Three generations dedicated to serving Kakori martyrs’ memorial

For 76-year-old Munnalal Rajput, the Shaheed Smarak in Kakori built in the memory of the martyrs of Kakori Train Action, is his second home.

For the last three generations, the Rajput family from Bajnagar village in Kakori has been dedicatedly taking care of a religious site inside the Kakori Shaheed Smarak. Besides, this family has also been looking after the memorial on a voluntary basis, demonstrating their commitment to preserving the site.

The Smarak honours the revolutionaries who executed the Kakori Train Action on Aug 9, 1925. Shaheed Smarak sprawls over 8 bighas of land and has nearly 100 trees, like Ashok, Kachnar, Gular, Paakad, and Gulmohar.

It also has an open theatre where one can watch the Kakori train action on an LCD screen on special occasions. The site includes the main memorial of the revolutionaries, a waiting area, a bookstore, benches, and other facilities.

The religious site inside Kakori Shaheed Smarak has three trees – Gular, Banyan, and Peepal. Each tree represents a different deity – Bhuiyare Baba, Kakarha Baba, and Kankori Mata.

Munnalal, who is known as ‘pujari’ of the temple, has been carrying forward his family’s tradition. Though he is not paid, he loves his job. He wakes up every morning at 5, takes a bath, and by 6 am, he reaches the site to ensure its cleanliness.

While Munnalal takes care of the area outside the memorial, Raj Kumar Mishra, who works for the public works department, cleans the interiors of the memorial, performs ‘aarti’ of the revolutionaries, and looks after the building.

“I am worried that after me, nobody in my family is willing to continue this tradition,” says Munnalal, whose two sons work as carpenters. “They ask me why they should give their time to the memorial if they would not get anything out of serving the deities,” says Munnalal, who retired from the railways in 2009.

“I was just 5 when I first came here with my grandmother, Angana Rajput, who was the temple’s priest at that time. She used to tell me about Kakori Train Action, but I was too young to understand. As I grew older, my father, Sukhru Rajput, narrated the story of the revolutionaries to me,” he recalls.

Narrating the story told to him by his father, he says: “On Aug 8, 1925, a day before the Kakori Train Action, 10 revolutionaries planned to rob a box containing daily revenue of the British. They intended to board a train but were late and couldn’t buy tickets. The next day, under the leadership of Pt Ram Prasad Bismil, they successfully boarded the train. They took control of the guard and driver and secured the booty. It was near this religious site where they opened the box.”

Sharing a fond memory, Munnalal recalls, “In 1983, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi laid the foundation for the Shaheed Smarak temple of the revolutionaries. However, she was assassinated in 1984 after which the project was put on the backburner. Later, in 1999, the then UP chief minister Kalyan Singh brought the temple into existence,” Munnalal says, adding that he feels privileged when visitors come to him and ask about the memorial’s history.

Munnalal’s eyes brighten with pride as he adds, “About a month ago in June, the family members of Pt Ram Prasad Bismil met me. They even took pictures with me.”

“I felt a surge of pride and wished I could have been one of the revolutionaries who participated in the train action and fought for our country’s freedom. However, I worry that the new generation lacks this sentiment. I wish more youngsters would come here and take photographs with our revolutionaries, as they do with celebrities, which I sometimes see on my younger son’s mobile phone,” he says.

“I am committed to this work as long as my body has strength, but I am disappointed that no one from my family is willing to continue,” he adds.