Udham Singh
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Shaheed Udham Singh, also known as Mohammed Singh Azad, (1899–1940) was an Punjabi revolutionary. Whilst living in England in 1940, Singh assassinated Sir Michael O'Dwyer, former Governor of the Punjab. This was in revenge for the Amritsar Massacre, which happened under O'Dwyer's rule, and which O'Dwyer had defended. The assassination is regarded by many in India as a symbol of courage and self-sacrifice in India's struggle to end British colonial rule.
Early life
Udham Singh was born in 1899 in a village called Sunam in the Sangrur district of Punjab to a farming family led by Sardar Tehl Singh. His parents died when Udham was only five, so he was sent to the Khalsa Orphanage in Amritsar. Singh's first employment was as an apprenctice carpenter.
At Jallianwala Bagh on 13 April 1919, Singh was among several thousand people who had gathered for a meeting. General Reginald Dyer ordered his men to open fire, and more than 3000 people were killed.
Singh the revolutionary
The incident prompted Udham Singh to enter revolutionary politics. He traveled to the United States in 1924 and became involved with the Ghaddar Party, an Indian group known for its revolutionary politics. On the orders of Bhagat Singh, Udham Singh returned to India in 1927 with a consignment of arms. Upon arrival, however, he was arrested, apparently given up by a fellow revolutionary. Singh stayed in jail for four years, missing the peak of India's revolutionary period and the actions of men like Bhagat Singh and Chandrasekhar Azad. Bhagat Singh was executed in 1931 while Udham Singh was still in jail.
Assassination of O'Dwyer
Udham Singh escaped from the prison and left India. He traveled widely in countries like Egypt, Russia, France and Germany, making contact with the revolutionaries there. He eventually arrived in England in 1933 and assumed the name Ram Mohammed Singh Azad. By this time he had decided to assasinate Sir Michael O'Dwyer, whom Singh viewed as the main perpetrator of the Jallainawala Bagh massacre. (O'Dwyer had been governor of Punjab at the time). Singh moved to Devon, where O'Dwyer lived, and took a job as a bus driver. He then waited for the right moment to strike so as to make the biggest political statement.
On 13 April 1940, seven years after Singh had arrived in Devon, Caxton Hall in London held a a meeting of officers who had served in colonial India; O'Dwyer was the guest of honour. Udham Singh walked into the meeting and shot O'Dwyer dead with a revolver and injured four others. He was arrested and executed by the British on 31 July 1940. In his trial he expressed no regret for killing Dwyer. The judge ordered the press not to print Singh's last words.[1]
Legacy
The Shaheed Uddham College of Engineering & Technology located in Tangori, India is named after Singh.
British Asian popular music group Asian Dub Foundation wrote a song celebrating Mohammed Singh Azad called 'Assassin'.