Lahore administration opposes naming chowk after Bhagat Singh

The Lahore administration has opposed renaming Fawara Chowk (Shadman Chowk) after Indian freedom fighter Bhagat Singh and installing a statue in his honor. In response to a contempt of court petition, the Lahore Metropolitan Council submitted a report describing Bhagat Singh as a criminal and, by today's standards, a terrorist. The report, presented by Assistant Advocate General Asghar Leghari, claimed that Bhagat Singh's actions—particularly the killing of a British police officer—were criminal, not revolutionary. It further argued that calling Bhagat Singh a martyr was disrespectful to the Islamic concept of martyrdom.

The report, citing retired Commodore Tariq Majeed, also claimed that Bhagat Singh was influenced by religious leaders hostile to Muslims and that the Bhagat Singh Memorial Foundation was working against Islamic values and Pakistani culture. The report called for the foundation to be banned and its officials investigated.

Imtiaz Rashid Qureshi, chairman of the Bhagat Singh Foundation, filed the contempt of court petition after the Lahore High Court's 2018 order to rename the chowk was not implemented. The case has been adjourned until January 17, 2025, due to the absence of Qureshi’s lawyer, who was reported ill.