Was Bhagat Singh a Communist? Here's All About Shaheed-e-Azam's Political Ideology

The two sides of the political ideological spectrum - the Left and the Right - have been laying claims to the legacy of Bhagat Singh. Conservatives consider him among the most ideal nationalists espousing the cause of none other than the motherland. Communists disagree, claiming that the primary cause of the 'Shaheed-e-Azam's struggle was to emancipate the working class and peasantry. For them, Bhagat Singh as a political icon comes next only to Marx, Lenin and Trotsky.

Singh's socio-political appropriation by the Right began with their tirade against the centrist Congress, accusing the Nehru-Gandhi family of "undermining" his martyrdom. Gradually, Singh began featuring in several posters of the saffron camp, often being placed next to the likes of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.

On Bhagat Singh's 112th anniversary, let's try to ascertain which political ideology the martyr adhered to.

Was Bhagat Singh a Communist?

The writings, the scripts, the history text, all say yes. Bhagat Singh has credited Karl Marx - the founder of Communism - for igniting the spark in him to challenge the prevailing social order, and attributed Vladimir Lenin's Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 as the decision to form the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association.

Singh had, in 1931, written a pamphlet titled 'To Young Political Workers'. In this, he reiterated his vision of creating a new social order as per the ideas proposed by Marx. Here's what he had written as per the archives maintained by shaheedbhagatsingh.org:

"The state, the government machinery is just a weapon in the hands of the ruling class to further and safeguard its interest. We want to snatch and handle it to utilise it for the consummation of our ideal, i.e., social reconstruction on new, i.e., Marxist, basis."

In his popular article - 'Why I am an atheist?' - Singh cited the example of Marx, Lenin and Trotsky while substantiating the reason for his disbelief in the existence of God.

"I read a few books of Marx, the father of Communism. I also read Lenin and Trotsky and many other writers who successfully carried out revolutions in their countries. All of them were atheists."

Historian Shri Ram Bakshi in his book, Bhagat Singh and His Ideology, cites another quote by him to highlight his leaning towards Communism. It is as follows:

"By ‘Revolution’, we mean the ultimate establishment of a new order of society which may not be threatened, and in which the sovereignty of the proletariat be recognised and a world federation should redeem humanity from the bondage of capitalism and misery of imperial wars.”

Raj Kumar Santoshi, a noted Indian filmmaker, had quoted Bhagat Singh as saying the following in his well-researched movie ‘The legend of Bhagat Singh’ (2002):

“We don’t want independence! We don’t want independence where the English rulers are replaced by the local elites. We don’t want freedom where this wretched system of exploitation and slavery continues to torment the toiling classes. We are striving for an independence that would transform this cruel system through a socialist revolution.”

As per the records maintained by shaheedbhagatsingh.org, Singh and his compatriots - on death row in 1930 - were signatories to a message they sent via Telegram to the Third Communist International, which had convened in Moscow on the anniversary of Lenin's death. It read as follows:

ON LENIN DAY WE SEND HEARTY GREETINGS TO ALL who are doing something for carrying forward the ideas of the great Lenin. We wish success to the great experiment Russia is carrying out. We join our voice to that of the international working class movement. The proletariat will win. Capitalism will be defeated. Death to Imperialism.

On the unfateful day of March 23, 1931, when the Shaheed-e-Azam was being sent to the gallows, Singh was found reading Reminiscences of Lenin, a memoir on the Communist ideologue's life. This further proves his intact belief in Socialism till the final day of his life.

What Dissects Bhagat Singh From the Socio-Political Right?

While writing a feature for Kirti, a leftist publication, Bhagat Singh said that the prerequisite for India to emerge as a strong, independent nation is separate religion from politics. Here is an excerpt from the article which appeared in the Amritsar-edition of Kirti in June 1928:

"...this is a beautiful way to cure the malaise of communal violence. Even though we have different religious beliefs, if we separate religion from politics we all can stand together in the matter of politics and national cause. We hope that the true sympathizers of India will think over our solutions and will save India from following the path of self-destruction."

In another article written for the same publication, Bhagat Singh had said that the nation would be doomed in the future if the Hindu-Muslim divide is not cured. Here is what he said:

Today India’s future seems extremely bleak. These riots have shamed India at the world stage… the role of communal leaders and newspapers in instigating these riots is shameful. In these times of communal hatred, the leaders of India have decided to remain quiet.

In view of the above writings, which serve as glaring evidence, one can conclude that the rightful claimants of Bhagat Singh's ideology are still those who organise, unite and agitate under the clarion call of "Inquilab Zindabad", rather than those who are thriving on polarisation, xenophobia and majoritarianism.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 27, 2019 03:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).