Shaheed Baba Banda Singh Bahadur being executed at Delhi, sculpture at Mehdiana Sahib, near Jagraon in Ludhiana district, India

Shaheed Baba Banda Singh Bahadur being executed at Delhi, sculpture at Mehdiana Sahib, near Jagraon in Ludhiana district, India

He was told to kill his four-year-old son, Ajai Singh, which he refused to do. So, Ajai Singh was murdered, his heart was cut out, and thrust into Banda Bahadur's

Banda Singh Bahadur (born Lachman Dev) (27 October 1670 – 9 June 1716), was a Sikh warrior and a commander of the Khalsa army. At age 15, he left home to become an ascetic, and was given the name Madho Das Bairagi.

He established a monastery at Nānded, on the bank of the river Godāvarī. In 1707, Guru Gobind Singh accepted an invitation to meet Bahadur Shah I in southern India, he visited Banda Singh Bahadur in 1708. Banda became disciple of Guru Gobind Singh and was given a new name, Gurbaksh Singh (as written in Mahan Kosh, after the baptism ceremony. He is popularly known as Banda Singh Bahadur. He was given five arrows by the Guru as a blessing for the battles ahead.

He came to Khanda, Sonipat and assembled a fighting force and led the struggle against the Mughal Empire.

His first major action was the sacking of the Mughal provincial capital, Samana, in November 1709. After establishing his authority and Sikh Misl in Punjab, Banda Singh Bahadur abolished the zamindari system, and granted property rights to the tillers of the land. Banda Singh was captured by the Mughals and tortured to death in 1715–1716

Banda Singh Bahadur was put into an iron cage and the remaining Sikhs were chained. The Sikhs were brought to Delhi in a procession with the 780 Sikh prisoners, 2,000 Sikh heads hung on spears, and 700 cartloads of heads of slaughtered Sikhs used to terrorise the population. They were put in the Delhi fort and pressured to give up their faith and become Muslims.

The prisoners remained unmoved. On their firm refusal these non-converters were ordered to be executed. Every day 100 Sikh soldiers were brought out of the fort and murdered in public. This continued for approximately seven days. He was told to kill his four-year-old son, Ajai Singh, which he refused to do. So, Ajai Singh was murdered, his heart was cut out, and thrust into Banda Bahadur's mouth. However, his resolution did not break under torture, and so he was martyred. After three months of confinement, on 9 June 1716, Banda Singh's eyes were gouged out, his limbs were severed, his skin removed, and then he was killed.

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