On social media, a black and white picture of funeral pyres surrounded by hundreds of people started going viral with the claim that it shows the last rites of the three freedom fighters, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru.
Shaheed Diwas, observed on March 23, marks the day when Indian freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru were executed by the British government for their acts of ‘dramatic violence’, and their role in the struggle for Indian independence. The trio was hanged in the Lahore Central Jail, located in Pakistan today. Their contributions towards the country continue to be honoured till date, and generation after generation is educated on their sacrifices by means of texts, tales, films, plays, etc. Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA), however, has found the claim along with the picture to be false. The image is of funeral pyres of 13 Sikhs killed in clashes with Nirankaris in 1978 in Amritsar. Also, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru were cremated secretly by the British.
After conducting reverse image research, it was found that the viral picture in some reports and a book saying it was taken after clashes between Sikhs and Nirankaris in Amritsar in 1978.
Author Anil Verma in his book “Rajguru: The Invincible Revolutionary” wrote that Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru were hanged a day earlier than scheduled in Lahore Central Jail.
“The Jail authorities broke the back wall of the Jail and secretly brought the dead bodies of the martyrs on the banks of river Satluj near Ferozepur for an unceremonial cremation. When the local people, at visualizing the flames, moved towards them, they put out the fire, threw unburnt remains in the river, covered the place with sand, and escaped,” says the book.
An excerpt from “The Execution of Bhagat Singh: Legal Heresies of the Raj” by Satvinder Singh, published by “The Print” says “the bodies were dragged along the dirty passageway, chopped into pieces and stuffed into sacks, which were then whisked out of the jail compound surreptitiously”.
“Outside the jail, the remains were unceremoniously stacked on a truck. The truck reached the banks of the River Sutlej where two holy men were waiting for the final rituals. One was Sikh and the other Hindu. The dismembered bodies were then incompletely burnt and the charred remains were thrown into the river. After this, the villagers retrieved the body parts and cremated them properly,” the book says.
After Partition, the cremation site went under Pakistan’s control. But in January 1961, with the government’s efforts, the area came within the Indian border in exchange of land. The cremation site is situated in the border village of Hussainiwala in Punjab’s Ferozepur district, known as “The National Martyrs Memorial”.
Hence, it can be concluded that the claim along with the picture is misleading. A picture of a funeral ceremony in April 1978 in Amritsar has been shared as the last rites of Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru.
