6 little known facts about Sardar Udham Singh, the man who avenged Jallianwala Bagh massacre

New Delhi, December 26: Shaheed Udham Singh, a revolutionary and one of the most prominent figures of the Indian Independence movement! The nation today is celebrating the birth anniversary of Indian freedom fighter Udham Singh, who was hanged to death on this day in 1940 in the United Kingdom.

 

Singh, who was convicted for the assassination of Michael O'Dwyer, the former lieutenant governor of Punjab, was born in Sunam, Punjab, British India on December 26, 1899. It is believed that O'Dwyer was responsible for the brutal event that unfolded at the Jallianwalah Bagh in 1919, where over 300 people were massacred by the troops of General Reginald Dyer.

 

 

It was during O'Dwyer's tenure as Punjab's lieutenant governor that General Dyer ordered the shooting of unarmed Indian civilians at the Jallianwala Bagh, who were gathered there on the traditional festival of Baisakhi. O'Dwyer was assassinated by Udham Singh inside Caxton Hall, Westminister, London on March 13, 1940. O'Dwyer had reportedly supported General Dyer's action following the massacre and also imposed martial law in Punjab after the horrific incident.

 

 

1. Udham Singh, while in custody following the assassination of Michael O'Dwyer used Ram Mohammad Singh Azad, representing three major religions of India at the time.

 

2. He considered another revolutionary from Punjab Shaheed Bhagat Singh as his role model. Bhagat Singh was also hanged by the British government in 1931 on similar charges.

 

3. There is a district named after the revolutionary freedom fighter in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, known as Udham Singh Nagar.

 

4. Udham Singh and his elder brother were raised at an orphanage after the death of their father. Singh left the orphanage in 1919, a year after passing his matriculation examination.

 

5. Singh after killing O'Dwyer did not run and waited for cops to come and take him under arrest. He went on a hunger strike for 42 days while in custody.

 

6. Udham Singh was represented in court by VK Krishna Menon, the fifth Defence Minister of independent India from 1957 to 1962.

 

 

His ultimate sacrifice avenging the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre and his contribution towards securing freedom for our nation will never be forgotten. Humble tributes to the revolutionary freedom fighter Sardar Udham Singh on his birth anniversary.