Indian Cultural
Forum
Bhagat Singh’s
Letters from Punjab Archives, Lahore
September 28, 2020 EDITED BY CHAMAN LAL
In March 2018, Punjab Archives in Lahore, for the first time, displayed
some documents from more than a hundred files relating to Bhagat
Singh trial in an exhibition — "Bhagat Singh’s Life and Death (1907-31)".
Apart from many other documents, it contained a few more letters of Bhagat
Singh's which were not in the public domain earlier. Lahore journalist
Ammara Ahmad, who is working on a book Footsteps of Bhagat Singh in Lahore, has
shared her photographs of this exhibition.
1. Note in Urdu by Jail official with date-31/5/1929
The Superintendent (Special duty),
C.I.D. (Political Branch)
Lahore
Dear Sir,
I will feel much obliged if you will kindly allow me to have an
interview with my father as I have got very important instructions to give him
for my defence counsel in connection with the Delhi case.
I hope you will not disallow it on the ground that I already have had an
interview as the matter is very urgent.
Hoping to be favoured,
Yours etc.
Sd./ Bhagat Singh
2. Special Tribunal of three High Court judges was notified by Chief
Justice of Punjab High Court Chief Justice Shadi Lal, on 1st May 1930 for the
trial of Lahore Conspiracy case. This tribunal consisted of Justice Coldstream
as President of the tribunal and Justice Agha Haider and justice Hilton as
members. While on 5th May five comrades of Bhagat Singh wrote to the tribunal
their decision to boycott the tribunal, 10 other comrades including Bhagat
Singh wrote on 8th May 1930, their response to avail legal help for the case.
In the court of the Special Tribunal
Lahore Conspiracy case, Lahore
Crown vs. Sukhdev & Others
Charged under secs 302, 120-B+121-A, IPC
This humble petition of the accused persons
Bhagat Singh & others most respectfully:
1. That the
petitioners are charged with most serious offences including sec. 302 with 120B
and 109 IPC
2. That the majority
of the petitioners have been lodged for the last eight or nine months in jail.
3. That with one
exception, all the petitioners as stated below belong to distant provinces and
as such have no relative here to look after their defence.
1. Ajay kumar
ghosh–Allahabad, U.P
2. Bejoy Kumar
Sinha—-Cawnpore,U.P
3. Prem Dutt
—Srinagar, Kashmir
4. Kamal Nath
Tewary—Betiah, Bihar
5. Shiv Verma
—-Hardopi, U.P
6. Jai Dev
Kapoor—HardoiU.P
7. S.N.
Pande—–Cawnpore, U.P.
8. Kishori Lal—Quetta,
Baluchistan
9. Des Raj—Sialkot,
guardian outside India
4. That five of the
petitioners are unrepresented accused defending their case themselves.
5. That for the
reasons stated above in paras 3+4, the petitioners can make arrangement for
their defence only through their friends, attorneys and members of defence
committee.
6. That it is
therefore prayed that in the interest of justice, the learned court be pleased
to grant the petitioners following facilities-
I. Interviews with friends, attorneys, legal advisors and members of defence
committee members and relatives in court during lunch hours or after the rising
of the court during the one hour stay after accused for their mutual
consultation
II. Instructions should be sent to the Supdts. of Borstal and Central jails for
allowing interviews with the same.
III. Subject to accommodation the legal advisors of the unrepresented accused
be given seats in the body of the court room.
IV. Recognition of the defence committee and permission to two members of
committee to sit in the body of the court subject to accommodation.
7. That it is prayed
that in view of the large number of prosecution exhibits of this case, one of
the day of the week preferably Saturday be set for the examination of the
exhibits by the accused and their counsels.
Hand written and signed by-
1. Bhagat Singh
2. Bejoy Kumar
Sinha
3. Ajay Kumar Ghosh
4. SuPande
5. Jai Deva Kapor
6. Kishori Lal Ratan
7. Prem Datt Varma
8. Shiv Varma
9. Kamalnath Tewari
10.
Des Raj
8th May 1930
(Official Stamp Lahore)
These letters have
been published in The Bhagat Singh Reader edited by Chaman
Lal, published by HarperCollins India in 2019 (Page 22-23, 586-87).
Chaman Lal is professor
(retired) and former chairperson of the Centre of Indian Languages at
Jawaharlal Nehru University. He is honorary advisor, Bhagat Singh Archives
& Resource Centre, Delhi Archives, and fellow of Panjab University,
Chandigarh.
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