SAKA PANJA SAHIB (October 30, 1922)

Saka Panja Sahib is a story of sacrifice for Sewa. It was their courage and love for their Guru that those Sikhs lied down on the Railway Track to stop the train. The Saka occurred at Hasan Abdal Railway Station. Hasan Abdal railway station now falls in Pakistan. The distance between Attock and Hasan Abdal railway station in 33.1 km.

The Saka occurred because at Hasan Abdal Railway Station the local Sikh community wanted to serve langar (community meal) to the 4,000 prisoners of Morcha Guru Ka Bagh Sahib who were being taken from Amritsar to jails in Attock which now falls in Pakistan. The number of prisoners at Guru Ka Bagh Sahib Morcha was 5405. Because of lack of space in the nearby jails these 4,000 prisoners were being taken to the jails in other cities which included Attock and Kampbellpur (Pakistan). On the night of October 30, 1922 these prisoners were boarded on a train at Amritsar to be taken to Attock and Kambellpur. Panja Sahib is 1⁄2 mile south west from Hasan Abdal Railway Station. A squad of retired army pensioners decided to serve langar (community meal) to the prisoners at Hasan Abdal Railway Station. The squad was led by Subedar Dhaliwal from Kapurthala state. The magistrate had sentenced these prisoners 21⁄2 years of imprisonment in addition to a fine of Rs.100 each prisoner. The train for Hasan Abdal stopped at Rawalpindi on October 30, 1922 and moved on after change of staff and taking water for locomotive. The Sikh Community from Gurdwara Panja Sahib had prepared langar to serve to the prisoners. The squad of retired army pensioners took the langar to the Hasan Abdal Railway Station early on the morning of October 30, 1922 and started waiting for the train to arrive. The Sation Master told the Sikhs that the train will not stop at Hasan Abdal Railway Station and said that the arrangements made by them were of no use. Bhai Karam Singh Ji replied “Baba Nanak had stopped a mountain with one hand, cannot his Sikhs stop a train.”

At 10’o clock seeing the train approaching Bhai Karam Singh Ji lied down on the railway track. Next to him Bhai Partap Singh, S. Ganga Singh, S. Charan Singh, Bhai Nihal Singh, S. Tara Singh, S. Fakir Singh, S. Kalyan Singh and many other Singhs and Kaur’s (female of Singhs) of squad members squatted on the railway track. S. Partap Singh Ji was leader of the Jatha which was active in removing the Mahant from Gurdwara Panja Sahib. Reaching near the railway station the driver of the train blew the whistle time and again but the Sikhs did not budge as if they had not heard the whistle. The train moved on and the engine ground the bones of Bhai Karam Singh Ji and Bhai Partap Singh Ji to pulp. Many others were injured. When the train stopped the seriously injured Bhai Partap Singh Ji said to the Sikh Sangat “serve the hungry Singhs in the train first and take care of us afterwards”. The train halted for 11⁄2 hours.

The prisoners on the train were served langar whole heartedly and then the members of the squad turned to the injured. Bhai Karam Singh Ji a 30 years old son of Bhai Bhagwan Das of Kesgarh Sahib died after a few hour. On the next day Bhai Partap Singh Ji, 24 year old son of Bhai Sarup Singh Goldsmith of Akalgarh, District Gujranwala attained martyrdom. Before dying Bhai Partap Singh Ji recited Kabir Sahib’s shabad “Kabir Sant Muye Kiya Roviye Jo apne greh jai, Rovo sakat baprey jo haato haat bikaye”. Bhai Partap Singh Ji instructed his 18 year old wife never to cry over his death otherwise his sacrifice will be wasted and it is said that she did not cry all her life and lived bravely and kept herself engrossed in ‘Naam Simran’.

It may be added that Giani Bhajan Singh in his monumental book Saadde Shahid (1991) has written that in 1991 the eye witness account was given by Bhai Partap Singh Ji’s wife Bibi Harnam Kaur Ji because she was present among those who had lied down on the railway track to stop the train Giani Bhajan Singh asked her a series of questions about the saka and in her answers she narrated them in detail because she had seen everything with her own eyes. She narrated all the incidents in detail which are being reported below. In addition to what has been given above she gave the following information.

Information Given by Bibi Harnam Kaur Ji

My husband at that time was 24-25 years old and we had been married for 4 years. At that time I was about 20 years old. We had no children. Our first child had died when he was 2 years old and the second child female was born some months after Bhai Partap Singh Ji’s martyrdom that time about 300 Sikhs were present at the Railway Station. The driver blew the whistle time and again but none of the Sikhs left the track.

S. Partap Singh Ji and S. Karam Singh Ji were martyred but some of the other Sikhs survived. I was also injured and had to get treatment for several months. Before dying my husband said ‘if you are my wife do not cry’. Her husband was in the army but because of objection against wearing a black turban he had resigned. The driver of the train was an arain Musalmaan from Gujarat. When a judge of high court enquired from the driver as to why he had stopped the train. He said, “I had been given verbal order not to stop the train.” According to the order, “I was driving at full speed but when the train touched the body of Shahid Partap Singh Ji and the train’s chhaja (extending portion) I felt as if the train had hit a hillock. Thus, my hand got separated from the vacuum and the train stopped. I felt as if it was by God’s grace that the train had stopped.” Making enquires it was found that what the driver had said was true. The driver said I had not used the brake, it was some supernatural power that had stopped the train. Later on, the driver was dismissed. When the train was to pass through Hasan Abdal Railway Station I had also lied down on the track to stop the train. When the train arrived near the station of Hasan Abdal the Station Master gave the signal to the train driver to go on straight and not stop. Among the Sikhs who were squatted on the rail track Bhai Partap Singh Ji and S. Karam Singh Ji were in the front and the train passed over them. After this the Sikh Sangat distributed langar (community meal) to the prisoners. Later the bodies of martyrs were removed from the track.

It may be added that if the train had not stopped by some supernatural power many more Sikhs would have been martyred. Until the partition of India in 1947, a 3 day religious fair used to be held in the memory of the martyrs at Panja Sahib from 30 October to 1 November every year.

HAIL THE MARTYRS ! 

Dr. Amrit Kaur Retd. Professor Punjabi University Patiala, Punjab
Email: amritkaurchd40@gmail.com