Question

The title ‘Punjab Kesari’ was conferred on?
a. Ranjit Singh
b. Bhagat Singh
c. Lala Lajpat Rai
d. Sardar Baldev Singh

Answer 1

Hint: The title ‘Punjab Kesari’ means a male person from Punjab. In Punjabi, the name ‘Kesari’ also means lion. Hence, the title means a male person from Punjab having the qualities of lion - ferociousness, confidence, rage, etc.

Complete Answer:
During the freedom struggle, many of the freedom fighters were bestowed with various titles and till date, they are referred by their titles sometimes and not by their actual names. Titles like Iron Man of India, Netaji, Father of the Nation, etc were conferred to various Indian nationalists owing to their contributions in achieving independence. Similarly, the title ‘Punjab Kesari’ was given to a person referring to him as ‘Lion of Punjab’.
Lala Lajpat Rai is one of the most celebrated Indian freedom fighters. He was the part of the famous trio: Lal Bal Pal i.e. Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Bipin Chandra Pal. Lala Lajpat Rai was a firm advocate of the Swadeshi Movement and led many rallies in protest of the British rule, their laws and policies. Apart from being a leader, he was also an author and politician. He also founded the Punjab National Bank, which till today is one of the most popular banks. Rai also formed the legislative assembly resolution for boycotting the British Simon Commission. He also called for declaration of ‘Poorna Swaraj’. During the rally against Simon Commission, he was severely injured because of the lathi charge by the British on the protestors. His famous words were ‘I declare that the blows struck at me today will be the last nails in the coffin of British rule in India.’
Let’s look at the options now:
Option (a) Ranjit Singh was the leader of the Sikh Empire who ruled over northwest India in the $19^{th}$ century. He was referred to as ‘Sher-e-Punjab.’ Thus, this is a wrong option.
Option (b) Bhagat Singh was called ‘Shaheed-e-Azam’ which means Great Martyr in Urdu. So, this is an incorrect answer.
Option (c) Lala Lajpat Rai was known as ‘Punjab Kesari’ for his fierce acts of protest against the British and his contributions in achieving freedom. This is the right option.
Option (d) Sardar Baldev Singh was addressed as ‘Sardar’ which means Chief in Punjabi as he was the first Sikh Defence leader of any country in the world. This is an incorrect answer.
Hence, the correct answer is option ‘c. Lala Lajpat Rai’.

Note: Lala Lajpat Rai’s famous words were ‘I declare that the blows struck at me today will be the last nails in the coffin of British rule in India.’ This indeed was seen as an inspiration for extremist revolutionaries in India around that time.