Punjab govt forgets birth anniversary of Shaheed Udham Singh

SUNAM: While Punjab government failed to remember martyr Udham Singh on his 114th birth anniversary on Wednesday, neighbouring Haryana issued advertisements in various newspapers saluting the revolutionary for supreme sacrifice. This indifference has upset many socio-cultural organizations. According to them, on the one hand, Punjab government had extended greetings to people of the state on former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s birthday on Wednesday, on the other hand, it forgot to acknowledge the freedom fighter who avenged the massacre of hundreds of Indians at Jallianwala Bagh by killing Michael O’Dwyer, the then British Governor of Punjab, who ordered the police firing. “The SAD-BJP government, that is famous for remembering martyrs’ homage, choicest events or leaders, did not find it fit to remember the birth anniversary of the martyr who had avenged the Jallianwala Bagh massacre after 21 years that too on foreign soil,” said Desh Bhagat Yaadgar committee member Amolak Singh. He added that although Punjab government failed to remember Udham Singh’s anniversary, it published big advertisements in various newspapers on Tuesday on the occasion of former PM A B Vajpayee’s birthday with caption ”Punjab government felicitates The peoples’ Prime Minister” along with pictures of chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and forest minister Bhagat Chunni Lal. Every year, Punjab had observed Udham’s martyrdom day on July 31 on the state-level at his ancestral town Sunam, that had been rechristened as Sunam Udham Singh Wala (though only symbolically). Haryana public relations department has duly remembered the martyr and published big advertisements in various newspapers remembering Udham’s birth anniversary. ”After repeating it on various occasions, this year too on the occasion of Udham’s 74th Martyrdom Day on July 31, Badal had repeated the promise of constructing a memorial. He had said that as land could not be purchased for the memorial due to certain reasons in the past, now land will be chosen where the memorial could be built. He had also announced of spending Rs 15 crore with Rs 5 crore in the first year on the museum. However, the residents still wait for this to happen,” said town resident Sandeep Kumar. Although Punjab government had been observing Udham’s Martyrdom Day at the state-level every year, it has miserably failed to fulfill the promises made in his name over the years. Not only the present SAD-BJP government, but even the previous Congress government headed by Amarinder Singh, had made various promises of a museum and art gallery, chair in university, park, turning the place into Model Town, acquiring back the belongings of the martyr including diary and pistol from London, Multan. Even filmmaker turned politician Raj Babbar, while making a film on the life of Udham years ago, had promised of helping and taking care of Udham’s birthplace. However, no promise was kept, rued Udham’s distant relatives. Of innumerable promises, only one was fulfilled which is the installation of a bronze statue of Udham. Sangrur district public relations officer Subash Gupta said, “Although no function was organized by the state government on Udham Singh’s birth anniversary, Punjab finance minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa did attend a function organized by a social organization.” About the non issuance of advertisement, Gupta added that advertisements of such nature are issued by the directorate. Director public relations, Punjab, Ashwani Kumar said, “The department had been issuing advertisements only on the Martyrdom Day of Udham Singh since many years, and not on his birth anniversary.” Source: Times of India