MS Bitta

Some Lesser Known Facts About MS Bitta

• MS Bitta is an Indian social activist and former politician who served as a minister in Beant Singh’s cabinet in 1992. He was active in politics since his childhood and later became a social activist after surviving a few bomb attacks aimed to kill him. He is the founder-chairman of the All-India Anti-Terrorist Front (AIATF) which works to spread awareness about terrorism and supports the family of Indian Army’s martyrs.

• He was born into a non-jat Punjabi Sikh family.

• During his childhood, he was not interested in studies and used to have many street fights with other children around him.

• He went to the Jallianwala Bagh with his grandfather at the age of seven when he heard about the stories of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

• He took oath in the Jallianwala Bagh that he would always protect the rights of Indian citizens by any means. He also read biographies of many Indian freedom fighters like Bhagat Singh, Chandra Shekhar Azad, and Subhash Chandra Bose given to him by his grandfather.

• He changed schools three times as he would often get into fights with other children in his school.

• He enrolled at Khalsa College, Amritsar to pursue graduation; however, he dropped out of college only after two years.

  

• He started organising public rallies and gatherings near his home after joining Indian Youth Congress in the 1970s.

  

• In 1983, he started organising pro-nation rallies near his home after becoming the district chief of the Indian Youth Congress; at that time, Punjab was gripped in a wave of terrorism spearheaded by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

  

• Reportedly, he was in the 9th class in 1983 when he declared that he would hoist the Indian flag on 15 August in his area. Then-SHO Amritsar Police warned him of a terrorist attack; however, he remained determined. His house was bombed using 45 kg RDX at 5 am; he was studying at that moment and ran behind the terrorists with his father’s revolver to kill them. The terrorists ran away, and he hoisted the Indian flag at 12 noon. Some people attacked him during the flag-hoisting ceremony whom he fought and handed them to the police.

• He talked about the incident in an interview and said,
  

  Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was those days lodged inside the temple complex. They threatened us but we went ahead. That is when a bomb was hurled on to the road. Smoke engulfed the area. We survived to unfurl the national flag.” ^[3]The Times of India

• In 1983, he was again attacked in Delhi using 40 kg RDX.

• He often travelled between Amritsar and Delhi and became known for his closeness to the former Indian PM P. V. Narasimha Rao, who later appointed Bitta as the head of the Indian Youth Congress. He also became known for his anti-Arjun Singh stance.

  

• He caught the attention of former Indian PM Rajiv Gandhi as he, along with a group of other members, wore white attire with maroon turbans.

  

• He was the PWD minister in Beant Singh‘s government in 1992 when a bomb attack aimed to kill him failed; however, the attack left him seriously injured following which he left politics altogether.

• He anticipated the bomb attack on him; however, he went ahead with his plan to inaugurate a Laundry plant at Golden Avenue, Amritsar, Punjab on 7 July 1992.

• The bombing happened near Waryam Singh hospital in the Rambagh area of Amritsar using a remote-controlled bomb which was detonated when his convoy passed nearby the car. Reportedly, the terrorists were waiting for his convoy in their parked Maruti car.

• He was travelling in the car with the number PB08 A0002 which was damaged. His security personnel picked him up and shifted him to a bulletproof vehicle in the convoy. Terrorists also fired at him from the roof of a neighbouring house; however, he was not hit by any bullet. The bombing killed 12 people and injured 63.

• He suffered severe injuries in his leg following which he underwent rod implant surgery. Reportedly, the rod implant weighed 4 kg and he could not climb stairs and sit on the floor by folding his legs to this day. He described the bombing as terrible and said,
  

  I was a victim of a bomb attack in 1992 while I was PWD minister in the Punjab government. The bombs blew prople around on the street. My bodyguards were ripped apart and rifles reduced to ashes.” ^[4]The Times of India

• He was known as an aggressive politician as he once beat an MLA in the 1992 Punjab assembly who was trying to heckle then Chief Minister of Punjab Beant Singh. ^[5]India Today

• He was again targeted using a bomb in Delhi on 11 September 1993 after his security cover was withdrawn three days earlier on 8 September 1993.

• He was Youth Congress president at that time, and since his bulletproof car was gone for repairs, he was leaving the Congress Youth Wing headquarters in an ordinary Ambassador car.

• Two bombs were fitted in a car which was parked roadside and were detonated using a remote which killed his 2 bodyguards and 7 others and injured 36. Bitta also suffered a minor injury to his chest.
  

  

  

• He got saved by a stroke of luck as his car was behind the pilot car; however, another car came between both cars, and it took the impact of the bombing.

• He was being taken to the Ram Manohar Lohia hospital; however, he feared that the terrorists would be expecting him to come there, hence he went to AIIMS Delhi.

• The mastermind of the bombing, Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar, a Khalistani terrorist, was arrested later.

• Bitta talked about this bombing in an interview later and said,
  

  I was Youth Congress president and that day, on September 11, 1993, I was saved by sheer luck. Nine others, however, were killed, and many injured at the Youth Congress office. I came out of the office and sat in my car. The pilot car was ahead of me when another car came between the two. Just then a car loaded with RDX parked in the vicinity blew up into a mass of fire. This car that came in between my cars took the impact and I escaped with injuries.” ^[6]The Times of India

• He founded an NGO named All India Anti-Terrorist Front(AIATF) in 1995 and started to spread anti-terrorism awareness among the Indian public.

  

• Major Singh, a terrorist, was arrested in Delhi in 1997 who conspired to kill MS Bitta with a bomb fitted in a truck.

• AIATF also provided financial support for the education of the family members of the martyrs in the 1999 Kargil War and the 2001 Parliament attack.
  

  

  

  

• He openly criticized terror activities and the political parties for their stand against terrorism. He said that politics do not allow the law to convict terrorists appropriately.

• He gave a public statement in 2007 that if the DMK government in Tamil Nadu tried to harm the Ram Setu, he would commit suicide. He said,
  

  Ram is respected by all Indians irrespective of caste and religion. Ramayana is known throughout the world. When the country itself is identified with Ram, how could a structure built by him could be allowed to be damaged. I will be the first person to sacrifice my life for preventing any damage to the bridge.” ^[7]DNA India

• In September 2009, he pledged to donate his body after his death.

• During the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, his NGO AIATF worked with several other NGOs to provide support to the victims and their families.

• He is a very vocal critic of Pakistan’s intelligence organisation ISI and blamed them for planning terror attacks in India.

• He once helped the family of the late Indian Air Force fighter pilot Vijay Ahuja, who died during the Kargil War, by assisting the Bathinda Police to trap and catch Lt Col SP Singh red-handed while taking a bribe of forty thousand rupees from Vijay’s brother, Ajay Ahuja. Reportedly, Singh was asking bribe from the family to settle issues regarding Vijay’s pension.

• He requested then-Indian President Pratibha Singh Patil in 2011 for permission to end his life as he believed that the terrorists would again target him, and he did not want any civilians to lose their lives in such attacks. ^[8]India TV

• After the unrest at the Red Fort during the 2021 Republic Day celebrations, he publicly lambasted the farmer leader Rakesh Tikait.

• MS Bitta has escaped more than 15 bombings due to which the former Indian PM P. V. Narasimha Rao gave him the name ‘Zinda Shaheed.’ He allegedly saved himself during these attempts by changing routes, leaving early, or cancelling programs. Some people also call him ‘The Most Bombed Man in India.’

  

• A biopic titled Zinda Shaheed was announced on Bitta’s life in 2019.

• He has received several death threats from many notorious terror organisations including one letter from Hizb-Ul-Mujahideen in April 2017 and another from ISIS in February 2022.

• He is one of the 3 persons with a government accommodation without being an MP or holding any government position. ^[9]The Times of India

  

• He has lifetime Z+ security cover.

• He extensively uses Henna products in daily life.

• He follows the ideals of former Indian PM, Lal Bahadur Shastri, and the first Home Minister of India, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.