Shaheed Bhai Lembhar Singh alias Balbir Singh

Khalistan Commando Force

Bhai Lembhar Singh was born in 1966, in the house of Sardar Gurbachan Singh and from the womb of Mata Gurdeep Kaur in the village of Sharipur, near Dasuya in the Hoshiarpur district. Bhai Sahib was the eldest of 3 brothers, middle brother, Bhai Daljit Singh Bhikhi (Shaheed) and the youngest brother, Bhai Fhuman Singh Guddi (Shaheed). Bhai Lembhar Singh was very young when Sardar Gurbachan Singh moved his family house from Sharipur to Bhela Sariala. In this village 95% of locals were Hindu and the land here was very cheap. Sardar Gurbachan Singh had gotten into a land dispute in Bhela Sariala village and in the physical altercation, Sardar Gurbachan Singh killed the other person and was jailed for life. After Sardar Gurbachan Singh went to jail, it was Mata Gurdeep Kaur that bought up her 3 sons alone. As the family did not have any daughters, everyone called the youngest brother, Bhai Fhuman Singh, ‘Guddi’ with love.

Bhai Lembhar Singh alias Balbir Singh started getting involved in the Sikh freedom movement at the age of 15 years. When Bhai Sahib went to college, he met Bhai Harwinder Singh Topi, through whom Bhai Sahib got close to General Labh Singh Panjwar and from here Bhai Sahib completely left home and joined Khalistan Commando Force. During this time Bhai Sahib met Bhai Harwinder Singh Topi, Bhai Rattan Singh Usman Shaheed, Bhai Iqbal Singh Bagha and Bhai Dhanna Singh of Ribeiro action. After witnessing the bravery and loyalty of Bhai Lembhar Singh, General Labh Singh made him the Area Commander of the Hoshiarpur area.

During Bhai Sahib’s Jhujaru life, he did not allow a single police tout or criminal to walk freely in the Hoshiarpur area. No traitor or killer of the Sikhs escaped the punishment of Bhai Lembhar Singh. The Punjab police would regularly raid Bhai Sahib’s house and arrest his brother, Bhai Daljit Singh Bhikhi, at times he faced tortured at the hands of this butcher police force. As this harassment of the police on the innocent members of Bhai Sahib’s family did not ending his brother, Bhai Daljit Singh Bhikhi left home and also joined Khalistan Commando Force alongside his brother, Bhai Lembhar Singh.

A local from Sharipur village was jealous of Bhai Lembhar Singh and gave the Punjab police the information they needed to arrest this brave Jhujaru Singh. As Bhai Sahib travelled on a scooter near Kartarpur, the jealous police tout pointed out Bhai Sahib and the police officers shot Bhai Sahib in the leg. Bhai Lembhar Singh fell off his scooter and was badly injured, after the Punjab police arrested him. The police tout who had Bhai Sahib arrested wasn’t given the cash prize, instead his son was given a job as a police officer.

Bhai Lembhar Singh was taken to the Kartarpur police station and brutally tortured for information on other Jhujaru Singhs and the weapons stash of Khalistan Commando Force. On 18th September 1987, Bhai Sahib attained martyrdom during torture and the Punjab police staged a false encounter in which they shot Bhai Sahib’s dead body and declared him dead. Later a message was sent to Mata Gurdeep Kaur to come to the police station to collect the clothes of Bhai Sahib as his body had already been cremated by the police.

NEWSPAPER REPORT: In the Kapurthala district, near the distillery of Hameera village (under the Subhanpur police station) a rebel was killed in a battle with Indian security forces. Many rumours have been circulating about this encounter. The Subhanpur police force has told the Ajit newspaper journalist that this encounter happened at 10:45am on 18th September and the killed rebel was identified as Lembhar Singh alias Balbir Singh of Hoshiarpur district and was wanted for many cases. According to the police, he was in the area openly walking around with rest of his group of rebels. The dead rebel’s cycle was also found by the police, and the Jalandhar police force were also looking for him for the past few days. The dead rebel was linked to Khalistan Commando Force. It was the undercover police officers travelling past the Hameera village that spotted Lembhar Singh standing on the side of the road with his cycle along with other rebels. The police said, as they pulled their car next to Lembhar Singh, the rebels opened fire and in the return fire they killed Lembhar Singh and other 2 rebels were successful in escaping. Locals are also saying that Lembhar Singh was lobbed into a police car and the car drove towards Kartarpur.

The Bhog of Shaheed Bhai Lembhar Singh alias Balbir Singh was done by his brother, Bhai Daljit Singh Bhikhi in their home village of Sharipur. Bhai Daljit Singh Bhikhi got on the stage and made a speech, “I am Daljit Singh Bhikhi, I will be here at my brother’s Bhog till 4 o’clock. Whoever thinks they are brave enough can come and arrest me.” It is said that the Indian security forces cordoned off 1-mile perimeter around the location of Sri Akhand Paath Sahib but no Indian soldiers had the courage to come closer. At 4 o’clock Bhai Daljit Singh Bhikhi shouted war cries of ‘Bole So Nihal Sat Sri Akaal’ and left the area.

Note: Sardar Gurbachan Singh was in jail at time of both his son’s martyrdom. Bhai Daljit Sigh Bhikhi attained martyrdom on 15th September 1989 and the youngest brother, Bhai Fhuman Singh Guddi was also made a martyr by the Indian security forces on 28th September 1991.

Information given by the family of Shaheed Bhai Lembhar Singh alias Balbir Singh