Bhai Balmukund (1889 – 8 May 1915) was an Indian revolutionary freedom fighter. He was sentenced to death and hanged by the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

for his role in

Delhi conspiracy case The Delhi Conspiracy case, also known as the Delhi-Lahore Conspiracy, refers to an attempt made in 1912 to assassinate the then Viceroy of India, Lord Hardinge by throwing a local self-made bomb, on the occasion of transferring the capital of ...

. He was a cousin of another revolutionary

Bhai Parmanand Bhai Parmanand (4 November 1876 – 8 December 1947) was an Indian nationalist and a prominent leader of the Hindu Mahasabha. Early life Parmanand was born into a prominent family of the Punjab, Mohyal Brahmins. His father, Tara Chand Mohyal, ...

, who was a founder member of

Ghadar Party The Ghadar Movement was an early 20th century, international political movement founded by expatriate Indians to overthrow British rule in India. The early movement was created by conspirators who lived and worked on the West Coast of the Unite ...

Earlier life

Bhai Balmukund was born in a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Mohyal Mohyal Brahmins (or Potohari Brahmins) are an Indian sub-caste of Saraswat Brahmins from the Punjab region, who are sometimes referred to as 'Warrior Brahmins'. Mohyal Brahmins were the ancient and one of the first Hindu rulers of Punjab and Afg ...

family on 1889 at village Kariala in Jhelum district (now in Pakistan). His father's name was Bhai Mathura Das. His family hailed from a famous martyr of

history

Bhai Mati Das Bhai Mati Das ( Punjabi: ਭਾਈ ਮਤੀ ਦਾਸ; died 1675) along with his younger brother Bhai Sati Das were martyrs of early Sikh history. Bhai Mati Das, Bhai Dayala, and Bhai Sati Das were executed at a ''kotwali'' (police-station) in ...

from whom they attached the epithet ''Bhai'' to their names. Balmukund's interest in national movement aroused when he was a student. After graduation, he took the profession of teaching, but his attachments to the national movement made him an ardent nationalist.

Revolutionary activities

On 23 December 1912, when Lord Hardinge was marching in a state through the

Chandni Chowk The Chandni Chowk, also known as Moonlight Square is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, India. It is located close to the Old Delhi Railway Station. The Red Fort monument is located at the eastern end of Chandni Chowk. It was b ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

, a bomb was thrown on him. The Viceroy received minor injuries only, but his attendant was killed. Another bomb was thrown at some Europeans at Lawrence Garden,

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

five months later on 17 May 1913. Following investigations, Balmukund was arrested from

Jodhpur Jodhpur (; ) is the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and officially the second metropolitan city of the state. It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur was historically the capital of the ...

, where he was working as a tutor of the Jodhpur Maharaja's sons.

Death

A trial was held at Delhi after the investigations of the bombings and Balmukund was sentenced to death along with his companions Master Amir Chand, Awadh Behari, and

Basanta Kumar Biswas Basanta Kumar Biswas (6 February 1895 – 11 May 1915) was an Indian pro-independence activist involved in the Jugantar group who, in December 1912, played a role in the bombing of the Viceroy's parade in what came to be known as the Delhi-Lah ...

on 5 October 1914. He was hanged in the Old Delhi Jail near Delhi Gate on 8 May 1915 at the age of 26.

References

Bibliogrpahy

* * {{Indian Revolutionary Movement Indian revolutionaries 1915 deaths 1889 births Revolutionary movement for Indian independence People from Jhelum