Lucknow: With patriotic songs playing in the background, speeches stoking nationalist fervour were delivered to address a gathering on Friday to commemorate the Battle of Chinhat on its 160th anniversary, at the place where the battle was fought on June 30, 1857.In the light of flaming torches a pledge was taken to preserve the country's unity, integrity and brotherhood, under the banner of the 1857 Nationalist Forum.Demand was raised to set up a victory memorial, rename the crossing as victory chowk and the flyover opposite the new high court building after the event that was inarguably the first battle for Independence against the British There will be another such tribute on July 5 at Qasierbagh baradari where coronation of Birjis Qadr, the minor son of King Wajid Ali Shah and Begum Hazrat Mahal took place on the same day in 1857. Finale of the campaign will be at Residency on July 9. Holding a daylong awareness programme on the event, member of the forum Deepak Kabir said, "We have distributed around 10,000 pamphlets detailing the history and relevance of the Battle of Chinhat. People are not aware of the history of the place they live in or of the battle which was fought together by Hindus and Muslims. Some women we informed about the events that took pace here put the soil of the land on their foreheads as a mark of respect to the martyrs of the independence struggle." Reading the text on the banners, CA aspirant Govind Shukla said, "I had no idea about this event and the information I received has evoked curiosity and a sense of nationalism. I will research more on this and share my findings with everyone I know."Convener of the programme, historian Amresh Mishra said, "We will continue to campaign for a memorial to be built after taking down the tombstones praising the British officers buried here.

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