Themes

Shaheeds

Those who gave their lives for the faith and the Panth.

Show only this theme on the timeline

  1. May 30, 1606Shaheedi of Guru Arjan Dev at LahoreGuru Arjan Dev, fifth Guru, dies under torture in Mughal custody at Lahore on 30 May 1606, the first Shaheedi of the Sikh faith, on the orders of Emperor Jahangir.
  2. Nov 11, 1675Shaheedi of Guru Tegh Bahadur at DelhiGuru Tegh Bahadur, ninth Guru, is beheaded in public in Chandni Chowk, Delhi, on Aurangzeb's order, after refusing to give up his faith, and his companions are tortured to death.
  3. Dec 5-6, 1705Evacuation of Sri Anandpur SahibAfter a siege of months, Guru Gobind Singh leaves Anandpur at night on the Mughal and hill chiefs' sworn promise of safe passage, and is attacked once outside.
  4. Dec 7, 1705Battle of ChamkaurGuru Gobind Singh and about forty Sikhs hold a walled house against the imperial army; Sahibzada Ajit Singh and Jujhar Singh fall, and the Guru is urged to leave.
  5. Dec 12, 1705Martyrdom of the younger Sahibzade at SirhindSahibzada Zorawar Singh (9) and Fateh Singh (6) are put to death at Sirhind on Wazir Khan's order, and their grandmother Mata Gujri dies in the Thanda Burj.
  6. Dec 29, 1705Battle of Muktsar and the Forty MuktasForty Sikhs who had left Guru Gobind Singh at Anandpur return under Mai Bhago and die holding the Khidrana pool; the Guru tears up their disclaimer.
  7. Dec 7, 1715Banda Singh Bahadur captured at Gurdas NangalAfter an eight-month siege in which the garrison ate leaves and bark, Mughal armies break into Gurdas Nangal and capture Banda Singh Bahadur and his starving companions.
  8. Jun 9, 1716Shaheedi of Banda Singh Bahadur and his companions in DelhiHundreds of captured Sikhs are executed a hundred a day in Delhi; Banda Singh Bahadur is tortured to death in June 1716 (9 June per the Encyclopaedia of Sikhism, 19 June per Ganda Singh).
  9. 1737 (some sources give 1734 or 1738)Shaheedi of Bhai Mani Singh at LahoreBhai Mani Singh, custodian of Sri Harmandir Sahib and scholar of the Guru's household, is put to death joint by joint at Lahore after the Diwali gathering at Amritsar is turned into a trap.
  10. Aug 11, 1740Bhai Mehtab Singh and Bhai Sukha Singh avenge the desecration of Sri Harmandir SahibIn August 1740 Zakariya Khan's kotwal Massa Ranghar was carousing inside Sri Harmandir Sahib. Bhai Mehtab Singh and Bhai Sukha Singh entered in disguise and beheaded him.
  11. May 1-2, 1746Chhota GhallugharaA Mughal campaign from Lahore kills about 7,000 Sikhs and takes 3,000 captive at Kahnuwan and in the hills on 1 and 2 May 1746, the Chhota Ghallughara.
  12. Nov 11, 1757Shaheedi of Baba Deep Singh at AmritsarAged 75, Baba Deep Singh marches on Amritsar to free Sri Harmandir Sahib from Afghan forces and falls in its precincts; he is also honoured as a founder of the Damdami Taksal.
  13. Feb 5, 1762Vadda GhallugharaOn 5 February 1762 Ahmad Shah Abdali catches the Dal Khalsa and its families near Kup-Rahira; estimates of Sikh dead run from about 10,000 to 50,000.
  14. 1920-1925Akali movement for gurdwara reformFrom 1920 to 1925 Sikhs took their historic gurdwaras back from hereditary priests and government control through mass morchas, ending in the Sikh Gurdwaras Act 1925 and the SGPC.
  15. Feb 20, 1921Nankana Sahib MassacreA jatha of 150 Sikhs was attacked at Gurdwara Janam Asthan on 20 Feb 1921; 82 to 156 killed by varying counts. Narain Das was sentenced to death, cut to life on 3 Mar 1922.
  16. Jul 1923-Aug 1925Jaito Morcha for the Maharaja of Nabha and the Gangsar akhand pathAfter the Maharaja of Nabha was forced to abdicate in July 1923, Akali jathas marched to Jaito for two years, were fired on in February 1924, and ended the morcha in August 1925.
  17. Feb 21, 1924Jaito Morcha: firing at Gurdwara Tibbi Sahib19 killed by official count; Akali figures far higher
  18. 1927Shaheed Sikh Missionary CollegeFounded to honor 1921 Shaheeds
  19. Apr 13, 1978Nirankari Amritsar Clash (13 Sikh Shaheeds)On 13 April 1978 a Sikh march on the Sant Nirankari convention at Amritsar ended in 13 Sikh deaths by the Encyclopaedia's count (at least 17 dead in all); the 64 accused were set free in 1980.
  20. Jan 1980Baba Gurbachan Singh acquittedJudicial protection of anti-Sikh violence
  21. Sep 20, 1981Chando Kalan raid, then firing at Mehta ChowkSaroops burned; at least 12 killed at the surrender
  22. 1984-1989Satwant and Kehar Singh trialHanged January 6, 1989
  23. Jun 1-10, 1984Operation Blue StarAkal Takht left in ruins; Bhindranwale and Shahbeg Singh killed
  24. Oct 31, 1984Indira Gandhi assassinatedBeant Singh and Satwant Singh (bodyguards)
  25. Aug 10, 1986General Vaidya assassinatedRetired Army chief Gen Arun Vaidya, who was responsible for clearing the Golden Temple in Operation Blue Star, was shot dead in his car in Pune.
  26. 1988Avtar Singh Brahma killed; Labh Singh killedKLF and KCF leadership decapitated
  27. Jan 6, 1989Satwant Singh and Kehar Singh hangedExecution at Tihar
  28. Aug 31, 1995Beant Singh assassinated by Dilawar SinghEffective end of the active Kharku sangharsh
  29. Sep 6, 1995Khalra abductedJaswant Singh Khalra was taken from outside his Amritsar home by Punjab Police on 6 Sep 1995 and killed in custody; his killers were convicted a decade later by a court at Patiala.
  30. Oct 1995Khalra killed in police custodyShaheedi; body never recovered
  31. 2005Six police officials convicted in Khalra caseDecade-late; no command accountability
  32. 2007Khalra case sentences enhanced to lifeAmong the era's few real convictions
  33. Oct 14, 2015Behbal Kalan police firing: 2 shaheedState fires on peaceful Sikh protest
  34. Mar 25, 2020 and Jun 18, 2022Attacks on Kabul gurdwaras, 2020 and 2022Gunmen stormed Gurdwara Har Rai Sahib in Kabul on Mar 25, 2020 and killed 25 Sikhs. Gurdwara Karte Parwan was attacked on Jun 18, 2022. The Islamic State claimed both.
  35. Nov 2020Farmers' morcha at Delhi bordersSinghu, Tikri, Ghazipur; 700+ farmers died
  36. Jul 3, 2026Satluj film on Khalra released, pulled in India by Jul 5The 1990s still cannot be shown
  37. Oct 13, 2026Anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota killed in MansaJathedar declares him shaheed on Oct 16

Also in this theme

Suggest a correction

Found something wrong? Tell us what should change, link a source that shows it, and say why that source is right.

What you send is kept only to review the correction. Your email is never published.