Journalism of Courage
December 26 holds much significance in Sikh history as it commemorates the valour of ‘Chhote Sahibzaade’, the two youngest sons of the tenth Sikh master Guru Gobind Singh.
Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh, the two youngest sons of Guru Gobind Singh, were bricked alive on the orders of Wazir Khan, the Mughal faujdar of Sirhind, for refusing to renounce their faith and become Muslim. Zorawar Singh was nine years old at the time, and Fateh Singh only seven. Soon after they were walled up alive, their grandmother Mata Gujri (Guru Gobind Singh’s mother) died of shock.
Today, Gurdwara Sri Fatehgarh Sahib stands on the site where the two Sahibzaadas were executed on December 12, 1705, which falls on December 26 as per the current calendar. The day is now observed as Veer Bal Diwas.
It is believed that after no one in Sirhind town agreed to spare land to cremate them, a rich Hindu trader named Diwan Todar Mal purchased a small piece of land by covering it with at least 7,800 gold coins, and performed the last rites after getting the Sahibzaadas’ bodies released from the Mughals. Later, Gurdwara Jyoti Sarup was built on this site in Fatehgarh Sahib.
What happened to Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh?
“Guru Gobind Singh had four sons, the Chaar Sahibzaade, all of whom four sacrificed their lives to uphold the identity and dignity of Khalsa Panth against the Mughals. The two elder ones, Ajit Singh and Jujhar Singh, died in the battle of Chamkaur Sahib. But the bravery and sacrifice of Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh is considered unparalleled not just because of the tender age at which they chose death, but also for the cruel and barbaric conditions that the Mughals had created for the children and their grandmother before their execution,” said Prof Paramvir Singh of the Department of Encyclopaedia of Sikhism at Punjabi University, Patiala.
The barbarism
“Before the execution, the two children and their grandmother were held captive at the open-air Thanda Burj (Cold Tower) of the fort for days in chilly weather, in which they shivered endlessly but refused to convert. For days, they were pressured and threatened with death if they did not accept Islam, but they did not fear the Mughals and refused to renounce their faith,” Prof Singh said. Jujhar, Zorawar and Fateh were the sons of the Guru’s first wife Jito Ji, and were cared for by their grandmother after Jito Ji passed away.
The final journey
The Encyclopedia of Sikhism published by Punjabi University, Patiala recounts the story of the final days of the Chhote Sahibzaade and Mata Gujri:
“Guru Gobind Singh evacuated Anandpur on the night of 5-6 December, 1705… In the front ran Sarsa stream swollen with rain water. Under cover of quick rearguard action fought on the banks of the stream, he succeeded in crossing it but the members of his family got scattered in the tumult… Mata Gujri, and her two grandsons, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh, aged 9 and 7 years respectively, had nowhere to go until their cook, named Gangu, offered to take them to his own village Kheri. They accompanied him to his house.”
“But he proved deceitful and betrayed them to Jani Khan and Mani Khan of Morinda. The latter despatched them to Sirhind where they were consigned to the Cold Tower (Thanda Burj) of the Fort. On December 9, 1705, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh were produced before Wazir Khan. He tried to lure them to embrace Islam with promises of riches and honours, but they spurned the offer. He threatened them with death as an alternative to Islam, but they remained firm. A death sentence was eventually awarded.”
“Nawab Sher Muhammad Khan of Malerkotla protested that it would be improper to harm the innocent children and was against the teachings of Islam. Wazir Khan, however, ordered them to be bricked alive in a wall, if they still refused conversion. They were kept in the Cold Tower in that severe winter for another two days with their grandmother. On December 11, they began to be paved with bricks standing on the ground. However, as the mason reached above chest height, it crumbled. They were again sent to Cold Tower for the night.”
“The next day, December 12, 1705, the alternative of conversion being again turned down, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh were put to death by execution. The aged Mata Gujri, who had all along been kept in the Cold Tower, only a little distance away, breathed her last as the news reached her ears.”
Jor Mela
Every year, the religious fair Jor Mela is organised from December 25 to December 28 in memory of the children and their grandmother at Sri Fatehgarh Sahib, which is attended by lakhs of devotees, not just from Punjab but also from other states.
