Surjeet came into his own when a weakening Congress resulted in the National Front coalition government of V.P. In 1964, when the CPI split, owing partly to Sino-Soviet differences, Surjeet threw his lot with the CPI-M though the latter was shunned by Moscow and, later, by Beijing as well. He also worked in the Agricultural Workers Union. He then made a mark organising peasants in Punjab, becoming the president of the then influential All India Kisan Sabha. Surjeet went underground for four years soon after. He was the CPI secretary in Punjab when India became independent in 1947. He was arrested during the Second World War. He founded the Kisan Sabha in Punjab and published two magazines, Dukhi Duniya (Sad World) and Chingari (Spark). The nationalist joined the CPI in 1936 when it was India`s second most powerful party after only the Congress. Arrested for his act of defiance, Surjeet declared his name as "London Tod Singh" (One who breaks London).
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