Sohan Singh Bhakna Indian revolutionary, founder and president of the Ghadar Party Date of Birth: 01.01.1870 Country: India

1. Early Life and Education
2. Nationalist Awakening and Political Activism
3. Life in the United States and the Ghadar Party
4. Later Life and Legacy

Early Life and Education

Sohan Singh Bhakna, an Indian revolutionary and a founding member of the Ghadar Party, was born in January 1870 in the village of Hutrai Khurd, near Amritsar, Punjab. His father, Bhai Karam Singh, was from the village of Bhakna, located 16 kilometers southwest of Amritsar. Young Sohan Singh spent part of his childhood in Bhakna, attending school at the village gurdwara. He learned to read and write in Punjabi and received basic Sikh religious education. At the age of 10, he was married to Bishan Kaur, the daughter of a landlord from Lahore named Hushaya Singh. Sohan Singh completed his education at the age of 16, proficient in Persian and Urdu languages. His marriage with Bishan Kaur remained childless.

Nationalist Awakening and Political Activism

Sohan Singh joined the nationalist movement and peasant struggles that erupted in Punjab during the early 1900s. He actively participated in the protests against the anti-colonial Colonization Bill of 1906-1907. In February 1909, he boarded a ship bound for the United States, leaving behind his homeland and family.

Life in the United States and the Ghadar Party

After a two-month voyage, Sohan Singh arrived in Seattle on April 4, 1909. He found work at a lumber mill in a suburb of Seattle. Inspired by the Indian independence movement, he became involved in political activities among the large number of Indian immigrants on the Pacific coast, particularly those from Punjab who had emigrated due to economic and political turmoil.

Sohan Singh became a member of the Hindustani Workers of the Pacific Coast (HWPC), later known as the Ghadar Party, which was founded in 1913 under the leadership of Har Dayal, Khanhoje, and Sohan Singh Bhakna. He served as the organization's president. The Ghadar Party worked to mobilize support for Indian independence and planned an insurrection against British rule in India.

Later Life and Legacy

After serving a life sentence in prison and spending 16 years behind bars, Sohan Singh Bhakna was released in 1930. He returned to India and remained politically active, collaborating with the Communist Party of India and participating in the Indian labor movement. He passed away in August 1963, leaving behind a legacy of perjuangan against colonialism and his unwavering spirit of patriotism.