Shaheed Bhai Karnail Singh alias Baghel Singh Babbar

Babbar Khalsa

 

Bhai Karnail Singh was born in 1961 from the blessed womb of mother Mata Dhan Kaur and father Sardar Jora Singh, in the village of Lashkri, district Barnala. Bhai Karnail Singh was a sibling of six brothers and six sisters. Like most village families, farming and agriculture was their main means of livelihood and financial stability. Bhai Karnail Singh studied up to fifth grade at his local village school. Bhai Karnail Singh then went onto work alongside his father in cultivating their land and earning an honest living by farming.

 

In the year 1981, Bhai Karnail Singh was married to Bibi Naseeb Kaur. They were blessed with a daughter Sukhpal Kaur and a son Jeevan Singh. The family lived a normal content life. It was in 1990 that the movement and the fight for freedom took popularity in the area. Bhai Karnail Singh became very aware of the injustices and the situation in their region. He too became active in supporting the movement.

 

Bhai Karnail Singh became acquainted with Bhai Sukhdev Singh Tana from the Babbar Khalsa Jhujaru group. Bhai Karnail Singh was assigned under the command of Bhai Hari Singh (village Lehra Dakha). Bhai Karnail Singh served alongside Bhai Sukhdev Singh Tana, Bhai Satnam Singh Bachi (village Kaneke, Barnala), Bhai Beant Singh (Lehra Dakha), Bhai Baljit Singh (Lehra Bega, Bathinda) and other Gursikh warriors.

 

On 22nd November 1992, Bhai Karnail Singh was in the village of Phoola Nathana, at the house of a family who supported the Jhujaru Singhs. The family had served him a meal which he was eating. Unfortunately, the police were tipped off on his whereabouts and suddenly the house was surrounded.  Bhai Karnail Singh was not going to allow himself to be captured, so he fought against the tyrant police. Bhai Karnail Singh only had some ammunition on him but he battled for a full eight hours. He climbed the tree which was in the front of the house and used that as his position base to sniper as many police officers as he could. Eventually, the police caught site of Bhai Karnail Singh and shot him, thus attaining Shaheedi (martyrdom). The police took his body and cremated him at the cremation grounds of Bathinda. The remains and ashes were given to the family. On the same day, a fellow Jhujaru Singh Bhai Baljit Singh also attained Shaheedi (martyrdom) at a different location.

 

Information given by the family of Shaheed Bhai Karnail Singh alias Baghel Singh Babbar