Baba Gurdit Singh-Komagata Maru

Komagata Maru, a name that resonates in the history of India’s freedom struggle. The Japanese steamship carrying Indians trying to migrate to Canada in 1914, majority of whom were Sikhs, along with a fairly good number of Hindus and Muslims, all from Punjab. Only 24 of the 376 passengers were admitted, while the rest were turned back and the ship had to return to Kolkata. The British police tried to arrest the group leaders, leading to clashes and firing which left around 20 dead. The incident bought into focus the discriminatory laws of US and Canada, that excluded immigrants of Asian origin during that time. But more than anything else, this event led to the rise of the Ghadar party, as it’s leaders Tarak Nath Das, Sohan Singh and Barkatullah, used it to recruit more members for their cause.

The visions of men are widened by travel and contacts with citizens of a free country will infuse a spirit of independence and foster yearnings for freedom in the minds of the emasculated subjects of alien rule.

And at the center was one man who actually chartered the ship, that would carry the immigrants to Vancouver. A well to do Singapore businessman called Gurdit Singh Sandhu, better known as Baba Gurdit Singh.

Gurdit Singh was born in Sarhali, located in Punjab’s Taran Taran district on August 25, 1860 to Sardar Hukam Singh. His grandfather Sardar Rattan Singh, a high ranking military officer in the Khalsa Army, had fought againt the British, and declined their offer of a jagir, after they annexed Punjab. Though Gurdit Singh dropped out of school, more due to problems with his teacher, he was able to educate himself privately.

In 1885, he came to Malaya, where his father was working as a contractor. He soon began to be involved in many businesses, importing cattle from India, operating a dairy, supplying milk to a Sikh regiment stationed there. As well as contracting labor for railway work, the rubber plantations, and dealing with real estate too. He soon became one of the well known Indian businessmen in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, and an influential member of the Sikh community there. Apart from Punjabi, he was fluent in Chinese, Malay and English which he learnt while working there.

A devout Sikh, he regularly visited his native Punjab, and used to follow a mystic preacher called Ram Singh whom he invited to Malaya too. He also encouraged villgers to rebel against the practice of forced labor by Govt officials there.

His infleuntial status in the Sikh community abroad, got him in touch with many Sikh emigrants trying to migrate to Canada, US or Australia, and he often listened to the problems they faced. It was one such meeting at a Hong Kong Gurudwara in December 1913, that motivated him to undertake the Komagata Maru journey. He presented himself as a businessman seeking to develop passenger trade between Asia and North America, to get around the Canadian exclusion laws.

Canada had passed the Continuous journey regulation order on January 8, 1908, as per which any immigrants who did not make a continous journey from their country of birth or citizenship, were prohibited from entering the country. The order was clearly aimed at India, as ships travelling to North America usually made a stop over in Japan or China due to the large distance covered. Also Anti Oriental riots had broken out in Vancouver in 1907, against the Chinese, Japanese immigrants who had settled there.

Around the same time, he also began to openly espouse the Ghadar Party ideology, a movement founded by expatriate Indians in US and Canada, to liberate India from British rule. The journey of the Komagata Maru began on April 1914, which he renamed as Guru Nanak Jahaj. The Canadian Government was aware of the fact that many of the passengers were Indian nationalists, intending to create disturbance there, which made it more determined to stop them.

The ship was originally scheduled to depart in March, however legal troubles and also the fact that the British had Gurdit Singh under surveillance, delayed the voyage. Finally the ship departed Hong Kong on April 4, 1914 with around 165 passengers, joined by more at Shanghai and Yokohama, where it made a stop over. Leaving Yokohama on May 3, 1914 with 376 passengers and reached Burrard Inlet near Vancouver on May 23rd. Bhagwan Singh Giani the head priest of the Vancouver gurudwara met the passengers, and distributed pamphlets, books about the Ghadar ideology.

On arrival in Canadian waters, the ship was not allowed to dock, and met by Fred Taylor, an officer with the Immigration department. Though the Canadian PM Robert Borden was still deciding on the course of the action, British Columbia’s Conservative Premier, Richard McBride categorically stated that no passenger would be allowed to disembark. Another Conservative MP H.H.Stevens, began to instigate the public against the immigrants, leading to their mistreatment on the ship.

Meanwhile a Shore Comittee was raised by Rahim Hussain and Sohan Lal Pathak, to help the passengers. The comittee categorically declared, that if the passengers were not allowed to disembark, there would be an open revolt or Ghadr on Canadian soil. Though the comittee managed to raise  $22,000 for chartering the ship, and a lawsuit, the British Columbia Court of Appeal delivered an unanimous judgement that it had no authority to interfere with decisions of the Department of Immigration and Colonization.

The furious passengers relieved the Japanese captain of comand, but the Canadian Govt,ordered the tug boat Sea Lion to tow it out, amidst angry protests. Finally by July 23, the ship was forced to return back to India, escorted by the HMCS Rainbow. William C. Hopkinson who had infiltrated the Ghadar movement and supplied intelligence about the ship, was assasinated later in Vancouver on Oct 21 by Bhai Mewa Singh , one of the Ghadr activists.

Komagata Maru arrived in Kolkata on September 27, and was stopped by a British gunboat. The British Govt saw it as a serious threat, and when it docked at Budge Budge port, police were sent to arrest Baba Gurdit Singh and 20 others whom they saw as the leaders behind the event. As Gurdit Singh resisted arrest, firing broke out, and around 20 were shot dead, while many escaped.

Gurdit Singh himself escaped, went underground, for a long time, till he voluntarily surrendered at Nankana Sahib on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi in 1920. He was later released in 1925, and adopted the Gandhian route. Though the Congress tried to disown the Komagatu Maru incident, the Ghadr party used this well to instigate expat Indians in US and Canada. And also planned for a massive uprising along with Rash Behari Bose, which however failed.

Later on a memorial was set up in Budge Budge, for those killed in the police firting there. While a plaque was placed in the Sikh gurudwara in Vancouver in 1989, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the event.