The martyrdom day of Shri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji is usually a restricted holiday in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Chandigarh, though it has been declared as a general holiday in recent years. It marks the day of martyrdom of the ninth Nanak, Guru Tegh Bahadur.
Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji was one of the followers of Guru Nanak Ji and among the founders of the Sikh religion. He was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind Ji and was born in 1621 in Amritsar.
Popularly known as 'Hind Ki Chadar' or 'Shield of India', Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji fought for the basic fundamental rights of the people, even those who did not belong to his own community.
Not just a principled and fearless warrior, he was a learned spiritual scholar and poet whose 115 hymns are included in Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the main text of Sikhism.
Guru Tegh Bahadur was publicly beheaded on November 24th 1675 on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb at Delhi's famous Gurudwara Sheesh Ganj Sahib for refusing to convert to Islam.
