- Every year on March 23, Shaheed Diwas or Martyr’s Day is celebrated. On this day, those who laid out their lives for us, and our Independence, are remembered.
- The day, in particular, pays tribute to Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev Thapar, and Shivaram Rajguru who died on March 23 in 1931. They were hanged to death for assassinating John Saunders, a British police officer in 1928.
- In India, there are six days declared as Martyrs’ Day (at the national level also known as Sarvodaya day). They are named in honour of those who are recognised as martyrs for the nation. However, 2 dates are considered the most important: 30th January and 23rd
- On 30thJanuary Martyr’s Day or Shaheed Diwas is celebrated in the memory of Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the Nation was assassinated at Gandhi Smriti in the Birla House. On 23rdMarch also Martyr’s Day is celebrated to pay tribute to three extraordinary revolutionaries of India who were hanged to death by the British namely Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Rajguru, and Sukhdev Thapar.
- They had mistaken him for British police superintendent James Scott. It was Scott who had ordered lathi-charge, which eventually led to the death of Lala Lajpat Rai.
- These three were among the countless who sacrificed their lives for the nation and died when they were very young.
- Their lives inspired countless youth and, in their death, they set an example. And in doing so, they carved out their own path for independence where individual heroism and their aggressive need to do something for the nation stood out, departing from the path followed by the Congress leaders then.
- Other Martyr’s Day celebrated in India includes:
- 19th May: The Bengali Language Movement of Barak Valley in the state of Assam was a protest against the decision of the Government of Assam to make Assamese the only official language of the state even though a significant proportion of the population were Bengali people. In the Barak Valley, the Sylheti-speaking Bengali population constitutes the majority of the population. The main incident, in which 15 people were killed by state police, took place on 19th May 1961 at Silchar railway station. 19th May is now designated Bhasha Shahid Divas (“Language Martyrs Day”).
