Phatte Bahadur Singh ( ne, फत्तेबहादुर सिंह्) (1902–1983) was a Nepalese poet and journalist who started the first daily newspaper in

Nepal Bhasa Newar (), or Newari and known officially in Nepal as Nepal Bhasa, is a Sino-Tibetan languages, Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Newar people, the indigenous inhabitants of Nepal Mandala, which consists of the Kathmandu Valley and surro ...

. He suffered persecution and was jailed for his activities to develop his mother tongue. Singh was born in

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...

to father Kuldip and mother Dev Lani Singh. He was the grandson of poet

Siddhidas Mahaju Siddhidas Mahaju ( ne, सिद्धिदास महाजु) (alternative name: Siddhidas Amatya) (15 October 1867 – 29 December 1929) was a Nepalese poet and one of the Four Pillars of Nepal Bhasa. He was at the forefront in the end ...

. Singh published his first poem entitled "Bānmalāhgu Chāl" (meaning "Bad move") in '' Buddha Dharma wa Nepal Bhasa'' in 1930.Bajracharya, Phanindra Ratna (2003). ''Who's Who in Nepal Bhasha.'' Kathmandu: Nepal Bhasa Academy. . Page 37.

Imprisonment

Nepal's autocratic

Rana Rana may refer to: Astronomy * Rana (crater), a crater on Mars * Delta Eridani or Rana, a star People, groups and titles * Rana (name), a given name and surname (including a list of people and characters with the name) * Rana (title), a histori ...

regime disapproved of Nepal Bhasa, and writers and publishers were harassed and imprisoned. Singh was sentenced to life in prison for editing and publishing an anthology of poems by various poets entitled ''Nepali Bihar'' in 1939. He had the book printed in

Bettiah Bettiah is a city and administrative headquarters of West Champaran district ( Tirhut Division) - (Tirhut), near Indo-Nepal border, north-west of Patna, in Bihar state of India. History In 1244 A.D., Gangeshwar Dev, a Bhumihar Brahmin of ...

, India and shipped to Nepal. After half of the print run had been sold, the rest of the copies were confiscated. Singh was in jail from 1941 to 1945, when he was released along with other writers

Chittadhar Hridaya Chittadhar Hridaya ( ne, चित्तधर हृदय; born Chittadhar Tuladhar; 19 May 1906 – 9 June 1982) was a Nepalese poet. He is regarded as one of the greatest literary figures from Nepal in the 20th century. The title of Kavi Kes ...

and

Siddhicharan Shrestha Siddhicharan Shrestha (Devanagari: सिद्धिचरण श्रेष्ठ; 21 May 1912 – 4 June 1992) was one of the most prominent writers of Nepal. He contributed to the struggle against the autocratic Rana regime (1846–1951) thr ...

. In 1951, the Ranas were overthrown and democracy was established in Nepal. This brought freedom to publish material in Nepal Bhasa.

''Nepal Bhasa Patrika''

On 28 September 1955, Singh launched ''

Nepal Bhasa Patrika ''Nepal Bhasa Patrika'' ( ne, नेपाल भाषा पत्रिका) was the first daily newspaper in the Newar language. It launched on 28 September 1955 from Kathmandu, Nepal. The first editor and publisher was Phatte Bahadur Sin ...

'' (नेपाल भाषा पत्रिका), the first daily newspaper in Nepal Bhasa, as editor and publisher. It was published from

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...

and was among the few dailies during the time. In 1962, Singh was elected president of the Federation of Nepali Journalists. He was president of Nepal Bhasa Parisad (Nepal Bhasa Council) from 1955 to 1960. ''Nepal Bhasa Patrika'' (meaning "Nepal Bhasa Periodical") championed

language rights Linguistic rights are the human and civil rights concerning the individual and collective right to choose the language or languages for communication in a private or public atmosphere. Other parameters for analyzing linguistic rights include the ...

and also reflected the interests of Nepalese business.Rose, Leo E. (1971). ''Nepal: Strategy for Survival.'' University of California Press. , 9780520016439. Page 211. It ceased publication not long after Singh's death in 1983.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Phatte Bahadur 1902 births 1983 deaths People from Kathmandu Nepalese journalists Nepalese male poets Newar-language writers Nepali-language writers Nepal Bhasa movement Imprisoned journalists 20th-century poets 20th-century journalists