Khudiram Bose the young martyr

 Khudiram Bose was very young when he laid down his life for this nation, he continues to be an inspiration for the youth of the future generations.

Born on December 3, 1889 he achieved martyrdom on 11 August 1908. 

He lost his mother at the tender age of 6, and his father just a year later. After which, Bose came in contact with revolutionaries like Barindra Kumar Ghosh of Calcutta. He then became a volunteer in the freedom struggle when he was just 15.

In the year 1902 and 1903, Sri Aurobindo and Sister Nivedita gave a series of public lectures and held various private sessions with the existing revolutionary groups for India's freedom. At that time, Khudiram was an active participant in the discussions. Later on, he joined Anushilan Samiti and became a volunteer at the age of 15. He was arrested for distributing pamphlets against the British Raj in India. 

The Britishers caught him distributing pamphlets with anti-British propaganda. After which, he involved himself even further by planting bombs near police stations in order to target officials.

The revolutionary had a fearless spirit and is known for the attempt to assassinate the district magistrate of Muzaffarpur, Douglas Kingsford.

The revolutionaries targeted the Chief Magistrate of the Presidency Court of Alipore and had overseen the trials of Bhupendranath Dutta and other editors of Jugantar, sentencing them to rigorous imprisonment. He becomes infamous for passing harsh and cruel sentences on young revolutionaries.

At the age of 18, Bose, and his friend Prafulla Chaki devised a plan to assassinate the judge. They threw a bomb at a carriage which they suspected was carrying him, however, they erroneously killed two women instead. The district magistrate escaped.

After the attack, Khudiram and Prafulla managed to escape. The whole town was aware of the incident and armed policemen were stationed on all rail routes to keep an eye on every passenger. Khudiram, after walking 25 miles, reached a station called Waini. He asked for a glass of water at the tea stall and two constables uspected something upon seeing Khudiram's exhausted appearance. Their suspicion rose after a couple of questions and Khudiram was then detained by the constables. 37 rounds of ammunition, Rs 30 cash, railway map and a page of the rail timetable were found with him. 

Prafulla travelled for long and was recognised by a civil, Trigunacharan Ghosh, who decided to save Prafulla's life. He also arranged a ticket for him to Kolkata. He boarded a train from Samastipur and was on his way to Howrah. Nandalal Bannerjee, a sub-inspector, stuck in a conversation with him and realised that he could be another revolutionary. Prafulla got down to drink water and Bannerjee sent a Telegram to Muzaffarpur Police station about him. He tried to arrest him at Mokamghat station but Prafulla shot himself in the mouth with his revolver. 

On May 1, Khudiram was handcuffed and was presented in front of the magistrate. He took full responsibility for the assassination. After he finished, the dead body of Prafulla arrived at Muzaffarpur. Khudiram identified him and gave the required details. 

Khudiram Bose, was caught and put to trial. He was then hanged, at the young age of 18, for the attempt of assassination.

He kept a copy of Bhagvad Gita in his hand and faced the noose with a smile.