Bhagat Singh and Revolutionary Socialism

Bhagat Singh was an Indian revolutionary freedom fighter who shifted the trajectory of anti-colonial resistance from romantic nationalism to scientific socialism. Active during the late 1920s, he redefined the concept of revolution (Inquilab) as a total overhaul of the social, political, and economic order. As a key strategist of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA), he combined underground armed resistance with intellectual ideological training. Through his writings, public trials, and political actions, Bhagat Singh criticized British imperialism while opposing domestic capitalism, religious communalism, and caste-based inequality.

Early Life and Ideological Evolution

Family Legacy and Freedom Movement Influences

• Bhagat Singh was born on September 28, 1907, in Banga village, Lyallpur district, Punjab (now in Pakistan).
• His family had a history of political activism; his uncle Ajit Singh founded the Bharat Mata Society and led the Pagri Sambhal Jatta peasant agitation in 1907.
• The Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 deeply impacted him, prompting him to visit the Amritsar site to collect soil stained with blood.
• He participated in the Non-Cooperation Movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi in 1920, but the sudden withdrawal of the movement after the Chauri Chaura incident in 1922 pushed him toward revolutionary politics.

Intellectual Foundation and Global Ideology

• Bhagat Singh studied at the National College in Lahore, founded by Lala Lajpat Rai, where he mastered European political history, Marxist theory, and anarchism.
• He read extensively from the works of Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin, Mikhail Bakunin, and Leon Trotsky.
• He learned multiple languages, including Punjabi, Urdu, Hindi, English, and Sanskrit, to write political tracts and translate socialist literature for Indian readers.

Mass Organizations and Youth Mobilization

Naujawan Bharat Sabha (1926)

• Bhagat Singh established the Naujawan Bharat Sabha in March 1926 at Lahore to build an open youth movement based on anti-imperialism and secularism.
• The organization aimed to foster communal harmony, abolish social divisions like untouchability, and educate youth on working-class rights.
• It served as an open public front to recruit cadre for underground revolutionary networks.

Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (1928)

• In September 1928, revolutionary leaders met at Feroz Shah Kotla ground in Delhi to reorganize the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA), originally founded by Sachindra Nath Sanyal and Ram Prasad Bismil in 1924.
• At Bhagat Singh’s insistence, the word “Socialist” was added to the party’s name, transforming it into the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA).
• The inclusion of “Socialist” marked an ideological shift from mere armed overthrow of the British Raj to the creation of a socialist republic ruled by peasants and workers.
• The leadership of the HSRA included Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad, Sukhdev Thapar, Shivaram Rajguru, Bhagwati Charan Vohra, and Bejoy Kumar Sinha.

Key Revolutionary Actions and Political Propaganda

Saunders Assassination / Lahore Conspiracy Case (1928)

• In October 1928, veteran leader Lala Lajpat Rai died following head injuries sustained during a police lathi-charge against the anti-Simon Commission protests in Lahore.
• To avenge Rai’s death and assert national self-respect, the HSRA planned the assassination of Police Superintendent James A. Scott.
• On December 17, 1928, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Chandrashekhar Azad mistakenly shot Assistant Superintendent of Police John P. Saunders outside the police headquarters in Lahore.
• Following the shooting, the HSRA pasted posters across Lahore stating that the death of a national leader had been avenged, declaring: “We are sorry to have killed a man, but this man was a part of a cruel, despicable, and unjust system.”

Central Legislative Assembly Bombing (19 lap 1929)

• On April 8, 1929, Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt threw two low-intensity, non-lethal bombs from the public gallery into the Central Legislative Assembly in New Delhi.
• The action aimed to protest the passage of the Trade Disputes Bill (which restricted workers’ right to strike) and the Public Safety Bill (which allowed the detention of foreign communists).
• They scattered pamphlets explaining their motives, stating: “If the deaf are to hear, the sound has to be very loud.”
• They threw no bombs at human targets, refrained from escaping, and raised slogans of “Inquilab Zindabad” (Long Live the Revolution) and “Samrajyavada ka Nash Ho” (Down with Imperialism) while surrendering to police.

Court Trials, Hunger Strike, and Philosophical Writings

Court Room as a Propaganda Platform

• During the trial for the Assembly Bomb Case, Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt used courtroom proceedings to broadcast their socialist manifesto to the Indian public through media reports.
• They defined “Revolution” not as the cult of the bomb and pistol, but as the elimination of human exploitation by human beings.

The Historic 63-Day Hunger Strike

• While incarcerated in Lahore Central Jail, Bhagat Singh led a political hunger strike demanding equal treatment for Indian political prisoners compared to European prisoners.
• The demands included better quality food, access to books and newspapers, and relief from forced labor.
• Jatin Das, a fellow HSRA revolutionary, died on September 13, 1929, after 63 days of continuous hunger strike, triggering national mourning.

Key Philosophical Essays

• Why I am an Atheist (1930): Written in Lahore Central Jail, this essay defended his rejection of religion, arguing that faith in a divine entity was a barrier to critical thinking and scientific inquiry.
• To Young Political Workers (1931): A political letter outlining the necessity of a mass political party led by workers and peasants to achieve real social liberation.

Execution and Martyrdom

• The colonial administration set up a Special Tribunal to try the Lahore Conspiracy Case, bypassing standard judicial procedure and denying the accused full right to defense.
• On October 7, 1930, the tribunal awarded the death sentence to Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev Thapar, and Shivaram Rajguru.
• Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, and Rajguru were executed by hanging at Lahore Central Jail on March 23, 1931, a day ahead of schedule.
• Their bodies were secretly cremated by authorities on the banks of the Sutlej River at Hussainiwala near Ferozepur.

Comparative Evolution of HRA to HSRA

Key Exam Facts

• Bhagat Singh founded the Naujawan Bharat Sabha in March 1926 in Lahore.
• He proposed adding the word “Socialist” to the Hindustan Republican Association in September 1928, creating the HSRA.
• He popularized the slogan “Inquilab Zindabad” (coined by Hasrat Mohani) across India.
• He wrote the famous essay “Why I am an Atheist” in 1930 while imprisoned in Lahore Central Jail.
• Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt threw bombs in the Central Legislative Assembly on April 8, 1929, to oppose the Trade Disputes Bill and Public Safety Bill.
• Jatin Das died on September 13, 1929, after 63 days of hunger strike in Lahore Jail demanding political prisoner status.
• Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, and Rajguru were hanged on March 23, 1931, in Lahore Central Jail.
• March 23 is observed across India as Shaheed Diwas (Martyrs’ Day) to honor their sacrifice.
• The book The Philosophy of the Bomb was written by Bhagwati Charan Vohra in consultation with Bhagat Singh as a response to Mahatma Gandhi’s essay The Cult of the Bomb.