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Independence Day 2024: On August 15, 2024, the country is celebrating its 78th Independence Day. This day is very special for Indians. On this day, we all got freedom from the clutches of British colonialism and a new beginning was made.
Many freedom fighters lost their lives to give us freedom. Many were hanged and many became victims of the brutality of the British. Today we are going to tell the story of 5 such freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives for the country. Among them, some were 22 years old and some were just 23 years old.
1. Mangal Pandey
Mangal Pandey, the first hero of the freedom struggle, was born in Nagwa village of Ballia in Uttar Pradesh. In 1849, Mangal Pandey, just 22 years old, joined the army of the British East India Company. He was a soldier in the 34th Bengal Native Infantry in the Barrackpore Cantonment of West Bengal. Where the use of rifle cartridges containing cow and pig fat was started. On 9 February 1857, Mangal Pandey refused to use these cartridges.
The British government did not like this. On 29 March 1857, British officer Major Hughes tried to snatch Mangal Pandey’s rifle and Mangal Pandey killed him. British officer Lieutenant Bob also could not stand before Mangal Pandey. From here Mangal Pandey started a war against the British. On 8 April 1857, 30-year-old Mangal Pandey was hanged.
2. Bhagat Singh
Every child knows the name of Bhagat Singh. He was born on 28 September 1907 in Banga of Lyallpur district of Punjab. At the age of just 23, Bhagat Singh was hanged for the freedom of the country. In fact, the Jallianwala Bagh massacre shook Bhagat Singh to the core. He left his studies at the National College of Lahore and started the Naujawan Bharat Sabha and jumped into the freedom struggle.
After Mahatma Gandhi did not support him in the Chauri Chaura incident in 1922, he joined Chandrashekhar Azad’s Ghadar Dal. After four revolutionaries including Ram Prasad Bismil were hanged and 16 were sentenced to life imprisonment in the Kakori incident, Bhagat Singh along with Rajguru killed JP Saunders, who was the Assistant Superintendent of Police in Lahore, in 1928.
Then, along with Batukeshwar Dutt, he threw a bomb in the assembly hall of the then Central Assembly of British India in New Delhi and shouted revolutionary slogans. Instead of running away, he surrendered. He was tried for the ‘Lahore Conspiracy’ and hanged on the night of 23 March 1931. He was only 23 years old then.
3. Chandrashekhar Azad
Chandrashekhar Azad was born on 23 July 1906 in Bhabra of Alirajpur district of Madhya Pradesh. At the age of 14, Azad came to Banaras and studied in Sanskrit school. It was here that he took part in the Civil Disobedience Movement. In 1920-21, Azad joined Gandhiji’s non-cooperation movement and in 1926, he committed the Kakori train incident, then tried to blow up the Viceroy’s train, and in 1928, shot Saunders to avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai.
On 27 February 1931, Chandrashekhar Azad was discussing with his revolutionary colleagues in Alfred Park, Allahabad, when CID SSP Not Babar reached there and along with the police force, shot at Chandrashekhar Azad. Azad killed three policemen in this but when the last bullet was left, he shot himself instead of falling into the hands of the British. He was only 25 years old then.
Shivram Hari Rajguru was born on 24 August 1908 in Kheda village of Pune. People know him as Rajguru. After the death of his father at the age of 6, he came to Banaras and studied Sanskrit. It was here that he joined Chandrashekhar Azad’s Hindustan Socialist Republican Association and participated in the murder of British officer Saunders. Rajguru also joined Bhagat Singh in bombing the assembly and on 23 March 1931, at the age of 23, he was hanged along with Bhagat Singh and Sukhdev.
Sukhdev Thapar was born in Ludhiana, Punjab on 15 May 1907. His father died three months before his birth. Sukhdev was influenced by Lala Lajpat Rai and with his help became a part of Chandrashekhar Azad’s team. To avenge Lala Lajpat Rai’s death, he joined the revolutionaries who killed British officer Saunders. Sukhdev also led a movement against the mistreatment of political prisoners. He was hanged along with Bhagat Singh and Rajguru on 23 March 1931. He was only 23 years old then.
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