150th Anniversary of the Great Ghadar of 1857 and the Birth Centenary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh commemorated

October 21, 2007 was a memorable day in the life of the patriotic Indian community in Toronto, Canada. On this day, the Ghadr Heritage Foundation organised the Ghadari Mela 2007. Over 500 people participated in a revolutionary socio-political event dedicated to the 100 th birth anniversary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and the 150 th anniversary of the great Ghadar of 1857.

The hall was beautifully decorated with the red and gold banners of Ghadr Heritage Organisation and pictures of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and his comrades Raj Guru and Sukhdev and flags of Ghadar Party. Select quotations of Bhagat Singh on big cloth banners were also displayed in the hall. A pictorial exhibit depicting the activities of Ghadr Heritage was on display outside the hall.

Patriotic songs and poems paying tribute to the martyrs of the Ghadar of 1857, and Shaheed Bhagat Singh and his comrades, were sung by prominent singers from the community. Children from the Gurukul Academy acted out a choreographed drama showing how Mother India is crying in the hands of the thieves — the present day rulers. A play called “Hum Dekhenge” depicted the situation in Pakistan, showing who was responsible for the misery of the people and how the people should organize revolution to change that situation. Another play depicted the struggle Shaheed Mewa Singh and earlier generations of Indians had to wage in North America. The performances were well received by the audience.

Comrade Gurdev spoke about the significance of the Ghadar of 1857 and the struggles of the Indian people for their liberation. He pointed out that the situation in India cannot be changed without the forcible overthrow of the existing conditions. The present Indian state must be replaced with a new state of workers and peasants under the leadership of the working class. He pointed out that India is ripe for revolution and that we must come forward to play our role to bring this about.

Comrade Gurdev pointed out that this month, patriotic and revolutionary communists in Canada and India are marking another historic milestone. This is the thirtieth anniversary of the decision of the Hindustani Ghadar Party (Organisation of Indian Marxist-Leninists Abroad), taken at its First Congress held in this very city of Toronto, to re-establish a genuine communist Party on Indian soil. He emphasized that revolution cannot succeed unless it is led by a revolutionary party based on Marxism-Leninism. Such a party, the Communist Ghadar Party of India, is now militating in India, and is providing leadership to the struggles of the working class and people. It is working resolutely to restore the unity of Indian communists in one single party. He called on all revolutionary patriotic elements in Canada and India to join in and support this great and difficult work taken up by the Communist Ghadar Party of India.

Comrade Iqbal spoke about the significance of the martyrdom of Shaheed Bhagat Singh. Prof. Wariam Sandhu paid his tribute to Shaheed Bhagat Singh and eloquently brought forth the point that the ideal for which the martyrs gave their lives remain unfulfilled. He denounced the present system for the problems people face today. Prof.Sandhu concluded his speech by saying a couplet,”Don’t pay homage as what is there in paying homage, Carry on the struggle for what they stood for, realize their dreams and the martyr will come to life.”

The representative from the Desh Bhagat Yadgar Committee, Jalandhar, Comrade Amolak Singh, brought the greetings from this Committee and expressed his happiness at being part of the celebration. To vigorous applause, he announced that 70,000 revolutionary youth of Punjab had gathered in the centenary celebrations organised in Barnala on September 28, 2007. On the other hand, the official function organised at Amritsar in which lakhs of rupees was spent, and the Akalis, Congress, as well as BJP participated, could not attract more than a few thousand people. He said that those who first hanged Bhagat Singh and then hanged his thinking, are now ruling India. People cannot expect such rulers to create the kind of society Bhagat Singh stood for. Comrade Amolak Singh concluded his speech by inviting everyone to the Ghadari mela to be held at Jalandhar from October 28 – November 1, 2007.

The programme concluded in a very enthusiastic atmosphere, reflecting the deep desire of the patriotic Indians in Canada for an India without exploitation of persons by persons.