Glossary

January 18.	(a) Sixteen more Kookas (Namdhari Sikhs were blown off by the guns on the charge of fomenting sedition against the British.
	(b) Birthday of Bhai Himmat Singh. He was born this day in A.D. 1661 to Gulzari and Bibi Dhanno at Jagan Nath Puri in Orissa. He offered his head in response to the call of Guru Gobind Singh on 30th March, 1699 and was blessed with the honorific Pyara-the dearest one. He was administered Pahul by the Guru and then he, as one of the five Pyaras (beloved disciples), administered Pahul to Guru. He died fighting in 1704 in the battle of Chamkaur.
	(c) Maharaja Sher Singh became Maharaja (A.D. 1841). He was assassinated along with his son by Ajit Singh Sandhawalia on September 15, 1843
	(d) Baba Ram Singh, the Chief of the Namdharis was deported to Rangoon in Burma in 1872 where he died on November 29, 1885.
	(a) The keys of Tosha Khana Sri Harmandir Sahib Amritsar, which had been forcibly seized by Govt. in 1921, were returned to Baba Kharak Singh, President of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee wrapped in a piece of red cloth by a gazetted official of Punjab Government in A.D, 1922 right in the congregation being held in front of Sri Akal Takhat Sahib. The air became thick with shouts of Sat Sri Akal.
	(b) Martyrdom of Sardar Sewa Singh Thikriwala (A.D. 1935) after a protracted fast
January 20:	(a) The judgement in the Babbar Akali case was announced this day in 1926, as a result of which five Babbar Akalis were ordered to be hanged till death, eleven were sentenced to life imprisonment and 38 to four years. The Babbar Akalis who numbered nearly ninety were great freedom fighters committed to high principles. They believed in violent struggle against the British to liberate their country from their stranglehold. They had resolved to kill fifth columnists among the freedom fighters, toadies and loyalists of the British.
	(b) Sher Singh, the son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh was coronated on this day in 1841 at the age of 34. He and his minor son Partap Singh, was killed on 15th September, 1843 by Sandhawalias, Ajit Singh and Lehna Singh. He was born in 1807 and his mother's name was Mehtab Kaur.

January 31:	(a) The Management of Gurdwara Guru Ka Bagh was taken over from mahant Sunder Das and handed over to Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandtyak Committee after a protracted agitation of the Akalis (A.D. 1922).
	(b) A great Sikh Savant Attar Singh (Sant) passed away (A.D. 1927) at SANGRUR
February 5:	(a) The Great Holocaust: On this day, the Afghan invader Ahmed Shah Abdali attacked the Sikhs who were then resting in the jungle nearby Kup Roheera. The Sikhs determinedly battled first at Kup Roheera then at Bahmanian and lastly at village Gahar. Though the Sikhs suffered a colossal loss (thirty thousand deaths out of total of 50 thousand including Vaheer), yet they remained relentless and as high-spirited as they were ever. Ahmed Shah Abdali led a few more expeditions against the Sikhs; but at long last he was completely exhausted. As a result, the Sikhs succeeded in establishing Khalsa Rule, which lasted upto the middle of nineteenth century
	, (b) The famous Sikh shrine Panja Sahib at Hassan Abdal (Pakistan) was brought under the management of S.G.P.C. in A.D. 1921. It was here that Guru Nanak smashed the ego-centricity of Wall Qandhari. It is said that he rolled boulder from his abode at the top of the hillock down on the Guru, who was sitting at its foot, apparently to give vent to his spite which he harboured and nourished at the Guru's ever-swelling reputation. The Guru stopped the boulder with his palm. In the process, an impression of his hand got stamped on the rock out of which the water gushed out. The place thus began to be called 'Panja Sahib' as a reverence to Guru Nanak's visit. Every year on Baisakhi day, the Sikhs visit the place in large numbers to celebrate the occasion with fervour.
February 9:	First World Sikh Convention was convened by Jathedar Gurcharan Singh Tohra' (A.D.1975). It resolved (i) to get gurdwaras exempted from Land Ceiling and (ii) from the levy of the income tax on gurdwaras, (iii) to keep intact the jurisdiction of S.G.P.C. as it existed earlier (iv) to force government to hold elections to Delhi Gurdwaras Parbandhak Committee as per the relevant Act. The central government by an ordinance (May 9,1975) agreed to implement all the four demands.
February 10:	(a) The brave Sikh general Sardar Sham Singh of Attariwala, symbolising the unflinching will of the Khalsa fell fighting in the battle of Sabhraon (A.D. 1846). The Sikhs suffered a heavy loss because of the treacherous role of their leaders.
	(b) Birth of Kanwar Naunihal Singh to Maharaja Kharak Singh and Maharani Mehtab Kaur. He fell victim to the intrigues of Dogras led by Raja Dhian Singh on November 5, 1840.
February 15:	The East India Company established cantonment in Ludhiana in (A.D. 1809) in collusion with Bhag Singh, the ruler of Jind state and other Sikh Sardars of cis- Sutlej areas of the Panjab to meet any contigency from the side of Lahore Darbar.
February 21:	(a) The cruel and cold-blooded massacre of the Sikh devotees at Nankana Sahib-the birth place of Guru NanakDevJi, took place in 1921 at the behest of wily and unscrupulous Mahant Narain Das who, unfortunately for the Sikhs, managed the affairs of the holy place at that time. A group of more than two hundred Sikh devotees had gone to make obeisance as well as to liberate the holy shrine from the control of the Mahant by non-violent and peaceful means. The Mahant caused this massacre through a few hired hoodlums. In his work, he also enjoyed the tacit support of the Punjab government. Quite a large number of Sikhs were gunned down, many were slashed with axes and swords, while some were fastened to a land Tree nearby Janamasthan and burnt alive. The event, because of its horribleness, is known as the bloodiest event of the twentieth century. On the following day, the government handed over the keys of the Gurdwara to Sardar Harbans Singh Attari, the Vice President of S.G.P.C.
	(b) The last battle of the second Anglo-Sikh War (A.D. 1849) was fought at Gujrat that resulted in the defeat of Sikh forces. Sher Singh and Chattar Singh, the Sikh generals, were deported by the victors and Punjab was annexed to British Indian Empire.
	(c) The agitation of Jaito took a serious turn when in 1924. Under the orders of British Administrator of Nabha State, the forces opened fire to prevent the march of the first sacrifice squad alongwith Sikh desires to their holy shrine Gangsar at Jaito. More than twenty one Sikhs fell under fire besides many wounded. More than seven hundred were arrested.
February 27:	Six Babbar Akalis were hanged to death in Lahore Central Jail in A.D. 1926.
February 28:	(a) Judgement of Second Babbar Akali case (A.D. 1925).
	(b) All India Congress Committee passed a resolution in 1924 condemning the killings of Sikh devotees at Jaito and expressing sympathy for the valiant Akalis. (A.D. 1924)