Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Gurudwara

Gurudwara Sahib Shaheed Baba Banda Singh Bahadur is one of the most beautiful Gurudwaras in Delhi. Gurudwara Sahib Baba Banda Singh Bahadur is located near the Post Office in the Mehrauli Area of Delhi near the Qutab Minar. It is a place where Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Ji, his four-year-old son Ajai Singh along with forty Sikhs were tortured to death by the Mughals. The grounds of the Gurudwara were where the execution of Guru Banda Bahadur Singh Ji and 40 of his followers, including his son, happened. Guru Banda Bahadur is well-known as one of the most courageous Sikh leaders to have walked the earth. A great fair is organized here during Vaishakhi for three days where more than 30000 people visit the Gurudwara. Baba Banda Singh Bahadur, his family members, and 740 Sikh soldiers were brought in captivity from Garhi Gurdas Nangal to Delhi. Baba Banda Singh Bahadur and his four years old son, Ajay Singh along with 26 eminent Sikhs were martyred here.

History

The Gurudwara Sahib Shaheed Baba Banda Singh Bahadur signifies the site of the sacrifice of Baba Banda Singh. Baba Banda Singh is considered to be among the most prominent people in Sikh history. Banda Singh Bahadur was initially called Lakshman Das, after he turned into a sage he took up the name Madho Das. He left the worldly pleasures and stayed on the banks of the River Godavari about 15 miles away from Nanded which was once the camping area for the tenth Guru of Sikhism. Madho Das once met the Guru and became his disciple. He accepted Sikhism and was then known as Banda Singh.
Along with other Sikhs, he was sent to Punjab to fight against people who were persecuting Sikhs. Baba Banda Singh arrived in Punjab in 1709 and started movements against those who harmed the Sikhs. In a matter of one year, they occupied the entire Punjab area. But soon the Emperor arrived in the area and it became difficult for them to stay in power beyond 11 months. After this, Baba Banda Singh took shelter in the hills and continued to fight against the Mughals for the next 5 years.
However soon his army was defeated and cornered in Gurdas Nangal. They were forced to surrender on the condition that no wrong would be done to them. Baba Banda Singh was arrested in 1715 on 15th December and was taken to Delhi with other prisoners. In the following year, many of the prisoners were executed. Banda Singh Bahadur was paraded in a procession near Qutub Minar. He was forced to convert to Islam but after denying repeatedly Emperor Farukh Siyar tortured Banda Singh Bahadur brutally to death. Banda Singh Bahadur’s young son was beheaded and his heart was taken out and forced into Banda Singh Bahadur’s mouth. His eyes were extorted out and his body was hung on a gate and his skin was forcefully removed from his body as a part of the torture. Later his limbs were excised one by one.

Architecture

The Gurudwara Sahib Shaheed Baba Banda Singh Bahadur was built on the very site of the martyrdom of Banda Singh Bahadur. The Gurudwara is fairly small and there are considerations for its expansions. The first floor of the Gurudwara is raised on pillars. The lower floor is planned to be converted into a hall for organizing langars (community meals). Most of the structure of the Gurudwara is built out of marble. The structure is topped with a small dome that sits on a square. Around the Gurudwara is a parikrama that connects it to the gate where the initial Prakash was done.

The Gurudwara is managed by the Delhi Sikh Management Committee. There is also a school that has been established in the name of Banda Singh Bahadur. There is a pillar rising to a height of 50 meters that stands overlooking the Khwaja Bakhtiyar Kaki Dargah which now has the Gurudwara. The pillar has a steel hook which is believed to be the hook from which Baba Banda Singh Bahadur was lynched. On the neighboring site is another Gurudwara.