From Punjab to North America

Sohan Singh Bhakna was a Punjabi anti-colonial activist who became the first president of the organisation associated with the Ghadar movement in North America. Historian Sunny Kumar discusses Bhakna’s upbringing near Amritsar, the influence of preacher Kesar Singh on his thinking and his migration to Seattle in 1909. Kumar draws in part on Bhakna’s Punjabi autobiography, Jivan Sangram. An autobiography can reveal how a person remembered the forces that shaped him; it also reflects the perspective of its author. The experiences of migrant workers and the political networks they built are central to the wider story.[1]

The Ghadar organisation

A study published by the University of the Punjab identifies Bhakna as president and Har Dayal as a leading secretary of the organisation that became known as the Ghadar association. Its members sought an end to British rule in India and circulated political ideas through organisations and publications among migrants. Bhakna’s leadership was part of a collective movement involving people of different backgrounds, including workers, students and writers. Names and dates of meetings can vary between accounts of the organisation’s early development, so the formation of the movement should not be reduced to a single meeting or individual.[2]

Imprisonment and later activism

The Nehru Archive’s biographical note records Bhakna’s imprisonment, the commutation of a death sentence and his release in 1930. It also describes his later participation in civil disobedience and association with the Kisan Sabha and communist politics. These activities extended his public life beyond the initial Ghadar years. A short biographical entry gives a chronology but cannot explain all the choices and debates within those movements. His memoir, prison records and studies of peasant organising offer further ways to examine the relationship between his work abroad and politics in Punjab after his release.[3]

Sources & notes

Source records include access dates and, where known, limits on what was examined. Checks used AI assistance; independent human or specialist review has not been completed.

  1. Sunny Kumar. Ghadar Movement after a Century ↗Written source · Source date: 2017 · Locator: Bhakna’s early life and migration. Accessed 2026-11-03.Selected written source inspected; underlying archival records or film prints not independently reviewed.Return to From Punjab to North America, paragraph 1 ↑
  2. Anam Iftikhar, Robina Shoeb, Naudir Bakht, Khalid M. Iraqi and Muhammabd Abrar Ahmad. Ghadar Party and its Resistance to Colonial Government in Punjab ↗Written source · Source date: 2019 · Locator: Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan 56(1), pp. 139–140; organisation and leadership. Accessed 2026-11-04.The university-hosted article was rechecked for the named roles. Its underlying sources and archival records were not independently inspected; dates and organisational accounts can differ.Return to The Ghadar organisation, paragraph 1 ↑
  3. Nehru Archive. Sohan Singh Bhakna ↗Written source · Source date: publication date not established · Locator: Imprisonment and political work. Accessed 2026-11-03.Selected written source inspected; underlying archival records or film prints not independently reviewed.Return to Imprisonment and later activism, paragraph 1 ↑
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