Dev Raj Sharma ( Baldev): Toba Tek Singh to Amritsar. English Translation

Toba Tek Singh to Amritsar.

Playing Hide and Seek with Life and Death.

I was born on the 29th of December 1940 in a Sharma Family of Garg Gotra and Lai Caste. My father's name was Shri Lal Chand Sharma and my mother's name was Kailashwanti. Our family originally belonged to Bhuler Bajwa near Sialkot.The entire family had emigrated to Mohalla Rampura, Toba Tek Singh near Lyallpur before my birth.

We were a joint family:-

Dadiji Shrimati Gurudevi

Tayaji Shri Amarnath Father Lalchand Chachaji Pritamdas Chachaji Gopaldas

Tayiji Smt Veerandevi Mother Kailashwanti Chachiji Laajwanti Chachiji Suhagwanti

Son Desraj Son Devraj Son Satpal

Son Om Prakash Daughter Sudarshan

Buaji Rampyari ( Renamed Krishnawanti by In Laws)

Son Sudesh

Daughter Susheela

Buaji Durga Devi

There was an open ground in front of the house. Cattle used to graze there through out the day. at home we had one camel and 2 bulls. We had a cotton weaving machine and an Ice Factory. 2-3 k.m away in Bhuler Chak we had some agriculture land. This place is known as Chak 327 now.

Recent Photos of Bhaler Chak 327 JB

In the month of July 1947, I alongwith Brother Desraj went to see off our Buaji Rampyari at Toba Tek Railway station. There we saw 4-5 dead bodies being removed from a train. These were those Hindu Sikh passengers who were massacred in the train.

Toba Tek singh railway station

We came home and informed our elders. The entire community in Mohalla Rampura gathered and started discussing the events. It was decided to leave the city and shift to a village as the Hindus and Sikhs were in a majority in the rural area and safer as compared to the cities.

Except for Tayaji Shri Amarnath and Dadiji Gurudevi, rest of the family shifted to Gagomal ( now known as Chak No 159 GB). My Chachaji Gopaldas was a freedom fighter and in jail at that time.

Tayiji's brothers Shri Gandamal and Shri Hukumdas had a Kiryana shop in Gagomal village.After dropping us there my father Shri Lal Chand and a friend of his returned to Toba Tek Singh. That was the last time I saw my father.

Toba Tek Singh to Gagomal Chak 159 GB

One evening after 3-4 days, all the children were playing on the roof of Mamaji's house. Suddenly we saw the sky turn amber a few k.ms away. A village nearby was on fire. All of us started shouting. Mamji Hukumdas' son Brijlal came running to the roof and started scolding us. When we told him about the fire, he ran down to inform others. The entire village collected within no time. The elders decided to give a horse to the village barber and send him to investigate. The Barber was a Muslim. He came back and informed us that the entire village had been looted and burnt by a Muslim mob. The elders decided to evacuate immediately. Brijlal took some kerosene from his kiryana shop and set the shop and other houses of village on fire. This was done to create an impression that Gagowal had already been attacked and would cause the marauding Muslim mob to go elsewhere seeking new targets. The entire village shifted to an open ground 7-8 k.m away. We spent the night in open.
In the morning some people went back to Gagomal. The entire village was deserted and the situation was so tense, that the community decided to migrate to India. People salvaged whatever little they could from there belongings and set off in a convoy of 20-25 Bullock carts towards India.

Under the hot and unrelenting sun the convoy moved from Gagomal to Jaranwala. we were very tired and our throats were parched. There were some wells on the way and a few hand pumps. But the Muslim mobs had thrown dead animals into the well to prevent any passerby from drinking water. The handles of hand pump had been removed and dead rats were inserted inside the pump. There was no dinking water available anywhere on the way. To quench our thirst we used to chew sugar cane. But it only made our mouth more dry. We chewed more sugar cane and so it went on.

There were two Sikhs on horsebacks who were armed with rifles. The took up positions at the front and rear of the convoy. They continuously patrolled with one rider heading to the back of the convoy and the other heading to the front, and then back again. The convoy of tired men, scared women and dehydrated children reached Jaranwala in the evening.
On the outskirts of Jaranwala there was some argument between our family and Mamji's family. Our family decided to stop at Jaranwala while Mamaji Hukumdas , Mamaji Gandamal and the rest of the convoy moved on. They took our bullock cart and camel also.

Gagomal Chak No 159 to Jaranwala

Jaranwala had two camps. One camp out in the open and one in the Mandi. We initially stayed in the open camp outside Jaranwala. Some soldiers of Baloch Regiment approached us and asked us to shift to the inner Mandi camp. Our entire family shifted to Mandi camp. There was no arrangement of food and water for the refugees in the camp. By the grace of God, brother Desraj met his college classmate Abdul Karim in the camp. Desraj and Abdul had done F.A together. Abdul Karim was working for the Civil Supply Dept. He owned a flour mill and a kiryuana shop. He asked us to take whatever we wanted. We took a sack of wheat and Gur ( jaggery). Brother Desraj had no proper foorwear. Abdul Karim opened the shutter of an abandoned shop and gave new footwear to brother Desraj. In the camp we used to clean the water collected from canals and boil the wheat. Boiled wheat mixed with Gur was our staple diet for many days. All of us had Om tattooed on our hands. To hide our identity from the Rioters we used to cover our wrist with handkerchief.

Mandi camp was a grain storage area. It had Godowns and shops on the periphery with open ground in between. There were two gates to the Mandi, one at the front and the other at the back. The door at the back had a small gate in between which was open. The Baloch regiment soldiers came into the camp and asked all the Hindu and Sikh men to accompany them for a meeting. To pass through the small gate, one had to bend his head and pass through. Unknown to us there were some Muslim men on the outside waiting with Kirpans ( swords). As soon as a refugee used to stick his head out of the gate, they used to strike him on the neck with the knives. a few lives were lost before everyone realized what was going on. This lead to a commotion and the refugees refused to go for the meeting.

Soldiers of the Baloch Regiment

The Soldiers again came into the camp and began to ask the the men to accompany them. Buaji Durgadevi decided to hide Chachaji Pritamdas and Brother Desraj under the sacks of Flour and Gur. The Baloch solidiers asked her about the whereabouts of the men in our family. Buaji told them that the men had already left for the meeting. The Baloch soldiers stabbed the sacks repeatedly with bayonets (knives) fitted to their rifles. But luckily, neither Chachaji Pritamdas nor Brother Desraj were found.

All these tactics caused an uproar in the camp and the the refugees left the Mandi camp and shifted to the open camp on the outskirts. My chachiji Suhagwanti was in the pregnant and delivered a girl child Toshi in the Mandi camp. The news of Baloch Regiment soldiers targeting the Hindu and Sikh refugees spread like wildfire. soon enough they were replaced by the Indian Army.

We got into an Indian Army truck and came to Lahore. The Refugee camp was set up in some college. The camp incharge was Chachaji Gopaldas, who had been set free from imprisonment by the Government. We were very relieved to meet him. We stayed in the Lahore camp for one week.

We took another Army truck and came to Amritsar Khalsa College Refugee camp. It was the night of Diwali. 12 November 1947.

Chachaji Pritamdas had in laws in Haripura,Amritsar. We got in touch with them. They informed us that they had secured an abandoned house for us to stay. The house was full of wooden planks and logs. It probably belonged to some carpenter.

During those days, regular announcements used to be made in the refugee camps about the arrival of convoys with the name of the villages from where the people had migrated. A major part of the day was spent in camps, searching for ones loved ones. During one such announcement Chachaji Gopaldas came to know that a convoy from Toba Tek singh had arrived in Ferozepur Camp. He immediately went to Ferozepur and started searching the camp. He found Tayaji Shri Amarnath and Dadiji Gurudevi. He brought them to Haripura.

The entire family was united except for my father Shri Lal Chand. We gave advertisements on the radio and in the newspaper. And kept searching in various camps.

A distributor working in Gobindgarh Fort camp informed my Chachaji Gopaldas that a man resembling him used to work with them till the previous day. He was not seen since then.

A truck driver who was a friend of my father also met my Chachaji Gopaldas. He asked Chachaji if our family had been reunited with Shri Lal Chand. My Chachaji informed him that the entire family had been united except my father Shri Lal Chand. The truck driver told my Chachaji that he had met Lal and that Lal had told him, he was going to Attari station to look for his family. On hearing this we looked for my father at Attari station too.

We never found him. I don't have a single photo or a sketch of his. The only image of my father is what I have in my memories.

From Left :- Buaji Durga Devi, Tayaji Amarnath, Chachaji Pritamdas, Buaji Rampyari.
In Jaranwala Mandi refugee camp, Buaji Durga Devi had hidden Chachaji Pritamdas and Brother Desraj under sacks of Gur and Wheat, thereby saving their lives.