Taking up a public interest litigation seeking directions for protecting the first headquarters of the Krantikari Party of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and other revolutionaries at Ferozepur as a historical monument, the Punjab and Haryana high court has issued a notice of motion to the Punjab government and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to file their replies.
The petition came up for hearing before the division bench comprising acting chief justice Ashutosh Mohunta and justice Anupinder Singh Grewal on Thursday.
The court was informed that the building (headquarters), situated in Mohalla Shahganj, Turi Bazaar, Ferozepur, needed to be protected as a monument so that the coming generations would come to know of the sacrifice of revolutionaries in India’s freedom struggle.
The petitioner informed the court that as per a well-researched book, ‘Bhagat Singh -- The Eternal Rebel’, authored by noted historian Malwinder Jit Singh Waraich, this headquarters was used by Bhagat Singh and other revolutionaries from August 1928 to February 1929. It was added that the double-storeyed building is in good condition and as per news reports, its owners are ready to hand it over to the state government in case the latter intended to use it as a monument.
According to reports, about eight years ago, then deputy commissioner, Ferozepur, had invited officers of the ASI, who inspected the building but there was no follow-up thereafter. The petitioner pleaded that the building should be preserved as a national monument under the Punjab Ancient and Historical Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1964. The case would now come up for hearing on January 15, 2015.
{{/usCountry}}According to reports, about eight years ago, then deputy commissioner, Ferozepur, had invited officers of the ASI, who inspected the building but there was no follow-up thereafter. The petitioner pleaded that the building should be preserved as a national monument under the Punjab Ancient and Historical Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1964. The case would now come up for hearing on January 15, 2015.
{{/usCountry}}