Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji ( 1930 -1980 )

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" It seems that nothing has been talked about,
More than God. Yet , few care to realise Him. "
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Early Life

Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji was one of those
great masters who lived and died for the
noble cause of human unity through spiritual
awakening . Throughout , he endeavored to
transform the demoniac face of human
society and inculcate the spirit of peaceful
co- existence, love and harmony. He was
pained to find people quarrelling and
suffering because of hatred generated by
ignorance, blind faith and superstition .

Fortunately, Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji did not
have to go out to learn the real purpose of
human life , the reason for man 's suffering
and answer to his problems . His father, Baba
Avtar Singh Ji and the founder of the Sant
Nirankari Mission , Baba Buta Singh Ji blessed
him with spiritual awakening and provided
ample opportunity to him to imbibe and
practice the noble traits of selfless service,
surrender to the divine will and truthful
living, free from any kind of hatred or
jealousy. This turned his life into a practical
version of spirituality, a living example of
divine truth , so much so that Baba Avtar
Singh Ji chose to see the Satguru manifesting
himself in him and preferred to live as an
ordinary follower of the Mission for the rest
of his life .

Baba Gurbachan Singh was born on
December 10 , 1930 in Peshawar ( now in
Pakistan) . He received boundless love and
affection from his parents, Baba Avtar Singh
Ji and Jagat Mata Budhwanti Ji as also from
the then True Master Baba Buta Singh Ji ,
residing with the family at that time. Right
from his infancy, the child Gurbachan
manifested rare and remarkable qualities .
These qualities comprised sensitiveness to
human sorrow and suffering, sympathy for
the afflicted , avoidance of disputes , discord
and malice as also appreciation of fine traits
in others .
Gurbachan was a shining student. After doing
his Middle from Peshawar , he matriculated
from the Khalsa School , Rawalpindi. He ,
however , could not pursue his studies
further, because of the turmoil leading to
Partition of India . He , however , acquired rich
and rare experience of practical life by his
wisdom and intelligence .
During the turbulent days preceding the
Partition, every parent wished to be relieved
of his pressing responsibilities as quickly as
possible. Accordingly , Bhai Manna Singh
solemnized the marriage of his daughter,
Kulwant Kaur Ji , with Gurbachan Singh Ji on
April 22, 1947 , at a simple ceremony .
Kulwant Kaur Ji who subsequently became
popular as Nirankari Rajmata, marched
shoulder to shoulder with her husband .
Surely, the couple had been united by the
Almighty for the well being of humanity .

During Partition, people were migrating to
India . For the migrants of the Rawalpindi
area, a camp was set up at Wah, near border .
The Camp Officer entrusted to young
Gurbachan the job of looking after the
inmates of the Camp. The step had a deeper
significance. It was actually a test of
Gurbachan’s spirit of selfless service, self-
sacrifice and sense of justice which was
displayed by him admirably . One day when it
was announced on behalf of the Government
that those desirous of migrating to India ,
could do so by aeroplanes, then available, all
the devotees left for India , leaving their
belongings to the care of Gurbachan Singh Ji .
A few days later , he loaded all the belongings
of the devotees in a goods train and reached
India .
Following the migration, while Baba Avtar
Singh Ji resumed the Mission 's activities in
Delhi , Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji started
business in auto -parts , first in Jalandhar in
Punjab and later in Delhi . Simultaneously , he
took keen interest in congregations. He
would drive Baba Avtar Singh Ji to the places
of congregations both in the morning and in
the evening . Besides being at the service of
the Satguru, he attended to devotees also .

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Head of the Mission

On December 3, 1962 , while addressing a
gathering of devotees at Paharganj in Delhi ,
Baba Avtar Singh Ji declared that hereafter
they should address Gurbachan Singh Ji as
Satguru, the True Master . On November 5 ,
1963 , the entire Nirankari world saw the
Satguru already manifested in him when they
assembled in Delhi for the 16 th Annual
Nirankari Sant Samagam .
Organisational Reforms
With the passage of time, the fast growing
number of devotees needed some
organizational reforms. For this purpose ,
Baba Ji convened the First Mussoorie
Conference on July 17 and 18 , 1965 , which
was attended by the organizers and the
preachers of the Mission. A number of
important decisions were taken to streamline
the administrative outfit and to spread
message of Mission . To this end , the
administrative work of the mission in the
country was divided into four zones.
On a suggestion from Baba Avtar Singh Ji
who attended this conference as one of the
missionaries, it was decided to start Building
fund for setting up Satsang Bhawans to
enable devotees to hold congregations
regularly. As suggested by the devotees from
foreign countries, it was also decided to
undertake missionary tours abroad.
Through world- wide tours of Baba Ji and his
missionaries, the message of the Mission
spread across the globe. In this way, the
campaign for human redemption and
spiritual enlightenment hitherto confined to
the boundaries of India , began to travel
overseas also.

Baba Ji convened the Second Mussoorie
Conference on May 14th, 15th and 16 th,
1973 . The Conference turned out to be a
watershed in the history of the Mission as it
proposed a code of conduct for the
missionaries. It was also decided at this
conference that while we may not hate
others on account of their diet- habits, we
ourselves should abstain from the use of all
kinds of intoxicants. Another decision was to
promote dowry free marriages and observe
austerity in other social functions.

Baba Ji gave a clarion call to all , especially
the youth to implement the above decisions.
He exhorted them to come to the fore for
propagating the Mission and combating the
social evils vigorously . He advised the older
generation to give full encouragement to the
youth in this direction, failing which they
would not only themselves lag behind but
also hamper the progress of the Mission .
Interestingly, Baba Ji' s son Hardev (the
present Head of the Mission ) and daughters
Niranjan , Jagjit , Mohini and Swaran all joined
Sewa Dal , (selfless voluntary service unit) as
its Primary Members .

A Multidimensional Vision
Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji believed in prompt
execution keeping both short-term and long -
term objectives in mind . He implemented his
vision by taking small steps and never
delayed short- term actions simply waiting for
long- term plans to materialize. That is why he
was able to turn the apparently impossible
looking into the possible . A little ahead of
the Sant Nirankari Colony , the Mission had a
large piece of wasteland . In 1965 , when the
country was facing a severe shortage of food
grains, Baba Ji thought of contributing his
mite in this direction by bringing the said
wasteland under cultivation..
The poor and arid condition of the soil did
not , however , permit its cultivation.

According to all the neighbouring cultivators,
accumulated salinity had rendered it unfit for
cultivation. The experts of the Indian
Agricultural Research Institute , New Delhi
too considered the land unproductive . This
seemed to be the general consensus , but
undeterred by such pessimistic verdicts, the
enterprising and innovative Baba Ji took up
the challenge.
A little away from the land in question , the
Government had set up a Water Treatment
plant . The effluent from this plant made the
surrounding area quite unhygienic . Baba Ji
chalked out a project to divert the effluent to
this barren land. Thousands of devotees
worked day and night for digging a long drain
to divert the flow of this effluent from the
plant to this land . In due course , the
wasteland was transformed into a lush green
field. The neighbouring farmers were amazed.

The officials of the Indian Agricultural
Research Institute too were wonder- struck
when invited to see the wasteland yield a
rich crop . They remarked that it was indeed
a miracle. Baba Ji , however , said that even
an impossible task could be accomplished ,
given dedication, firm faith and hard work .

Incidentally, the following year was
proclaimed as the year of " Green
Revolution". The land in question topped in
production of food grains in the area.
Likewise, keeping in view the scarcity of
petrol facing the country , Baba Ji with a
knack for innovation, converted the petrol
engines of the Mission' s vehicles into diesel
ones. Interestingly, the entire work was done
in the Mission' s own workshop under Baba
Ji' s supervision and guidance. All this was a
message to the world that hard work and
sincerity of purpose was the master key to
achievement.
Though not a qualified architect or engineer ,
Baba Ji himself conceived and designed the
plans of the Bhawans. This is a testimony to
his being genius . The imposing hall at the
first floor of the Nirankari Satsang Bhawan in
Sant Nirankari Colony , Delhi , is an example
of his architectural skill. Dispensaries and
schools were also set up along with various
Bhawans. Buildings of two Senior Secondary
Schools in Delhi and a Degree College at
Sohna, Distt . Gurgaon , Haryana were also
constructed as per Baba Ji 's plans. Baba Ji
took keen interest in homeopathy also.

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Resistance

Quite predictably, the voice of truth first
raised by Baba Buta Singh Ji and Baba Avtar
Singh Ji and now spread by Baba Gurbachan
Singh Ji was resisted by the orthodox.The
rapid progress of the Mission had sometimes
upset these elements to the level of
desperation. Many a time , Baba Ji called
upon them to first understand the Mission
and then point out if there was anything
wrong. But all his gestures fell flat on them .
Congregations were disturbed at many places .
Violent attacks were also reported from
several centers.

The worst in the chain was the attack on the
Baisakhi Samagam in Amritsar on April 13 ,
1978 . Baba Gurbachan Ji was scheduled to
address the Samagam. But before he arrived,
about 200 fanatics attacked the
congregation. The police opened fire.
Eighteen precious lives were lost. The
incident was followed by a court case .
Several Nirankari saints remained in judicial
custody for about two years before they were
acquitted honourably. The case was declared
to be false and fabricated . The court passed
severe strictures against the then
Government of Punjab for filing a totally
false case against innocent Nirankaris . The
court held fanatics responsible for brutal
attack on peaceful Nirankari congregation.
While the case was on, Baba Gurbachan Singh
Ji did not sit back due to the turmoil . He
declared that Truth had always to face such
opposition and the greatest quality of the
saints is that they do not feel frustrated
realising that the Truth is on their side and it
must triumph in the long run. T:here was,
therefore, no let up in the activities of the
Mission.
The opposition, however, did not end with
the historic Karnal verdict in the Amritsar
case, acquitting all the accused Nirankaris ,
including Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji ,
honourably. The fanatics made Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji personally the target of
their violence . They made an attempt on his
life first in Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh and then
near Durg in Madhya Pradesh .
Ultimately , Baba Ji fell to their bullets in
Delhi on April 24, 1980 . Naturally, every
peace-loving person lamented and
condemned the senseless act of the fanatics
as an attack on love and peace by the forces
of hatred and violence . “ An Apostle of God' s
glory , a Messiah of human unity and a true
social reformer, had fallen prey to religious
intolerance" , commented newspapers . It was
another blot on human history, said the
intellectuals . And the peace-loving humanists
felt that humanism had been ravaged.
Mere condemnation of the brutal act would ,
however , not suffice. The entire Nirankari
world was in dismay. Their sense of tolerance
as also the patience was under severe stress.
It was only for the successor of Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji, His son Baba Hardev
Singh Ji came to their rescue. He put aside
his own worldly sentiments usual for a son
on the tragic demise of his father and
consoled every follower of the Mission to
face the tragedy boldly and without any
feeling of vengeance .

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    Author : Dinesh
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