On Wednesday, 28th September, the Chief Minister of Goa, Dr. Pramod Sawant visited Ambala, Haryana, for an extremely special cause. He felicitated Charanjeet Kaur, the widow of brave Sardar Karnail Singh, who had attained martyrdom at Patradevi on 15th August, 1955, while fighting for the liberation of the state of Goa against the Portuguese. A cheque of Rs. 10 lakhs was presented to Kaur.
Taking to Twitter, BJP Goa shared pictures, capturing the precious moments, and said, “Goa remains eternally indebted to the freedom fighters across India who laid down their lives for its liberation”.
Dr. Sawant felicitated Charanjeet Kaur in the wake of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav and 60 years of Goa Liberation.
Sardar Karnail Singh, who was 25-years-old then and had recently gotten married, had taken off to take part in the satyagraha march from Pune to Goa, which was a peaceful protest to demand the liberation of Goa from Portuguese rule. This was when the Portuguese army had opened fire against the protestors and in order to protect his friends, Karnail Singh had taken bullets on his own chest. He attained martyrdom fighting for Goa and its liberation from the draconian rule of the Portuguese.
Shaheed Karnail Singh was born on 9th September, 1930 in the Issru village of Punjab. He had four sisters and three brothers. The martyr was inspired at a young age by freedom fighters Shaheed Bhagat Singh and Lala Rajpat Rai. His village elders will tell you that he was a young man who would recite revolutionary songs and stage plays on great Indian martyrs. He was a patriot. After school completing his schooling, he took up a job as a primary school teacher to meet his college expenses and supplemented his family income by working at a shop as he came from a poor economic background. Shaheed Karnail Singh left behind his wife – Charanjeet Kaur – a 17-year-old girl he had married in May 1955.
The felicitation of both Sardar Karnail Singh and Charanjeet Kaur was long due, as after 2015, when the Goa government had placed his half-bust statue at the Patradevi Primary School, the government remained silent and did not do much in order to remember or honour the brave freedom fighter. Therefore, this step taken by the state’s government is a welcome move as we can never forget the sacrifices of our freedom fighters, made for a better future with the exuberance of independence to be enjoyed by us.
