The Tribune - Magazine section

History on display

The museum established by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, as part of its golden jubilee celebrations, throws light on the lesser-known facts of the trial of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and others in the Lahore Conspiracy Case, finds out Maneesh Chhibber

A handcuffed Bhagat Singh being interrogated at Lahore in 1927. This was his first arrest. The photograph was taken secretly by the police, and was discovered in secret records of police after 1947

FOR the first time ever, documents and various exhibits on display in the museum set up by the Punjab and Haryana High Court as part of its golden jubilee celebrations allow a glimpse into the many grey areas of the trial of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and other patriots. Their trial related to the killing of British police officer J. P. Saunders and the bomb blast in the Central Assembly hall.

Many important but little known aspects of the trial are on display for the benefit of the public. So much so that the trial itself appears in an entirely different light from the way in which it has been depicted so far.

These documents, including extracts of the judgment of the special tribunal constituted by the British to try the patriots, clearly tell a story of a government that leveraged the legal set up to have its way as it wanted to teach "bloody Indians" a lesson.

While it is common knowledge that Bhagat Singh and the other main accused refused to defend themselves during the trial, it now comes out that the prosecution did everything, including enacting new laws, to take advantage of this.

The constitution of a special tribunal vide ordinance number III of 1930 dated May 1, 1930, to try the case was in itself a clear signal that the prosecution was determined not to allow the patriots go scot-free.

The draconian law was enacted to dispense with the normal trial as per the Code of Criminal Procedure.

The decision to constitute a special tribunal to try the 24 accused, of which only 18 had actually been nabbed, to replace the court of special magistrate who had been earlier hearing the case also highlights the same.

Rare exhibits

ESTABLISHED as part of the year-long celebrations of the golden jubilee of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the museum has rare documents, exhibits and trivia on display.

Apart from the brief history of the Lahore Conspiracy Case trial, it also has the history of the trial of Kartar Singh Sarabha; the trial of the killers of former Chief Minister of Punjab Partap Singh Kairon; judgments in important election petitions; original and rare photographs of the High Court’s inaugural function at Chandigarh in which India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was the chief guest.

The museum is scheduled to remain open for one month.

Needless to say, the British denied to the patriots the safeguards available to all accused under the law prevalent then.

Notes Punjab and Haryana High Court lawyer Malwinderjit Singh Waraich, who has authored a book on the hanging of Bhagat Singh, "The patriots wanted to prolong the trial in order to gain mileage for the freedom struggle. Saving their lives was the last thing on their mind. Sensing this, the prosecution was eager to finish the trial at the earliest."

The trial related to the killing of Assistant Superintendent of Police J.P. Saunders and the throwing of a bomb in the hall of the Central Assembly at Delhi by Bhagat Singh and others.

The prosecution examined 457 witnesses to strengthen its case. It concluded its evidence on August 26, 1930, and the very next day, the tribunal ordered that the recording of statements of the patriots facing trial be dispensed with.

Called upon to lead evidence in support of their contentions, the patriots were, in a sudden move, ordered to close their evidence on September 5, 1930 — within just eight days.

In about a month’s time, on October 7, 1930, the tribunal pronounced its judgment, awarding death sentence to Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru.

On March 23, 1931, all three were hanged in the wee hours in Central Jail, Lahore. Bhagat Singh was cremated at Ferozepore. He was just 23 at that time.

The High Court museum also has on display a copy of the telegram sent by the Home Secretary, Punjab, to the Home Department, New Delhi, dated March 17, 1931, which ordered that the death sentence be advanced to March 23, 1931. Originally, the hanging was fixed for March 27, 1931.

Interestingly, Indian members of Central Assembly, including Muslim league leader M.A. Jinnah, had attacked the setting up of the special tribunal to try the patriots.

"But, the trial of Bhagat Singh and his associates can’t be seen from a purely legal point of view. The main aim of the freedom fighters was to create awareness among the masses and ensure that Inquilab Zindabad resounded in every nook and corner of the country. In fact, when Bhagat Singh was asked by his comrade Jaidev Kapoor about his refusal to defend himself, he said that he had put his life at stake for the object of making people realise about the necessity of a revolution. He added that his job had been accomplished," Prof Waraich observes.