed by the Indian army while they were returning to India.

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

January 21st

1831 The King of England sent valuable gifts to Maharaja Ranjit Singh as a gesture of friendship. The gifts were really meant to be a bate of friendship! The British had encroched into his territory and came all the way to the other side of river Satluj and finally attacked the Sikh kingdom as soon as he breatherd his last, after buying all the Dogras. What followed afterwards is a history!

1846 Budhowal battle was fought and won by the Sikh troops against the East India Company. Sikhs defeated Harry Smith at Budhowal and captured his baggage. Sikhs also attacked and burned down large part of Ludhiana cantonement. HArry Smith fought a minor skirmish with Ranjodh Singh at Atwal.

[AkalPurakhDiFauj]

January 22nd

1848 Mool Raj, Governor of Multan, revolted against the British but was defeated.

==> MOOL RAJ: During Maharaja Ranjit Singh's reign, Mool Raj was an efficient and loyal Governor of Multan, He was the son of Diwan Sawanmal Chaupadhae and appointed Governor by the Lahore darbar. During his reign, two British officers were killed by the Lahore forces. As a result, the British Resident of Lahore, John Lawrence, wanted to dismiss Mool Raj. On account of his loyalty to the kingdom of Ranjit Singh, he revolted against the British East India Company who were forcibly annexing Ranjit Singh's Punjab. He put up a brave defense of the fort of Multan but was defeated on this day. The British arrested and imprisoned him in Calcutta jail, where he died in 1850.

- Ref. Mahan Kosh

1849 Multan fell to the British.

1986 The additional session judge announced his judgement in the case of Indira Gandhi's murder. Satwant Singh and Kehar Singh were to be hanged. The sentence was carried out on Jan. 6, 1989. Indira Gandhi was gunned down at her resident on Oct. 31, 1984.' as a retribution for her role in operation Bluestar, during which the Indian Army attacked and desecrated Sri Harimandir Sahib, Amritsar.

==> BLUESTAR OPERATION is the code name for the June 1984 attack on Sri Harimandir Sahib, Amritsar, by the Indian Armed Forces. This attack was conducted under the pretext of flushing out terrorists but was designed for maximum damage. The attack took place on the day of Guru Arjan Dev Patshah's Shahadat Gurpurab observations. Further this operation was sanctioned under the direct orders of Indira Gandhi (then prime minister) and Zail Singh (then President). The Golden Temple Complex was attacked by the Indian Armed Forces using tanks, helicopters, and other heavy artillery, under the command of Major General Kuldip Singh Brar. Sri Akal Takhat was desecrated during this attack. Sri Darbar Sahib sustained at least 300 bullet holes. Thousands of innocent people were murdered in cold blood. Their fault? They were attending the Martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev Ji. The brave GurSikh soldiers in the Akal Takhat, numbering about 250, gave extremely tough resistance to the Indian army. However, their resistance was no match to the large number of tanks, helicopters, bombs, and other heavy artillery that destroyed the Akal Takhat. The whole Sikh nation rose as a whole to protest against this ghastly attack. Thousands of Sikhs were martyred in the holy precincts of Darbar Sahib. Many gave their lives in attempts to reach for Darbar Sahib's protection. All roads to Amritsar were blocked. Every Sikh approaching these blockades were asked to remove their kirpan and turban. Those refusing were immediately killed or arrested. Anyone with blue or saffron turbans were particularly targeted and killed. Those arrested were blind folded and their hands tied behind their backs with their own turbans. Arrested Sikhs were packed in groups of 60-70 in small rooms with liitle room for any mobility.

In protest, many respected Sikhs returned their Padam Bushan medals/honors bestowed upon them by the Indian government and sacrificed their high positions. Several Sikh Army personal deserted their posts in protest and marched straight to protect Darbar Sahib. However, Indira Ghandhi did receive retribution for her black deeds on Oct. 31st, that same year.

For detailed description of events surrounding this attack, readers are referred to the following:

. Gurbhagat Singh, Kommi Ajadi Wal - Panjab Tae Punjabi Sabhiyachar Da Bhawish, Vichar Prakashan, 1993

. Major Singh, Punjab Khuni Dahakae Di Ghatha, Vichar Prakashan, 1993

. Naraen Singh, Kau Kito Visahau? Singh Brothers, Mai Sewa, Amritsar, ISBN 81-7205-003-8, 1986, 1990, 1992.

. Naraen Singh, Sikh Vira Nu Haluna, Singh Brothers, Mai Sewa, Amritsar, ISBN 81-7205-085-2, 1987, 1989, 1993.

. Harbir Singh Bhanwer (Tribune reporter), Diary de Panne, This book is in Punjabi. It is hard to come by. I found it to be most authoritative books on this event. Mr. Bhanwer was the person who provided quite a bit of basic information to Mark Tully and Mr. Jacob for their book Amritsar: Indira Gandhi's Last Battle.

. Dr. Mohinder Singh, Blue Star Ghalughara, This book was published in 1991 (several years after Dairy de Panne), but is more detailed.

. Jathedar Kirpal Singh, Saka Neela Tara. This book is written by thim when he was the Jathedar of Akal Takhat. I have not read it, but I think it has extremely valuable information.