Paash
(Poem on Bhagat Singh)
After his martyrdom, the rest remained,
Like a fading scene left behind.
Freshly shut eyelids, like a shrinking glimpse within the nation’s gaze,
The nation itself remains intact.
After he was gone,
In the window that opens within oneself
Voices of people froze still.
After his martyrdom,
The leaders of the nation’s largest party
Did not wipe their tears, but their noses instead.
Cleared their throats, and
Practiced the art of endless speech.
After his martyrdom,
He lingered in people’s homes,
Scattered like the scent of fabric hidden in their pillows.
At the moment of martyrdom, he stood alone – like God.
But unlike God, he was not lifeless.
Avtar Singh Sandhu ‘Paash’ was a revolutionary poet from Punjab known for radical and anti-establishment poetry. His writings reflected his deep commitment to social justice, equality, and resistance against oppression. He was influenced by Marxist ideology and the Naxalite movement. Influenced by Brecht and Neruda, Paash’s poetry is the ‘poetry from below’ – people’s concerns, joys, and sorrows are at the centre stage in his poetry. Paash was assassinated by Khalistanis on 23rd March, 1988, the same date as Bhagat Singh’s martyrdom day, 57 years later.
