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Eminent Grewals of Gadar Movement-3
Bhai Randhir Singh Ji of Narangwal village.
Dr Dalvinder Singh Grewal
(Excerpts from Book Global Grewals by Dr. Dalvinder Singh Grewal)
Gadar movement originated and developed in USA and was not much supported by local leaders in India The only prominent leader who was prepared to render all-out help was Bhai Randhir Singh. "In the Malwa Tract" records the Isemonger Report, "the efforts of the revolutionaries to enlist the help of the people received valuable help from a local religious leader, Randhir Singh of Narangwal, Ludhiana. This man has had a University education and is the son of Natha Singh an important official in the Nabha State. He had locally a great reputation for sanctity and constantly toured the Malwa Tract officiating at religious meetings for which he was in great demand. He appears to have been an ordinary loyal citizen until the beginning of 1914 when the agitation over the Rikabganj Gurdwara worked on him to such an extent that he became an active seditionist. On 27th February 1915, there was a meeting of the leading Sikh gentry of the districts to which the emigrants belonged, at Government House, Lahore. The Lt. Governor presided. The Sardars present advocated that all emigrants should be interned in jail, but it was pointed out by Lt. Governor that it would be impossible to intern thousands. Sardar Gajjan Singh, a member of the Provincial Legislative council and lawyer advocated that as delays in dealing with the crime committed by revolutionaries had a very bad effect, the usual procedure should be modified and speedy and summary trials substituted. This was before the passing of the Defence Act of India." [(i) Isemonger and Slattery: An account of Ghadar Conspiracy P. 150. (ii)
Sir Michael O Dwyer represented to the Govt, of India after this meeting, that "it is most undesirable at the present time to allow trials of these revolutionaries, or of other sedition mongers to be protracted by the ingenuity of counsel and drawn out to inordinate lengths by the committal and appeal procedure which the Criminal Law Provides." Sir Michael O Dwyer, India as I knew it, p. 199. (iii) It is fortunate that the Governor disregarded Gajjan Singh's advice to arrest all the returned emigrants, irrespective of the fact that they were suspects or not. Gajjan Singh's reactionary outbursts and notorious suggestions to give speedy and maximum punishment to all suspected Gadarites, made him the most unpopular Sikh of his times. Gajjan Singh used all his influence to repeatedly harass Bhai Randhir Singh's young wife and little children when the Saint was in prison, and all his attempts to annoy them and cause one trouble after another failed, and have become household tales in Narangwal. Scores of eyewitnesses are still living. This man and his family became the most cursed family in Narangwal]
All writers on Gadar movement admit that Bhai Randhir Singh was the only local leader (the only one who was not a returned emigrant) who offered to participate in the battle for freedom without any reservations. He was the only Sikh leader of the masses who was won over by the revolutionaries. The rest were returned emigrants (Jagjit Singh, Gadar Party da Ithas, 386).
Two Paths of Revolution
Sometime in September and October 1914 when the cause of preventing the British Government from acquiring Rikabganj Gurdwara had been virtually won, five eminent Gadarites namely Baba Nidhan Singh of Village Chugha, Bhai Uttam Singh of Hans, Bhai Ishar Singh of Dhudike, Kartar Singh Sarabha, Bhai Gandha Singh and Bhai Arjan Singh met Bhai Randhir Singh and won him for the cause.
The Gadarites made desperate effort to contact the masses. They visited Nankana Sahib, Tarn Taran on religious festivals and openly exhorted the people to revolt against the British. They were shocked to find that the political climate in the country was not at all conducive to revolution, but that did not deter them from carrying out their plans. While the revolutionary philosophy of the Gadarites was of violent nature, that of Bhai Randhir Singh was a passion for freedom inspired by Sikh history and ideals of Sikhism. Bhai Randhir Singh felt that peaceful methods would never succeed with the British Imperialism. They were now even interfering in religious and cultural matters and undermining all fundamental freedoms. He believed in the revolutionary ideal of Guru Gobind Singh who in his letter to Aurangzeb said, "When all other means fail, it is lawful to resort to the sword". He believed in making adequate preparation to carry out an armed revolt against British Power. He was strongly against dacoities, loot and plunder for the sake of money. He not only resented it but also did not allow any of his companions to have anything to do with such activities. That is why he kept his group, called the Tat Khalsa Jatha, quite apart, independent of central command and completely under his control. That is why he did not accept the overall leadership of the Ghadar movement. He assured the key Ghadar leaders, Bhai Nidhan Singh Chugha, Kartar Singh Sarabha and others that he and his companions would participate only in armed revolt against the British army. He expressed his resentment against killing of civilians for money.
Bhai Nidhan Singh Chugha, a returned emigrant from Canada, was one of his strongest supporters of this line of approach. Nidhan Singh even told his companions that he had contacted some princely families of Hill States like Mandi and some rich Sardars who for some reason or the other were disgusted with British rule. They had promised to render every financial help. Bhai Randhir Singh's extended full support of his Jatha in an armed uprising against the British forces (Giani Harbhajan Singh and Giani Dalip Singh, life‐long companions of Bhai Randhir Singh, inform that both Bhai Nidhan Singh and Bhai Randhir Singh strongly resented these dacoities and attacks by revolutionaries on innocent villagers to grab money, which was resented by Bhai Randhir Singh.
Bhai Nidhan Singh Chugha, Kartar Singh Sarabha and Gandha Singh met him almost every week. Bhai Randhir Singh's Jatha held its first closed door meting in September, 1914 at Khanna and the second most important meeting was held on January 19,1915 at Chamkaur (Second Lahore Conspiracy Case P. 276).
To give a call to the younger generation to join the revolution, he asked one of his companions to put up the following poster on the gates of Khalsa High School, Ludhiana. The Feringhis have looted the country and laid it waste. The people are harassed greatly, Dear people; They have taken all riches of India, and have sent them to England; These dacoits are looting us day and night. The poor cultivators are starving. Good pay is paid to the Whiteman to eat, drink and be merry. All the rest, soldiers, Sikhs, and Muslims have only grams to eat. The white man shrank back on the battlefield. Standing at a safe distance they issue Orders; To fight and get killed we are pushed to the front in Egypt, Africa, and Persia; The English are not a great power. Fight and defeat them. When will Khalsa draw the sword and slay the Whiteman? Make preparation for mutiny soon to destroy the rule of the tyrants. (Home Political Deptt. January 1915, No. 278‐282.)
Khushwant Singh and Satindra Singh in their monograph, Gadar 1915, suggest that the Sikh masses showed great enthusiasm for recruitment. They did so probably on the basis of Michael O Dwyer's statement which says, "In four years of war the Sikhs from the total population of less than 1% of British India furnished no less than one‐eighth of India's total" (Michael O' Dwyer, India as I knew it, P. 207).
Winning of Troops:
For an armed revolt, the winning of troops was now the first and last program. The Revolutionaries had established good contacts in a number of cantonments, especially in the Lahore and Ferozepur cantonments. Bhai Randhir Singh had some devoted friends in the 36 Cavalry, Ambala, notably Babu Mai Singh, Subedar Piara Singh (later Col. Piara Singh), and Subedar Harbachan Singh. Bhai Randhir Singh asked Babu Mai Singh to join the armed revolt, but he helplessly refused and frankly said that he could not afford to sacrifice his duties to his family and plunge into a revolt which meant courting disaster When Bhai Randhir Singh was in prison he looked after his family as best as circumstances permitted him to do so. After Bhai Randhir Singh's return from prison, he conducted all the baptism ceremonies of his Jatha and has during his life administered baptism to thousands of devotees. After the death of Bhai Randhir Singh, Babu Mai Singh is revered as a very prominent friend and companion of the saint).
Within India, Bhai Randhir Singh spearheaded the revolution against the British Government of India. Within a week after his arrival, Rash Bihari Bose studied the situation and fixed February 22nd as the day of meeting and revolt. Some units in Lahore and Ferozepur cantonment had agreed to capture ammunition depots and stage an armed revolt. The whole thing was brilliantly organized. But the organization had one inherent weakness. Anyone who came into contact with them was easily accepted in the inner circle. The Government planted a spy on them on getting some information and wormed his way into the inner group within less than a week. Bhai Randhir Singh visited Amritsar during these days but he did not contact Rash Bihari Bose. Kartar Singh Sarabha and Bhai Nidhan Singh met him every week, and he was kept informed of all the development personally by them.
Betrayal:
While investigating and examining the evidence obtained in the Chuba dacoity, Liaqat Hayat Khan D.S.P. suspected that the Gadarites were involved in the dacoity and murder. On the 7th of February, Liaqat Hayat Khan asked Zaildar Bela Singh to find a man who personally knew some returned emigrants. On 9th February 1915 Bella Singh brought one Kirpal Singh, a relative of an emigrant Balwant Singh, who was planted as a spy. As this man knew Nidhan Singh Chugha (they had met earlier at Shanghai), he was able to get into the inner circle through him. He first got Mula Singh arrested and replaced Mula Singh in the inner circle. On 12th February,, the Revolutionary Council High Command fixed 22nd February 1914 as the date for collective mutiny and revolt which Kirpal Singh conveyed to the police on the 13th of February, but the police reached the spot when all had dispersed. Kirpal Singh had contacts only with the Amritsar police. So he was not able to get any help from the Lahore police. Nidhan Singh was the first to come to know that Kirpal Singh was a spy, but the revolutionary leaders did not think it wise to do away with him immediately. They, however, kept a close watch on him. The Revolutionary Council changed D-day to 19 February in an informal meeting on February 14th, 1915. Up to the 17th of February, the change of the date was kept a closely guarded secret, among four or five top leaders.
Kartar Singh Sarabha met Bhai Randhir Singh on the 14th of February Night. Bhai Randhir Singh's jatha had worked apart and was fully prepared to plunge into the revolt with about 60 men. The inner circle of the Jatha had already held closed-door meetings in the following places: Khanna (September 1914), Chamkaur (19th January 1915), Lohatbadi (20th January 1915), Gujjarwal (12th February). The date of the revolt had been changed from 21st February to 19th February, but only top leaders knew it. The change had not been as yet passed as a resolution by the Revolutionary War Council. On the 14th of February night, Bhai Randhir Singh was going to Dhandhari to perform Akhand Path (continuous recitation of Guru Granth Sahib) in the house of Sardar Hardit Singh, a military man. Kartar Singh Sarabha knew about his program. The young Revolutionary waited on the Gill‐ Malerkotla road to contact Bhai Randhir Singh. After some hours of waiting, he saw Bhai Randhir Singh coming. The saint embraced Kartar Singh Sarabha (Gyani Harbhajan Singh was with Bhai Randhir Singh during this meeting. He has given a written account of what transpired between them). Kartar Singh then informed Bhai Randhir Singh that spy Kirpal Singh had leaked out the D day, February 21st. So it had been changed to February 19th. They were to meet him on the outskirts of Ferozepur cantonment. Kartar Singh then suggested that the jatha should wear white turbans instead of black and should not bring any weapons as the weapons would be supplied by the army mutineers. Bhai Randhir Singh told him that they will wear black turbans, and would also keep some weapons like swords and axes in case they were necessary before other weapons come to hand. Kartar Singh Sarabha told him that cars and taxis were ready to bring the Lahore and Amritsar revolutionaries while Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions were advised to come by train in the form of a wedding party and reach Ferozepur by sunset. After lengthy and enthusiastic discussions lasting for about two hours, Kartar Singh disappeared into the darkness. When the date was finally fixed for the rising, Kartar Singh went on 17th February to Bhai Randhir Singh who was holding a congregation at Dhandhari village, Ludhiana, a service to pray for the safety of some Indian Soldiers in France. Kartar Singh informed him of the date and directed him to come to Ferozepur on the evening of the 19th with his men. The disaffected men of the 26th Punjabis would be guarding the assembly. The depot magazine would be attacked by one party and other depots and regimental lines would be attacked by another party, British troops would be massacred and then the {censored}nal would be attacked. (Isemonger and Slattery, An Account of Ghadar Conspiracy, P. 110.) (Kartar Singh Sarabha met Bhai Randhir Singh on February 14th, and not on the 17th as the Isemonger report suggests says Giani Harbhajan Singh who was with Bhai Randhir Singh on this date).
D. Day February 19th, 1915:
Bhai Randhir Singh held one of his closed-door meetings at Dhandari on 17th February and the second at his residence on the morning of February 19th. The question was thoroughly discussed. One of his companions suggested that Bhai Randhir Singh as a saintly person should keep himself above politics. He should not covet any power. To this Bhai Randhir Singh replied that he was not fighting for power but as a Sikh of Guru Gobind Singh it was his unfailing duty to fight for freedom. A Sikh should not tolerate slavery of any kind. He also was not prepared to discuss the question of failure or success. "When we fight for freedom", he said, "Our duty is to be prepared to fight till you succeed. A soldier does not concentrate on speculations of what might happen. He fights for victory". A resolution was then unanimously passed.
On the 19th of February evening, Bhai Randhir Singh along with 60 companions boarded a train from Mullanpur at 6 P.M. for Ferozepur. With him were prominent revolutionaries like Bhai Nidhan Singh, Gandha Singh, Ishar Singh, and others. They got down at Ferozepur Cantt Railway Station and waited at the place where they were supposed to meet Kartar Singh Sarabha. The Government had come to know about this date also. Kartar Singh fearlessly entered the well-guarded cantonment and came to know that 8 of the sepoys on whom he counted had been discharged. Five of them were actually marched to the railway station on the morning of 19th February and entrained boarded in trains for their homes. Some of them had come back at night and told him the whole story. One man sent by Kartar Singh Sarabha into the cantonment was taken into custody. Kartar Singh Sarabha then met Bhai Randhir Singh and his men outside the cantonment and asked them to disperse.
From Ferozepur Cantt., they walked to Khai railway station from where they boarded a train for Mullanpur early the next morning and came back to Narangwal. On the 18th or 19th morning spy Kirpal Singh came to know about the changed date from a man who did not know that Kirpal Singh was a spy. Kirpal Singh immediately told a C.I.D. Officer in plain clothes about the changed date. Finding Kirpal Singh nervous and in the know of the date, the Ghadarites thought of killing him. At 4.30 P.M. Kirpal Singh went up on the roof of the building and shouted to the Police to save him. The Police had by now surrounded the building. They arrested all those who were there and also took away the papers and documents from the Ghadar Office. Kartar Singh Sarabha and his companions were arrested after some days.
Fateful Slip of Paper
In the first Lahore conspiracy case, Kartar Singh Sarabha was the main accused. This case opened on October 29th, 1915. Up to this time, the Government did not know that Bhai Randhir Singh and his jatha were in any way involved in the case. Bhai Randhir Singh went to Nabha where his father Sardar Natha Singh was the High Court Judge. A fateful slip of paper with three names on it written though unsigned by Rash Bihari Bose came up for explanation in the first Lahore Conspiracy Case. The text of this slip of paper was Nidh to Ichh: Randhir, Uttam, Jagar, send these‐ join." (Lahore Conspiracy Case: Home Pol. 1915 Oct; P. 98 A). Approver Achhra Singh of Ambala explained that 'Nidh' meant Nidhan Singh, 'ichh' meant Achhra Singh, Randhir stood for Randhir Singh, Uttam, Jagar, send these to join. When Achhra Singh Approver revealed for the first time that Randhir Singh was a leading revolutionary, the Viceroy at once sent a telegram to Maharaja Nabha to keep Bhai Randhir Singh in custody till further investigation. Maharaja Ripduman Singh could have avoided arrest and helped Bhai Randhir Singh to escape, but to prove to the victory that he was not so anti‐British as he was supposed to be and he was in no way involved in any Gadar movement, he took Bhai Randhir Singh into custody, assuring him that he will be well looked after. Bhai Randhir Singh sent a reply to the Maharaja saying that when it is Maharaja's turn to be interned, he will know what prison is, and he will know how one feels when he is well looked after in prison (Maharaja Ripduman Singh, later on, confessed that he had made the greatest mistake in his life. He died in British Prison).
Arrest and Trial:
On February 4th, 1916, Bhai Randhir Singh in his defence Statement declared, "On Sunday 27th Baisakh (May 9th, 1915) the police arrested me and kept me (at Nabha) there for fifteen days. From there I was transferred to Lohatbadi police station, where I was kept for about a month. From there I was sent to Ludhiana under the custody of police and a sergeant on June 19th (June 17th given by Giani Nahar Singh in the appendix to the Punjabi edition of the Autobiography is incorrect. This date given by Bhai Randhir Singh in his statement in the records of the Lahore Conspiracy Case is obviously correct), I was kept in the lockup attached to Ludhiana police station for a week. On 20th June I was sent to Ludhiana jail. I have been in jail since that time. Ever since my arrest nobody has made any inquiry from me, taken down my statement, nor yet have I been told for what fault I was arrested" (Lahore Conspiracy Case, Feb. 4, 1916, P. 956).
Dr. Mohammed Alam appeared for Bhai Randhir Singh while Mr. Pitman was the Prosecuting Officer. Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions were tried by A. A. Irvine, T.P. Ellis and Pundit Sheo Narain. He was, alphabetically, accused number 69 in the First Supplementary Lahore Conspiracy Case. Once again Bhai Randhir Singh met Kartar Singh Sarabha in prison. The first Lahore Conspiracy case against Kartar Singh and his companions started on April 26th, 1915 in Lahore Central Jail, and judgment was delivered on September 13th, 1915. Out of 81 revolutionaries arrested 24 were sentenced to death. The ibid Lahore Conspiracy case involving Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions started on October 29th, 1915, and the judgment was delivered on March 30th, 1916. There were four approvers against Bhai Randhir Singh namely Sunder Singh Asa Majra, Bhagat Singh, Udham Singh Hans, and Anokh Singh. There were five prosecuting witnesses. Achhra Singh (Approver of the first case), Inder Singh and his wife Nihal Kaur, two pointsmen of Khai Railway Station named Ahmad Khan and Isa Khan. When Achhra Singh was asked to identify Bhai Randhir Singh, he, out of shame, did not dare to do so but said his eyesight was too bad for identification. So he could not say which man was Randhir Singh (Achhra Singh whose name in the case appears as Ichhra Singh had a shop at Raikot. With Sunder Singh as President and himself as Treasurer, he started a school at Lohatbadi. When he quarreled with Sunder Singh, he became an all in all Manager. He was given charge of bombs and ammunition and revolutionary literature. He forwarded the literature to the Viceroy and Governor of Punjab and became Approver in the First Lahore Conspiracy Case. It was he who for the first time revealed that Bhai Randhir Singh and his Jatha were actively involved in the case). When Inder Singh of Khanna was asked to identify him, he said he knew Bhai Randhir Singh very well but on that day his aqal (mind) told him not to do so. So he was incapable of identifying him. Achhra Singh seems to have genuinely repented after all the damage had been done. He offered to help if he could. It was suggested to him by the revolutionaries that on a certain day when a sword of the Gadarities was to be shown to him for identification he should take the sword and kill the prosecuting officer and then they will pounce on the judges. Kartar Singh Sarabha and Gandha Singh had even procured revolvers and knives from outside and everyone carried something. But the sword was shown to Achhra Singh from a distance and the tragedy was averted. One day inadvertently the Police Officer in charge of Prisons marched the prisoners to the court. Each Prisoner was surrounded by two armed policemen. As they were marching, Bhai Lai Singh (Hindu outcaste who had become Sikh), a member of Bhai Randhir Singh's jatha, suddenly appeared on the road and started marching along with them. He suggested to Bhai Randhir Singh that he had come to free them. All he had with him was a battle axe. The armed policemen were unnerved. They knew that the Gadarites were desperate men. They begged Bhai Randhir Singh not to put them to trouble. Bhai Lai Singh was too eager to attack and lay down his life to liberate his companions. Bhai Randhir Singh knew that with double the number of policemen having loaded rifles the risks were great. So he asked Bhai Lai Singh to go away before he was arrested. Lai Singh went away saying "I will wait for you on your way back" (This incident was related by co‐prisoners Giani Harbhajan Singh and Giani Dalip Singh). Even the judges in the court were surprised to see the prisoners in the court. The order was to try them in the prison.
Perverted judgment:
The Judgment was first passed on Kartar Singh Sarabha, which reads "There is no defense witness, there was no cross-examination, throughout the trial, and the accused did not wish to argue his own case, nor to allow the counsel appointed for him to argue. It only remains to be said that the guilt of the accused has been proved to the hilt. He is a young man (18.5 years old) no doubt, but he is certainly one of the worst of these conspirators and is a thorough callous scoundrel, proud of his exploits to whom no mercy whatever can or should be shown." (When Bhai Parmanand asked Kartar Singh Sarabha in prison, why did you sacrifice the comfortable life in Canada for the sake of dying on the gallows, Kartar Singh Sarabha replied "Tell me which death is better. To die like a cursed slave in a foreign country and bear insults and humiliation from every Whiteman or to die like a hero in your own country fighting for freedom." It is unfortunate that the Biography of Kartar Singh published by the Punjabi University Patiala, though excellently printed neither gives any essential details of this remarkable hero's life nor even the easily available facts about his struggle for freedom. The whole life of Kartar Singh Sarabha is an almost legendary inspiring saga of the youngest and the bravest fighter for freedom in Indian history (Trilochan Singh: The translator of Autobiography). But even in the case of Bhai Randhir Singh, where 100 defense witnesses including the Prime Minister of a Sikh State, Judges of High Courts, and Englishman Mr. Cole Principal of Khalsa College appeared on his side and the evidence of approvers and prosecuting witnesses patently false and erroneously tutored, the judgment was perverted. The wording of the judgment against him was almost the same as that against Kartar Singh Sarabha.
Behind the whole drama of proving the charges, there was even in the cold pretense of dispassionateness of the judges, an iron determination to send the accused to doom. The Prosecuting Officer many times became irritable, nervous, aggressive, and wrathful. This was how irrelevant facts against Bhai Randhir Singh were presented and answered when questioned. The prosecution story was that the change of date of the uprising was decided at Lahore at 10 A.M. on February 17th and conveyed to Bhai Randhir Singh the same evening. During those days, there was no bus service. No train or telegram could convey the news so soon either to Narangwal or Dhandari, to enable Bhai Randhir Singh to hold a meeting on the same day. Mr. Pitman when questioned by the Defence Counsel angrily said, "We do not know how, but the news was sent on the same day and reached the accused on the same day. Actually, Kartar Singh Sarabha had personally informed Bhai Randhir Singh on 14th February, three days earlier. Pointsmen Ahmad Bakhsh and Isa Khan of Khai Railway Station had been tutored to say that they saw Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions buying tickets on the morning of 20 February at Khai Railway Station. When they were asked what was the color of their turbans and clothes both of them said that the revolutionaries were wearing khaki turbans and clothes although they were actually wearing black turbans (The original complaint filed by Mr. Henry Vernon Bars tow Hare‐ Scott Superintendent of Police C.I.D. against the accused on October 28, 1915 mentions that they were wearing black turbans and clothes. Scott calls Bhai Randhir Singh a very prominent conspirator who conspired to send educated youth to America to learn the manufacture of arms. (Lahore Conspiracy Case)). Nihal Kaur another prosecuting witness who had incidentally met them near Khai Station said that they were wearing white clothes. One approver who said that he was a preacher did not even know how to read and write Punjabi yet one other approver was a renegade from Sikhism (Patit), the type of people Bhai Randhir Singh never allowed to come near him.
On the basis of these utterly false statements, the judgment against Bhai Randhir Singh runs: "This accused (Randhir Singh) who pleaded, 'Not guilty to the charges framed against him, is not a returned emigrants and he is one of the most important accused in the present case and has the biggest dossier against him. Though the counsel told us in arguments that the accused's father has been undergoing an operation, no defense witnesses were produced to show why he was not produced as a witness to most important facts in connection with his son with whom he is apparently good terms. Of his guilt, there can be no possible doubt whatever, and we cannot lose sight of the fact that it was his influence that brought several of the co‐accused including mere youth, and old men into the dock. We are satisfied on the evidence that the accused from an early period conspired to wage war on several occasions as above indicated and that he committed an act of war in going to Ferozepur in a war-like array to attack the {censored}nal there and we accordingly convict him under Section 121 A, 121, Indian Penal Code and sentence him to transportation for life and direct that his property liable to forfeiture be forfeited to the Government" (First‐supplementary Lahore Conspiracy Case P. 301).
Prison and Ordeals:
The whole of this autobiography tells the terrible tale of his sufferings in prison. His elder daughter Bhagwant Kaur died when he was brought to Ludhiana prison after his arrest. She could not bear the shock or the thought of living without him. His other children Balbir Singh and Daler Kaur were too young to know what had happened. His father Sardar Natha Singh also languished to death, but before dying, he wrote to the Governor Punjab, that his son Randhir Singh had no property of his own and that his property which was meant for supporting his wife, his daughter‐in‐law, and grandchildren, may please not be confiscated after his death. But contrary to the Governor's assurance the property was confiscated under pressure from Gajjan Singh Advocate of Narangwal and a member of the Legislative Council. When Gajjan Singh brought the police to get the house confiscated, after the land had been confiscated, Kartar Kaur wife of Bhai Randhir Singh refused to leave the house. "Either you shoot me or take me and my children to prison." The villagers then put Gajjan Singh to shame and asked him to withdraw the police. Gajjan Singh died on June 10th, 1929 and soon after him his only son died on February 12th, 1936. As long as this notorious loyalist, Gajjan Singh, who was considered enemy number one by the Freedom Fighters was alive, he resisted all proposals to release Bhai Randhir Singh. After his death the Christian Missionary who met Bhai Randhir Singh in Nagpur Prison strongly recommended his release and even personally met the Governor of Punjab to persuade him to take the matter seriously. The Governor referred the matter to Sikh Sardars like Sir Jogindra Singh who strongly recommended his release. The sufferings of Kartar Kaur, wife of Bhai Randhir Singh, for seventeen years is a long tale of woe and agony and yet she managed to bring up her son Balbir Singh, and daughter Daler Kaur as disciplined children. This autobiography relates not only the terrible suffering he had to undergo in prison but also vividly portrays the conditions in prisons under British rule. These conditions improved greatly during the Gandhi‐Nehru era. Twice Bhai Randhir Singh was given up as dead even by the members of his family. When the Sikh Community came to know about his forty days fast and other tortures that he suffered, the whole Sikh Panth prayed and performed ardas for his safety and welfare on February 1st, 1923. Bhai Jodh Singh who was then editing Khalsa Advocate in English and Punjabi criticized this unanimous decision of the Sikh Panth in his paper because like typical loyalist Sikhs of those days he refused to believe that the British Government could accord such an inhuman treatment to anyone. He was the only dissenting voice (Bhai Jodh Singh was later made the Principal of Khalsa College, Amritsar, and was given the title of Sardar Bahadur by the British Government. Khalsa Advocate which he was editing actually started to oppose the revolutionary and extremely popular daily "Akali the national paper of the Sikhs which covered all the news of the Akali movement. Bhai Jodh Singh's paper closed down after suffering a loss of over seventy thousand rupees. The members of the Chief Khalsa Diwan bought it, and says a member who was then a subscriber, that the people never took this paper seriously. The Sikh masses refused to touch it even with a pair of tongs. At present a paper running under the same name in Punjabi is giving the correct political and cultural lead to the Sikhs). (Extracted from Autobiography Of Bhai Sahib Randhir Singh Ed by Dr Tarlochan Singh)
Bhai Randhir Singh Ji of Narangwal village.
Dr Dalvinder Singh Grewal
(Excerpts from Book Global Grewals by Dr. Dalvinder Singh Grewal)
Gadar movement originated and developed in USA and was not much supported by local leaders in India The only prominent leader who was prepared to render all-out help was Bhai Randhir Singh. "In the Malwa Tract" records the Isemonger Report, "the efforts of the revolutionaries to enlist the help of the people received valuable help from a local religious leader, Randhir Singh of Narangwal, Ludhiana. This man has had a University education and is the son of Natha Singh an important official in the Nabha State. He had locally a great reputation for sanctity and constantly toured the Malwa Tract officiating at religious meetings for which he was in great demand. He appears to have been an ordinary loyal citizen until the beginning of 1914 when the agitation over the Rikabganj Gurdwara worked on him to such an extent that he became an active seditionist. On 27th February 1915, there was a meeting of the leading Sikh gentry of the districts to which the emigrants belonged, at Government House, Lahore. The Lt. Governor presided. The Sardars present advocated that all emigrants should be interned in jail, but it was pointed out by Lt. Governor that it would be impossible to intern thousands. Sardar Gajjan Singh, a member of the Provincial Legislative council and lawyer advocated that as delays in dealing with the crime committed by revolutionaries had a very bad effect, the usual procedure should be modified and speedy and summary trials substituted. This was before the passing of the Defence Act of India." [(i) Isemonger and Slattery: An account of Ghadar Conspiracy P. 150. (ii)
Sir Michael O Dwyer represented to the Govt, of India after this meeting, that "it is most undesirable at the present time to allow trials of these revolutionaries, or of other sedition mongers to be protracted by the ingenuity of counsel and drawn out to inordinate lengths by the committal and appeal procedure which the Criminal Law Provides." Sir Michael O Dwyer, India as I knew it, p. 199. (iii) It is fortunate that the Governor disregarded Gajjan Singh's advice to arrest all the returned emigrants, irrespective of the fact that they were suspects or not. Gajjan Singh's reactionary outbursts and notorious suggestions to give speedy and maximum punishment to all suspected Gadarites, made him the most unpopular Sikh of his times. Gajjan Singh used all his influence to repeatedly harass Bhai Randhir Singh's young wife and little children when the Saint was in prison, and all his attempts to annoy them and cause one trouble after another failed, and have become household tales in Narangwal. Scores of eyewitnesses are still living. This man and his family became the most cursed family in Narangwal]
All writers on Gadar movement admit that Bhai Randhir Singh was the only local leader (the only one who was not a returned emigrant) who offered to participate in the battle for freedom without any reservations. He was the only Sikh leader of the masses who was won over by the revolutionaries. The rest were returned emigrants (Jagjit Singh, Gadar Party da Ithas, 386).
Two Paths of Revolution
Sometime in September and October 1914 when the cause of preventing the British Government from acquiring Rikabganj Gurdwara had been virtually won, five eminent Gadarites namely Baba Nidhan Singh of Village Chugha, Bhai Uttam Singh of Hans, Bhai Ishar Singh of Dhudike, Kartar Singh Sarabha, Bhai Gandha Singh and Bhai Arjan Singh met Bhai Randhir Singh and won him for the cause.
The Gadarites made desperate effort to contact the masses. They visited Nankana Sahib, Tarn Taran on religious festivals and openly exhorted the people to revolt against the British. They were shocked to find that the political climate in the country was not at all conducive to revolution, but that did not deter them from carrying out their plans. While the revolutionary philosophy of the Gadarites was of violent nature, that of Bhai Randhir Singh was a passion for freedom inspired by Sikh history and ideals of Sikhism. Bhai Randhir Singh felt that peaceful methods would never succeed with the British Imperialism. They were now even interfering in religious and cultural matters and undermining all fundamental freedoms. He believed in the revolutionary ideal of Guru Gobind Singh who in his letter to Aurangzeb said, "When all other means fail, it is lawful to resort to the sword". He believed in making adequate preparation to carry out an armed revolt against British Power. He was strongly against dacoities, loot and plunder for the sake of money. He not only resented it but also did not allow any of his companions to have anything to do with such activities. That is why he kept his group, called the Tat Khalsa Jatha, quite apart, independent of central command and completely under his control. That is why he did not accept the overall leadership of the Ghadar movement. He assured the key Ghadar leaders, Bhai Nidhan Singh Chugha, Kartar Singh Sarabha and others that he and his companions would participate only in armed revolt against the British army. He expressed his resentment against killing of civilians for money.
Bhai Nidhan Singh Chugha, a returned emigrant from Canada, was one of his strongest supporters of this line of approach. Nidhan Singh even told his companions that he had contacted some princely families of Hill States like Mandi and some rich Sardars who for some reason or the other were disgusted with British rule. They had promised to render every financial help. Bhai Randhir Singh's extended full support of his Jatha in an armed uprising against the British forces (Giani Harbhajan Singh and Giani Dalip Singh, life‐long companions of Bhai Randhir Singh, inform that both Bhai Nidhan Singh and Bhai Randhir Singh strongly resented these dacoities and attacks by revolutionaries on innocent villagers to grab money, which was resented by Bhai Randhir Singh.
Bhai Nidhan Singh Chugha, Kartar Singh Sarabha and Gandha Singh met him almost every week. Bhai Randhir Singh's Jatha held its first closed door meting in September, 1914 at Khanna and the second most important meeting was held on January 19,1915 at Chamkaur (Second Lahore Conspiracy Case P. 276).
To give a call to the younger generation to join the revolution, he asked one of his companions to put up the following poster on the gates of Khalsa High School, Ludhiana. The Feringhis have looted the country and laid it waste. The people are harassed greatly, Dear people; They have taken all riches of India, and have sent them to England; These dacoits are looting us day and night. The poor cultivators are starving. Good pay is paid to the Whiteman to eat, drink and be merry. All the rest, soldiers, Sikhs, and Muslims have only grams to eat. The white man shrank back on the battlefield. Standing at a safe distance they issue Orders; To fight and get killed we are pushed to the front in Egypt, Africa, and Persia; The English are not a great power. Fight and defeat them. When will Khalsa draw the sword and slay the Whiteman? Make preparation for mutiny soon to destroy the rule of the tyrants. (Home Political Deptt. January 1915, No. 278‐282.)
Khushwant Singh and Satindra Singh in their monograph, Gadar 1915, suggest that the Sikh masses showed great enthusiasm for recruitment. They did so probably on the basis of Michael O Dwyer's statement which says, "In four years of war the Sikhs from the total population of less than 1% of British India furnished no less than one‐eighth of India's total" (Michael O' Dwyer, India as I knew it, P. 207).
Winning of Troops:
For an armed revolt, the winning of troops was now the first and last program. The Revolutionaries had established good contacts in a number of cantonments, especially in the Lahore and Ferozepur cantonments. Bhai Randhir Singh had some devoted friends in the 36 Cavalry, Ambala, notably Babu Mai Singh, Subedar Piara Singh (later Col. Piara Singh), and Subedar Harbachan Singh. Bhai Randhir Singh asked Babu Mai Singh to join the armed revolt, but he helplessly refused and frankly said that he could not afford to sacrifice his duties to his family and plunge into a revolt which meant courting disaster When Bhai Randhir Singh was in prison he looked after his family as best as circumstances permitted him to do so. After Bhai Randhir Singh's return from prison, he conducted all the baptism ceremonies of his Jatha and has during his life administered baptism to thousands of devotees. After the death of Bhai Randhir Singh, Babu Mai Singh is revered as a very prominent friend and companion of the saint).
Within India, Bhai Randhir Singh spearheaded the revolution against the British Government of India. Within a week after his arrival, Rash Bihari Bose studied the situation and fixed February 22nd as the day of meeting and revolt. Some units in Lahore and Ferozepur cantonment had agreed to capture ammunition depots and stage an armed revolt. The whole thing was brilliantly organized. But the organization had one inherent weakness. Anyone who came into contact with them was easily accepted in the inner circle. The Government planted a spy on them on getting some information and wormed his way into the inner group within less than a week. Bhai Randhir Singh visited Amritsar during these days but he did not contact Rash Bihari Bose. Kartar Singh Sarabha and Bhai Nidhan Singh met him every week, and he was kept informed of all the development personally by them.
Betrayal:
While investigating and examining the evidence obtained in the Chuba dacoity, Liaqat Hayat Khan D.S.P. suspected that the Gadarites were involved in the dacoity and murder. On the 7th of February, Liaqat Hayat Khan asked Zaildar Bela Singh to find a man who personally knew some returned emigrants. On 9th February 1915 Bella Singh brought one Kirpal Singh, a relative of an emigrant Balwant Singh, who was planted as a spy. As this man knew Nidhan Singh Chugha (they had met earlier at Shanghai), he was able to get into the inner circle through him. He first got Mula Singh arrested and replaced Mula Singh in the inner circle. On 12th February,, the Revolutionary Council High Command fixed 22nd February 1914 as the date for collective mutiny and revolt which Kirpal Singh conveyed to the police on the 13th of February, but the police reached the spot when all had dispersed. Kirpal Singh had contacts only with the Amritsar police. So he was not able to get any help from the Lahore police. Nidhan Singh was the first to come to know that Kirpal Singh was a spy, but the revolutionary leaders did not think it wise to do away with him immediately. They, however, kept a close watch on him. The Revolutionary Council changed D-day to 19 February in an informal meeting on February 14th, 1915. Up to the 17th of February, the change of the date was kept a closely guarded secret, among four or five top leaders.
Kartar Singh Sarabha met Bhai Randhir Singh on the 14th of February Night. Bhai Randhir Singh's jatha had worked apart and was fully prepared to plunge into the revolt with about 60 men. The inner circle of the Jatha had already held closed-door meetings in the following places: Khanna (September 1914), Chamkaur (19th January 1915), Lohatbadi (20th January 1915), Gujjarwal (12th February). The date of the revolt had been changed from 21st February to 19th February, but only top leaders knew it. The change had not been as yet passed as a resolution by the Revolutionary War Council. On the 14th of February night, Bhai Randhir Singh was going to Dhandhari to perform Akhand Path (continuous recitation of Guru Granth Sahib) in the house of Sardar Hardit Singh, a military man. Kartar Singh Sarabha knew about his program. The young Revolutionary waited on the Gill‐ Malerkotla road to contact Bhai Randhir Singh. After some hours of waiting, he saw Bhai Randhir Singh coming. The saint embraced Kartar Singh Sarabha (Gyani Harbhajan Singh was with Bhai Randhir Singh during this meeting. He has given a written account of what transpired between them). Kartar Singh then informed Bhai Randhir Singh that spy Kirpal Singh had leaked out the D day, February 21st. So it had been changed to February 19th. They were to meet him on the outskirts of Ferozepur cantonment. Kartar Singh then suggested that the jatha should wear white turbans instead of black and should not bring any weapons as the weapons would be supplied by the army mutineers. Bhai Randhir Singh told him that they will wear black turbans, and would also keep some weapons like swords and axes in case they were necessary before other weapons come to hand. Kartar Singh Sarabha told him that cars and taxis were ready to bring the Lahore and Amritsar revolutionaries while Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions were advised to come by train in the form of a wedding party and reach Ferozepur by sunset. After lengthy and enthusiastic discussions lasting for about two hours, Kartar Singh disappeared into the darkness. When the date was finally fixed for the rising, Kartar Singh went on 17th February to Bhai Randhir Singh who was holding a congregation at Dhandhari village, Ludhiana, a service to pray for the safety of some Indian Soldiers in France. Kartar Singh informed him of the date and directed him to come to Ferozepur on the evening of the 19th with his men. The disaffected men of the 26th Punjabis would be guarding the assembly. The depot magazine would be attacked by one party and other depots and regimental lines would be attacked by another party, British troops would be massacred and then the {censored}nal would be attacked. (Isemonger and Slattery, An Account of Ghadar Conspiracy, P. 110.) (Kartar Singh Sarabha met Bhai Randhir Singh on February 14th, and not on the 17th as the Isemonger report suggests says Giani Harbhajan Singh who was with Bhai Randhir Singh on this date).
D. Day February 19th, 1915:
Bhai Randhir Singh held one of his closed-door meetings at Dhandari on 17th February and the second at his residence on the morning of February 19th. The question was thoroughly discussed. One of his companions suggested that Bhai Randhir Singh as a saintly person should keep himself above politics. He should not covet any power. To this Bhai Randhir Singh replied that he was not fighting for power but as a Sikh of Guru Gobind Singh it was his unfailing duty to fight for freedom. A Sikh should not tolerate slavery of any kind. He also was not prepared to discuss the question of failure or success. "When we fight for freedom", he said, "Our duty is to be prepared to fight till you succeed. A soldier does not concentrate on speculations of what might happen. He fights for victory". A resolution was then unanimously passed.
On the 19th of February evening, Bhai Randhir Singh along with 60 companions boarded a train from Mullanpur at 6 P.M. for Ferozepur. With him were prominent revolutionaries like Bhai Nidhan Singh, Gandha Singh, Ishar Singh, and others. They got down at Ferozepur Cantt Railway Station and waited at the place where they were supposed to meet Kartar Singh Sarabha. The Government had come to know about this date also. Kartar Singh fearlessly entered the well-guarded cantonment and came to know that 8 of the sepoys on whom he counted had been discharged. Five of them were actually marched to the railway station on the morning of 19th February and entrained boarded in trains for their homes. Some of them had come back at night and told him the whole story. One man sent by Kartar Singh Sarabha into the cantonment was taken into custody. Kartar Singh Sarabha then met Bhai Randhir Singh and his men outside the cantonment and asked them to disperse.
From Ferozepur Cantt., they walked to Khai railway station from where they boarded a train for Mullanpur early the next morning and came back to Narangwal. On the 18th or 19th morning spy Kirpal Singh came to know about the changed date from a man who did not know that Kirpal Singh was a spy. Kirpal Singh immediately told a C.I.D. Officer in plain clothes about the changed date. Finding Kirpal Singh nervous and in the know of the date, the Ghadarites thought of killing him. At 4.30 P.M. Kirpal Singh went up on the roof of the building and shouted to the Police to save him. The Police had by now surrounded the building. They arrested all those who were there and also took away the papers and documents from the Ghadar Office. Kartar Singh Sarabha and his companions were arrested after some days.
Fateful Slip of Paper
In the first Lahore conspiracy case, Kartar Singh Sarabha was the main accused. This case opened on October 29th, 1915. Up to this time, the Government did not know that Bhai Randhir Singh and his jatha were in any way involved in the case. Bhai Randhir Singh went to Nabha where his father Sardar Natha Singh was the High Court Judge. A fateful slip of paper with three names on it written though unsigned by Rash Bihari Bose came up for explanation in the first Lahore Conspiracy Case. The text of this slip of paper was Nidh to Ichh: Randhir, Uttam, Jagar, send these‐ join." (Lahore Conspiracy Case: Home Pol. 1915 Oct; P. 98 A). Approver Achhra Singh of Ambala explained that 'Nidh' meant Nidhan Singh, 'ichh' meant Achhra Singh, Randhir stood for Randhir Singh, Uttam, Jagar, send these to join. When Achhra Singh Approver revealed for the first time that Randhir Singh was a leading revolutionary, the Viceroy at once sent a telegram to Maharaja Nabha to keep Bhai Randhir Singh in custody till further investigation. Maharaja Ripduman Singh could have avoided arrest and helped Bhai Randhir Singh to escape, but to prove to the victory that he was not so anti‐British as he was supposed to be and he was in no way involved in any Gadar movement, he took Bhai Randhir Singh into custody, assuring him that he will be well looked after. Bhai Randhir Singh sent a reply to the Maharaja saying that when it is Maharaja's turn to be interned, he will know what prison is, and he will know how one feels when he is well looked after in prison (Maharaja Ripduman Singh, later on, confessed that he had made the greatest mistake in his life. He died in British Prison).
Arrest and Trial:
On February 4th, 1916, Bhai Randhir Singh in his defence Statement declared, "On Sunday 27th Baisakh (May 9th, 1915) the police arrested me and kept me (at Nabha) there for fifteen days. From there I was transferred to Lohatbadi police station, where I was kept for about a month. From there I was sent to Ludhiana under the custody of police and a sergeant on June 19th (June 17th given by Giani Nahar Singh in the appendix to the Punjabi edition of the Autobiography is incorrect. This date given by Bhai Randhir Singh in his statement in the records of the Lahore Conspiracy Case is obviously correct), I was kept in the lockup attached to Ludhiana police station for a week. On 20th June I was sent to Ludhiana jail. I have been in jail since that time. Ever since my arrest nobody has made any inquiry from me, taken down my statement, nor yet have I been told for what fault I was arrested" (Lahore Conspiracy Case, Feb. 4, 1916, P. 956).
Dr. Mohammed Alam appeared for Bhai Randhir Singh while Mr. Pitman was the Prosecuting Officer. Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions were tried by A. A. Irvine, T.P. Ellis and Pundit Sheo Narain. He was, alphabetically, accused number 69 in the First Supplementary Lahore Conspiracy Case. Once again Bhai Randhir Singh met Kartar Singh Sarabha in prison. The first Lahore Conspiracy case against Kartar Singh and his companions started on April 26th, 1915 in Lahore Central Jail, and judgment was delivered on September 13th, 1915. Out of 81 revolutionaries arrested 24 were sentenced to death. The ibid Lahore Conspiracy case involving Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions started on October 29th, 1915, and the judgment was delivered on March 30th, 1916. There were four approvers against Bhai Randhir Singh namely Sunder Singh Asa Majra, Bhagat Singh, Udham Singh Hans, and Anokh Singh. There were five prosecuting witnesses. Achhra Singh (Approver of the first case), Inder Singh and his wife Nihal Kaur, two pointsmen of Khai Railway Station named Ahmad Khan and Isa Khan. When Achhra Singh was asked to identify Bhai Randhir Singh, he, out of shame, did not dare to do so but said his eyesight was too bad for identification. So he could not say which man was Randhir Singh (Achhra Singh whose name in the case appears as Ichhra Singh had a shop at Raikot. With Sunder Singh as President and himself as Treasurer, he started a school at Lohatbadi. When he quarreled with Sunder Singh, he became an all in all Manager. He was given charge of bombs and ammunition and revolutionary literature. He forwarded the literature to the Viceroy and Governor of Punjab and became Approver in the First Lahore Conspiracy Case. It was he who for the first time revealed that Bhai Randhir Singh and his Jatha were actively involved in the case). When Inder Singh of Khanna was asked to identify him, he said he knew Bhai Randhir Singh very well but on that day his aqal (mind) told him not to do so. So he was incapable of identifying him. Achhra Singh seems to have genuinely repented after all the damage had been done. He offered to help if he could. It was suggested to him by the revolutionaries that on a certain day when a sword of the Gadarities was to be shown to him for identification he should take the sword and kill the prosecuting officer and then they will pounce on the judges. Kartar Singh Sarabha and Gandha Singh had even procured revolvers and knives from outside and everyone carried something. But the sword was shown to Achhra Singh from a distance and the tragedy was averted. One day inadvertently the Police Officer in charge of Prisons marched the prisoners to the court. Each Prisoner was surrounded by two armed policemen. As they were marching, Bhai Lai Singh (Hindu outcaste who had become Sikh), a member of Bhai Randhir Singh's jatha, suddenly appeared on the road and started marching along with them. He suggested to Bhai Randhir Singh that he had come to free them. All he had with him was a battle axe. The armed policemen were unnerved. They knew that the Gadarites were desperate men. They begged Bhai Randhir Singh not to put them to trouble. Bhai Lai Singh was too eager to attack and lay down his life to liberate his companions. Bhai Randhir Singh knew that with double the number of policemen having loaded rifles the risks were great. So he asked Bhai Lai Singh to go away before he was arrested. Lai Singh went away saying "I will wait for you on your way back" (This incident was related by co‐prisoners Giani Harbhajan Singh and Giani Dalip Singh). Even the judges in the court were surprised to see the prisoners in the court. The order was to try them in the prison.
Perverted judgment:
The Judgment was first passed on Kartar Singh Sarabha, which reads "There is no defense witness, there was no cross-examination, throughout the trial, and the accused did not wish to argue his own case, nor to allow the counsel appointed for him to argue. It only remains to be said that the guilt of the accused has been proved to the hilt. He is a young man (18.5 years old) no doubt, but he is certainly one of the worst of these conspirators and is a thorough callous scoundrel, proud of his exploits to whom no mercy whatever can or should be shown." (When Bhai Parmanand asked Kartar Singh Sarabha in prison, why did you sacrifice the comfortable life in Canada for the sake of dying on the gallows, Kartar Singh Sarabha replied "Tell me which death is better. To die like a cursed slave in a foreign country and bear insults and humiliation from every Whiteman or to die like a hero in your own country fighting for freedom." It is unfortunate that the Biography of Kartar Singh published by the Punjabi University Patiala, though excellently printed neither gives any essential details of this remarkable hero's life nor even the easily available facts about his struggle for freedom. The whole life of Kartar Singh Sarabha is an almost legendary inspiring saga of the youngest and the bravest fighter for freedom in Indian history (Trilochan Singh: The translator of Autobiography). But even in the case of Bhai Randhir Singh, where 100 defense witnesses including the Prime Minister of a Sikh State, Judges of High Courts, and Englishman Mr. Cole Principal of Khalsa College appeared on his side and the evidence of approvers and prosecuting witnesses patently false and erroneously tutored, the judgment was perverted. The wording of the judgment against him was almost the same as that against Kartar Singh Sarabha.
Behind the whole drama of proving the charges, there was even in the cold pretense of dispassionateness of the judges, an iron determination to send the accused to doom. The Prosecuting Officer many times became irritable, nervous, aggressive, and wrathful. This was how irrelevant facts against Bhai Randhir Singh were presented and answered when questioned. The prosecution story was that the change of date of the uprising was decided at Lahore at 10 A.M. on February 17th and conveyed to Bhai Randhir Singh the same evening. During those days, there was no bus service. No train or telegram could convey the news so soon either to Narangwal or Dhandari, to enable Bhai Randhir Singh to hold a meeting on the same day. Mr. Pitman when questioned by the Defence Counsel angrily said, "We do not know how, but the news was sent on the same day and reached the accused on the same day. Actually, Kartar Singh Sarabha had personally informed Bhai Randhir Singh on 14th February, three days earlier. Pointsmen Ahmad Bakhsh and Isa Khan of Khai Railway Station had been tutored to say that they saw Bhai Randhir Singh and his companions buying tickets on the morning of 20 February at Khai Railway Station. When they were asked what was the color of their turbans and clothes both of them said that the revolutionaries were wearing khaki turbans and clothes although they were actually wearing black turbans (The original complaint filed by Mr. Henry Vernon Bars tow Hare‐ Scott Superintendent of Police C.I.D. against the accused on October 28, 1915 mentions that they were wearing black turbans and clothes. Scott calls Bhai Randhir Singh a very prominent conspirator who conspired to send educated youth to America to learn the manufacture of arms. (Lahore Conspiracy Case)). Nihal Kaur another prosecuting witness who had incidentally met them near Khai Station said that they were wearing white clothes. One approver who said that he was a preacher did not even know how to read and write Punjabi yet one other approver was a renegade from Sikhism (Patit), the type of people Bhai Randhir Singh never allowed to come near him.
On the basis of these utterly false statements, the judgment against Bhai Randhir Singh runs: "This accused (Randhir Singh) who pleaded, 'Not guilty to the charges framed against him, is not a returned emigrants and he is one of the most important accused in the present case and has the biggest dossier against him. Though the counsel told us in arguments that the accused's father has been undergoing an operation, no defense witnesses were produced to show why he was not produced as a witness to most important facts in connection with his son with whom he is apparently good terms. Of his guilt, there can be no possible doubt whatever, and we cannot lose sight of the fact that it was his influence that brought several of the co‐accused including mere youth, and old men into the dock. We are satisfied on the evidence that the accused from an early period conspired to wage war on several occasions as above indicated and that he committed an act of war in going to Ferozepur in a war-like array to attack the {censored}nal there and we accordingly convict him under Section 121 A, 121, Indian Penal Code and sentence him to transportation for life and direct that his property liable to forfeiture be forfeited to the Government" (First‐supplementary Lahore Conspiracy Case P. 301).
Prison and Ordeals:
The whole of this autobiography tells the terrible tale of his sufferings in prison. His elder daughter Bhagwant Kaur died when he was brought to Ludhiana prison after his arrest. She could not bear the shock or the thought of living without him. His other children Balbir Singh and Daler Kaur were too young to know what had happened. His father Sardar Natha Singh also languished to death, but before dying, he wrote to the Governor Punjab, that his son Randhir Singh had no property of his own and that his property which was meant for supporting his wife, his daughter‐in‐law, and grandchildren, may please not be confiscated after his death. But contrary to the Governor's assurance the property was confiscated under pressure from Gajjan Singh Advocate of Narangwal and a member of the Legislative Council. When Gajjan Singh brought the police to get the house confiscated, after the land had been confiscated, Kartar Kaur wife of Bhai Randhir Singh refused to leave the house. "Either you shoot me or take me and my children to prison." The villagers then put Gajjan Singh to shame and asked him to withdraw the police. Gajjan Singh died on June 10th, 1929 and soon after him his only son died on February 12th, 1936. As long as this notorious loyalist, Gajjan Singh, who was considered enemy number one by the Freedom Fighters was alive, he resisted all proposals to release Bhai Randhir Singh. After his death the Christian Missionary who met Bhai Randhir Singh in Nagpur Prison strongly recommended his release and even personally met the Governor of Punjab to persuade him to take the matter seriously. The Governor referred the matter to Sikh Sardars like Sir Jogindra Singh who strongly recommended his release. The sufferings of Kartar Kaur, wife of Bhai Randhir Singh, for seventeen years is a long tale of woe and agony and yet she managed to bring up her son Balbir Singh, and daughter Daler Kaur as disciplined children. This autobiography relates not only the terrible suffering he had to undergo in prison but also vividly portrays the conditions in prisons under British rule. These conditions improved greatly during the Gandhi‐Nehru era. Twice Bhai Randhir Singh was given up as dead even by the members of his family. When the Sikh Community came to know about his forty days fast and other tortures that he suffered, the whole Sikh Panth prayed and performed ardas for his safety and welfare on February 1st, 1923. Bhai Jodh Singh who was then editing Khalsa Advocate in English and Punjabi criticized this unanimous decision of the Sikh Panth in his paper because like typical loyalist Sikhs of those days he refused to believe that the British Government could accord such an inhuman treatment to anyone. He was the only dissenting voice (Bhai Jodh Singh was later made the Principal of Khalsa College, Amritsar, and was given the title of Sardar Bahadur by the British Government. Khalsa Advocate which he was editing actually started to oppose the revolutionary and extremely popular daily "Akali the national paper of the Sikhs which covered all the news of the Akali movement. Bhai Jodh Singh's paper closed down after suffering a loss of over seventy thousand rupees. The members of the Chief Khalsa Diwan bought it, and says a member who was then a subscriber, that the people never took this paper seriously. The Sikh masses refused to touch it even with a pair of tongs. At present a paper running under the same name in Punjabi is giving the correct political and cultural lead to the Sikhs). (Extracted from Autobiography Of Bhai Sahib Randhir Singh Ed by Dr Tarlochan Singh)
