Prime Minister has declared that December 26 shall henceforth be marked as Veer Baal Diwas to pay homage to the courage of the Sahibzades, four sons of Guru Gobind Singh, the last Sikh guru.

What is the legend of Sahibzades?

• The word “Sahibzada” means “son” in Punjabi and is a term commonly used to refer to the 4 sons of Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru.
• The week of 21 to 27 December is celebrated as the Sacrificial Week in memory of the four Sahibzadas who made sacrifices for the protection of Sikhism and Hinduism.
• Sahibzada Ajit Singh, Jujhar Singh, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh got martyrdom while saving their religious faiths against forceful conversion.

Their martyrdom: A backgrounder story

• After the establishment of the Khalsa Panth, Guru Gobind Singh left the fort of Sri Anandpur Sahib with his family on 20-21 December 1704 to fight the invasion by Aurgangzeb.
• The elder sahibzade Ajit Singh, Jujhar Singh stayed with Guru ji, while the younger sons Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh were with Mata Gujri ji.
• Subedar Wazir Khan of Sirhind arrested the two Sahibzades subsequently and lured them for religious conversion.
• In the end, it was announced to get them elected in the living walls.
• The rest two sahibzades got assassinated in the battle of Chamkaur (1705).

Implications of their martyrdom

• When the news of this reached Guruji, he wrote a zafarnama (letter of victory) to Aurangzeb, in which he warned Aurangzeb that the Khalsa Panth was ready to destroy your empire.
• Baba Banda Singh Bahadur took revenge for the martyrdom of Guruji’s Sahibzadas.
• He punished Wazir Khan for his deeds in Sirhind and established Sikh hegemony over the entire area.
• The result of this sacrifice was that later a large Sikh empire emerged under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

A historic event in Indian History

• This event is an important part of Indian history and the occasion of their martyrdom is remembered and commemorated both with great vigor and sorrow.
• The names of Sahibzades are reverently preserved and are recalled every time Ardas (prayer) of supplication is recited at a congregation or privately by an individual.

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