Haqiqat Rai

Haqiqat Rai
Born Sialkot
Died Lahore
Other names Hakikat Rai
Citizenship Mughal Empire

Haqiqat Rai was an 18th-century teenager from Sialkot, who was executed in Lahore (Mughal Empire) for refusing to convert to Islam.

Biography

Haqiqat Rai was born into a Puri family, in Sialkot, Punjab. His father's name was Baghmal.[1] Different sources mention his year of birth differently, ranging from 1719 to 1724.[2][3]

One day some of his schoolmates abused Hindu gods and goddesses. Haqiqat Rai retorted by taking name of Fatimah, a daughter of the Muslim prophet Muhammad, that how will they feel if he abused her. He was reported to a qazi (Islamic judge), who asked the boy to either convert to Islam or accept capital punishment.[1]

Despite persuasion and pressure, the boy refused to convert to Islam. As a result, he was beheaded in Lahore, during the governorship of Zakariya Khan.[1] Different sources give different dates of his death, including 1732,[4] 1735,[5] 1742[6] and 1791.[7]

Legacy

In 1782, a poet named Aggra (aka Agra or Aggar Singh) wrote a Punjabi var (ballad) titled Haqiqat Rai di Var.[7] In this ballad, the boy is presented as a Hindu martyr.[1] Maharaja Ranjit Singh particularly revered Haqiqat Rai as a Sikh martyr.[6]

In the first decade of the twentieth century (1905–10), three Bengali writers popularized the legend of Haqiqat Rai's martyrdom through their essays. The three accounts differ greatly.[2] The Arya Samaj organized a play Dharmaveer Haqiqat Rai, advocating deep loyalty to Hinduism. It also printed copies of the legend, and distributed them free of cost or at a nominal price of 2 paisa.[8]

Before the partition of India in 1947, Hindus used to gather at his samadhi in Lahore, during the Basant Panchami Festival.[9] His samadhi in Sialkot was also a place of worship.[10] In 2004, Nawa-i-Waqt, a Pakistani daily opposed Basant Panchami celebrations in Pakistan, arguing that the festival celebrated Haqiqat Rai's insult of Muhammad.[11]

Another samadhi dedicated to Haqiqat Rai is located in Boeli of Baba Bhandari (Hoshiarpur district), where people gather and pay obeisance to Haqiqat Rai during Basant Panchami.[12] In Gurdaspur district, a shrine dedicated to him is located at Batala.[13] The town also has a samadhi dedicated to Sati Lakshmi Devi, said to be the wife of Haqiqat Rai.[14]

Many cities in India have localities named after Haqiqat Rai, mostly the ones where the partition refugees settled; for example, Hakikat Nagar in Delhi.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Ishwar Dayal Gaur (2008). Martyr as Bridegroom: A Folk Representation of Bhagat Singh. Anthem Press. pp. 45–. ISBN 978-81-905835-0-3.
  2. 1 2 Himadri Banerjee (2003). The other Sikhs: a view from eastern India. Manohar. pp. 185–186. ISBN 978-81-7304-495-3.
  3. ↑ Gokul Chand Narang (1972). Glorious history of Sikhism: from the times and teachings of Guru Nanak to the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. New Book Society of India. pp. 70–71.
  4. ↑ Ahsan Jan Qaisar; Som Prakash Verma; Mohammad Habib (1 January 1996). Art and Culture: Endeavours in Interpretation. Abhinav Publications. p. 9. ISBN 978-81-7017-315-1.
  5. ↑ Reeta Grewal; Sheena Pall; Indu Banga (2005). Precolonial and colonial Punjab: society, economy, politics, and culture : essays for Indu Banga. Manohar. p. 176. ISBN 978-81-7304-654-4.
  6. 1 2 W. H. McLeod (24 July 2009). The A to Z of Sikhism. Scarecrow Press. p. 87. ISBN 978-0-8108-6344-6.
  7. 1 2 Harbans Singh (1 January 1998). The Encyclopaedia of Sikhism: S-Z. Publications Bureau. p. 413. ISBN 978-81-7380-530-1.
  8. ↑ Nandini Gooptu (5 July 2001). The Politics of the Urban Poor in Early Twentieth-Century India. Cambridge University Press. pp. 223–. ISBN 978-0-521-44366-1.
  9. ↑ Pran Nevile (2006). Lahore : A Sentimental Journey. Penguin Books India. pp. 23–. ISBN 978-0-14-306197-7.
  10. ↑ Pritam Singh and Shinder Thandi, ed. (1996). Globalisation and the region: explorations in Punjabi identity. Association for Punjab Studies (UK). p. 49. ISBN 978-1-874699-05-7.
  11. ↑ "EDITORIAL: Can't we have a nice time?". Daily Times. 2004-02-16.
  12. ↑ "Basant Panchami celebrated in traditional way". The Tribune. 2010-01-21.
  13. ↑ Gurdaspur: Tourist Places
  14. ↑ India. Director of Census Operations, Punjab (1996). Census of India, 1991: Punjab. Controller of Publications. p. 17.
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