ÿþ<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>B&#256R&#256 SI&#7748GH BH&#256&#298 (1903-1921)</TITLE> <style type="text/css"> .BODY { background-color: #EAF1F7; background-image: url('images/gtbh.jpg'); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-attachment: fixed; background-position: center; color: #0066CC;} .C1{text-align: justify;color: #0066CC;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .BIB{text-align: center;color: #000099;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .CONT{text-align: right;color: #FF0000;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} </style><META NAME="keywords" CONTENT="BR,SIDGH,BH*,Person,Person"> <META http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"></HEAD> <BODY class="BODY" oncontextmenu="return false" ondragstart="return false" onselectstart="return false"> <FONT ALIGN="JUSTIFY" FACE="Tahoma"> <p class="C1">&#65279B&#256R&#256 SI&#7748GH, BH&#256&#298 (1903-1921), one of the Nank&#257&#7751&#257 S&#257hib martyrs, was the son of Bh&#257&#299 P&#257l&#257 Si&#7749gh and M&#257&#299 M&#257n Kaur of Ba&#7751&#7693&#257l&#257 village in Amritsar district. Some time after his birth on 8 Kattak 1960 Bk/23 October 1903, the family migrated to Chakk No. 71 Ba&#7751&#7693&#257l&#257 Bachan Si&#7749ghv&#257l&#257 in the newly developed canal district of Lyallpur, now Faisl&#257b&#257d in Pakistan. B&#257r&#257 Si&#7749gh received his preliminary education in the village <i>gurdw&#257r&#257</i> and joined, at the age of 13, <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257 Prach&#257rak Vidy&#257l&#257 at Tarn T&#257ran, where besides scripture-reading and study of Sikh lore he attained proficiency in <i>k&#299rtan</i> (Sikh music). He was deeply affected by the incident, at Tarn T&#257ran, of 26 January 1921 in which the priests of Darb&#257r S&#257hib Tarn T&#257ran treacherously attacked a band of Ak&#257l&#299 reformers led by the Jathed&#257r of Sr&#299 Ak&#257l Ta<u>kh</u>t who had come for a negotiated settlement with them. Several Ak&#257l&#299s were seriously wounded and two of them succumbed to the injuries later. The young and sensitive B&#257r&#257 Si&#7749gh, disgusted with the acts of the priests within the precincts of the holy shrine, left off his studies and went home. He found the atmosphere in the village charged with commotion at the outrage. Already in that part of the country there had been a lot of resentment at the mismanagement of Gurdw&#257r&#257 Janam Asth&#257n at Nank&#257&#7751&#257 S&#257hib in general and the unsavoury personal reputation of its <i>mahant</i>, or custodian, Narai&#7751 D&#257s. The happenings at Tarn T&#257ran quickened the tempo of the Ak&#257l&#299s' agitation for the removal of the <i>mahant</i>. Two of the six brothers of B&#257r&#257 Si&#7749gh - Pr&#299tam Si&#7749gh and Samm&#257 Si&#7749gh had - already registered themselves as volunteers in the <i>jath&#257</i> of Bh&#257&#299 Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh of Dh&#257rov&#257l&#299, a local Ak&#257l&#299 leader. It so happened that when an urgent call came on 19 February 1921 for them to report for active duty, Pr&#299tam Si&#7749gh was away visiting some relatives. B&#257r&#257 Si&#7749gh at once decided to take his place and immediately left with Samm&#257 Si&#7749gh for Dh&#257rov&#257l&#299. Both were brutally done to death along with the rest of the <i>jath&#257</i> after their entry into Gurdw&#257r&#257 Janam Asth&#257n on the morning of 20 February 1921.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<i>See</i> NANK&#256&#7750&#256 S&#256HIB MASSACRE</p> </font> <p class="BIB"> BIBLIOGRAPHY<p class="C1"><ol class="C1">Shamsher, Gurba<u>kh</u>sh Si&#7749gh, <i>Shah&#299d&#299 J&#299van. Nankana S&#257hib</i>, 1938.<BR> </ol><p class="CONT">Gurcharan Si&#7749gh Gi&#257n&#299<br></p><BR> </font> <img src="counter.aspx" width="1px" height="1px" alt=""> </HTML></BODY>