ÿþ<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>&#298SHAR SI&#7748GH MARH&#256&#7750&#256 (1878-1941)</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="*SHAR,SIDGH,MARHF,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">&#65279&#298SHAR SI&#7748GH MARH&#256&#7750&#256 (1878-1941), Ak&#257l&#299 activist and <u>Gh</u>adr revolutionary, was born on 1 January 1878, younger of the two sons of Bh&#257&#299 Jind Si&#7749gh, a Sandh&#363 Ja&#7789&#7789, and M&#257&#299 Chand Kaur, of farming stock of the village of Marh&#257&#7751&#257, near Tarn T&#257ran, in Amritsar district of the Punjab. He learnt Gurmukh&#299 in the village <i>gurdw&#257r&#257</i> and recited avidly his daily hymns every morning and helped his father and elder brother, &#256s&#257 Si&#7749gh, with farming. As he came of age, he was married to B&#299b&#299 Har Kaur, daughter of Bh&#257&#299 H&#299r&#257 Si&#7749gh, of <u>Kh</u>&#257npur village in Nakodar <i>tahs&#299l</i> of Jalandhar district. &#298shar Si&#7749gh went abroad in search of better prospects, and, travelling through Singapore, Hong Kong and Panama, reached California (U.S.A.) in 1908. He came in contact with Vas&#257kh&#257 Si&#7749gh and Jav&#257l&#257 Si&#7749gh, also Punjabi immigrants from Amritsar district. They formed a company and, hiring a 500 acre piece of land near Holt, started an agricultural farm which prospered. When Indian immigrants settled mostly in California and Oregan states formed the Hindust&#257n&#299 Association of the Pacific Coast, &#298shar Si&#7749gh too became one of its members. This body later became the famous <u>Gh</u>adr party which planned a revolution in India during World War I (1914-18). The plan however aborted and the <u>Gh</u>adr revolutionaries were tried in what is known as Lahore conspiracy case. &#298shar Si&#7749gh was one of those who got away with a reduced sentence of 7 years. By the time he came out of prison, Ak&#257l&#299 movement for the reform of shrine management had got under way. He was automatically swept into it. In 1922 he set up a huge conclave of the Ak&#257l&#299 reformists in his own village, Marh&#257&#7751&#257, where he delivered a forceful anti-government speech for which he was arrested, tried and sentenced to seven years' rigorous imprisonment which he underwent in different jails at R&#257walpi&#7751&#7693&#299, Campbellpore, Montgomery and Mult&#257n. On release in 1929 he was elected <i>jathed&#257r</i> (leader) of the district Ak&#257l&#299 Jath&#257 of Amritsar. In 1930, he was elected a member and vice-chairman of Amritsar Darb&#257r S&#257hib Managing Committee for three years. &#298shar Si&#7749gh also participated in the Civil Disobedience movement of 1930-31 for which he got six months in jail besides a fine of Rs 150. In 1933 he was elected a member of the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee. He was re-elected in 1936 and was appointed chairman of Sr&#299 Darb&#257r S&#257hib Managing Committee in which capacity he worked until his death, after a brief illness, on 16 August 1941.</p> </font> <p class="BIB"> BIBLIOGRAPHY<p class="C1"><ol class="C1"><li class="C1"> Prat&#257p Si&#7749gh Gi&#257n&#299, <i>Ak&#257l&#299 Lahir de Mah&#257&#7749 Net&#257</i>. Amritsar, 1976<BR> <li class="C1"> Ashok, Shamsher Si&#7749gh, <i>Shiroma&#7751&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee d&#257 Pañj&#257h S&#257l&#257 Itih&#257s</i>. Amritsar, 1982<BR> </ol><p class="CONT">Major Gurmukh Si&#7749gh (Retd.)<br></p><BR> </font> <img src="counter.aspx" width="1px" height="1px" alt=""> </HTML></BODY>