The Sikhs played a pioneering role in India's struggle for independence from the British. They made sacrifices wholly out of proportion to their demographic strength (the Sikhs make up less than 2% of the Indian population).
(Figures below provided by Maulana Abul Azad, President of the Congress Party at the time of Indepedence.
Out of 2125 Indians killed in the atrocities by the British, 1550 (73%) were Sikhs. Out of 2646 Indians deported for life to the Andaman Islands (where the British exiled political and hardened criminals) 2147 (80%) were Sikhs. Out of 127 Indians sent to the gallows, 92 (80%) were Sikhs. At Jalliawalla Bagh out of the 1302 men, women and children slaughtered, 799 (61%) were Sikhs. In the Indian Liberation Army, out of the 20,000 ranks and officers, 12,000 (60%) were Sikhs. Out of 121 persons executed during the freedom struggle, 73 (60%) were Sikhs. The Sikhs, who had thrown themselves, heart and soul, into the Indian independence struggle, were the third party with whom the British negotiated for the transfer of power. However, due to inadaquency of Sikh leadership, misplaced trust and false promises made by Gandhi and Nehru, the Sikhs lost their claim to power. |
No comments:
Post a Comment