Solan (Himachal Pradesh): The 154th birth anniversary of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi is being celebrated across the country on Monday. Every year various programmes are organised across the country on his birth anniversary. Like different parts of the country, Mahatma Gandhi had a different bond with Himachal Pradesh. The contribution of Mahatma Gandhi to the independence of the country can never be forgotten. Even after so many years of independence, the Dagshai Jail in the Solan district of Himachal Pradesh has a special significance as Mahatma Gandhi spent two days in that prison. Apart from that the British had tortured the freedom fighters in this jail and the walls of this jail still tell the stories of prisoners.
"Our freedom fighters had faced many troubles in the Dagshai Jail, remembering which even today people tremble with fear. The Dagshai Jail was constructed by the British during the British period. The Dagshai area was established by the East India Company in 1847. The British established Dagshai by merging five villages of this area from the Raja of Patiala. This jail still represents a horrifying scene.
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Mahatma Gandhi spent two days in Dagshai Jail: In 1920, Mahatma Gandhi spent two days in the Dagshai Jail. Mahatma Gandhi had come to meet the Irish prisoners in jail following the arrest of Irish nationals and he also wanted to assess the condition in the jail. During Gandhiji's visit, the British had made arrangements for his stay in the Cantonment area, but he demanded to stay in the Dagshai Jail only.
Bapu's murderer Godse was the last prisoner here: Mahatma Gandhi's murderer Nathuram Godse was brought to the Dagshai Jail during his trial in Shimla. Godse was kept in the cell next to the entry of the main gate of the jail. Here Godse's photo is hanging on the wall. Godse was the last prisoner of this jail. Godse was kept in cell number six next to the entrance. After that, keeping prisoners in the jail was stopped.
The walls of the jail tell the story of the atrocities of the British: The dungeon built in the jail looks terrible even today, it is dark here. From this, it can be estimated how many prisoners were tortured in this jail during the British era. The walls of this jail still tell the story of the atrocities of the British. Apart from physical stress, sometimes inhumane punishments were also given to discipline the prisoners. This Central Jail built on the mountain was constructed like the jail of Andaman Nicobar. Many well-known freedom fighters were kept here. Here the prisoners' foreheads were branded with hot bars. That's why it was called 'Daag-e-Shahi' punishment. The name Dagshai originated from the name Dag-e-Shahi.
The walls of the jail tell the story of the atrocities of the British: The dungeons built in the jail still look horrifying. It is pitch dark here. From this, it could be estimated to what extent prisoners were tortured in this jail during the British era. This Central Jail built on the mountain was built like the jail of Andaman Nicobar.
Many well-known freedom fighters were kept here. Here the prisoners' foreheads were branded with hot bars. That's why it was called 'Daag-e-Shahi' punishment. The name Dagshai originated from the name Dag-e-Shahi. Here the prisoners were subjected to torture and their hearts beat just by hearing about them. Here new methods of punishing prisoners were adopted. Apart from physical stress, sometimes inhumane punishments were also given to the prisoners to discipline them. In the jail, numbers were branded on the foreheads of prisoners with hot rods.
The prisoner was made to stand between two doors: It is said that the prisoner was made to stand between the two doors of the prison cell. After locking both doors, it was ensured that the prisoner remained between these two doors for several hours without rest. A card of prisoner was also made in this jail. In this card, complete details of the prisoner were written, including his name, colour, country, crime, period of imprisonment and date of the decision.
Now the jail has become a museum, the thousands of people visit: Even today, a photograph of Gandhi, a spinning wheel and a mattress are kept in the cell where Mahatma Gandhi had stayed. Even today thousands of people come to see this jail. Along with the country, a museum room has been built, in which memorabilia related to the jail and Dagshai have been kept. During the visit to the jail museum, you will go into the history of the pre-independence era where you can know closely how harsh punishment and torture were given to the prisoners in those times. It may be recalled that the rebel Sikh soldiers of Kamagata Maru were also kept here and later they were hanged.
Where is Dagshai Jail: This jail is situated near Kumarhatti, 40 km from Chandigarh and 11 km from Kasauli in the Solan district. A large number of people come here every day. The Central Jail built on the hill is similar to the Andaman and Nicobar Jail. Many well-known freedom fighters were kept here. Here the prisoners were branded with hot rods on their foreheads. For this reason, this jail is called Dagshai. The Dagshai area was established by the East India Company in 1847. The British had established Dagshai in this area by securing free of cost five villages from Maharaja of Patiala aka Bhupinder Singh of Patiala
