The Lahore police, in 2014, said Bhagat Singh was not named in the FIR in the British officer's killing.
The sun had set a short while back over the Lahore sky.
7:30 pm on a Monday.
On that evening, 86 years ago, three men, all in their early twenties, were hanged in the Lahore jail. The trio was sentenced to death of conspiring to kill John P Saunders, a British police officer in pre-partition Lahore.
The men are three of India's freedom struggle heroes -- Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Rajguru and Sukhdev Thapar. India observes March 23 as Shaheed Diwas or Martys' Day on their death anniversary.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today paid tributes to the trio. He tweeted, "Remembering Bhagat Singh, Rajguru & Sukhdev on the day of their martyrdom. India will never forget their courage & sacrifice,".
The newly-appointed Chief Minister of Punjab Capatain Amarinder Singh who is skipping the event to mark the day, tweeted, "I salute our great heroes Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru on their martyrdom anniversary,".
The Border Securty Force (BSF), at its new arms museum in Indore, is putting on display the pistol Bhagat Singh to kill the officer. Based on a petition by the Bhagat Singh Memorial Foundation, the Lahore High Court has granted security for those who want to visit Shadman Chowk in Lahore where the Lahore jail stood till 1961.
In 2014, the Lahore police said that Bhagat Singh was not named in the FIR, indicating his innocence in the murder of the British police officer.