ਹਵਾੲੀ ਅੱਡੇ ਦੇ ਨਾਮ ਦਾ ਵਿਵਾਦ ਕਿੰਨਾ ਕੁ ਜਾਇਜ਼ ? Posted On December - 27 - 2015 ਡਾ. ਚਮਨ ਲਾਲ *

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ਜਦੋਂ ਤੋਂ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਨਰਿੰਦਰ ਮੋਦੀ ਅਤੇ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਮਨੋਹਰ ਲਾਲ ਖੱਟਰ ਦੀਆਂ ਭਾਜਪਾ ਸਰਕਾਰਾਂ ਬਣੀਆਂ ਹਨ, ਬੜੀਆਂ ਦਿਲਚਸਪ ਗੱਲਾਂ ਹੋ ਰਹੀਆਂ ਹਨ। ਕਿਸੇ ਵੇਲੇ ਮੋਦੀ ਅਤੇ ਖੱਟਰ ਦੋਵੇਂ ਰਾਸ਼ਟਰੀ ਸਵੈਮਸੇਵਕ ਸੰਘ (ਆਰਐਸਐਸ) ਦੇ ਕੁਲਵਕਤੀ ਕਾਰਜਕਰਤਾ ਹੁੰਦੇ ਸਨ ਅਤੇ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਵਿੱਚ ਇੱਕੋ ਠਿਕਾਣੇ ’ਤੇ ਇਕੱਠੇ ਹੀ ਰਹਿੰਦੇ ਵੀ ਸਨ। ਇਸ ਲਈ ਜਦੋਂ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਪਹਿਲੀ ਵਾਰ 2014 ਵਿੱਚ ਭਾਜਪਾ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਆਪਣੇ ਦਮ ’ਤੇ ਬਣੀ ਤਾਂ ਮੋਦੀ ਨੇ ਪੁਰਾਣੀ ਦੋਸਤੀ ਪਾਲਦੇ ਹੋਏ, ਕਦੇ ਵੀ ਵਿਧਾਨ ਸਭਾ ਦੇ ਮੈਂਬਰ ਤਕ ਨਾ ਬਣੇ। ਮਨੋਹਰ ਲਾਲ ਖੱਟਰ ਨੂੰ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਦਾ ਮੁੱਖ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਥਾਪ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਅਤੇ ਅਨਿਲ ਵਿਜ ਅਤੇ ਰਾਮਬਿਲਾਸ ਸ਼ਰਮਾ ਵਰਗੇ ਤਜਰਬੇਕਾਰ ਆਗੂ  ਮੂੰਹ ਦੇਖਦੇ ਰਹਿ ਗਏ। ਉਦੋਂ ਇਹੀ ਸਵਾਲ ਉਠਿਆ ਸੀ- ਇਹ ਖੱਟਰ ਕੌਣ ਹੈ ਭਾੲੀ? ਆਮ ਆਦਮੀ ਨੂੰ ਖੱਟਰ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਤਕ ਪਤਾ ਨਹੀਂ ਸੀ ਕਿਉਂਕਿ ਕਦੇ ਉਸ ਦੀ ਸਿਆਸੀ ਸਰਗਰਮੀ ਰਹੀ ਹੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਸੀ। ਸ੍ਰੀ ਖੱਟਰ ਨੇ ਹੁਣ ਹੈਰਾਨ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲੇ ਤਰੀਕੇ ਨਾਲ  ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਦੇ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ  ਵਾਸਤੇ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਤੇ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਸਰਕਾਰਾਂ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਕੀਤੇ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਦੇ  ਪਹਿਲੇ ਫ਼ੈਸਲੇ ਨੂੰ ਰੱਦ ਕਰਕੇ ਭਾਰਤੀ ਜਨਸੰਘ ਦੇ ਮਰਹੂਮ ਆਗੂ ਤੇ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਦੇ ਸਾਬਕਾ ੳੁੱਪ ਮੁੱਖ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਡਾ. ਮੰਗਲ ਸੈਨ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਭੇਜ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ’ਤੇ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਨੇ ਦੁਬਾਰਾ ਸਵਾਲ ਕੀਤਾ-ਇਹ ਮੰਗਲ ਸੇਨ ਕੌਣ ਹੈ ਭਾਈ?

ਡਾ. ਚਮਨ ਲਾਲ

 ਡਾ. ਮੰਗਲ ਸੈਨ, ਖੱਟਰ ਤੋਂ ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਦਾ ਸੰਘ ਦਾ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਦਾ ਪ੍ਰਚਾਰਕ ਸੀ ਜੋ 1947 ਦੀ ਵੰਡ ਤੋਂ ਬਾਅਦ 20 ਸਾਲਾਂ ਦੀ ਉਮਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਸ਼ਰਨਾਰਥੀ ਦੇ ਤੌਰ ’ਤੇ ਉਸ ਵੇਲੇ ਦੇ ਇਧਰਲੇ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿੱਚ ਆ ਵਸਿਆ ਸੀ। 1977 ਵਿੱਚ ੳੁਹ ਮੁੱਖ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਦੇਵੀ ਲਾਲ ਦੀ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਦੋ ਸਾਲ ਉਪ ਮੁੱਖ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਰਿਹਾ। 1990 ਵਿੱਚ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਗੁਜ਼ਰਨ ਬਾਅਦ ਉਸ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਤਕ ਕਿਸੇ ਦੇ ਚਿੱਤ-ਚੇਤੇ ਨਹੀਂ ਸੀ। ਇਸੇ ਲੲੀ ਜਦੋਂ ਮਨੋਹਰ ਲਾਲ ਖੱਟਰ ਨੇ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਲਈ ਡਾ. ਮੰਗਲ ਸੈਨ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਲਾਟਰੀ ਕੱਢ ਮਾਰੀ ਤਾਂ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਦਾ ਦੰਗ ਰਹਿ ਜਾਣਾ ਸੁਭਾਵਿਕ ਹੀ ਸੀ, ਖ਼ਾਸਕਰ ਉਦੋਂ ਜਦੋਂ ਉਸ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਵਰਗੇ ਸਿਰਕੱਢ ਇਨਕਲਾਬੀ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਰੱਦ ਕਰਕੇ ਭੇਜਿਆ ਜਾਵੇ।
ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਦਾ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡਾ ਘਰੇਲੂ ਉਡਾਣਾਂ ਲਈ ਤਾਂ ਬਹੁਤ ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਚੱਲ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ, ਪਰ 2009 ਵਿੱਚ ਇਸ ਨੂੰ ਅੰਤਰਰਾਸ਼ਟਰੀ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡਾ ਬਣਾਉਣ ਦੀ ਯੋਜਨਾ ਬਣੀ ਤਾਂ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਨੇ ਇਸ ਲਈ ਮੁਹਾਲੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਜ਼ਮੀਨ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਅਤੇ ਇਸ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ-ਏ-ਆਜ਼ਮ-ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਅੰਤਰਰਾਸ਼ਟਰੀ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡਾ ਮੁਹਾਲੀ ਰੱਖਣ ਦਾ ਮਤਾ ਵਿਧਾਨ ਸਭਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਸਰਬ ਸੰਮਤੀ ਨਾਲ ਪਾਸ ਕਰਕੇ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਭੇਜ ਦਿੱਤਾ। ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦੇ ਬਣਾਉਣ ਲਈ 51 ਫ਼ੀਸਦੀ ਖ਼ਰਚਾ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਅਤੇ 24.5 ਫ਼ੀਸਦੀ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਅਤੇ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਸਰਕਾਰਾਂ ਦੋਵਾਂ ਨੇ ਕਰਨਾ ਸੀ। ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਕਾਂਗਰਸ ਦੀ ਭੁਪਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਹੂਡਾ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਨੇ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਲਈ 2010 ਵਿੱਚ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਤਾਂ ਸਹਿਮਤੀ ਦੇ ਦਿੱਤੀ, ਪਰ ਅੱਡੇ ਦੇ ਸ਼ਹਿਰ ਲਈ ਉਹ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਅੜੇ ਰਹੇ। ਇਸੇ ਚੱਕਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਨੇ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦਾ ਨਾਮਕਰਣ ਲਟਕਾਈ ਰੱਖਿਆ। ਨਤੀਜੇ ਵਜੋਂ ਮੋਦੀ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਬਣਨ ਬਾਅਦ 11 ਸਤੰਬਰ 2015 ਨੂੰ ਪ੍ਰਧਾਨ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਮੋਦੀ ਨੇ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦਾ ਉਦਘਾਟਨ ਬਿਨਾ ਨਾਮਕਰਨ ਤੋਂ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤਾ, ਹਾਲਾਂਕਿ ਮੁਹਾਲੀ ਇਲਾਕੇ ਨਾਲ ਸਬੰਧਿਤ ਅਕਾਲੀ ਐਮ.ਪੀ. ਪ੍ਰੇਮ ਸਿੰਘ ਚੰਦੂਮਾਜਰਾ ਨੇ ਉਸ ਵੇਲੇ ਵੀ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡਾ ਰੱਖਣ ਦੀ ਅਕਾਲੀ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਦੀ ਮੰਗ ਦੁਹਰਾਈ ਸੀ। ਖੱਟਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਦੀ ਸਿਫ਼ਾਰਸ਼ ਦਾ ਲੋਕਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਪਤਾ ਵੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਸੀ ਲੱਗਣੀ ਜੇ ਕਾਂਗਰਸ ਦੇ ਲੁਧਿਆਣਾ ਦੇ ਐਮ.ਪੀ. ਰਵਨੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਬਿੱਟੂ ਨੇ ਲੋਕ ਸਭਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਸ਼ਹਿਰੀ ਹਵਾਬਾਜ਼ੀ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਤੋਂ ਇਹ ਸਵਾਲ ਨਾ ਪੁੱਛ ਲਿਆ ਹੁੰਦਾ। ਸ਼ਹਿਰੀ ਹਵਾਬਾਜ਼ੀ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਮਹੇਸ਼ ਸ਼ਰਮਾ ਨੂੰ 3 ਦਸੰਬਰ 2015 ਨੂੰ ਬਿੱਟੂ ਨੂੰ ਇਹ ਦੱਸਣਾ ਪਿਆ ਕਿ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਦੇ ਮੁੱਖ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਖੱਟਰ ਨੇ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦੇ ਨਾਮਕਰਣ ਲਈ ਪਿਛਲੇ ਮੁੱਖ ਮੰਤਰੀ ਹੂਡਾ ਦੀ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਸਹਿਮਤੀ ਨੂੰ ਰੱਦ ਕਰਕੇ ਡਾ. ਮੰਗਲ ਸੈਨ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਸਿਫ਼ਾਰਸ਼ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਭੇਜੀ ਹੈ।
ਰਵਨੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਬਿੱਟੂ ਨੇ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦਾ ਨਾਮ ਨਾ ਰੱਖਣ ਦੀ ਸੂਰਤ ਵਿੱਚ ਅੰਦੋਲਨ ਕਰਨ ਦਾ ਐਲਾਨ ਕੀਤਾ ਤਾਂ ਆਮ ਆਦਮੀ ਪਾਰਟੀ (ਆਪ) ਦੇ ਪਟਿਆਲਾ ਦੇ ਬਾਗ਼ੀ ਐਮ.ਪੀ. ਡਾ ਧਰਮਵੀਰ ਗਾਂਧੀ ਨੇ 16 ਦਸੰਬਰ ਨੂੰ ਲੋਕ ਸਭਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਆਪਣੀ ਸੀਟ ’ਤੇ ਖੜ੍ਹੇ ਹੋ ਕੇ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਖੱਟਰ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਕੀਤੇ ਅਪਮਾਨ ਦੇ ਵਿਰੋਧ ਦੇ ਪੋਸਟਰ ਦਿਖਾਏ। 17 ਦਸੰਬਰ ਨੂੰ ਸੀਪੀਐਮ ਦੇ ਜਨਰਲ ਸਕੱਤਰ ਸੀਤਾ ਰਾਮ  ਯੇਚੁਰੀ ਦੀ ਅਗਵਾਈ ਵਿੱਚ ਸਾਰੇ ਖੱਬੇ ਪੱਖੀ ਸੰਸਦ ਮੈਂਬਰਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਮਿਲ ਕੇ ਡਾ. ਗਾਂਧੀ ਨੇ ਪਾਰਲੀਮੈਂਟ ਹਾੳੂਸ ਦੇ ਪ੍ਰਾਂਗਣ ਵਿੱਚ ਲੱਗੇ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਬੁੱਤ ਅਗੇ ਖੜ੍ਹੇ ਹੋ ਕੇ ਰੋਸ ਜਤਾਇਆ ਅਤੇ ਪਾਰਲੀਮੈਂਟ ਦੇ ਬਾਹਰ ਮੁਜ਼ਾਹਰਾ ਕੀਤਾ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਸਾਰਿਆਂ ਨੇ ਖੱਟਰ ਤੇ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਦੀ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਨਿਖੇਧੀ ਕੀਤੀ ਅਤੇ ਐਲਾਨ ਕੀਤਾ ਕਿ ਉਹ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦਾ ਅਪਮਾਨ ਕਿਸੇ ਵੀ ਸੂਰਤ ਵਿੱਚ ਬਰਦਾਸ਼ਤ ਨਹੀਂ ਕਰਨਗੇ। ਜਨਤਾ ਦਲ (ਯੂ) ਨੇ ਵੀ ਖੱਟਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਦੀ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਨਿਖੇਧੀ ਕੀਤੀ ਅਤੇ ਤੁਰੰਤ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦਾ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਨਾਮਕਰਣ ਦੀ ਮੰਗ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਤੋਂ ਕੀਤੀ। ਇਸੇ ਦੌਰਾਨ ਸੋਸ਼ਲ ਮੀਡਿਆ ’ਤੇ ਇਹ ਮੁੱਦਾ ਕੌਮੀ ਬਹਿਸ ਦਾ ਰੂਪ ਧਾਰਨ ਕਰ ਗਿਆ ਅਤੇ ਹਰ ਪਾਸਿਓਂ ਇਹ ਸਵਾਲ ਉਠਣ ਲੱਗੇ ਕਿ ਮੰਗਲ ਸੈਨ ਕੌਣ ਹੈ? ਬੀਬੀਸੀ ਤੋਂ ਲੈ ਕੇ ਸਾਰੇ ਮਹੱਤਵਪੂਰਨ ਵੈਬ ਪਰਚਿਆਂ ਨੇ ਇਸ ਬਾਰੇ ਲੇਖ ਲਿਖ ਕੇ ਹਰਿਆਣਾ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਦੇ ਇਸ ਕਦਮ ਦੀ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਨਿਖੇਧੀ ਕੀਤੀ। ਪੰਜਾਬ ਕਾਂਗਰਸ ਦੇ ਪ੍ਰਧਾਨ ਅਮਰਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਨੂੰ ਵੀ ਬਿਆਨ ਦੇਣਾ ਪਿਆ ਅਤੇ ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵੱਧ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਬਿਆਨ ਖ਼ੁਦ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੇ ਮੁੱਖ ਮੰਤਰੀ  ਸਿੰਘ ਬਾਦਲ ਨੇ ਦੇ ਕੇ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੀ ਹਸਤੀ ਰਾਸ਼ਟਰੀ ਹੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਅੰਤਰਰਾਸ਼ਟਰੀ ਹੈ, ਜੋ ਨੈਲਸਨ ਮੰਡੇਲਾ ਵਰਗੀ ਹਸਤੀ ਨਾਲ ਮੇਲ ਖਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਇਸ ਸਬੰਧੀ ਕਿਸੇ ਵੀ ਵਿਵਾਦ ਨੂੰ ਬੜੀ ਬੇਸੁਆਦੀ ਵਾਲੀ ਹਰਕਤ ਕਿਹਾ। ਇਹ ਬਿਆਨ ਖੱਟਰ ਦੀ ਬਿਨਾ ਨਾਂ ਲਈ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਆਲੋਚਨਾ ਸੀ। ਦੁਨੀਆਂ ਭਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡਿਆਂ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ਉਸ ਸ਼ਹਿਰ ਜਾਂ ਦੇਸ਼ ਦੀਆਂ ਮਹਾਨ ਹਸਤੀਆਂ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਰੱਖੇ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹਨ। ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਸਿਰਫ਼ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਜਾਂ ਭਾਰਤ ਦੇ ਹੀ ਨਹੀਂ, ਸਗੋਂ ਪਾਕਿਸਤਾਨ ਅਤੇ ਦੱਖਣੀ ਏਸ਼ੀਆ ਦੇ ਸਾਰੇ ਹੀ ਦੇਸ਼ਾਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਮਕਬੂਲ ਹੀਰੋ ਹਨ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦਾ ਨਾਮ ਦੁਨੀਆਂ ਦੇ ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵੱਡੇ ਇਨਕਲਾਬੀਆਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਸ਼ਾਮਿਲ ਹੈ। ਇਸੇ ਲਈ ਇਹ ਵਾਜਿਬ ਹੀ ਸੀ ਕਿ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਹਵਾਈ ਅੱਡੇ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੇ ਨਾਂ ’ਤੇ  ਹੀ ਰੱਖਿਆ ਜਾਂਦਾ। ੳੁਂਜ, ਸ੍ਰੀ ਖੱਟਰ ਦੇ ਵਰਤਾਰੇ ਵਿੱਚ ਹੈਰਾਨੀ ਵਾਲੀ ਗੱਲ ਵੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੈ। ਉਹ ਸੰਘ ਦੇ ਪ੍ਰਤੀਬੱਧ ਕਾਰਜਕਰਤਾ ਹਨ ਅਤੇ ਸੰਘ ਦੇ ਮੁਫ਼ਾਦ ਲੲੀ ਕਿਸੇ ਵੀ ਹੱਦ ਤਕ ਜਾ ਸਕਦੇ ਹਨ।
ਆਮ ਲੋਕ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਖੱਟਰ ਦੇ ਇਸ ਕਦਮ ਨਾਲ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਜਾਂ ਇਨਕਲਾਬੀਆਂ/ਆਜ਼ਾਦੀ ਸੰਗਰਾਮੀਆਂ ਦੇ ਅਪਮਾਨ ਦਾ ਮਸਲਾ ਵੀ ਉਠਾ ਰਹੇ ਹਨ, ਪਰ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦਾ ਅਪਮਾਨ ਕਿਹੜਾ ਪਹਿਲੀ ਵਾਰ ਹੋ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ। ਉਸ ਦੇ ਜੀਵਨ ਕਾਲ ਵਿੱਚ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ‘ਪਾਗਲ’, ਦਹਿਸ਼ਤਗਰਦ ਤੇ ਹੋਰ ਵੀ ਕਈ ਕੁਝ ਕਿਹਾ ਗਿਆ, ਹਾਲਾਂਕਿ ਜਿਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੇ ਇਹ ਸਭ ਕੁਝ ਕਿਹਾ, ਉਹੋ ਉਸ ਦੀ ਸ਼ਹਾਦਤ ਬਾਅਦ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਨਾਮਲੇਵਾ ਬਣ ਗਏ। ਕਾਂਗਰਸ ਪਾਰਟੀ ਨੇ 1931 ਵਿੱਚ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ, ਸੁਖਦੇਵ ਅਤੇ ਰਾਜਗੁਰੂ ਦੀ ਸ਼ਹਾਦਤ ਬਾਅਦ ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਤਿੰਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਲਾਹੌਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਯਾਦਗਾਰ ਨਹੀਂ ਸੀ ਬਣਨ ਦਿੱਤੀ। ਇਸ ਯਾਦਗਾਰ ਲੲੀ ਨੌਜਵਾਨ ਭਾਰਤ ਸਭਾ ਨੇ ਮੁਹਿੰਮ ਵਿੱਢੀ ਸੀ। ਇਸ ਨੂੰ ਰੋਕਣ ਲਈ ਕਾਂਗਰਸ ਨੇ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਕਾਂਗਰਸੀ ਕਾਰਜਕਰਤਾ ਪਿਤਾ ਕਿਸ਼ਨ ਸਿੰਘ ਦਾ ਇਸਤੇਮਾਲ ਇਹ ਕਹਿ ਕੇ ਕੀਤਾ ਸੀ ਕਿ ਕਾਂਗਰਸ ਪਾਰਟੀ ਖ਼ੁਦ ਇਹ ਯਾਦਗਾਰ ਬਣਾਏਗੀ ਪਰ ਉਸ ਨੇ 1947 ਤਕ ਇਹ ਯਾਦਗਾਰ ਨਹੀਂ ਸੀ ਬਣਾਈ। ਹੁਣ ੳੁਹ ਲਾਹੌਰ ਦੇ ਸ਼ਾਦਮਾਨ ਚੌਕ ਦਾ ਨਾਮ ਭਗਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਮ ’ਤੇ ਨਾ ਰੱਖੇ ਜਾਣ ’ਤੇ ਦੁੱਖ ਪ੍ਰਗਟ ਫਿਰਦੀ ਹੈ!

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Bhagat Singh or Mangal Sein? Badal fumes as BJP plays politics over Chandigarh airport-Jaideep Sarin-India Tomorrow

http://www.indiatomorrow.net/eng/bhagat-singh-or-mangal-sein-badal-fumes-as-bjp-plays-politics-over-chandigarh-airport

Chandigarh Aiport (Photo - www.99acres.com)

By Jaideep Sarin,

Chandigarh, 25 Dec 2015: The name Mangal Sein may not ring a bell with most people in Haryana or Punjab but Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar of the BJP has stirred a hornet's nest by proposing that Chandigarh International Airport be named after the late RSS leader. This has raised the hackles of those who want the facility to be named after the famous freedom movement martyr Bhagat Singh.

Khattar's recent letter to the union civil aviation ministry on Mangal Sein is now being seen as a move to demean the name and sacrifice of Bhagat Singh, a national icon of the country's freedom struggle. An angry Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has shot off an emotional letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, terming Khattar's move "distasteful".

"(We) remain convinced that considering the massive national following Sardar Bhagat Singh enjoys, no one would even consider opposing the proposal. Any controversy on the matter needs to be snuffed out as quickly as possible," Badal, who at 88 years is the oldest serving chief minister in the country and whose Shiromani Akali Dal is a long-time ally of the BJP, said in his letter to Modi.

"It is distasteful and even an affront to all our great national icons even to drag the issue of naming the International Airport at Mohali after Shaheed-e-Azam Sardar Bhagat into a controversy. Even to raise a question on any proposal to name a national project after him would be unsavory and a disservice to all those who, like Shaheed-e-Azam, put the interests of the nation above anything personal," Badal added.

The Chandigarh Airport has got a new terminal building, including an international terminal that was inaugurated by Modi on September 11 without the facility bearing a name. The terminal building is actually in Punjab's Mohali town.

What has upset Badal and others is the fact that Punjab and Haryana, which have a 24.5 percent stake each in the airport terminal project, had long agreed that it should be named Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport. The Punjab and Haryana assemblies had, in 2009 and 2010 respectively, passed resolutions on this.

Khattar's move on Mangal Sein is being seen as the Haryana government's move retracting from the Haryana assembly's unanimous resolution. Mangal Sein's claim to fame is briefly being Haryana's deputy chief minister in late 1970s, being a seven-time legislator and being the Haryana BJP president.

The issue was raised in parliament by Congress MP Ravneet Bittu, to which Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma replied: "In a subsequent letter, the chief minister of Haryana has requested naming the international terminal as Dr. Mangal Sein International Airport Chandigarh. The proposal was examined in consultation with the ministries concerned and the governments of Haryana and Punjab. However, due to non-consensus between Haryana and Punjab, the airport terminal could not be renamed."

Badal, in his letter, has stated: "There was a general national consensus on naming the International Airport at Mohali after the martyr-supreme, Shaheed-e-Aazam Sardar Bhagat Singh and a formal and final decision to this effect should be taken without any further loss of time."

Badal also appealed to Modi "to intervene personally to put a quick end to any controversy on the issue as this was creating a very unsavoury situation for all those who take pride in our national martyrs".

"A proposal to this effect is already with the government of India and we all assumed and still remain convinced that considering the massive national following Sardar Bhagat Singh enjoys, no one would even consider opposing the proposal. Any controversy on the matter needs to be snuffed out as quickly as possible," a clearly upset Badal stated, adding that "everyone in the country acknowledges Sardar Bhagat Singh as Shaheed-eAzam - the greatest martyr among martyrs".

Describing Bhagat Singh as the "pride of India", Badal said he was a "national and international icon, at par with heroes and martyrs like Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi".

Badal himself was recently likened by Modi as the "Nelson Mandela of India".

"We all know that national heroes like Sardar Bhagat Singh, Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Kartar Singh Sarbha, Madan Lal Dhingra, Shaheed Udham Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru are the common heritage of the nation. Their names should never be made a subject of controversy by anyone," Badal asserted.

Even so, the last word on the subject is yet to be said. Watch this space for updates.

(Jaideep Sarin can be contacted at jaideep.s@ians.in)

(IANS)

How BJP-Congress name game has hijacked Chandigarh airport-Manjeet Sehgal-Daily O

http://www.dailyo.in/politics/chandigarh-airport-haryana-parkash-badal-bhagat-singh-mangal-sein-captain-amarinder-singh-ml-khattar/story/1/8132.html

Apart from the international flights, the Chandigarh International Airport is also desperately waiting for a name. Nearly four months have passed after the airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The authorities have neither begun the international flights from here nor taken a final decision on the name.

The Haryana government has now kicked off a new controversy by demanding that the airport be named after RSS ideologue Mangal Sein. State politicians had earlier said that they will not oppose if the airport is named after martyr Bhagat Singh.

The issue has now attained political overtones. The Haryana government is facing criticism not just from within the state, but also from the neighbouring areas, for this demand. The opposition Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and its student wing have threatened to launch a state-wide protest if the government continued with its proposal to get the airport named after the RSS activist.

"The BJP government's proposal is an insult to martyr Bhagat Singh who laid down his life for the nation. Dropping his name to benefit the RSS is objectionable and will not be tolerated," the INLD's student wing The Indian National Students Organisation (INSO) president, Pradeep Deswal said.

Punjab Pradesh Congress (PCC) president Captain Amarinder Singh has also strongly resented Haryana's proposal to name the Chandigarh airport after Mangal Sein, an RSS leader and a former Haryana deputy chief minister. "This seems to be yet another move aimed at saffronisation and we will not allow it at any cost", he remarked. He also condemned the Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal for his timid silence and not raising the issue with the central government.

In a statement, the PCC president disclosed that he had learnt that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed to Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar's proposal. He said, the Congress party will not allow it at any cost.

Capt Amarinder asserted that Punjab has a justified claim in naming the Chandigarh airport since the union territory belonged to it. Besides, he added, instead of naming the airport after an RSS leader whose only claim to fame is a two-year stint as deputy chief minister of Haryana, it must be named after some prominent freedom fighter.

The former chief minister said, the Congress party will strongly protest if the union government goes ahead with its proposal of naming the airport after Sein. Meanwhile, radical Sikh groups have objected to the name of Bhagat Singh, terming him a "killer". President of Akali Dal (Amritsar) Simranjit Singh Mann had recently created a stir by calling Bhagat Singh a terrorist. "Bhagat Singh is neither a martyr nor a national hero. He is a terrorist. We are against naming the Chandigarh International airport as Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh Airport," Simranjit Singh Mann told the media.

Mann had also slammed Badal for having failed to set up an international airport in Amritsar and said he took the project to Chandigarh so that the value of the plots owned by him and his relatives sell at a higher price.

"He should desist from naming the airport after Bhagat Singh who was a terrorist. Instead, he should dedicate the airport to Baba Banda Singh Bahadur -the Sikh warrior who had defeated the Mughals," Simranjit Sigh Mann said.

While the ministry of civil aviation is yet to decide a name for this airport, the Airport Authority of India has avoided the name suggested by the Punjab government and put simple sign boards.

Chandigarh BJP leader Sanjay Tandon told Mail Today that both the governments should avoid controversies as the airport also belongs to the people of Chandigarh.

"The important thing is that we have an international airport. Politicians should avoid creating chaos. There is no controversy regarding the name and all doubts will be cleared by the government as there is a BJP government in Haryana and an ally in neighbouring Punjab," Sanjay Tandon said.

Meanwhile, the Punjab government has said that it will stick to the resolution which was passed by the state assembly in 2009. "The Punjab government will stick to the non-official resolution passed by the Punjab Vidhan Sabha that names the airport as Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh International Airport. This has been forwarded to the ministry of civil aviation," Vishwajeet Khanna said.

(Courtesy of Mail Today.)

भगत सिंह पर भारी संघ प्रचारक मंगल सेन-चमन लाल-BBC Hindi

http://www.bbc.com/hindi/india/2015/12/151220_chandigarh_airport_bhagat_mangalsen_pk

Image copyrightChaman lal

जब से केंद्र में मोदी सरकार और हरियाणा में खट्टर सरकार आई है - नई नई दिलचस्प बातें हो रही हैं. कभी मोदी और खट्टर दोनों राष्ट्रीय स्वयंसेवक संघ के प्रचारक थे और चंडीगढ़ में उनका एक ही ठिकाना होता था.

जब हरियाणा में भाजपा अकेले दम पर जीत कर आई तो मोदी ने कभी विधायक न रहे मनोहर लाल खट्टर को सीधे मुख्यमंत्री की कुर्सी पर बिठाया और भाजपा के रामबिलास शर्मा और अनिल विज जैसे अनुभवी नेता मुंह ताकते रह गए.

और अब खट्टर ने चंडीगढ़ हवाई अड्डे के नामकरण के लिए भगत सिंह के नाम को रद्द करके मंगल सेन का नाम केंद्र को भेज दिया है और अब लोग पूछ रहे हैं कि आख़िर ये मंगल सेन कौन है भाई जो भगत सिंह पर भी भारी पड़ रहे हैं?

Image copyrightPTI

मंगल सेन पूर्व संघ प्रचारक रहे थे. वे 1947 के विभाजन के बाद आए पंजाबी शरणार्थी थे जो एक समय हरियाणा के देवीलाल मंत्रिमंडल के सदस्य रहे और 1990 में उनके देहांत के बाद लोग उनको भूल गए.

लेकिन जब खट्टर सरकार ने चंडीगढ़ हवाई अड्डे के नामकरण के लिए मंगल सेन का नाम सुझाया तो कई लोग दंग रह गए, ख़ास कर जब उनका नाम भगत सिंह के नाम को रद्द करके निकाला जाए.

चंडीगढ़ का हवाई अड्डा गृह स्तर की उड़ानों के लिए तो पहले से चल रहा था, लेकिन 2009 में इसे अंतरराष्ट्रीय हवाई अड्डा बनाने की योजना बनी तो पंजाब सरकार ने इसके लिए मोहाली में ज़मीन दी और इसका नाम शहीद-ए-आज़म भगत सिंह अंतरराष्ट्रीय हवाई अड्डा मोहाली रखने का प्रस्ताव सर्वसम्मति से पंजाब विधान सभा से भी पारित कर दिया.

Image copyrightGetty

चूंकि हवाई अड्डे के निर्माण में केंद्र सरकार का हिस्सा 51 प्रतिशत और पंजाब और हरियाणा-दोनों सरकारों का हिस्सा 24.5-24.5 प्रतिशत तक होना था.

हरियाणा की कांग्रेस की भूपेन्द्र सिंह हुड्डा सरकार ने 2010 में भगत सिंह के नाम पर तो सहमति दे दी, लेकिन मोहाली की बजाए चंडीगढ़ नाम रखने की ज़िद की. इसी चक्कर में केंद्र सरकार ने हवाई अड्डे का नामकरण लटकाए रखा.

नतीजतन 11 सितंबर 2015 को प्रधानमंत्री मोदी ने बिना किसी नाम के हवाई अड्डे का उद्घाटन कर दिया, हालांकि मोहाली क्षेत्र के अकाली सांसद प्रेम सिंह चंदूमाजरा ने उद्घाटन के वक़्त भी भगत सिंह के नाम पर ज़ोर दिया था.

हाल में हरियाणा के एक मंत्री अनिल विज ने भगत सिंह के नाम पर फिर सहमति जताई, ख़ुद उनको ये बात मालूम नहीं थी कि उनके मुख्यमंत्री ने बिना अपने मंत्रिमंडल को विश्वास में लिए ही भगत सिंह के नाम की सहमति को रद्द करके, चुपचाप मंगल सेन के नाम पर अड्डा घोषित करने की सिफ़ारिश केंद्र सरकार को भेज दी है.

Image copyrightEPA

ये बात भी छिपी रहती अगर पंजाब के कांग्रेस सांसद रवनीत सिंह बिट्टू ने संसद में इस बारे में सवाल न पूछ लिया होता और 3 दिसंबर 2015 को लोकसभा में नागरिक उड्डयन राज्य मंत्री महेश शर्मा के जवाब से बात न खुलती.

बिट्टू ने कहा कि अगर भगत सिंह के नाम पर हवाई अड्डे का नाम न रखा गया तो वे आंदोलन करेंगे. अकाली सांसद चंदूमाजरा ने भी पंजाब सरकार की सिफ़ारिश पर फिर ज़ोर दिया. लेकिन खट्टर पर जूं तक न रेंगी.

तब पटियाला के आम आदमी पार्टी सांसद धर्मवीर गांधी और वाम दलों के तमाम सांसदों ने सीपीएम महासचिव सीताराम येचुरी के नेतृत्व में 17 दिसंबर को संसद भवन के सामने और संसद भवन के भीतर भगत सिंह की प्रतिमा के सामने विरोध प्रदर्शन कर हरियाणा सरकार की निंदा की और भगत सिंह के नाम पर चंडीगढ़ हवाई अड्डे का नाम रखने की मांग की.

इस बीच सोशल मीडिया पर इस मुद्दे ने राष्ट्रीय बहस का रूप ले लिया. उधर आप पार्टी सांसद धर्मवीर गांधी ने 16 दिसंबर को लोकसभा के अंदर अपनी सीट पर खड़े होकर हाथ में पोस्टर लेकर विरोध जताया कि 'शहीदों' का अपमान सहन नहीं किया जाएगा.

वैसे देखें तो मनोहरलाल खट्टर का व्यवहार भी अस्वाभाविक या आश्चर्यजनक नहीं है. क्योंकि वे प्रतिबद्ध संघ कार्यकर्ता हैं और संघ का भारत की आज़ादी की लड़ाई में कोई हिस्सा है नहीं, इसलिए उनके मन में भगत सिंह का सम्मान क्यों होने लगा?

Image copyrightALOK PUTUL

हालांकि संघ ने 2007 में अपने मुख पत्र ‘पांचजन्य’ का भगत सिंह जन्म शताब्दी पर ‘विशेषांक’ निकाल कर भगत सिंह को अपने खाते में डालने की कोशिश की थी, लेकिन संघ अपनी सरकार होते हुए भगत सिंह को सरकारी स्तर पर कैसे सम्मानित कर सकता है, उसके लिए तो कोई प्रचारक ही इसका हक़दार हो सकता है, फिर वह चाहे मंगल सेन ही क्यों न हो, जिसका नाम तक संघ के बाहर कोई नहीं जानता और शायद संघ के अंदर भी नई पीढ़ी के लोग न जानते हों.

(ये लेखक के निजी विचार हैं )

Spreading propaganda: How Haryana govt is insulting Bhagat Singh to honour a BJP leader-First Poat-Sandipan Sharma

http://www.firstpost.com/politics/spreading-propaganda-how-haryana-is-insulting-bhagat-singh-to-honour-a-bjp-leader-2552930.html

Ever heard of a gentleman called Mangal Sein?

Try searching for a dozen people who have heard of him in Punjab. You would be lucky to find one.

Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar.

Try looking for him on Google. This is what you get onWikipedia: Mangal Sein (1927-1990) was a leader of Bharatiya Janata Party from Haryana and the deputy chief minister of Haryana from 1977 to 1979. He was elected to Haryana legislative assembly from Rohtak for seven times. He served as president of state unit of BJP an earlier of Jan Sangh.

For his "stellar" contribution to Haryana's saffron parivar, the Haryana government wants to name the Chandigarh airport, which also serves Punjab, as Mangal Sein International Airport.

What's wrong in naming the airport after a BJP leader, you could argue, reeling out list of places named after the Gandhi-Nehrus?

The problem in this case is, however, not the Haryana government's plan to ignore the Congress leaders. The despicable plan here is pitting a Sangh leader against an icon of India's freedom movement: Sardar Bhagat Singh.

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Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, a former foot soldier of the RSS, wants to honour fellow Mangal Sein by rescinding an earlier proposal to name the airport after Shaheed-e-Azam Singh, one of India's greatest heroes and martyrs.

The BJP-led Khattar government recently wrote to the ministry of civil aviation to call the international airport after the Jana Sangh leader, arguing that he deserves the honour by virtue of being a seven time legislator from Rohtak — a Haryana town a few hundred km from Chandigarh.

The Centre too seems to be playing ball. According to The Tribune, in a written reply to a query on the renaming of the Chandigarh airport, the Centre said no decision has been taken because of lack of consensus between the state governments of Haryana and Punjab.

“The Punjab Government had recommended naming of International Civil Terminal Chandigarh as Shaheed-e-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh International Airport, Mohali. In 2010, the Government of Haryana had also proposed naming the terminal as Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Chandigarh. In a subsequent letter, the Chief Minister of Haryana has requested naming the international terminal as Dr Mangal Sein International Airport, Chandigarh. The proposal was examined in consultation with the ministries concerned and the governments of Haryana and Punjab. However, due to non-consensus between Haryana and Punjab, the airport terminal could not be renamed,” the report quoted the government as saying.

Khattar's plan to pay obeisance to his ideological mentors has been slammed by almost everybody, except the central government, which is the final authority on naming of airports. For some reason, it has allowed the controversy to fester, allowing Haryana to divide the legacy of Bhagat Singh on political and geographical lines.

According to The Times of India, even Bhagat Singh's nephew Professor Jagmohan Singh has termed the Haryana government's proposal a sign of "narrow-minded approach of BJP". But, Khattar has refused to withdraw his contentious proposal.

The BJP has always been accused of trying to give its politicians the sheen of retrospective greatness, make their achievements look bigger than what they were. Having played an insignificant role in the struggle for Independence, it has often been eager to assign its ideologues a more prominent place in history.

When it has not been able to find suitable candidates for heroism from within the Parivar, the BJP has not been averse to usurping leaders from other parties and organisations.

As pointed out by Firstpost earlier, the search for heroes started with Sardar Patel, gathered momentum with Subhash Chandra Bose, BR Ambedkar and Madan Mohan Malviya. And now the BJP has spread its net wide— from proverbial Kashmir to Kanyakumari.

But pitting an unknown Haryana legislator — perhaps good enough to be honoured by naming a municipal ward in his hometown Rohtak after him — against an icon like Bhagat Singh signals a new low.

Perhaps Khattar can learn from Pakistan. In March this year, hundreds of people gathered at Lahore's Fawara Chowk to remember the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru, who were executed in a jail close to the Fawara Chowk, reported Dawn.

The participants demanded that the square be renamed as Bhagat Singh Chowk because he was a was a hero of the Independence movement and was above religious affiliations.

Pity Khattar doesn't understand what Lahore does.

How the BJP Chose an RSS Pracharak Over Shaheed Bhagat Singh-The Wire-Chander Suta Dogra

http://thewire.in/2015/12/24/how-the-bjp-chose-an-rss-pracharak-over-shaheed-bhagat-

Chandigarh: At one end of Medical Modh, a landmark in Rohtak, lies a dusty statue of a former deputy chief minister of Haryana, Mangal Sein. Except for a handful of old timers, few know whose statue stands there, and fewer still can tell a passerby what his contribution to the state of Haryana, or the nation, was to merit one. But the state government now intends to remedy that – in style.

Ignoring a resolution passed in the Haryana assembly in 2009 that the new international airport in Chandigarh be named Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh after the region’s most loved freedom fighter, the BJP government of Manohar Lal Khattar has told the Civil Aviation Ministry that it would instead like the airport named after the Mangal Sein, deputy chief minister of Haryana from 1977 to 1979. Sein, who hailed from Rohtak, headed the Haryana unit of the Jan Sangh and later the BJP.  Other than that, he was just another one of the many political leaders from Haryana with no significant distinction lending weight to his name.

Within the Haryana BJP and particularly among old Jan Sanghis though, Sein is a revered figure and several present day leaders including chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar and education minister Ram Bilas Sharma, all RSS hands, owe their initiation into politics to him. Mangal Sein, like the current chief minister, was an RSS pracharak. The party, which came to power for the first time in Haryana in 2014, has not had a taller leader than him in the state.

One can understand, therefore, Khattar’s desire to keep the memory of his mentor alive and permanently imprinted on the collective imagination of the people. Indeed, one of the first things he did after assuming office last year was to observe Mangal Sein Jayanti in Haryana, decreeing that it should henceforth be a regular feature in the state’s calendar. “Dr Mangal Sein was a vigilant sentinel of Hinduism, nationalism and Indian culture,” he said on the occasion. Since then, the Haryana government has also set up a chair in the name of the BJP stalwart at Maharishi Dayanand University, Rohtak, earmarking Rs 1.21 crore for it.

Mangal Sein died in 1990, and Khattar never misses an opportunity to tell anyone who cares to listen, that he himself had a chance to work with him and learned a lot from him.

If all of this is the best justification that can be given for replacing Bhagat Singh’s name with that of the chief minister’s guide and teacher, the current outrage around the development seems justified.

Bhagat Singh, arguably the most famous of Indian revolutionaries, was hanged by the British in 1931 for his role in the assassination of John Saunders , a British police officer and is today an icon for youth in Punjab and Haryana and the whole of India. His place in the pantheon of martyrs who fought against the British is right up there and even today his very name is an inspiration to stand up against injustice and oppression. There was rare unanimity between the governments of Punjab and Haryana in 2009 when a suitable name for the upcoming airport was to be chosen.

While replying to a question by Congress MP Ravneet Bittu, civil aviation minister Mahesh Sharma informed parliament on December 3, 2015, that Khattar had withdrawn the previous Haryana government’s decision on Bhagat Singh’s name and requested the airport be named after the BJP leader instead. Sitaram Yechury of the CPI(M) said that “this act by the chief minister shows the desperate attempt of the BJP in creating its own fictitious heroes, especially in the background of its complete absence from the freedom struggle.”

Though he was already 20 when India became independent, it is not known what contribution, if any, Sein made to the freedom struggle. It is well-known, however, that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh to which he belonged kept away from the fight against the British. Bhagat Singh was not even 24 when he was hanged by the British on March 23, 1931.

While the sangh parivar has tried in the past to appropriate the legacy of Bhagat Singh, its efforts have always lacked credibility since the young revolutionary left behind a rich collection of writings and statements which make it clear he was an atheist and a Marxist. He was also an ardent opponent of Hindu communal politics.

Last week, MPs of the Aam Aadmi Party, the CPM and Janata Dal (United) demonstrated in front of the picture of Bhagat Singh in parliament against what they said was an “insult to one the nation’s supreme martyrs” by Khattar. They demanded the withdrawal of the controversial proposal and appealed to the people to stop the BJP’s effort to “demean our martyrs and undermine the glorious history of the freedom struggle.”

The new international airport in Chandigarh was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September this year, without being named. Built for Rs 475 crore – excluding the land cost – the airport is ‘international’ only in name because airlines are still hesitant to start international flights from here. The reasons are both technical and commercial. Airlines announce the arrival of their flights to passengers on board their aircraft by simply saying, “We have arrived at Chandigarh.”

Earlier too there was some tussle between the Punjab and Haryana governments over the airport’s nomenclature as Punjab wanted ‘Mohali’ to be suffixed to the airport’s name to give it a Punjabi touch. The Bhupinder Singh Hooda government in Haryana had objected because part of the land given for the airport belongs to Haryana, and the state is sensitive about any dilution perceived or otherwise of the state’s historical claim over the city of Chandigarh. Punjab gave in possibly because Bhagat Singh is an indelible presence in the popular iconography of Punjab, his eminence and reputation only growing in recent years. After weeks of silence, the Akali-led government in Punjab has finally written to the Prime Minister to protest  the dropping of Bhagat Singh’s name.

The ball is now in Modi’s court. Will he stand by an Indian martyr revered by hundreds of millions? Or will he choose to honour a Hindutva ideologue instead?

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Manufactured Heroes of BJP-Mangal Sen-Bigger than Bhagat Singh?-Brinda Karat

http://www.ndtv.com/opinion/when-the-bjp-tries-to-manufacture-heroes-1256137

When the BJP Tries to Manufacture Heroes

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It has been a practice in India that important buildings and roads are named after historical figures as a mark of respect to their memory and their contribution to India. There have been controversies in the past on the naming of airports, universities, sports complexes and so on with a recurrent widespread opposition to the practice of the then ruling dispensation led by the Congress party to name public institutions in the names of members of the Nehru-Gandhi family - as though it was only they who were the heroes of India's freedom struggle and contributions to independent India's development. Under the BJP-RSS combine, that objectionable practice is sought to be replaced by renaming such public places in the name of the manufactured "heroes" of the Sangh Parivar.
 
The latest example is the shameful controversy on the naming of the new airport terminal in Chandigarh in which a new low has been established because it involves India's most beloved national hero, Bhagat Singh. His name is being dragged into petty politics by those who have never contributed a drop of sweat, leave alone blood, for the freedom of the country.
 
The controversy has been created by the ruling regimes at the Centre and in two states in which BJP is in government, namely, Haryana and Punjab. The facts are as follows:
 
In 2009, the Punjab Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution to name the proposed airport in Chandigarh after Bhagat Singh. This was conveyed to the Centre. A year later, the Haryana government also unanimously adopted a resolution endorsing the proposal of the Punjab government for naming the airport after Bhagat Singh.

The airport is a joint venture with the Punjab and Haryana governments holding 24.5 per cent of equity each, and the Airports Authority of India, a government undertaking under the Civil Aviation Ministry, holding the remaining 51 per cent. The Prime Minister inaugurated the new terminal in September of this year. However, there was no name to the airport.

A week ago, the reason for this unprecedented situation was revealed in the official written response by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma to a question raised in the Lok Sabha by Congress MP Ravneet Bittu. The reply stated that "...In a subsequent letter, the Chief Minister of Haryana has requested naming the international terminal as Dr. Mangal Sein International Airport Chandigarh. The proposal was examined in consultation with the ministries concerned and the Governments of Haryana and Punjab. However due to non-consensus between Haryana and Punjab, the airport terminal could not be renamed."
 
This is a totally deceptive explanation. The so-called non-consensus is between two minority shareholders. The majority shareholder is the Airports Authority of India which is under the Central Government. What does this organization have to say about this unseemly controversy? When Mahesh Sharma replies that all concerned ministries have been "consulted", what was his own ministry's position in the course of these consultations? Why is he silent on this issue, misleading Parliament? Clearly, Punjab is for renaming the terminal after Bhagat Singh as per their earlier resolution; if the Civil Aviation Ministry also agrees, then the majority opinion would be against the Haryana Chief Minister's objectionable intervention. But the central government under Modi itself is unwilling to displease the RSS-backed Chief Minister. There lies the problem.

Who is Mangal Sein? A long-time RSS ideologue who became Deputy Chief Minister of Haryana for a short stint between 1977-1979; he was also the BJP state President. If Khattar wanted to name his party bhavan after Sein, that would have been his right. But who is this Chief Minister who can, behind the back of the Haryana Assembly, overturn its earlier resolution about naming the airport after Bhagat Singh? It is only an RSS pracharak who can think of replacing the name of Bhagat Singh with one of their own.
 
This is what is called manufacturing heroes, and this is what the BJP-RSS combine is adept at doing, given the slightest opportunity.
 
In its earlier stint in power under the Vajpayee Government, the then NDA insulted the freedom fighters by naming the airport at Port Blair after VD Savarkar, the author of the Hindutva concept. It was from the cells of the Andaman Jail that Savarkar wrote his now infamous letter of apology to the British Government literally begging for mercy calling himself the "prodigal son" offering " I am ready to serve the Government in any capacity they like" in shameful surrender before the British empire. It is not the early Savarkar that the Sangh celebrates..the Savarkar as a freedom fighter, was a rationalist, an atheist, who considered cow worship as superstitious and irrational, but the Savarkar who during his incarceration of two years turned to a virulent form of communal and divisive thinking which weakened his will to fight the British and ultimately led him to Hindutva, the concept which is at the core of the RSS agenda of Hindu Rashtra. 
 
The plaque reads "Vinayak Damodar Savarkar Indian patriot, philosopher lived here." A "patriot" who surrendered to the imperial power. There were real heroes who spent years locked up in the cellular jail, facing the most terrible torture at the hands of the British, including the youngest of them, teenager Subodh Roy, but none of them were considered fit by the then government to have the Port Blair airport named after them. History had to be manufactured by insulting true patriots.
 
Recently on December 6, the death anniversary of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, the chief of the RSS, Mohan Bhagwat, made a speech in which he compared the Sangh's founder chief KB Hedgewar with Ambedkar. The former founded an organization -  the RSS -  which worked against the very idea of India for the establishment of a Hindustan only for the Hindus. The latter was one who chose to renounce Hinduism and its caste-based inequalities. That is the most obvious dissimilarity, which in fact stretched to all spheres of their thinking and their practice. Hedgewar is not known outside the  circle of the Sangh Parivar. Bhagwat's comparison is not just an insult to Ambedkar, but another example of how the Sangh Parivar wants to latch on to the heroism of acknowledged national icons, and, through false comparisons, squeeze in a place for themselves.
 
They are welcome to their attempts which will find little resonance. But when they start misusing public money and Government institutions to manufacture heroes and rewrite history by insulting martyrs like Bhagat Singh, there has to be a full stop put to such attempts, if not by the Government, then by public opinion.

(Brinda Karat is a Politburo member of the CPI(M) and a former Member of the Rajya Sabha.)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of NDTV and NDTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.

Naming of Chandigarh airport becomes a national issue

MPs of four national parties protest in Parliament Complex

Naming of Chandigarh airport becomes a national issue

By Babushahi Bureau

By Babushahi Bureau

Chandigarh, December 17, 2015: With leaders of different parties locking horns over naming of International Airport, Chandigarh, the issue has descended at the national level.

On this issue, MP of AAP, CPI (M) and JDU also protested in the Parliament in Delhi today. The issue which earlier was a bone of contention between Punjab and Haryana has been taken up at national level by leaders of BJP, Congress, AAP, CPI (M) and JDU.

MP's including Sitaram Yechuri, Dr. Dharamvir Gandhi, Mohd. Salim,Ritubrata Bannerjee and many more protested at Bhagat Singh’s statue in the Parliament Complex to demand.

While the BJP wants naming of International Airport, Chandigarh, after RSS ideologue Mangal Sen, the Congress and other parties demand that its name should be after Shaheed Bhagat Singh.

The issue was earlier raised by SAD MP Prem Singh Chandumajra, Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bitu.

The controversy over naming of the airport got air when the Haryana government after ignoring previous Haryana Congress government’s acceptance of naming the airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh.

Thought the Punjab government had been demanding name of the airport as Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Mohali, but was later agreed to name the airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Chandigarh. ....

Dharamvira Dv Gandhi added 2 new photos.

10 hrs · Patiala · 

Text of Dr. Gandhi’s question submitted in Parliament challenging the propose of Haryana Government to name of Chandigarh Airport after Mr. Mangal Sen an RSS ideologue. Dr. Gandhi demanded that Chandigarh Airport should be named only as Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/chandigarh/chd-international-airport-renaming-mired-in-politics/170253.html

 » भाजपा के हीरो मंगल सैन हैं, शहीद भगत सिंह नहीं?

भाजपा के हीरो मंगल सैन हैं, शहीद भगत सिंह नहीं?

DEC 15 , 2015

मनीषा भल्ला

“बेशक, चंडीगढ़ एयरपोर्ट का नाम फौरी तौर पर चंडीगढ़ इंटरनेशनल एयरपोर्ट रख दिया गया हो लेकिन नाम को लेकर सियासी खींचतान अब भी जारी है। हाल ही में हरियाणा के मुख्यमंत्री मनोहर लाल खट्टर ने राष्ट्रीय स्वंय सेवक संघ के प्रचारक और भाजपा नेता मंगलसेन के नाम पर एयरपोर्ट का नाम रखे जाने का प्रस्ताव रखा है। खट्टर के इस प्रस्ताव की खासी आलोचना हो रही है। ”

 जवाहर लाल नेहरू विश्वविद्यालय में प्रोफेसर रहे डॉ.चमन लाल का कहना है कि शहीद-ए-आजम भगत सिंह से मंगलसेन की तुलना करने का मतलब ही आजादी के तमाम आंदोलनों को अपमानित करना है। चमनलाल के अनुसार किसी भी राज्य के एयरपोर्ट का नाम उस राज्य के सबसे बड़े हीरो के नाम पर रखा जाता है। इसी के मद्देनजर पंजाब सरकार ने शहीद भगत सिंह के नाम पर मोहर लगाई थी।

गौरतलब है कि हरियाणा में पिछली कांग्रेस की सरकार को भी इस नाम से कोई आपत्ति नहीं थी। उस समय मुख्यमंत्री रहे भूपेंद्र सिंह हुड्डा ने भी शहीद भगत सिंह के नाम पर सहमति दे दी थी। बस वह इतना चाहते थे कि एयरपोर्ट के नाम के पीछे मोहाली नहीं होना चाहिए बल्कि चंडीगढ़ होना चाहिए। यानी पंजाब सरकार चाहती थी कि एयरपोर्ट का नाम शहीद-ए-आजम भगत सिंह इंटरनेशनल एयरपोर्ट मोहाली हो और हुड्डा सरकार चाहती थी कि एयरपोर्ट के नाम के अंत में मोहाली की जगह चंडीगढ़ शब्द हो। ताकि हक बराबर हों। एयरपोर्ट के नाम के साथ मोहाली लग जाता है तो चंडीगढ़ पर हरियाणा की दावेदारी कमजोर हो जाती है। चंडीगढ़ पर दावेदारी को लेकर दोनों राज्यों का झगड़ा पुराना चला आ रहा है। हालांकि उस समय केंद्र में कांग्रेस की सरकार थी लेकिन वह भी इस फाइल को दबाकर बैठी रही।

अब खट्टर सरकार ने इसका नाम मंगल सेन के नाम पर रखने का प्रस्ताव रखा है। मंगल सैन सन 1977 में जनता पार्टी की देवीलाल की सरकार में मंत्री भी रह चुके हैं। दो महीने पहले आम आदमी पार्टी पंजाब की ओर से भी एयरपोर्ट का नाम भगत सिंह के नाम पर रखे जाने पर आंदोलन हुआ था। आंदोलन में शामिल स्वराज आंदोलन के राजीव गोदारा का कहना है कि जिस तेजी से पंजाब सरकार ने इसके नाम की मांग उठाई थी अब वो तेजी तो नहीं है लेकिन मांग खत्म नहीं हुई है। उनका कहना है कि यहां मसला नाम या चंडीगढ़ पर दावेदारी का नहीं रहा अब बल्कि विचारधारा का है। हरियाणा की भाजपा सरकार भगवाकरण का विस्तार कर रही है।