Education

Unsung Freedom fighters from Indian History

by Archana Dubey

This Year we celebrated our 75th Independence Day. We got independence on 15th August 1947 from British Rule after a long fight. We lost thousands of freedom fighters during this freedom movement. Some of them got recognition but many of them are still lesser known to us or their names have faded up with time and we forget to remember their contribution in the Unsung Freedom fighters movement. That time every Indian wants freedom from cruel British rule. On the one hand the British pretended to be careful and engaged in the guardian’s role to India, Infront of the world community but on the other hand British looted India with both hands. That was the time when every Indian was seeking freedom from British rule at any cost even at the cost of their life for the sake of their future generations. 

Here I will share about some of the less famous or forbidden warriors who sacrificed their lives in the freedom movement. Here I will mention some groups’ names also who were not so famous but contributed a lot to the Movement. 

  1. Tantiya Tope (16th Feb 1814 – 18th April 1859)– was born in a Marathi Deshastha Brahmin Family in Yeola near Nasik. one of the best rebel generals against British rule. Tantiya Tope was executed on 18 April 1859 by the British Government.
  1. Laxman Nayak- (22nd November 1899 – 29th March 1943) was born in Bhumia tribe of Odisha. Nayak Was a tribal civil rights activist and organised the rebels successfully against exploitation by the British Government. Nayak was implicated in a case of murder and hanged on 29th March 1943 in Berhampur Jail.
  1. Velu Nachiyar- (3rd January 1730 – 25 December 1796) was queen of Sivaganga estate of the Ramnad kingdom from 1780–1790. She was the first Indian queen to wage war with British rule in India. She is known by Tamils as Veeramangai (brave woman). She created the first human bomb. When she found the place where the British stored their ammunition, she walked into the ammunition store after dousing herself in oil and lighting herself to destroy the arms. 
  2. Tanaji Malusare-  (1626 – 4th feb 1670)- was the military general of the Maratha Chhatrapati Shivaji. He was born in a Hindu koli family and martyred on 4th Feb 1670.  Tanaji sacrificed his life in the Battle of Sinhagad. Shivaji used to call him Sinha(Lion) because of his strength. Tanhaji fought and took back Fort Kondhana but lost his life. Later Shivaji changed the name of Kondhana fort to Sinhagad fort in the honour of Tanhaji.

 

  1. Veerapandia Kottabomman- (03rd Jan 1760 – 16th Oct 1799)- Veerapandia Kottabomman was a brave Tribal leader who refused to accept  sovereignty and pay taxes to British rule. Verrapandia was a chieftain from Panchalankurichi in Tamil Nadu state. He was publicly hanged by the British Government on 16th October 1799.
  2. The Trio Of Benoy, Badal & Dinesh- The trio Benoy Basu, Badal Gupta and Dinesh Gupta were 22. 18 and 19 years old young freedom fighters. They targeted a brutal Inspector General of Police, Colonel NS Simpson. They dressed up in European outfits and entered the Writer’s Building. After killing Simpson When they were caught, Benoy took cyanide pill while Badal and Dinesh shot themselves dead before being captured. They were a part of Bengal Volunteers, an underground radical group created by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. 
  1. Garimella Satyanarayana (14th July 1893 – 18th Dec 1952)- He was a writer and a poet. He was an inspiration for the people of Andhra. He motivated and influenced people by his patriotic songs and poems. For which he was jailed several times by the British administration.
  1. Birsa Munda (15th Nov 1875 – 09th June 1900) – Birsa Munda was a Tribal leader and a young freedom fighter. He died at the young age of 25, he had some remarkable achievements in his short time. The most important tribal movement Munda Rebellion was led by Birsa Munda in the south of Ranchi in 1899-1900. He convinced people to destroy Ravana(Dikus and Europeans) and establish a Kingdom under his leadership. Birsa died in 1900 But his contribution can never be forgotten.
  1. Kartar Singh Sarabha (24th May 1896 – 16 Nov 1915)- Kartar Singh Sarabha was 17 year and he was the leader of the Ghadar Revolution. Kartar Singh was a great personality and Bhagat Singh considered him as his Guru. Sarabha went to the US for studies and came back and set up the Ghadar Party in 1913. Sarabhai and his colleagues planned an arm attack on the British army to set India free. The Lahore conspiracy cases highlighted his engagement with the movement strongly and he was sentenced for capital punishment.
  1. Alluri Sitaram Raju (4th July 1897 – 07th May 1924)-  Raju was born in a prosperous Kshatriya family but he left everything when the villagers of tribal areas were exploited by britishers. After that he led the important Rampa Rebellion against the British with the help of tribal people. He was considered as the Manyam Veerudu (Hero of the Jungles) by the tribal people. When the British government passed the forest act, 1882 that banned the villagers from practicing their traditional agricultural system of shifting cultivation, Alluri Sitram Raju initiated the famous ‘’Rampa Rebellion’’ in 1922-1924. He fought against the British many times and was killed by them in the jungle in 1924.

Fight is for freedom was not a one day task, it was a long battle. Thousands of innocents were martyred. If the credit would go to some countable numbers or only to the famous political faces of that time then this would be injustice to those who belong to the freedom movement anonymously and sacrificed their everything, their life for the freedom. It is not possible to write their names and identities here in a single article but what actually we can do is that whenever we remember the freedom movement we should show some gesture to all those unknown holy souls who were involved in the freedom movement.

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