Opinion D Raja writes: India has failed to live up to Bhagat Singh’s ideals

If humanity is to survive, a system based on greed and divisions has to be replaced by one based on cooperation and harmony

He (Bhagat Singh) gave his life to uphold the cherished ideals of socialism, equality, prosperity and peace. He wanted to ‘organise the reconstruction of the whole society on the socialist basis’. (Source: Express Archive)

D. Raja

March 23, 2023 09:00 AM IST First published on: Mar 23, 2023 at 07:31 AM IST

“The proletariat will win. Capitalism will be defeated. Death to imperialism,” read Shaheed Bhagat Singh, wearing a red scarf, from a telegram message that was to be sent to the Third International on the occasion of Lenin’s death anniversary in 1930. This gesture made by Bhagat Singh not only underlined the international unity of the communist movement but also highlighted the core of his ideology, around which he wanted to build a free India and a prosperous world.

On March 23, 1931, Bhagat Singh and his two compatriots, Raj Guru and Sukhdev, were hanged to death by the British administration in a Lahore jail. In his last petition to the governor of Punjab, Bhagat Singh further declared that a “state of war does exist and shall exist so long as the Indian toiling masses and the natural resources are being exploited by a handful of parasites”. He said that these exploiters “may be purely British capitalist or mixed British and Indian or even purely Indian” and they must be fought against and defeated. In the context of Bhagat Singh’s understanding of society, we must take a look at the reality of our times and draw lessons from his sacrifice.

Inequality and concentration of wealth with a select few have reached unprecedented proportions in recent times. Owners of capital are celebrated as wealth-creators today while the toiling, hardworking masses struggle for two square meals and a roof above their heads. At the same time, these capitalists themselves are creating insecurity in the country at all fronts by engaging in illegal, reckless and immoral profiteering by damaging nature, resources and livelihoods.

The Adani Group’s unethical business practices are out in the open now and the government, by showering benefits and projects on this group, has contributed towards jeopardising critical infrastructure, including national defence. The government’s support and backing to the group makes it clear that the decline in the living standard of our population and the concentration of massive wealth with a few is a corollary to the BJP’s adherence to neoliberal capitalism. We must recall what Lenin said of this dastardly system: “As long as capitalism remains what it is, surplus capital will be utilised not for the purpose of raising the standard of living of the masses in a given country, for this would mean a decline in profits for the capitalists.”

As we are reaching the culmination of the first quarter of the 21st century, concerns about the compatibility of capitalism with a sustainable future for humanity are being raised across the globe. The crisis of finance capital is visible in the Adani Group losing its market value and Credit Suisse, a 150-year-old investment bank, reaching near bankruptcy. Worries about the survival of life as we know it need redress in the wake of climate change, global warming and rise in sea levels. The inhumane system of exploitation is using all its evil tools to ensure its survival, including capturing governments, dividing people, creating conflicts and wars.

This is what Bhagat Singh opposed. He gave his life to uphold the cherished ideals of socialism, equality, prosperity and peace. He wanted to “organise the reconstruction of the whole society on the socialist basis”. He was absolutely right and we can say without a shred of doubt that if humanity is to survive, the system based on greed and divisions has to be replaced by a system based on cooperation and harmony.

In our national life, Shaheed Bhagat Singh has come to occupy a unique position as a symbol of patriotism and sacrifice. He is a martyr for the cause of the workers, peasants and youth. Forces of reaction, divisiveness and strife are trying hard to appropriate the legacy of Bhagat Singh by distorting his image. Bhagat Singh was a revolutionary thinker and secularism was in his blood. By taking the words of Bhagat Singh to the people, we must ensure that every Indian knows what his martyrdom meant and what he sacrificed his life for.

It is our task to make sense of the world around us through Bhagat Singh’s work. We can uphold his legacy only by achieving a true rule of the people in our country, by adapting to a “life of constant struggle, suffering and sacrifice”. Evils of inequality, caste system, communalism, patriarchy and conflict around us are growing. We need to fight and defeat them and claim victory for the people. Struggling for that cherished aim is the true homage to Shaheed Bhagat Singh.

The writer is general secretary, CPI