Waiting for Hon'ble Chief Justice Surya Kant

I was on cloud nine when I received an invitation from the Old Students’ Association, Government College, Hisar (now renamed Guru Gorakhnath Ji Government College) to attend the Alumni Meet-2025, Diamond Jubilee Celebration (1950-2025) scheduled for January 10 this year. I felt elated to learn from local newspapers that my old classmate and close friend, Justice Surya Kant, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India, had personally selected his close classmates and some very senior teachers for this privileged occasion. I felt flattered to read my name alongside some eminent persons in Haryana like nonagenarian retired college teacher Prof. Gugan Ram Godara, Choudhary Ajay Singh Chautala, an ex-Minister Prof. Chhattarpal Singh Kundu, and Chaudhary Bansi Lal University (CBLU), Bhiwani Vice-Chancellor Prof. Deepti Dharmani. My wife advised me, “Now you are going to meet your great classmate, Justice Surya Kant. I hope you will welcome him in some presentable dress.” I nodded my head in complete compliance. “Yes, yes, why not!” My son and daughter went to the famous Chaar Marla Market of Fatehabad town to buy a good blazer for me. I was persuaded to buy a pair of new shoes for the great day. When I was informed on the phone by the Principal’s office that I was lucky to have been issued a VIP pass with the word “Proximity” printed in red, I was required to bring a passport-size photo to affix on it. It was a very foggy and cold morning on January 10. Along with my old classmates Jasbir Singh Bhayana and Gurdip Singh “Amritsaria” (earlier members of the famous Bhangra Dance team of our college), I reached Government College exactly at 9 a.m. and completed the due process of registration in time. Soon, we were formally welcomed by staff members and student volunteers by putting a tilak (sacred mark) in red on our foreheads and showering flower petals on us. With the red VIP passes dangling from our necks, we were greeting our old classmates with great enthusiasm. We seemed to have become real VIPs like our top bureaucrats and big leaders for a few hours because of our old ties with Justice Kant!

After some time, we were escorted to the Food Court where tea, coffee, and snacks were being served. No doubt, the breakfast was delicious, yet my eyes and those of many of my classmates were desperately looking for only Justice Kant. Henry Van Dyke (1852-1933), an American author and poet, aptly says, “Time is too long for those who wait.” Some of my classmates stood at the main gate of the college, eagerly waiting for Justice Kant to arrive. Principal Dr. Vivek Saini was kind enough to assure us, “Don’t worry, Sir! As soon as Justice Kant arrives, we will request him to meet you first of all in the open college lawn where we have placed chairs and sofas for you to sit comfortably under the sunshine and meet him face-to-face gracefully.” We also learned that our old classroom No. 4 was specially decorated for sharing our experiences and memories with Justice Kant. In the same room, Prof. M.M. Sharma, Madam Shanti Malik, and Prof. Ved Guliani taught us, where Justice Kant met us daily, cracked jokes with us, and touched the feet of his teachers who shaped him into a great orator. Around 2:00 p.m., we were asked to take our lunch as Justice Kant was likely to reach the college at 2:30 p.m. The lunch was quite sumptuous and we ate our fill. After lunch, I saw some TV anchors moving around, requesting us to give a few bytes on Justice Kant, recalling the good old days we spent with him.

One more hour passed. Now, we started making desperate queries: “Has Justice Kant arrived?” Around 4:30 p.m., we saw a helicopter hovering over our college building. Many of us shouted, looking up at the sky, “Justice Kant aa gaye, aa gaye!” (Justice Kant has come! Justice Kant has come!). There were pleasant drum beats, plunging me into a reverie. “As soon as I meet him, I will hand over the editorial he authored forty-five years ago for the college magazine, ‘Bhor Ka Tara’ (Morning Star). If I am urged to speak a few words in his honor, I would say politely, ‘Now, you are expected to become the voice of the poor and weak of this big ancient country and protect the basic tenets of the Indian Constitution also! Sir, in your hands lies the destiny of our ancient beloved nation!'” But very soon, we came to know that it was just a rumor. The Honorable CJI had cancelled his “historical tryst” with us due to his very tight schedule. My heart sank when I learned that Justice Kant’s chopper had flown towards Guwahati as he had some urgent task to attend there. Then I saw a very aged Prof. Gugan Ram walking towards the main gate with a stick in his hands, sensing that now it was not possible for him to meet and felicitate his old student, Justice Kant! I saw many of my classmates leaving the venue in mild disappointment. I also put back the photostat copies of Justice Kant’s editorial into my bag. At around 5:30 p.m., we also left the college premises for home, hoping to see our great classmate and friend, Justice Kant, on some other day in the future.

Dr Raj Bahadur Yadav

https://newsarcindia.com/the-alumni-who-never-came-a-day-of-anticipation-at-government-college-hisar/

Bhagat Singh’s vision of unity, equality

THE execution of Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Rajguru and Sukhdev Thapar on March 23, 1931, remains a defining moment in India’s struggle against colonial rule. Their martyrdom continues to spur the spirit of patriotism and sacrifice. Beyond his revolutionary actions, Bhagat Singh’s writings reveal a deeply thoughtful social and political vision rooted in equality. Many of his biographers — including his own comrades Sohan Singh Josh, Ajay Ghosh and Shiv Verma — have described him as one of the most intellectually profound figures of the Indian freedom movement.

Writing under pen names such as Vidrohi, Ranjit and Balwant, Bhagat Singh contributed to the Punjabi monthly Kirti, founded by Santokh Singh in Amritsar. Working closely with Josh when the latter took over as the editor, he addressed pressing social issues.

In his 1927 article titled ‘Communal Riots and Their Solution’, Bhagat Singh examined the divisive impact of colonial policies following the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. He argued that the British fanned communal flames to weaken national unity. Referring to the 1924 riots in Kohat, he expressed anguish over how religious identities were manipulated to incite violence. He criticised both the masses and leaders who failed to rise above sectarian thinking.

In another important essay, ‘Achhut Samasya’ (1928), Bhagat Singh addressed the deep-rooted problem of untouchability. He pointed out the hypocrisy of demanding political freedom while denying basic human rights to millions of Dalits. He condemned practices that barred them from temples, schools and even access to drinking water. Emphasising moral responsibility, he argued that true freedom must include social equality. He also highlighted the contradiction between religious pride and the lack of compassion for marginalised communities.

Bhagat Singh’s concern extended to economic injustice as well. In Kirti, he wrote about the hardships faced by farmers and industrial workers under colonial rule. He supported mass movements, recognising their role in mobilising the oppressed. He criticised the British for exploiting peasants, such as in Punjab’s districts where farmers were forced to pay taxes despite crop failure. He also admired the courage of Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, who fought for workers’ rights despite repression.

Bhagat Singh firmly believed that India’s liberation required unity among workers, peasants and the oppressed. Only such a collective struggle, he argued, could dismantle imperialism and build a just, socialist society.

His cautionary note against communal politics remains strikingly relevant today, as divisive debates often overshadow key issues like education, healthcare and employment.

https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/musings/bhagat-singhs-vision-of-unity-equality/#google_vignette

Dr Raj Bahadur Yadav

The writer is a retired educationist based in Fatehabad

A Reunion to Remember: Classmates Reconnect with Chief Justice Surya Kant (NewsArc May 9, 2026) by Dr. Raj Bahadur Yadav

How a convocation in Bhiwani became a deeply personal homecoming for Haryana’s most distinguished son Memorable Moments with Chief Justice Surya Kant — Dr. Raj Bahadur Yadav 

 After being sworn in as the 53rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India on November 24, 2025, Justice Surya Kant was invited to participate as the chief guest at the Alumni Meet-2025 of Government College, Hisar, scheduled for January 10, 2026. However, due to a pressing schedule, he had to cancel his visit at the last moment. We returned home that day feeling somewhat disappointed, yet a few of us remained hopeful of meeting him again in the near future. 

 Fortune smiled on us once more when, in the first week of April, we learnt that Justice Kant was scheduled to visit Chaudhary Bansi Lal University (CBLU), Bhiwani, on April 25 to address its convocation as chief guest. 

 Justice Kant happens to be the first person from Haryana to have reached the august office of Chief Justice of India, and he has consequently become a celebrated figure among intellectuals of humble origins across the towns and cities of the state. He holds a deep empathy for poor litigants who need justice the most. We all cherish memories of trusted friends and classmates — and Justice Kant is certainly one of them. Shakespeare puts it beautifully: “But if the while I think on thee, dear friend, all losses are restored and sorrows end.” (Sonnet 30, Lines 13–14)

 Dr. Vivek Saini, the current Principal of Government College, Hisar, along with Dr. Surendra Kumar Kaushik and Dr. Pramod Malik of CBLU, facilitated our meeting with our distinguished classmate.

 The tenacious and meticulous hosts at CBLU ensured that Justice Kant’s visit was both smooth and inspiring. I had dressed in spotless white, befitting the academic occasion. Seated in one of the VIP rows reserved for “Special Guests of Justice Kant,” we felt genuinely honoured. I was accompanied by two classmates — Jasbir Singh Bhayana and Giriraj Singh. I must say, honestly, that our only claim to a seat in that row was having once shared a college with Mr. Kant.

 With quiet contentment on his face, the 92-year-old Prof. Gugan Ram Godara also walked in and gently settled into his seat. We approached him and touched his feet to seek his blessings. Soon after, Justice Kant appeared on the dais alongside Haryana Governor Prof. Ashim Kumar Ghosh, Chief Justice of the Punjab & Haryana High Court Justice Sheel Nagu, Education Minister Mr. Mahipal Dhanda, and Vice-Chancellor Prof. Deepti Dharmani. 

 We rose to sing the national song, “Vande Mataram.” Justice Kant spoke warmly of Chaudhary Bansi Lal as the architect of modern Haryana. He exhorted students never to forget their roots, to pursue noble aims with focus and determination, and to look beyond their academic degrees towards a larger concern for those around them. Justice Kant was a highly acclaimed Hindi debater during his college days, so we were all the more delighted to hear him speak with remarkable fluency in English before a gathering of the literary and intellectual elite. He is a man whom God has liberally blessed with sterling qualities of both mind and heart. 

 Now, a glimpse of the memorable moments I spent with Justice Kant. After the convocation concluded with the national anthem, “Jana Gana Mana,” I met Justice Kant on the sidelines of the venue, greeted him warmly, and handed over to him the original copy of an editorial — now laminated, though yellowed with age — that he himself had authored nearly 45 years ago as student editor of our college magazine, Bhor Ka Tara (Morning Star). My name, too, finds mention in it. I also presented him with a copy of my book, Common People in Shakespeare’s Plays.

 I could feel tears rushing to my eyes when I told him, “My children jump up with great joy whenever they see you speaking on our television channels!” We were all moved when Justice Kant bowed gracefully before our revered teacher, Prof. Godara, and honoured him during the lunch gathering — a gesture as memorable as it was heartfelt. 

 Time flies, yet such soul-stirring memories stay with us forever.

https://newsarcindia.com/a-reunion-to-remember-classmates-reconnect-with-chief-justice-surya-kant/

 — Dr. Raj Bahadur Yadav Behind Kath Mandi, Kranti Nagar, Fatehabad, Haryana

Travails of becoming Mahatma Gandhi (Daily World 22nd May, 2026) by Dr. Raj Bahadur Yadav

Nature teaches us never to give up! (Daily World 19th May, 2026) by Dr. Raj Bahadur Yadav

A tale of a selfless nature lover (Daily World 14th April, 2026) by Dr. Raj Bahadur Yadav

The roots that are withering away The Tribune, Chandigarh[ Published on April 3, 2025]