NEW DELHI:Delhi University has sparked a revolution into a night of apathy that lasted decades. The historical dungeon in the Viceregal Lodge in the university’s North Campus—where Bhagat Singh, the great freedom fighter and martyr, was secretly jailed on 6th June 1929 after his trial began for the Delhi Bomb Assembly case—will be open for public after a recent face-lift.
In order to propagate Bhagat Singh’s ideals and values to the younger generation, the Delhi University has given a complete face-lift to the room on the campus. Dedicated to the martyr’s memory, the room will be opened for guided tours soon.
Deputy Dean Foreign Students Amrit Kaur Basra, also a historian heading the project, said, “The room is in the basement of the building where Bhagat Singh spent a night during his imprisonment. We have renovated it completely so that when students visit the chamber, they are exposed to his supreme sacrifice for the country. The vice-chancellor has always felt that the cumulative legacy of Indians should be shared by the young generations.” She said that not much funds were required to rebuild the room.
The Viceroy of India used to live at the The Viceregal Lodge before the Rashtrapati Bhawan was constructed by Edward Lutyens. Once a circuit house, it became the home to five Viceroys of the Imperial government, including Lord Mountbatten in the 1920s. The building was turned over to the University of Delhi in 1933. It is not an archaeological site and is maintained solely by the university.
Before the face lift, the same building was lying abandoned, dark and dingy. It didn’t even display a portrait of the great freedom fighter. “Initially, the room was muddy and dark. There is no window. Now, Chandra Shekhar Azad and Aruna Asaf Ali’s pictures have also been put in the room. As Singh was deeply influenced by Chandra Shekhar Azad, his portrait should be displayed in the room. Aruna Asaf Ali becomes important as her husband prepared the first petition of Singh in the case,” said a faculty member.
“The university authorities have made arrangements for guided tours for students. There are five groups of interns who will give the tour of the building and the room. If all goes well, it is going to be opened for everyone very soon,” Basra added. As of now, the chamber is open to general public only during the cultural programme ‘Antardhwani’.