Lucknow: Parliament security breach accused Sagar Sharma, 26, describes himself as a “writer, poet and philosopher” on his Instagram profile, but his purported writings in a diary recovered by police and accessed by ThePrint, give a more detailed peek into his thoughts.
“Main apni zindagi watan ke naam kar chuka hun… ab badhaya kadam zindagi ki (taraf) aur maine… ab aa gayi baari watan par marne ki. Pehle hi main bahut aaram kar chuka hun, ghulami se karne aazad apne watan ko, main kai khaufnaak kaam kar chuka hun (I have willed my life to my country, taken a step towards life… (but) the time has come to die for my country. I have already rested a lot. To free my nation from slavery, I have done many terrifying acts)!”
These lines were purportedly penned by Sagar, an e-rickshaw driver, in June 2015 in the diary recovered by the Lucknow police from his rented accommodation in the city Thursday.
At least three other pages of the diary, in possession with ThePrint, show that he was deeply inspired by revolutionary Bhagat Singh and spurred by the idea of doing something for his country.
The diary is titled ‘Inquilab Zindabad (Long Live Revolution)’ — a slogan popularised by Bhagat Singh and other freedom fighters.
Lucknow police sources told ThePrint that books on Bhagat Singh were also recovered from Sharma’s house.
Sharma and D. Manoranjan — a Karnataka resident according to police sources — were arrested by Delhi Police Wednesday, after the two jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the visitors’ gallery in the new Parliament, building holding canisters emitting yellow smoke.
The two are said to be part of a social media group that had “planned the incident for months”, as has been reported by ThePrint. While six accused — including Sharma and Manoranjan — have been arrested, one is still being questioned.
Speaking to ThePrint, Sharma’’s parents described him as a die-hard fan of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, adding that he was upset about his employment status.
Police sources had earlier told ThePrint that the accused in the Parliament case had claimed during questioning that they had planned the breach to “protest against unemployment and compel policymakers to acknowledge their concerns”.
Other poems in the diary purportedly penned by Sharma suggest that he wanted to walk in Bhagat Singh’s footsteps.
A poem dated 2015 reads: “Rang bhara hai watan ki hawaon me mere khoon ka, sarfarosh si hai himmat-e-dil is jawan ki… desh pe marne ka ek jazba hai, woh kafan kya jo arthi par meri na shahadat kare (the hue of my blood colours the air of my nation, bravery lies in this young heart… there is a passion to die for the nation, for what is a shroud if it doesn’t give me martyrdom upon death?)”
Sharma’s father, Roshan, said his son was a fan of Bhagat Singh and worshipped him like god. “He admired Bhagat Singh since his childhood,” Roshan said.
Speaking about the family’s time in Delhi, where they resided till Sharma was 12 years old, Roshan added: “Till the time we stayed in Delhi, Sagar studied at Delhi Public School in Vasant Vihar as part of the admission policy for students from economically weak sections. Once, he had put up a poster of Bhagat Singh in his room. When I scolded him and tore it off, he became very angry.”
The father added: “His sister informed us that two-three years ago, he had cut his finger and put a tilak on his forehead with his blood.”
While Sharma’s family has claimed to the media that he has studied till Class IX, the Lucknow police have concluded that he has studied till Class XII and finished the grade from Bhupati Singh Memorial Inter College school in Lucknow.
“He has studied till Class XII. He seems to have an ideological inclination. He has stayed in Delhi till 12 years of age. We will share any inputs with the Delhi Police if they ask for it,” deputy commissioner of police (West) Rahul Raj told ThePrint, when asked about Sagar’s purported diary.
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‘Was upset about his job’
According to Sharma’s family, he was considered a good student at school and was a good artist who would often earn money at fairs by sketching tattoos for people.
“He had been driving an e rickshaw in Lucknow for a living. We knew it wouldn’t be easy for him to get a job because he was not highly educated. I had told him that driving an e-rickshaw for survival was okay because he was not well educated,” his mother, Rani, told ThePrint.
Before he began working as an e-rickshaw driver, Sharma’s parents said, he was employed as a broker at the RTO office in Lucknow. According to his parents, his meagre income was something that concerned him.
“We couldn’t tell what was inside him. His friend circle was always good and his antecedents are clear. Parents can only explain something to their children, what else can they do?” said Roshan.
He added that, just like Bhagat Singh, “Sagar always wanted to do something for the country”.
Sagar’s purported diary and social media profiles show that the desire to follow the “call for duty” remained deep inside him.
His Instagram profile are filled with sketches and poems which he claims to be his. He has also shared photos of travels to Maharashtra, Amritsar’s Golden Temple and Mysuru.
In February 2021, he wrote that the time to bid adieu to home was drawing near and in March 2021, he posted a picture in Mysore’s Chamundi Hills, replying to a friend in a comment that “he had come close to what he wanted to do”.
One of the diary entries also read: “The time to bid adieu to home is drawing near. On one side, there is fear and on the other, the fire to do something. I wish I could explain to my parents about my situation, and it is not that it was easy for me to choose the path of struggle. I waited for five years to move towards my duty. A powerful person is not the one who knows how to snatch, a powerful person is the one who has the strength to sacrifice every comfort.”
‘Befriended Manoranjan on social media’
Speaking to the media Friday, Sharma’s mother said he regarded Bhagat Singh more than even his family and had visited the revolutionary’s ancestral house in Punjab.
“He would read books about him and about patriotism. When we would ask if he had nothing else to read, he would say he did not want to read anything else. When we would ask him why he would put up posters, etc, (of Bhagat Singh) and say he had gone mad, he would say he had more regard for Bhagat Singh than us,” said Rani.
According to his mother, Sharma’s inspiration for the Parliament security breach also came from his readings about Bhagat Singh.
In 1929, Bhagat Singh and fellow revolutionary Batukeshwar Dutt threw bombs and pamphlets inside the Delhi’s Central Assembly as a mark of protest.
Speaking to ThePrint, Rani claimed Sharma had befriended co-accused Manoranjan and that he had told his family members that he was going to Bengaluru for work.
“He wanted to go to Bengaluru for work. If children ask for permission to go to work, parents have to give them a chance. He was working at an atta factory there and a video of the same has also been shared with the media,” Rani said.
‘I cannot witness the pain of my country’
While his parents couldn’t tell what was going on inside his mind, pages from the purported personal diary reveal Sagar was hiding a lot of passion.
“Dard apne watan ka mujhse dekha jata nahin, dushman ke aage jhukna main kisi ko sikhata nahi… kar dunga aawaz ko main apni itna buland, fir sunegi kaatilon ki yeh mehfil aur sunega aasman… bhigo kar lahu se main apne, is zameen ko dikha dunga ek din, ke is kadar watan ko apne koi aashiq chahta nahin (I cannot bear the pain of my country, I don’t teach anyone to bow before an enemy… I will exalt my voice to such an extent that this gathering of murderers, as well as the sky, will listen… drenching this land with my blood, I will show that no lover can love this country more),” read one of the entries.
One poem mentions that those who sacrifice themselves for the love of the country become immortal, while another speaks about crimes against women in the country.
“Watan ki ulfat par jo hote hain qurban vo amar ho jate hain… vahi krantikari aur vahi shaheed kehlaate hain… har zubaan par naam ho jiska, who khabar ho jate hain (those who sacrifice themselves for the love of their country, become immortal… they are termed as revolutionaries and martyrs… they become the news that’s on everyone’s lips),” it reads.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)