Hundreds celebrate 187th birth anniversary of Pt Shardha Ram Phillauri

The 187th birth anniversary of Pt Shardha Ram Phillauri was celebrated with great fervour at his hometown Phillaur on Monday.

Celebrations were also reported from Phagwara, Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

Hundreds of residents paid tribute and garlanded his statue near the bus stand. A religious congregation was also held at a temple, where hundreds of people paid their tribute to the great poet and social reformer who gave us 'Aarti' and 'Om Jai Jagdish Hare'. Kirtans and bhajans were performed and langar was organised at several places.

Phillauri was born in a Brahmin family on September 30, 1837. He learnt Sanskrit, Persian, astrology and music, besides the Gurmukhi script. He later married a Sikh woman, Mehtab Kaur.

Celebrations were also reported from Phagwara, Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

Political parties, however, used his birth anniversary to further their poll agenda.