Vakkom Abdul Khader

From Bharatpedia, an open encyclopedia
Information red.svg
Scan the QR code to donate via UPI
Dear reader, We need your support to keep the flame of knowledge burning bright! Our hosting server bill is due on June 1st, and without your help, Bharatpedia faces the risk of shutdown. We've come a long way together in exploring and celebrating our rich heritage. Now, let's unite to ensure Bharatpedia continues to be a beacon of knowledge for generations to come. Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference. Together, let's preserve and share the essence of Bharat.

Thank you for being part of the Bharatpedia family!
Please scan the QR code on the right click here to donate.

0%

   

transparency: ₹0 raised out of ₹100,000 (0 supporter)



Vakkom Abdul Khader
Martyr Vakkom Abdul Khader.jpg
Martyr Vakkom Abdul Khader
Born(1917-05-25)25 May 1917
Died10 October 1943(1943-10-10) (aged 26)
Cause of deathExecution
NationalityIndian
OccupationA soldier in Indian National Army, which was led by Netaji Subhas Bose
Parents
  • Vavakunju (father)
  • Ummu Salma (mother)

Vakkom Abdul Khader (1917–1943) was South Indian revolutionary and a soldier in Indian National Army, which was led by Netaji Subhas Bose. He was a trained radio communicator and revolutionary. Of the twenty people, four of them including Satyen Bardhan, were hanged in Madras Central Jail on the 10th September, 1943. He along with his three comrades Satyen Bardhan, Anandan and Fauja Singh, walked up to the gallows, while singing the Vande Mataram song and raising the slogan of Vande Mataram.[1] Abdul Khader himself raised the slogan "Netaji Subhas Babu ki jai ! Down with the British Government ! Victory to India !".[2]

Early life and career[edit]

Abdul Khader was born on 25th May, 1917, at Vakkom, Thiruvananthapuram District. His father's name was Vavakunju and mother's name Ummusalma. He got his primary education at a local school and later he got his secondary education at Sree Narayana Vilasa high school (founded by Sree Narayan Guru). He was a school hero and a good football player in his childhood days at school.[3] At the same time, he actively participated in the freedom struggle and delighted the people with his exciting patriotic songs. During Mahatma Gandhi visit to Kerala, when the train stopped at Kadakkavur railway station, the locals would proudly say that Gandhiji was garlanded by a young boy named Abdul Khader, in the middle of a large crowd.[4] In 1938, at the age of 21, Khader moved to Malaysia at the behest of his father, where he joined the engineering department of the Public Works Department, but did not pursue it. The excitement of the Indian freedom struggle shook Khader's mind. Khader joined the Indian Independence League, which was fighting for Indian independence in Malaysia at the time, and later became a revolutionary leader. He was also the secretary of the Kerala Muslim Union, a group of Kerala Muslims in Malaysia who collaborated with the Independent League. Khader joined the Indian National Army, which was formed by Netaji Subhas Bose, and became its Commander-in-Chief. [5]After completing his training at the Indian Swaraj Institute (housed in the Free School, Penang, now the Penang Museum), which was set up to train Indian National Army soldiers, Khader became a member of the Choir Squad, a corps of heroes.[6]

Revolutionary activities[edit]

One batch which landed at Tanur, in Malabar Coast and was composed of Abdul Khader and S.A. Anandan and three others. They came by submarine and were transferred to a rubber boat five miles off the land. On landing before they could find a safe hideout they were noticed by the men on the shore and were looked upon with suspicion. The police was informed. Khader and his comrades, were arrested within a few hours of their landing.[7]

Trial and sentence[edit]

After all of the twenty men including Abdul, Satyen Bardhan, Fauja Singh and Anandan were arrested, they were then removed to Fort St. George, India at Madras in due course of time. They were even tortured in Madras Fort in order to tell all the secret about their intention to enter India, which was their own Motherland.

Death[edit]

The soldiers of the Indian National Army, Abdul Khader and his three comrades Satyen Bardhan , Fauja Singh and Anandan were executed in the Madras Penitentiary on 10 September 1943. Almost the whole night previous to the executions the prison reverberated with the song Vande Mataram. With great courage each of them, Abdul Khader, Satyen Bardhan, Fauja Singh and Anandan, ascended the steps to the gallows while raising the slogan of Vande Mataram, which meant ''Hail my Motherland''. Abdul Khader himself raised the slogan '' Netaji Subhas Babu ki jai ! Down with the British Government ! Victory to India ! ''[8]

Khader and others were executed at on Friday, 10 September, 1943, at twelve o'clock midnight. The wind carried the message of the four martyrs Abdul, Satyen, Fauja Singh and Anandan, to every corner of India. It did not take long before India achieved it's independence on 15 August 1947 on the ashes of these martyrs.[9] A small memorial is built at Travancore in their memory.[10]

References[edit]

  1. GHOSH, KALI CHARAN (1960). THE ROLL OF HONOUR. VIDYA BHARATI,CALCUTTA.
  2. "മായ്ച്ചുകളഞ്ഞ വാക്ക്". ManoramaOnline. Retrieved 2021-09-21.
  3. Dutta, Pradip Kumar. "Revolutionary Abdul Khader of Vakkom". The Asian Age. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  4. "The little explored haven at Anchuthengu near Thiruvananthapuram". www.onmanorama.com. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  5. Chopra, Pran Nath (2013). Who's Who of Indian Martyrs, Vol. 1. Public Resource. Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India. ISBN 978-81-230-1757-0.
  6. ഡെസ്ക്, വെബ്. "വക്കം അബ്ദുൽ ഖാദർ: സ്വാതന്ത്ര്യസമര ചരിത്രത്തിലെ രക്തപുഷ്പം". Madhyamam. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  7. Dutta, Pradip Kumar. "Revolutionary Abdul Khader of Vakkom". The Asian Age. Retrieved 2021-09-21.
  8. "Abdul Khader – INA Army – Freedom Fighter – Martyr". Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  9. "The little explored haven at Anchuthengu near Thiruvananthapuram". www.onmanorama.com. Retrieved 2021-09-21.
  10. "India 1998 Vakkom Abdul Khader Phila-1624 Cancelled Folder". Phil India Stamps. Retrieved 2021-09-21.