Ms. Bita is an Indian social activist and former politician who served as a minister in the Punjab government. He was a member of the Indian National Congress and served as president of the Indian Youth Congress. He is the chairman of the All India Anti-Terrorism Front, which works to support the relatives of the martyrs of the Indian Army.
Wiki/Biography
MS Bitta aka Maninderjit Singh Bitta was born in 1957 (age 65; as of 2022) in Chowk Babasar near the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab. He was not interested in studying and often got into street fights during his childhood. When he was 7 years old, he often went to Jallianwala Bagh with his grandfather, who told him about the 1919 massacre. Ms. Bita took an oath at Jallianwala Bagh that he would always protect the rights of Indians in any way. His grandfather gave him many biographies of Indian freedom fighters such as Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad and Subhas Chandra Bose. Subhash Chandra Bose). Due to repeated fights with other children, he had to change schools three times and dropped out after studying at Khalsa College in Amritsar for 2 years. At the age of 14, he joined the Sevadar Congress.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′ 9″
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family
He belongs to a lower middle class non-Jat Sikh family
Religion/Religious Views
He believes in Sikhism.
Signature/Autograph
Ms. Bita’s signature
Profession
politics
In the late 1970s, he joined the Indian Youth Congress and began organizing public meetings and rallies near his home.
In 1982, Ms. Beata spoke at a public rally
In 1983, he became the district president of the Indian Youth Congress. When Punjab was gripped by a wave of terrorism, he organized rallies in his area and echoed pro-national sentiments. He frequently travels between Amritsar and Delhi. Known for his stance against Arjun Singh, PV Narsimha Rao appointed him president of the Indian Youth Congress. While serving as president of the Indian Youth Congress, Bita formed a group of members who often wore white attire and maroon turbans, which reportedly attracted the attention of Rajiv Gandhi. In 1992, he became the Minister of Public Development in the Bit Singh government; however, after he was attacked, he left politics and founded the All India Anti-Terrorism Front (AIATF).
MS Bitta (right) and PV Narsimha Rao
counterterrorism activist
Ms. Bita founded an NGO called the All India Anti-Terrorism Front (AIATF) in 1995 and began working to spread anti-terrorism messages in India. His NGO provides education to the martyrs of the Kargil War and the 2001 Parliament attack. He is an outspoken critic of terrorism and has publicly condemned political parties’ stance on counter-terrorism.
Ms. Bita (in hijab) with the family of the late captain Saurabh Kalia, who was killed in the Kargil war
His NGO AIATF is working during the COVID-19 pandemic to support families of COVID-19 victims and to help people and other groups carry out humanitarian work. His NGO also rewards people across India for their heroic acts in the fight against terrorism. He has repeatedly criticized the ISI and accused them of spreading terrorism in India. He also spoke freely about political terrorism because he said politics did not allow the law to properly punish criminals. He publicly blamed farmer leader Rakesh Tikait for the riots at the Red Fort during the 2021 Republic Day celebrations.
assassination attempt
Mr. Bita escaped multiple fatal assassination attempts; most of them, almost 15 times, used bombs to kill him. Some people call him “Zida Shaheed”. He reportedly redeemed himself by changing course, canceling the show, or leaving the show early. In 1983, when he was in Class 9, SHO Amritsar police warned him not to hoist the Indian flag on August 15 as terrorists warned to bomb the place and kill him. At 5 a.m., terrorists bombed his house with 45 kilograms of RDX while he was studying. He then took out his father’s revolver and ran behind them and shot them; however, the terrorists had already escaped. He remained unmoved and raised the national flag at 12 noon. During the ceremony, people came to attack him, but he clashed with them and handed them over to the police. In 1983, a bombing in Delhi using 40kg of RDX was aimed at killing him again. In 1997, the terrorist Major Singh was arrested in Delhi for planning to kill Ms. Bita with a bomb rigged in a truck. In April 2017, he received a threatening letter from Islamic Jihad terrorists, and in February 2022, he received a threatening letter from the Islamic State.
Attack occurs as Indian flag is hoisted in Amritsar
When he was 19 years old, he decided to raise the Indian flag in front of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, but he was attacked by a bomb and survived. He recalled the incident in an interview,
“Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was living in the temple complex at that time. They threatened us but we continued. Just then a bomb was thrown on the road. Smoke engulfed the area. We survived and unfurled the flag.”
Amritsar bombing on July 7, 1992
On July 7, 1992, he was going to attend the inauguration of a laundry factory on the Golden Mile in Amritsar, Punjab. He had anticipated the bombing a day earlier; however, he did not cancel his plans. The explosion occurred near Wayam Singh Hospital in Rambagh area of Amritsar. The terrorists parked their Maruti car on the roadside and as his convoy passed them, they detonated a remote-controlled bomb, killing 12 people and injuring 63 others. The car he was riding in, numbered PB08 A0002, was damaged. His security personnel picked him up and transferred him to a bulletproof vehicle; however, his legs were seriously injured. The terrorists also shot at him from the roof of a neighboring house. However, he did not suffer any gunshot wounds. Later, Ms. Bita had to have a rod implanted in her leg; the rod reportedly weighed about 4 kilograms, so he was still unable to climb stairs or sit cross-legged on the floor. In an interview, he recalled the attack and described the explosion, saying:
“In 1992, when I was the public sector minister in the Punjab government, I became a victim of a bomb attack. The bomb exploded in the street. My bodyguard was torn to pieces and his rifle was reduced to ashes.”
Ms Bita (wearing a red headscarf) uses crutches during a rally organized after the bomb blast in 1992
Delhi bombings of September 11, 1993
On September 8, 1993, his security was removed and the bombing occurred on September 11, 1993. Ms Bitta left the Congress Youth Wing headquarters in a regular ambassador car as his bullet-proof vehicle had gone for repairs. Two bombs were planted in a parked car. Just as the pilot vehicle exited the gate, a terrorist detonated a remote-controlled bomb. Two of his bodyguards and seven others died on the spot, and 36 others were injured. Ms. Bita suffered minor injuries to her chest. He was rescued from the scene by other bodyguards. Scores of metal and glass fragments were scattered within 100 yards of Parliament and nearby government buildings. He was admitted to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital; however, he expected that terrorists would be waiting for him there, so he went to All India Institute of Medical Sciences Delhi. Subsequently, Khalistani terrorist Devinder Pal Singh Brar, believed to be the mastermind behind the blast, was arrested. Asked about the incident in an interview, he said:
I was the President of the Youth Assembly on September 11, 1993, the day I was saved by sheer luck. However, nine other people died and many others were injured at the Youth Assembly office. I walked out of the office and sat in my car. The lead car was right in front of me when another car came between the two cars. At this moment, a car loaded with RDX parked nearby suddenly burst into flames. The car got in between my car and got hit, I survived with injuries. ”
Scenes from the Delhi bomb blast in 1993
Facts/Trivia
- He is a fitness enthusiast and pescatarian who only eats fish three days a week.
- He uses henna products extensively in his daily life.
- PV Narsimha Rao gave him the name “Zinda Shaheed”.
- He has lifetime Z+ security.
- He has signed an agreement to donate his body after his death.
- In 2011, he asked then-President Pratibha Patil for permission to end his life because he believed that terrorists would kill him and he did not want civilians to die because of him.
- He is one of 3 people who are not members of Parliament or hold any government position with government accommodation.
- In 2019, a biopic about Bitta’s life “Zinda Shaheed” was released.
News Updates… On MS Bitta’s biopic… Producers Shailendra Singh and Priya Gupta have acquired the rights of MS Bitta’s life story… The biopic is titled #sindashahid… Beginning in the first half of 2020… Director and cast will be announced soon. pic.twitter.com/txGPmnCMF5
— Taran Adarsh (@taran_adarsh) May 28, 2019
- In 2007, he said he would commit suicide if the DMK government in Tamil Nadu tried to harm the Ram Setu people. He said in an interview,
Ram is respected by all Indians irrespective of caste and religion. Ramayana is famous all over the world. When the country itself is equated with Ram, how can the buildings built by him be destroyed. I would be the first person to sacrifice his life to prevent damage to the bridge. ”
- He followed the ideals of Lal Bahadur Shastri and Sardar Patel.
- After joining the Congress Seva Dal at the age of 14, he started hoisting the Indian flag in front of Sri Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) in Amritsar.
- During his time as a politician, Beeta was known for his aggressiveness, including defeating an MLA in the 1992 Punjab Assembly who heckled the then chief minister of Punjab, Beant Singh.
- Lieutenant Colonel SP Singh had sought bribes from the family members of the late Indian Air Force fighter pilot Vijay Ahuja, who was killed during the Kargil War. Later, Ms. Bita assisted the Bathinda police in trapping Lieutenant Colonel SP Singh red-handed and received Rs 40,000 on charges of bribery from Vijay’s brother Ajay Ahuja.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education