Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 24: 118th birth anniversary of Maharaja Hari Singh was celebrated by Delhi Pradesh National Panthers Party late in the evening yesterday at Constitution Club, New Delhi.
On the occasion, a resolution was passed seeking inclusion of the Maharaja’s birthday among the national events as Hari Singh was the only prince who defied the colonial British empire and declared in the Round Table Conference in London in 1931 in the presence of the crown of England that he was Indian first and then a Maharaja.
Dr Karan Singh, who was chief guest on the occasion, narrated several historic incidents including Maharaja’s car journey from Srinagar to Jammu October 25, 1947. This was necessitated as V P Menon had requested the Maharaja to reach Jammu to sign the Instrument of Accession. Dr Karan Singh said that Maharaja was a great noble and nationalist king whose agenda was welfare of the people of the entire State. Dr Karan Singh also opined that the civil society and the research scholar should study the period under the governance of Maharaja Hari Singh from 1925 to 1947. This is only way to gather the contributions made by Maharaja Hari Singh for the upliftment and welfare of entire State of J&K.
Paying tributes to the Maharaja, Prof Bhim Singh expressed anguish that Hari Singh was treated with disgust and malice by the Congress and the National Conference leaders. Then Government in Jammu and Kashmir did not even lower the State flag half-mast on death of the Maharaja, Bhim Singh lamented and recalled how he along with Raj Kumar Sehgal and some other students associates had forcefully lowered the State flag at Civil Secretariat on May 5, 1961.
Others who addressed, included Rajiv Jolly Khosla, B S Sajan, Romesh Khajuria, R P Sharma, Kali Ram Tomar and Shushil Khanna.
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