One morning, I was directed to the house of an old swatantra sainani, or freedom fighter, named Sher Singh Mewar. When I returned two days later, he handed over a handwritten manuscript entitled, Tehri Garhwal ka Krantikari Itihas: The Revolutionary History of the State of Tehri Garhwal. An outsider’s visit had sparked memories of a time when history happened; and he, Sher Singh Mewar, had helped make it happen. Us taraf raja, is taraf praja, to use the words of Sher Singh Mewar. In the early 1980s, when I met them, it was 35 years since BS Pundir and Sher Singh Mewar had each expressed, in deeds rather than words, their patriotism.

Source: Hindustan Times May 04, 2019 11:15 UTC