Chandra Shekhar Azad

Childhood & Early Life

Chandra Shekhar Azad was born Chandra Shekhar Tiwari, to Pandit Sita Ram Tiwari and Jagrani Devi on July 23, 1906 in Bhavra village in Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh. Chandra Shekhar grew up with Bhils who inhabited the area and learnt wrestling, swimming along with archery. He was an ardent follower of Lord Hanuman from a young age. He practiced javelin throwing and developed an enviable physique. He received his early schooling in Bhavra. For higher studies he went to a Sanskrit Pathashala in Varanasi. As a child Chandrashekhar was wayward and preferred outdoors. As a student he was average but once in Benares, he came in contact with several young nationalists.

Revolutionary Activities

The Jallianwallah Bagh Massacre took place in 1919 and the brutal deed of British oppression had reverberating effect on the Indian Nationalist movement. The blatant disregard exhibited by the British towards basic human rights and unnecessary use of violence on a group of unarmed and peaceful people, incited a burst of hatred from the Indians directed towards the British Raj. The nation was gripped by this anti-British euphoria and Chandra Shekhar was part of a group of young revolutionaries who dedicated their lives towards a single goal – securing freedom for his beloved motherland by driving the British away from India.

Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) & Azad

The announcement to suspend the non-cooperation movement came as a blow to the nascent Indian Nationalist Sentiments. Azad was much agitated in its aftermath and decided that a fully aggressive course of action was more suitable for his desired outcome. He met Ram Prasad Bismil, the founder of Hindustan Republican Association through Pranavesh Chatterji. He joined the HRA and concentrated his efforts on collecting funds for the association. He planned and executed daring attempts to rob government treasury to raise funds in order to further their revolutionary activities.

Kakori Conspiracy

Ram Prasad Bismil conceived the idea of looting a train carrying treasury money to fund acquiring of weapons for revolutionary activities. Bismil had noticed several security loopholes in trains carrying treasury money and a suitable plan was devised. They targeted the No. 8 Down train travelling from Shahjahanpur to Lucknow and intercepted it at Kakori. They stopped the train by pulling the chain, overpowered the guard and took 8000 rupees from the guard cabin. In the ensuing gunfight between the armed guards and the revolutionaries, one passenger died. The government declared this as murder and launched an intense manhunt to round up the involved revolutionaries. Azad evaded arrest and carried on revolutionary activities from Jhansi.

Martyrdom

Azad’s impact on the British Raj law enforcement faction was evident from how much effort they put to capture him, dead or alive. They even announced a reward of Rs. 30,000 on his head. The huge amount of money led to vital information on the whereabouts of Azad. On February 27, 1931 Chandrashekhar Azad was meeting with friends at Alfred Park, Allahabad. A pre-informed police surrounded the park and asked Chandrashekhar Azad to surrender. Azad fought valiantly to allow his friends safe passage and killed three policemen. Though his shooting skills were immensely sharp, he started receding and was badly injured. After nearly exhausting his ammunition and foreseeing no means of escape, he shot himself in the head with his last bullet. He upheld his vow never to be captured by the British.