Shaheed Bhai Bohar Singh Deol

Khalistan Liberation Force

 

Bhai Bohar Singh Deol was born in 1967 to the blessed womb of mother, Mata Chint Kaur and father Jathedar Sardar Jagat Singh in the village of Valtoha, Patti, district Amritsar. Bhai Bohar Singh was one of seven children, with three brothers and three sisters – Bhai Surjit Singh, Bhai Karaj Singh, Bhai Amarjit Singh, Bibi Joginder Kaur, Bibi Ajeet Kaur and Gurmeet Kaur. The family arranged the marriage of Bhai Bohar Singh to Bibi Salwinder Kaur and were blessed with one child, son Bhai Dalwinder Singh. Bhai Bohar Singh studied up to fifth grade at the local government school of village. His father worked in agriculture, cultivating, and farming their own land to then sell the crops.

 

In his young adult years, the armed struggle and fight for Khalistan was at its peak. Many young Sikh males from the area and surrounding villages had felt the persecution upon them from the Indian security forces and the aftermath of the June 1984 attack on Sri Harmandir Sahib had much repercussions. They joined the armed movement in the masses. Bhai Bohar Singh then met the lieutenant of the Khalistan Liberation Force Lieutenant General Bhai Anar Singh Para alias Chhotta Brahma and he began to serve with this militia group anonymously. Bhai Bohar Singh Deol was initially given the duty of making arrangements of hide outs and pit stop locations for the Jhujaru Singhs. Then slowly he was given opportunities to serve in Jhujaru actions. He would sleep outdoors mostly, beside the open water wells and be the point of contact for Jhujaru Singhs who would pass by area and be in need of food and shelter. On one occasion Bhai Anar Singh Para came to Bhai Bohar Singh’s house and took him along to cross the border into Pakistan and they spent two months in training how to use and navigate many types of firearms. Bhai Sahib had the blessed opportunity to spend much time with the senior generals in Pakistan.

 

Bhai Bohar Singh’s mother would plea with her son to stop serving with the Jhujaru groups and to come home and live with the family. Mata Chint Kaur would say to Bhai Sahib, “If police find out about your involvement, they will not spare you and you are newly married and have your wife to think of.” But the blessed soul of Bhai Bohar Singh would reply in high spirits and say, “O mother, blessed opportunities like this to serve the Guru-Panth do not come time and time again, one must take it and serve with open arms. The season of Martyrdom is upon us. Our tenth master also sacrificed his four sons for the Quam. I, too, want to serve my Quam, do not stop me and I will not betray the Jhujaru Singhs. Instead, please give me your blessing, so that I may eliminate these heinous perpetrators who attacked our most sacred home, Sri Harmandir Sahib. To teach them a lesson and free our people by creating our own homeland Khalistan.” Bhai Bohar Singh continued serving the cause and under the command of Bhai Anar Singh Para, he played key roles in many Jhujaru actions in eliminating perpetrators.

 

On 26th September 1990, Bhai Bohar Singh was crossing the border into Pakistan along with his fellow Jhujaru Singhs. As they were crossing, they were spotted by the BSF and there began an open fire battle between the 2 sides. In order to save his Jhujaru brothers, he maintained fire and diverted the attention of the BSF soldiers to his direction. The Jhujaru Singhs all managed to escape. In this firing battle, Bhai Bohar Singh Deol struck eight BSF officers. Bhai Bohar Singh met his final moments here where he was shot and attained martyrdom. He had one bullet to his foot and a second to his chest.

 

The Jhujaru Singhs were able to inform the family that Bhai Bohar Singh Deol had attained martyrdom. The family obtained his body from the Patti hospital following the post mortem. Shaheed Bhai Bohar Singh Deol was cremated on his family-owned fields. It was only after his martyrdom that the police came to know of his contribution and participation in the fight for Khalistan and the armed movement. Prior to this, the police had never heard of him and that to hailing from the village of Valtoha famous for other Jhujaru Singhs.

 

In turn, the police continued to harass and torture his family, accusing them of homing Jhujaru Singhs and to tell them the whereabouts on where the firearms were kept. At the time of martyrdom Bhai Bohar Singh, his son was only a mere one year and a half old. His final prayers, Sri Akhand Paath Sahib was attended by a mass gathering, with attendance from Bhai Dhian Singh Mand, along with leaders from Damdami Taksal and Sikh Students Federation. Shaheed Bhai Bohar Singh Deol’s son, Bhai Dalwinder Singh is very proud of his father and knowing he served his Quam till his last breath.

 

Information given by the family of Shaheed Bhai Bihar Singh Deol