Mahavir Singh Rathore (16 September 1904 — 17 May 1933) was an Indian revolutionary and independence fighter in the 1930s. Singh was a member of

Naujawan Bharat Sabha Naujawan Bharat Sabha (NBS, sometimes spelled Nau Jawan Bharat Sabha , with the acronym NJBS) ( Youth Society of India) was a left-wing Indian association that sought to foment revolution against the British Raj by gathering together worker and p ...

. He helped in the escape of

Bhagat Singh Bhagat Singh (27 September 1907 – 23 March 1931) was an Indian anti-colonial revolutionary who participated in the mistaken murder of a junior British police officer in December 1928 in what was intended to be retaliation for the deat ...

Batukeshwar Dutt Batukeshwar Dutta (or Dutta; 18 November 1910 – 20 July 1965) was an Indian socialist and independence fighter in the early 1900s. He is best known for having exploded two bombs, along with Bhagat Singh, in the Central Legislative Assembly ...

and

Durgawati Devi Durgavati Devi (7 October 1907 – 15 October 1999), popularly known as ''Durga Bhabhi'', was an Indian revolutionary and freedom fighter. She was one of the few women revolutionaries who actively participated in armed revolution against the rul ...

from Mozang House in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

. He was arrested as part of the Second Lahore Conspiracy Case and took part in the

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...

of 1933 to protest the treatment of prisoners along with Mohit Moitra (convicted in Arms Act Case), Mohan Kishore Namadas (also convicted in Arms Act Case). and 30 others. Singh died on 17 May 1933 due to

force feeding Force-feeding is the practice of feeding a human or animal against their will. The term ''gavage'' (, , ) refers to supplying a substance by means of a small plastic feeding tube passed through the nose ( nasogastric) or mouth (orogastric) into t ...

. Mohit Moitra and Mohan Kishore Namadas also

died Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sho ...

during the hunger strike. A statue was erected in front of the

Cellular Jail The Cellular Jail, also known as Kālā Pānī (), was a British colonial prison in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The prison was used by the colonial government of India for the purpose of exiling criminals and political prisoners. Many ...

in his honor.

Early life

Mahavir Singh was born in

Rajput Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...

( Thakur) family on Shahpur Tahla in Kasganj District (then

tehsil A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a Zila (country subdivision), district including the designated populated place that ser ...

of district Etah) of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

on 16 September 1904. His father was Debi Singh. He became involved in revolutionary activity while studying in DAV College, Kanpur.

Revolutionary activities

Mahavir Singh was a member of

. He helped in the escape of

and

from Mauzang House in

. He was arrested as part of the Second Lahore Conspiracy Case and took part in the Hunger Strike of 1933 to protest the treatment of prisoners along with Mohit Moitra (convicted in Arms Act Case) and Mohan Kishore Namadas (convicted in Arms Act Case) and 30 others.

Death

Mahavir Singh died on 17 May 1933 due to

. Mohit Moitra and Mohan Kishore Namadas also

during the Hunger Strike.

Popular culture

*In 2023 63rd Episode of ''Swaraj'' included a full episode on Mahavir Singh. The title role of Mahavir Singh was played by actor Shagun Pandey and aired on

DD National DD National (formerly DD1) is an Indian state-owned entertainment television channel, founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. It is the flagshi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Mahavir Indian revolutionaries Revolutionary movement for Indian independence 1933 deaths 1904 births People from Etah Prisoners and detainees of British India Indian people who died in prison custody