Shaheed Bhai Avtar Singh Bisrampur

Khalistan Commando Force

Bisrampur village falls in between the borders of Jalandher district, here in the house of Sardar Jagir Singh and from the womb of Mata Harbans Kaur, the only son to take birth. Bhai Sahib had one older sister, Bibi Nirmal Kaur and one younger sister Bibi Parkash Kaur, Bhai Sahib was their only adorable brother. The whole family of Bhai Sahib was connected to Damdami Taksal, Sikhi could be seen all over the household. The whole family were Amritdhari, never missed nitnem and were always doing sewa simran, for this reason Bhai Sahib was attached to gurmat from the start. From childhood Bhai Sahib had a warm personality, Nitnemi and was a guard of Sikh principles and values. Even though Bhai Sahib worked in the farms with his family, he would sing the praises of Sikh warriors or recite gurbani kirtan.

Bhai Sahib passed 12th class from a government higher secondary school and after joined his family in agriculture. In 1978 Bhai Sahib married the daughter of Sardar Shiv Singh, Bibi Jasbir Kaur who was also from the Jalandher district. It was in the same year, that a dog of Delhi government and a Narakhdari leader Gurbachna killed 13 singhs in Amritsar on Visakhi. This act of the Narakhdharis started a movement of justice within the Sikh nation. When the Sikhs asked the killers to be punished, the Indian judicial system freed Gurbachana and his 64 accomplices and instead ordered the arrest of Sikhs who were asking for justice.

After many attempts to get justice, the Sikhs were failed miserably by the Indian government. Now following the orders if 10th guru, Guru Gobind Singh Ji” If all else fails, it is but righteous to draw the sword.” The brave general of the Sikhs, Sant Jarnail Singh Ji Bhindranwale took matters into his own hands. Sant Ji announced the extinction of the Narakhdharis and started an armed movement against the cult. The mothers who had bought their sons up with milk, butter, care and love, now left their big houses and easy lives to join the truly pure movement to get justice for the Sikh nation amongst these warriors was the only son of Mata Harbans Kaur.

Bhai Sahib’s family were the follower of Damdami Taksal, they understood the sewa Bhai Sahib wanted to take and supported him. Other singhs from the same area as Bhai Sahib would come to Bhai Sahib’s house and have langar. One day as singhs had langar Bhai Sahib requested the singhs to take him with them and give him sewa, but singhs told Bhai Sahib to do sewa while staying at home. Then for some time Bhai Sahib continued to do sewa of Jhujaru Singhs while staying at home during this period the attack on Sri Darbar Sahib took place in June 1984. Bhai Sahib was now anxious to jump in to the battlefield, but remained at home obeying the order of the singhs and continued to do sewa, by now Bhai Sahib had 3 children, 1 son and 2 daughters.

After the attack in Sri Darbar Sahib and the Sikh genocide in Delhi and other major cities of India, Bhai Sahib and his family came under the eye of these killers. The Punjab police  would come to Bhai Sahib’s villages and surround his house and harass the elders as well as the children, but probably the police did not know that Bhai Sahib was doing sewa secretly and this may be the reason why the police didn’t arrest them him. Bhai Sahib thought that if I continue to do sewa in secret the police will find out soon and then they’ll arrest me from home and make me shaheed and my dream of fighting in the battlefield will remain a dream. With this thought one day in 1986 Bhai Sahib left home in the evening without telling anyone. After many days Bhai Sahib’s family found out that he had joined a freedom fighting group under the name of Khalistan Commando Force.

Sometime later, Bhai Sahib came home once at night with fellow singhs. As Bhai Sahib was about to leave his mother asked Bhai Sahib to stay at home for the sake of his own children, but Bhai Sahib answered, “Everything in this world nor did you bring it with you, nor did I. All these materialistic things will remain in this world after you and me. My duty is given to me by Guru Maharaj to defend the panth, there is no question of turning back, now my mother please do Ardas in the feet of Akaalpurakh that your son attains an honourable shaheedi with bravery.”

Once Bhai Sahib had gone underground with Khalistan Commando Force, the Punjab police started harassing and arresting family members. The police would regularly arrest Bhai Sahib’s mother and wife, they were taken to Police Stations around Kapurthala and his in-laws, his sister’s families were also arrested and tortured. Once Bhai Sahib’s Mama Ji started farming on Bhai Sahib’s farms as Mata Harbans Kaur had asked her brother, soon as he set up the water feed to the farms the police had come and arrested Bhai Sahib’s Mama Ji and made him shaheed for farming on his nephews farms.

On 25th May 1988, Bhai Sahib and a fellow singh, Bhai Balbir Singh were resting in a house in a village Patarh Kalan, when an informant had told the Kapurthala police. It was 4pm, big numbers of Indian security forces surrounded the house Bhai Sahib was in. Both singhs at the time were unarmed, for this reason the singhs could not battle with the forces. The singhs saw no route of escape and were arrested.

Bhai Sahib was bought to Kapurthala’s Sadar police station, here Bhai Sahib was blindly tortured. The butcher DSP Sawarn Ghotna tortured Bhai Sahib all night of 25th May to attain information on the singhs and weapons of Khalistan Commando Force, every tactic of DSP Ghotna failed in front of the singhs of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. The DSP who said that he will finish every Jhujaru Singh was so angry, as he got no information from Bhai Sahib that in the morning of 26th May 1988 at roughly 4am he shot Bhai Sahib and made him shaheed. Then later screened a fake encounter in village near the police station, Biharpur. In the same village Bhai Sahib’s older sister Bibi Nirmal Kaur was married.

10 months before going underground and joining Khalistan Commando Force, Bhai Sahib had a dispute with someone over the watering of the farms. One day as Bhai Sahib was alone, the people who he had a dispute with attacked him with swords. Bhai Sahib was badly wounded and had no hope of survival, but maybe Waheguru had sewa lined up for Bhai Sahib, for this reason family was informed of this attack and took Bhai Sahib to hospital. After some months Bhai Sahib made a full recovery and was well again.

Then when Bhai Sahib had joined the Khalistan Commando Force, some of Bhai Sahib’s relatives told Bhai Sahib to avenge the attack, but Bhai Sahib said “When this attack happened, at that time I belonged to my family and that attack happened due to family. Now I belong to the Sikh panth and will only fight in panthic fights. I can’t bring shame to the Sikh Freedom Movement by dealing with my personal problems.”

Khalsa Fatehnama – October 2007