Maulvi Baqir was among the first to be arrested when the British Army entered Delhi on September 14, 1857.
Maulvi Muhammad Baqir was Editor, Founder and Owner of “Delhi Urdu Akhbar“. He was shot dead on September 16, 1857 for writing articles in Nationalist tone. Maulvi Muhammad Baqir was the first journalist to lay his life during the Independence Movement of India and the Freedom Struggle of India.
Maulvi Baqir, his name sometimes also spelled as Maulvi Maqar, started the first Urdu newspaper of Delhi, Delhi Urdu Akhbar, in 1835 – a year after the British government amended the “Press Act” and allowed publications.
“Delhi Urdu Akhbar” survived for nearly 21 years, proving to be a milestone in the field of Urdu Journalism. With the help of this newspaper, Maulvi Muhammad Baqar played key role in highlighting social issues as well as bringing political awakening in public and uniting them against foreign rulers.
When the Indian revolutionaries started the first war of national independence in 1857, he dedicated his newspaper to the national cause. Soon after the revolt or mutiny broke out in Meerut on May 10, 1857, Baqir gave his newspaper a new name “Akhbar uz Zafar” (Paper of Zafar) to pay tribute to Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar who was leading the mutinying sepoys and the revolt against the British.
A staunch supporter of Hindu Muslim unity, Journalist Maulvi Baqir on June 04, 1857, printed articles in his newspaper appealing to both the communities to unite and come together, “Don’t miss this opportunity, if missed, no one will come to help, this is a good opportunity for you to get rid of British rule”.
Mohammad Baqir was used to publish his newspaper on Sundays, instead of Saturdays as a mark of his own rebellion and protest against the British, who observed Sabbath – a day of religious observance and abstinence from work, kept by Jewish people from Friday evening to Saturday evening, and by most Christians on Sunday.
Baqir was among the first to be arrested when the British Army entered Delhi on September 14, 1857. Two days later, on September 16, he was produced before Major William S.R. Hudson who ordered to shoot him dead without trial. Major Hudson shot dead Maulvi Baqir on the same day, making him the first Indian Journalist to lay his life for the country.
It is said Maulvi Baqir was tied to the mouth of a cannon which is then fired by Major William Hudson. Some historians however have disputed this claim. Nonetheless his contributions and sacrifice were later immortalised in Russian artist Vasily Vereshchagin ‘Suppression of the Indian Revolt by the English’ painting portraying the woes of freedom fighters and the brutal way Maluvi Baqar was claimed to have been executed.
source: http://www.ummid.com / Ummid.com / Home> Life & Style / by Ummid.com News Network / September 16th, 2023
Renowned researcher, author, and former Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Delhi, Dr. Shamsul Islam, is scheduled to deliver the BV Kakkilaya Inspired Oration for 2023. The oration, titled “Joint Martyrdoms, Joint Heritage of 1857 War of Independence,” will take place on Saturday, September 9, 2023, at 10 a.m. at Ravindra Kalabhavana, University College, Mangaluru.
The annual BV Kakkilaya Inspired Orations serve as a tribute to the life and contributions of Sri BV Kakkilaya (1919-2012). Kakkilaya was a freedom fighter, a leader in the Karnataka unification movement, a prominent figure in the Communist Party of India and All India Trade Union Congress, a member of the first Rajya Sabha, and the Karnataka State Assembly.
He was also an award-winning writer and thinker. The oration aims to promote alternative thoughts and approaches to address the challenges faced by the underprivileged masses in India. The event is organized by Hosatu Monthly, Bangalore, MS Krishnan Trust, Bangalore, and Samadarshi Vedike, Mangalore, in collaboration with the Department of History, University College, Mangaluru.
During the event, Dr. Shamsul Islam’s book, “The Untold Amazing Stories of 1857,” will be released in its Kannada translation, titled “Bharatada Modala Swatantrya Sangrama 1857 – Helade Ulida Adbhuta Kathegalu.” The book is translated by Dr. B.R. Manjunath and published by Navakarnataka Publications. Dr. Jayaraj Amin, Vice Chancellor of Mangalore University, will have the honor of unveiling the translated work.
Additionally, the event will feature the publication of the names of 128 martyrs from Karnataka, who hailed from diverse backgrounds including various castes, religions, sects, and socio-economic strata. These martyrs gave their lives during the 1857-58 anti-British revolts. Dr. Shamsul Islam compiled this list from national archives, and the occasion will be marked with tributes to these brave individuals.
The public is warmly welcomed to attend this significant event.
source: http://www.varthabharati.in/ Vartha Bharati / Home> Karnataka / by Vartha Bharati / September 09th, 2023
The skull of a martyr Sepoy Alam Baig of the first war of Indian independence in 1985 must be brought to India for burial at the site where he was blown into pieces with a cannon for rebelling against the British Army in 1857.
This campaign is being run by British Professor Kim A. Wagner, who teaches Global and Imperial History at Queen Mary University of London and is also the author of the book The Skull of Alum Bheg: The Life and Death of a Rebel of 1857.
Prof Kin Wagner is an authority on the subject as he has published several books like ‘Thuggee: Banditry and the British in Early Nineteenth-Century India’, ‘The Great Fear of 1957: Rumours, Conspiracies and the Making of the Indian Uprising’, and ‘Amritsar 1919: An Empire of Fear and the Making of a Massacre’.
Wagner says this grisly war trophy was found in a pub in south-east England in 1963. The owner handed it over to him in 2014 and he published this book on Alum Bheg in 2017.
Wagner says the skull was brought to Ireland by someone from the British authorities and later changed hands.
“The handwritten note found with it revealed the skull to be that of Alum Bheg, an Indian soldier in British service who had been blown from a cannon for his role in the 1857 Uprising. His head had been brought back as a grisly war trophy by an Irish officer present at his execution,” writes Kim Wagner.
Prof. S. Sehrwat of the Department of Anthropology, Punjab University had said in a statement that during the revolution of 1857, Havaldar Alam Baig (the way it is spelled in India) was captured and blown up with cannon. His skull was found in England.
He said Wenger had told him about this.
The note found with Alam Baig’s skull
A complete search record of the skull has been found. The scientists are now keen to do a DNA test to ensure the identity of the skull. It is known that Alam Baig was from the Kanpur area of Uttar Pradesh and even a family has claimed him to be their ancestor.
According to Prof Dineshwar Chaubey, who teaches genetics at BHU, Varanasi, two types of tests can be done on Alam Baig’s skull. A Kanpur family living in Delhi has claimed to be related to Alam Baig. Their genes can be matched with it.
Kim Wagner and other historians are campaigning for givinh a due burial to at some place along the India-Pakistan border, where he was done to death.
Wagner says the British had accused Baig of killing a Christian priest family and it was a fabricated charge. The record says that he was a sepoy of the 46th regiment of the Bengal Native Infantry.
Kim Wagner believes that it is the right time to bury Havaldar Alam Baig in his country, at the same spot where he fought in the Battle of Trimu Ghat on the banks of the Ravi River in the border region between India and Pakistan.
He said, “I do not consider the return of Alam Baig’s skull as political. My aim is only to bring the mortal remains of Alam Baig to his homeland so that he may rest in peace long after his death.
Although the historian’s statement has also passed a long time, there is no progress in this matter to date. It is also waiting for the time when the skull of one of the great sons of India will be brought to India and buried in the soil here.”
The Natural History Museum confirmed its likely authenticity and Wagner, with little evidence to go on, traced Bheg’s history using various sources.
source: http://www.awazthevoice.in / Awaz, The Voice / Home > Story by ATV / by Ghaus Siwani, New Delhi / posted by Aasha Khosa / September 02nd, 2023
The famous writer Kushwant Singh, once wrote: “Indian Freedom is written in Muslim blood, since their participation in the freedom struggle was much more, in proportion to their small percentage of the population.”
The story and history of India’s independence are written with the blood of Muslims. According to historical references, 65% of those who stood, fought and sacrificed against the British for India’s independence were Muslim freedom fighters, the hams live reported.
A large number of people from all religions and castes took part in the freedom struggle, undoubtedly. However, the struggles of many Muslim prominent personalities who also contributed to India’s freedom and even sacrificed everything including their lives are little known. Muslims have been at the forefront to oppose the British and stood shoulder to shoulder with people from other communities while fighting against them. Getting freedom was not easy, our ancestors had to go face a lot of struggles and difficulties to get us the freedom that we are enjoying now.
The First Call To Oppose British
In the 1750s, Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah was the first awakened Indian ruler, who stood his ground against the British. He lost the Battle of Plassey in 1757 due to the betrayal of Mir Jafar (Commander of Nawab’s army). With this, Siraj-ud-Daulah’s reign marks the end of the last independent rule in India and the beginning of the East India company’s rule that was unabated for the next two hundred years.
First Freedom Struggle By Muslim Rulers
The first freedom struggle against the British was started by the rulers of Mysore Hyder Ali and his son, Tipu Sultan, during the 1780s and 90s. Both used the first iron-cased rockets and cannons effectively against the British invaders.
Tipu Sultan is considered to be one of India’s first freedom fighters for his fierce fight and brave against the East India Company. He resisted the conquest of the British in southern India and was reluctant to welcome them on his soil. He was the only Indian ruler who understood the dangers that the British posed to India, and fought four wars to oust them from the country.
The Unsung Heroines Of India’s Freedom Struggle
Begum Hazrat Mahal, the unsung heroin, played a very important role in India’s war of Independence. Being a woman, she led a rebellion against the British East India Company in 1857. She shot the British ruler, Sir Henry Lawrence and defeated the British army in a conclusive Battle at Chinhat in 1857.
In the great revolt of 1857, as many as 225 Muslim women sacrificed their lives in the uprising. These unsung Muslim women freedom fighters who have sloganeered, shed blood and given their lives for the country’s independence have now been forgotten to due biases.
A majority of freedom fighters did a nameless service to the nation and one such lesser-known name was Abadi Bano Begum (Bi Amma). Bi Amma was the first woman to address a political rally wearing an abaya. She took part in National freedom struggles, Khilafat Movement and propagated Hindu-Muslim unity. Following Mahatma Gandhi’s advice, Bi Amma played an. An important role in encouraging women to take part in the freedom movement. Further, she played a pivotal role in the Swadeshi movements.
In the book, Gandhi and the Ali Brothers: Biography of a Friendship by Rakhahari Chatterji, Maulana Mohammad Jouhar says, “Suffice it to say that, although she was practically illiterate, I have, in all experience, of men of all sorts of types, come across none that I could call wiser and certainly that was more truly godly and spiritual than our mother.”
Bi Amma was also the mother of Muhammad Ali Jauhar and Shaukat Ali popularly known as the Ali Brothers whom she raised on her own after her husband died when she was young.
Amjadi Begum, the wife of Muhammad Ali Jauhar and daughter-in-law of Bi Amma, is yet another Muslim women freedom fighter. Mahatma Gandhi also dedicated an article on her titled ‘A Brave Woman‘ where he admired her as a courageous wife of a courageous man.
At the age of 45, Asghari Begum, another forgotten Muslim woman, has also taken part in the 1857 revolt and challenged British rule in the present-day Uttar Pradesh. However, she was captured by the British in 1858 and burnt alive.
Habiba, a Muslim woman’s fought many battles against the British in Muzaffarnagar in 1857. However, she was captured and hanged along with 11 other female warriors at the age of 25.
The Great Revolt of 1857
During the Great Revolt of 1857, Hindus and Muslims under the leadership of the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar tried to oust the British from India. A majority of Hindu sepoys requested Zafar to lead them in the war of Independence. Although the Revolt failed due of several reasons, Muslims have always stood on the front line to oppose the British.
Former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi during his visit to Bahadur Shah’s grave, wrote in the visitor’s book: “Although you (Bahadur Shah) do not have land in India, you have it here; your name is alive… I pay homage to the memory of the symbol and rallying point of India’s First War of Independence….”
Muslims came to India and ruled here for over 800 years but they did not steal anything from here as the British, the Dutch and the French did. By bringing plenty of knowledge in literature, architecture, judiciary, political structure, government body and management structure, which is still used in Indian management strategy, they helped India to progress into a unified and civilized nation.
Lighthouse of Rebellion
How many of us know that the organizer and leader of “First Indian freedom struggle” in 1857 was Moulavi Ahamadullah Shah. Known as the ‘Lighthouse of Rebellion’ in Awadh, he Faizabad free from British rule for almost one year, until his death at the hands of British agents on June 5, 1858.
“With being a practicing Muslim, he was also the epitome of religious unity and Ganga-Jamuna culture of Faizabad. In the revolt of 1857, royalties like Nana Sahib of Kanpur, Kunwar Singh of Arrah fought alongside Maulavi Ahmadullah Shah. Maulavi’s 22nd Infantry Regiment was commanded by Subedar Ghamandi Singh and Subedar Umrao Singh in the famous Battle of Chinhat,” according to researcher and historian Ram Shankar Tripathi.
The important role of Muslims in the uprising is the reason that the British government singled out the community for the worst revenge. From the Nawab, the King of Mysore, the last Mughal King, Princes, the landlords, the Ulemas, intellectuals, Urdu journalists, including common people, all members of the Muslim community have made great sacrifices for the freedom of India.
In the uprising of the 1857 revolt, thousands of ulema were slaughtered and the whole of Delhi was emptied of Muslims, according to excerpts from Syed Ubaidur Rahman’s book Biographical Encyclopedia of Indian Muslim Freedom Fighters. They were not even allowed to return to their homes and reclaim their properties.
First Journalist To Sacrifice His Life During The Great Revolt
Moulvi Muhammad Baqir, a scholar and activist of Indian independence activist was the first journalist to be executed following the rebellion in 1857. The editor of Urdu newspapers, Delhi Urdu Akhbar, was washed dead on 16th September 1857 for writing Nationalist articles, without even a trial.
Although India got independence on 15 August 1947, the foundation of the freedom struggle was laid before 1857. Since the time of the Revolt of 1857, which is considered to be the beginning of India’s freedom struggle, Muslim leadership has spearheaded the cause.
First Muslim To Be Hanged For Conspiring Against East India Company
At the age of 27 years, Shaheed Ashfaqulla Khan was the first Muslim to be hanged for conspiring against the British Raj. Khan was hanged to death on December 19, 1927. With this, he became a martyr and a legend among the people because of his love for the country and his unshakeable spirit.
Reshmi Rumal Tehreek (The Silk Movement)
Muslims not only took the lead in the uprising, but also stood in the front line in all other efforts to topple the British colonial regime in India.
After the revolt of 1857, the Muslim leaders changed their strategy of resistance by setting up educational institutions across the country. Reshmi Rumal Tehreek or The Silk Letter Movement (1913-1920) was an initiative by Deobandi Leaders Maulana Mahmud Hasan and Maulana Ubaidullah Sindhi to topple the British Empire.
However, when British intelligence learned about it, hundreds of sympathizers of the initiative were arrested and put in prison for years without any trial. The top leaders including Maulana Mahmud Hasan and half a dozen of his followers were banished to Malta after a faux trial where they faced the worst hardship.
Role of Muslims in Congress’ anti-colonial struggle
Justice Abbas Tyabji, an Indian freedom fighter from Gujarat and associate of Mahatma Gandhi, was the first Muslim president of the Indian National Congress party. Justice Tyabji is also known for leading Salt Satyagraha following Gandhi’s arrest in 1930.
Another Congress president during the colonialism was Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, who is one of the chief Muslim leaders of the anti-colonial nationalist movement. He became the youngest President of the Indian National Congress in 1923 at the age of 35. He faced multiple imprisonments by the colonial state.
From Justice Tayabji to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, there have been eight Muslim leaders who were in the Indian National Congress’s freedom movement. The other prominent Muslim leaders include, Muhammad Ali Jauhar, Shaukat Ali, Maulana Azad, Dr Mukhtar Ansari, Hakim Ajmal Khan, Maulana Mahmud Hasan and many others. They made every possible sacrifice for the cause of the end the colonial rule.
Frontier Gandhi
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan was a Pashtun independence activist who campaigned to end the rule of the British Raj in India. He founded the Khudai Khidmatgar resistance movement against British colonial rule in India. He was also known as Frontier Gandhi for his principles of non-violence and friendship with Gandhi. Khan worked towards the formation of a united, independent, secular India.
Muslim Man Coins “Jai Hind”
The patriotic slogan “Jai Hind” was initially coined by Zain-ul Abideen Hasan, but it was adopted by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. It is now used as a way of salutation throughout India. It means “Victory to India” in English.
The Creation Of the National Flag
For a majority of us, the current national flag was designed by Pingali Venkayya. However, it was a Muslim Lady Surayya Tyabji, who created the flag’s final look today.
Although we have recounted several names of the Muslims who have contributed to India’s freedom struggle, there are several thousands of them who fought on the streets against the British Raj.
source: http://www.thecongnate.com / The Cognate / Home> History / by Rabia Shireen / August 15th, 2022
In the freedom struggle, Muslim freedom fighters played a predominant role.
In the Indian freedom struggle, though, Muslim freedom fighters played a predominant role, right-wing organisations are trying to erase their history. In view of it, it is essential to know the important Muslim freedom fighters who fought for Indian Independence.
Indian freedom fighter and former aide of Subhash Chandra Bose Abid Hasan Safrani. (Photo: Siasat)
Abid Hasan Safrani
Abid Hasan Safrani, an Indian National Army (INA) soldier from Hyderabad is one of the unsung heroes of Hyderabad. He not only played role in India’s independence but also coined the slogan ‘Jai Hind’ which was later declared the salutation of the Indian Army and government employees.
Safrani was constantly with the INA fighting from Burma to Imphal in India.
After India attained freedom, then Prime Minister Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru inducted him into the Indian Foreign Service (IFS). He was posted to several countries including Egypt, China, Switzerland, Iraq, Syria, Senegal and Denmark.
After retirement, Safrani settled at a farm in Shaikpet, Tolichowki. He passed away in 1984.
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
Maulana Azad, a distinguished Islamic scholar, author, academician and a prominent freedom fighter, was elected as the youngest President of Indian National Congress aged 35, and later led the historic Khilafat Movement.
After Independence, Maulana Azad served as India’s first Education Minister for over 10 years, during which he laid the foundations for the country’s massive academic network. Acknowledging his contributions, his birthday – November 11 – is celebrated as National Education Day.
Siraj-Siraj-ud-Doulah
Siraj-Siraj-ud-Doulah, the Nawab of Bengal was the first Indian king to foresee the threat posed to the future of the country by the English East India Company which entered India in the name of trade but transgressed its limits. He took bold initiatives to thwart the company’s evil designs.
Mir Khasim Ali Khan
Mir Khasim Ali Khan was a warrior Nawab who fought against the East India Company till his end with the conviction that he could ensure safety for his kingdom and liberty and prosperity for his people only by driving the British out of India.
Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali, who is famously known as ‘the Napoleon of South India’ for his relentless fighting against the conspiracies of the East India Company and its henchmen and for checkmating the British ambitions of expansion in South India
Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan, the ‘Tiger of Mysore’, was a great visionary who exposed the expansionist designs of the British imperial forces and gave a clarion call to his fellow countrymen and native rulers to unite and fight against the East India Company.
Syed Mir Nisar Ali
The Wahabi movement enjoyed a special status in the history of revolt against British rule in India, and Titu Mir, whose real name was Syed Mir Nisar Ali, added militancy to it. It became the source of inspiration for several movements in the Struggle for Independence of India.
Haji Shariatullah
Haji Shariatullah, who militantly led the Farazi Movement that stood as a source of inspiration for several revolutionaries in the Indian Freedom Struggle
Ghulam Rasool Khan
Ghulam Rasool Khan, the Nawab of Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh, created terror among the officials of the East India Company.
Moulana Peer Ali Khan
Moulana Peer Ali Khan fought against the British military force declaring that sacrificing oneself in the cause of liberation of one’s motherland is a proof of one’s love for his country.
Moulvi Ahmadullah Shah Fyzabadi
Moulvi Ahmadullah Shah Fyzabadi created panic among the British camps. In the First War of Indian Independence of 1857, he fought against the forces of East India Company and registered several victories over them.
Sheikh Bikhari Saheb
Sheikh Bikhari Saheb raged against General Dalhousee’s ‘Doctrine of Lapse’ whose sole objective was to expand the British empire. He stood in support of the freedom loving native rulers and fought against the foreign rulers.
Azimullah Khan
Azimullah Khan was renowned as a strategist in the First War of Independence, 1857.
He retreated to the forests of Nepal along with Nana Saheb, Hazarat Mahal and others, when the First War of Independence had faced the situation of near defeat. Azimullah Khan passed away in October 1859, while making efforts to secure financial and military support to fight back against the British.
Mohammad Bakht Khan
Mohammad Bakht Khan provided leadership to the heroes and heroines of The First War of Independence of India of 1857 against the forces of the East India Company, by taking up the responsibility of Commander-in-Chief.
He streamlined the troops after his appointment as the Commander-in-Chief by the Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar.
Khan Bahadur Khan
Khan Bahadur Khan, the ruler of Rohilkhand, fought against the British to liberate the motherland.
Declining a very high official post offered by the East India Company, Khan Bahadur Khan revolted against the British at the age of 70. He declared Independence at Bareilly, the capital of Rohilkhand on 31 May, 1857.
Bahadur Shah Zafar
Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last Moghul Emperor, led the First War of Independence, which was recognized in history as the symbol of anger among the people of India against the British.
He breathed his last in jail on 7 November 1862.
Mohammad Sher Ali
Mohammad Sher Ali, an embodiment of anti-British spirit , was born in 1842 at Peshawar, presently in Pakistan. He was inspired by the Wahabi movement that arose against the British in his younger age. His family migrated to Ambala from Peshawar in 1863. He was sentenced to death on 2 April, 1868.
Begum Hazrat Mahal
Begum Hazrat Mahal was a prominent woman of the 1857 rebellion. There was a fierce battle between the Company troops and the Begum troops. When defeat became inevitable, Begum Hazrat Mahal retreated to the Nepal forests along with the co-revolutionary leaders like Nana Sahib Peshwa and others.
Begum Hazarath Mahal struggled for the independence of her state till her last breath. She passed away at Kathmandu of Nepal on 7 April 1879.
Moulvi Syed Allavuddin
Moulvi Syed Allavuddin was a spiritual leader. He used to exhort people of Nizam State, one of the strongest princely states of South India, to rebel against the British hegemony. He stood in the forefront of the direct fight against the British Government.
He was a native of Hyderabad, the capital of erstwhile Nizam princely state. Allavuddin intensified his rebellious activities soon after the First war of Independence of India was started in 1857.
British forces arrested and sent Moulvi Allavuddin to the cellular jail in Andaman on 28 June 1859. After leading a miserable life of 25 years as a prisoner, Moulvi Syed Allavuddin passed away in 1884.
On the occasion of Independence Day, all Indians need to pay tribute to all the freedom fighters who took part in the Indian freedom struggle.
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> News> India / by Sameer Khan / August 15th, 2023
Indian revolutionaries in Kabul where they announced a government in exile
On 24 April 1918, Ram Chandra was shot dead by Ram Singh in a courtroom in San Francisco, USA. A few moments later, a policeman shot Ram Singh. Who were these Indians? Ram Chandra and Ram Singh were the leaders of a revolutionary Ghadar Party in the USA. They were planning to wage a war against the British Empire with the help of the German government. Ram Singh suspected Chandra of being a traitor and thus he killed him on the last day of the trial.
Though Muslims and Sikhs were also accused of being part of the conspiracy, for some reason the case was famously called the Hindu German Conspiracy case. The German High Commissioner had allegedly provided the revolutionaries with money and arms.
Rabindranath Tagore was also featured in the charge sheet. It was accused that he took money from the revolutionaries in the USA and handed it over to the Japanese government to arrange for arms. It was the costliest court case ever argued in the USA till that time.
Indian revolutionaries had always used foreign territories to wage war against the British Empire. In 1845, Haji Imdadullah Muhajir Makki of Saharanpur went on the Haj with a plan to stay there. He wanted to teach at Makkah. Another Indian and his senior Maulana Ishaq met him in Makkah and asked him to return to India and wage a war against the English East India Company rule. Ishaq was one of the many Indian ulemas, who lived in Makkah and Medina to preach anti-colonialism among the pilgrims.
Imdadullah returned to India, planned a revolt in coordination with several leaders, and joined the War of Independence in 1857. He liberated Shamli for a few weeks before the English recaptured it. Thousands of his followers were killed in the battle and he moved to Makkah.
Imdadullah lived for 30 more years and used Makkah as a base to preach nationalism among Haj pilgrims from India and create links among different colonized nationalities.
Shyamji Krishna Varma, an Arya Samaj leader, established India House in London to train educated revolutionaries for the freedom struggle. V.D. Savarkar, Virendranath Chattopadhyay, Haider Raza, Ali Khan, Bipin Chandra Pal, and Acharya were a few prominent Indian revolutionaries trained at this hostel. They were given fellowships to study in England. Asaf Ali, who later argued the case of Bhagat Singh in court, was also associated with the India House. Savarkar’s book describing events of 1857 S inspired a generation of revolutionaries.
Madan Lal Dhingra was one of the most prominent revolutionaries from this house. He assassinated an English official after which the house had to be closed down. Savarkar was arrested and sent to Andamans. After that, these revolutionaries shifted bases to Berlin, Paris, etc.
Indians, especially Punjabis, living in the USA formed the Ghadar Party in 1913. Ghadar is a term used for the War of Independence of 1857. The party aimed to re-enact the scenario by making the Indian sepoys of the English army rebel.
The revolutionaries contacted Germany and Turkey for money and arms. A date doe revolt was fixed in India for the revolt. Hundreds of the revolutionaries came back to India in 1915, Rash Behari Bose, Jatin Bagha, and M N Roy were also working for the success of the plan. A traitor told the British about the plan. Hundreds of revolutionaries were caught and hanged in what came to be known as First Lahore Conspiracy. Kartar Singh Sarabha was one of the more famous among those hanged. Jatin Bagha was killed. Ras Behari Bose and M N Roy had to leave the country.
The Ghadar Party succeeded in causing a mutiny in Singapore. In February 1915, Indian soldiers killed English officers and captured the island country. It took two days and the help of the Russian and Japanese armies to recapture Singapore from the British. More than four dozen Indians were killed by a firing squad in a public execution. At least 40 of the killed soldiers were Muslims from Haryana.
Raja Mahendra Pratap was an Arya Samaj activist from Hathras. As the war started he travelled to Turkey and Germany where the Sultan and Kaiser respectively gave him letters of authority to form a provisional government of India at Kabul. He reached Afghanistan with a Ghadarite, Barkatullah, where Maulana Ubaidullah Sindhi, a Deobandi scholar, was waiting for them. A provisional government with Pratap as the President, Barkatullah as the PM, and Ubaidullah as the Home Minister was formed in Kabul.
A plan to raise an army was also chalked out. Maulana Mahmood Hasan, a Deobandi scholar, and Maulana Husain Ahmad Madani were coordinating the efforts from Makkah. Letters written on silk cloth were used to communicate which were uncovered by British intelligence. Maulana Mahmood and Madani were arrested from Makkah and sent to Malta as prisoners of war. Hundreds of others were also arrested in what came to be known as the Silk Letter Conspiracy.
The war had ended. M. N Roy, Andul Rab, and MPT Acharya established a military school in Tashkent in the USSR. It trained mostly Muslims who migrated to Afghanistan after a fatwa asked them to in 1915. The people trained here took part in major revolutionary activities in India later on. Mian Akbar Shah is well known for his role in the famous escape of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose from Kolkata (Calcutta) to Peshawar. He is supposed to be the most important person to have planned and executed the escape in 1941.
Ubaidullah went to the USSR and traveled to several countries before settling at Makkah in the 1930s. He used it as a ground to preach like Maulana Ishaq and Imdadullah before him. In 1938 he returned to India and met Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. He planned future armed action with Netaji and gave him several contacts with Japan and Germany. Japan already had his old comrades in Raja Mahendra Pratap and Rash Behari Bose.
Around the same time Sardar Ajit Singh, an uncle of Bhagat Singh, and Iqbal Shaidai organized an army in Italy. They had been active in foreign lands since the last World War.
The story of Netaji forming an army in Germany and later leading Azad Hind Fauj formed by Ras Behari Bose in Japan is well-known and needs no retelling.
source: http://www.awazthevoice.in / Awaz, The Voice / Home> Stories / by Saquib Salim / August 11th, 2023
Moulvi Allavuddin was sent to cellular jail in Andaman on June 28, 1859.
Moulvi Syed Allavuddin
Moulvi Syed Allavuddin who was a spiritual leader used to exhort the people of Nizam State, one of the strongest princely states of South India, to rebel against the British hegemony. He stood at the forefront of the direct fight against the British Government.
Moulvi Syed Allavuddin was a native of Hyderabad, the capital of the erstwhile Nizam princely state. He intensified his rebellious activities soon after the First war of Independence of India was started in 1857.
A rebellion started in Aurangabad which was part of Nizam State. The rebels who took part in the revolutionary activities in Aurangabad, escaped arrest and came to Hyderabad. They were arrested by the Nizam state police and kept in jail. The people and prominent citizens of Nizam state were angry when Nizam rejected their plea to release the arrested rebels. They met in Mecca Masjid on July 17, 1857, and decided to attack the British Residency in Hyderabad.
That afternoon at 4 pm about five hundred people led by Moulvi Allavuddin and another revolutionary leader Patan Turrebaz Khan marched ahead from Sultan Bazar with war cries to attack the British Residency, a symbol of British Supremacy. Nizam Nawab, being a friend of the British, informed the English officers of the imminent attack. The armies of the English and the Nizam moved strategically and confronted the attackers with additional forces.
Firing continued between the two sides throughout the night. The rebels retreated as the enemy forces gained an upper hand. The angry armies of the British and the Nizam cracked down on the people of Hyderabad. An award of four thousand rupees was announced on the head of Moulvi Syed Allavuddin.
Moulvi went underground. After taking shelter for one and half years from his close friend named Peer Mohammed, he started consultations with freedom fighters and revolutionaries like Syed Bhikkoo, Syed Lal, and Mohammed Ali to put an end to the hegemony of the British on his land and people. At last British forces arrested and sent Moulvi Allavuddin to the cellular jail in Andaman on June 28, 1859.
After leading a miserable life of 25 years as a prisoner, Moulvi Syed Allavuddin passed away in 1884.
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> News> India / by Syed Naseer Khan / April 03rd, 2023
The first mutiny of World War I was led mostly by young men from villages of Hisar, Rohtak, Meham and Gurgaon districts of Haryana. The Singapore Mutiny, which is known as the first mutiny of WW-I and left an indelible mark on India’s freedom struggle, started on February 15, 1915. It was led by Muslim soldiers who belonged to British army’s 5th Light Infantry Brigade.
Even as the world observes the centenary of the Great War, the sacrifice of these soldiers has been all but forgotten as most of the soldiers and their descendants migrated to Pakistan after Partition.
The brigade mainly comprised Rajput Muslims and Pathans and had been sent from Madras to replace the Yorkshire Light Infantry in Singapore. They reached there in October 1914 and were to leave for Hong Kong in February. On the day of embarkment, a rumour spread that they were actually being sent to Turkey and would have to fight Muslims there.
Singapore Mutiny shook the foundation of British rule in Asia
A rumoured triggered the Singapore revolt. The sepoys killed British officers and seized ammunition. The mutiny went on for 5 days. Eight hundred Indian sepoys of the British army killed 47 British nationals; 200 sepoys faced court martial; 73 were given a range of punishments.
As many as 41 sepoys were shot by a firing squad in front of 15,000 spectators at Outram Prison in Singapore.
In his book “The Mutiny in Singapore”, author Sho Kuwajima has argued that the mutiny not only caught the British off-guard but also shook the foundation of British rule in Singapore and forced the British to reconsider their strategy in Asia.
“The mutiny had a great impact on India’s freedom struggle. Freedom fighters, including Ghadarites were vindicated when finally in 1946, the British decided to leave following the naval revolt of February 19, 1946 when they felt that their protective shield, the armed forces, had itself turned against them,” said historian Malwinder Jit Singh Waraich, who has penned a number of books on the freedom struggle.
Four of those executed in public were from Jamalpur (Hisar), three from Jatusana (Gurgaon) and two from Balyali (Hisar). According to Phul Chand Jain’s Swatantarta Sainik Granth Mala, most of these people belonged to Jamalpur, Paten, Balyali, Kirawad and Balliya Ali in Hisar; Jatusana, Karmpur and Kheri Nangal in Gurgaon; Garhi, Kani and Kahnaur in Rohtak. One sepoy each was from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, Karnal and Nabha in Punjab.
“These villages were gripped by violence of Partition, so, there is not much trace of their memories now,” says documentary filmmaker Daljit Ami, who is making a film on the Singapore Mutiny and has visited these villages a number of times. In the course of his research, he came across just one man who had heard about these heroes and their Haryana connection.
According to historians, the Singapore Mutiny was followed by the Russian soldiers’ mutiny in 1917 and a series of mutinies in the French armies.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> India News / by Sarika Sharma / TNN / July 05th, 2014
The four years of the World War 1 saw the service of 1.3 million Indians, of whom 74,000 never made it back home.
The First World War , or the Great War as it is also called, raged across Europe and several war arenas scattered across the world from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. These four years saw the service of 1.3 million Indians, of whom 74,000 never made it back home. For their families, the war was something they couldn’t quite understand.
Given the large-scale Indian involvement in a war that the majority of Indians could not fully comprehend, we shall once again look into the mirror of Urud to see how the poet viewed the momentous years of the Jang-e Azeem as the Great War came to be called in Urdu.
Several poets, lost in the veils of time and virtually unknown today, made interventions as did the more famous ones who continue to be well known though possibly not in the context of what they had to say about World War I.
Urdu’s Rendition of the Greatest Human Tragedy
Presented below is a sampling of the socially-conscious, politically-aware message of the poets of the times. Not all of these poets are well-known today nor is their poetry of a high caliber yet fragments of their work have been included here simply to illustrate how the poet had his finger to the pulse of his age and circumstance.
Let us begin with Sibli Nomani and his wryly mocking Jang-e Europeaur Hindustani that deserves to be quoted in full:
Ek German ne mujh se kaha az rah-e ghuroor
‘Asaan nahi hai fatah to dushwar bhi nahin
Bartania ki fauj hai dus lakh se bhi kum
Aur iss pe lutf yeh hai ke tayyar bhi nahin
Baquii raha France to woh rind-e lam yazal
Aain shanaas-e shewa-e paikaar bhi nahin’
Maine kaha ghalat hai tera dawa-e ghuroor
Diwana to nahi hai tu hoshiyar bhi nahin
Hum log ahl-e Hind hain German se dus guneh
Tujhko tameez-e andak-o bisiar bhi nahin
Sunta raha woh ghaur se mera kalaam aur
Phir woh kaha jo laiq-e izhaar bhi nahin
‘Iss saadgi pe kaun na mar jaaye ai Khuda
Larhte hain aur haath mein talwar bhi nahin!’
(Consumed with pride, a German said to me:
‘Victory is not easy but it isn’t impossible either
The army of Britannia is less than ten lakh
And not even prepared on top of that
As for France, they are a bunch of drunks
And not even familiar with the art of warfare’
I said your arrogant claim is all wrong
If not mad you are certainly not wise
We the people of Hind are ten times the Germans
Cleary you cannot tell big from small
He listened carefully to what I had to say
Then he said something that can’t can’t be described
‘By God, anyone will lay down their life for such simplicity
You are willing to fight but without even a sword in your hand!’)
That the Urdu poet was not content with mere high-flying rhetoric and was rooted in and aware of immediate contemporary realities, becomes evident when Brij Narain Chakbast declares in his Watan ka Raag (‘The Song of the Homeland’):
Zamin Hind ki rutba mein arsh-e-aala hai
Yeh Home Rule ki ummid ka ujala hai
Mrs Besant ne is aarzu ko paala hai
Faqir qaum ke hain aur ye raag maala hai
Talab fuzool hai kante ki phool ke badle
Na lein bahisht bhi hum Home Rule ke badle
(The land of Hind is higher in rank than the highest skies
All because of the light of hope brought forth by Home Rule
This hope has been nurtured by Mrs Besant
I am a mendicant of this land and this is my song
It’s futile to wish for the thorn instead of the flower
We shall not accept even paradise instead of Home Rule)
Poems Charged With the Spirit of Revolution
Similarly, Hasrat Mohani, in a poem called Montagu Reforms, is scathing about the so-called reforms that were given as SOPs to gullible Indians during the war years, which were mere kaagaz ke phool (paper flowers) with no khushboo (fragrance) even for namesake. The poem ends with a fervent plea that the people of Hind should not be taken in by the sorcery of the reforms.
Ai Hindi saada dil khabardar
Hargiz na chale tujh pe jadu
ya paayega khaak phir jab inse
Iss waqt bhi kuchh na le saka tu
(O simple people of Hind beware
Don’t let this spell work on you
If you couldn’t couldn’t take anything from them now
You’re not likely to get anything at all)
Josh Malihabadi who acquired his moniker of the shair-e- inquilab or the ‘revolutionary poet’ during the war period, talks with vim and vigour of the revolution that is nigh, a revolution that will shake the foundations of the British empire in his Shikast-e Zindaan ka Khwaab (‘The Dream of a Defeated Prison’:
Kya Hind ka zindaan kaanp raha hai guunj rahi hain takbiren
Uktae hain shayad kuchh qaidi aur torh rahe hain zanjiren
Divaron ke niche aa aa kar yuun jama hue hain zindani
(How the prison of Hind is trembling and the cries of God’s greatness are echoing
Perhaps some prisoners have got fed up and are breaking their chains
The prisoners have gathered beneath the walls of the prisons)
Satire, Pain and Passion Punctuate These Poems
The ever-doubting, satirical voice of Akbar Allahabadi— a long- time critic of colonial rule and a newfound admirer of Gandhi, shows us the great inescapable link between commerce and empire that Tagore too had alluded to:
Cheezein woh hain jo banein Europe mein
Baat woh hai jo Pioneer mein chhapey…
Europe mein hai jo jung ki quwwat barhi huwi
Lekin fuzoon hai uss se tijarat barhi huwi
Mumkin nahin laga sakein woh tope har jagah
Dekho magar Pears ka hai soap har jagah
(Real goods are those that are made in Europe
Real matter is that which is printed in the Pioneer…
Though Europe has great capability to do war
Greater still is her power to do business
They cannot install a canon everywhere
But the soap made by Pears is everywhere)
The great visionary poet Iqbal, who is at his most active, most powerful during these years, does not make direct references to actual events in the war arena;
nevertheless, he is asking Indians to be careful, to heed the signs in Tasveer-e Dard (‘A Picture of Pain’):
Watan ki fikr kar nadan musibat aane waali hai
Tiri barbadiyon ke mashvare hain asmanon mein
(Worry for your homeland, O innocents, trouble is brewing
The portents of disaster awaiting you are written in the skies.)
Adopting a fake admiring tone, Ahmaq Phaphoondvi seems to be praising the sharpness of the British brain in Angrezi Zehn ki ki Tezi (‘The Cleverness of the English Mind’) when he’s actually warning his readers of the perils of being divided while the British lord over them.
Kis tarah bapa hoon hangama aapas mein ho kyun kar khunaraizi
Hai khatam unhein schemon main angrezi zehn ki sab tezi
Ye qatl-o khoon ye jung-o jadal, ye zor-o sitam ye bajuz-o hasad
Baquii hii raheinge mulk mein sab, baqui hai agar raj angrezi
(Look at the turmoil and the bloodshed among our people
The cleverness of the English mind is used up in all such schemes
This murder ’n mayhem, wars ’n battles, cruelties ’n malice
The country’s garden is barren, with nothing but dust and desolation)
Towards Freedom and Fervour..
Zafar Ali Khan sounds an early, and as it turns out in the face of the British going back on their promise of self-governance, entirely premature bugle of freedom. While warning his fellow Indians to change with the changing winds that are blowing across the country as the war drags to an end, he’s also pointing our attention to the ‘Toadies’, a dreaded word for the subservient Indians who will gladly accept any crumbs by way of reforms in his poem Azaadi ka Bigul (‘The Bugle of Freedom’):
Bartania ki meiz se kuchh reze gire hain
Ai toadiyon chunne tum innhe peet ke bal jao
(Some crumbs have fallen from the table of Britannia
O Toadies, go crawling on your bellies to pick them)
In the end, there’s Agha Hashar Kashmiri who, in a sarcastic ode to Europe called Shukriya Europe, thanks it for turning the world into a matamkhana (mourning chamber), and for having successfully transformed the east into an example of hell.
Utth raha hai shor gham khakistar paamaal se
Keh raha hai Asia ro kar zaban-e haal se
Bar mazar-e ma ghariban ne chiraghe ne gule
Ne pare parwane sozo ne sada-e bulbule
(A shout is rising from the dust of the downtrodden
Asia is crying out and telling the world at large
On my poor grave there are neither lamps nor flowers
And not the wing of the moth or the sad song of the nightingale.)
(Rakhshanda Jalil is a writer, translator and literary historian. She writes on literature, culture and society. She runs Hindustani Awaaz, an organisation devoted to the popularisation of Urdu literature. She tweets at @RakshandaJalil
This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)
source: http://www.thequint.com / The Quint / Home> Voices> Opinion / by Rakshanda Jalil / November 11th, 2022
When Nobles became non-entities, Princes became paupers and Begums were reduced to beggars…
Title: Tears of the Begums: Stories of Survivors of the Uprising of 1857 (Originally in Urdu as ‘Begumat Ke Aansoo’)
Author: Khwaja Hasan Nizami
Publisher: Hachette India
Year of Publication : 1922
Translator : Ms. Rana Safvi (2022)
Pages: 212+xii
Price: Rs. 499
The Sepoy Mutiny (or the First War of Independence as we call it) started in 1857, over the issue of the greasing of the cartridges used in the guns of Indian soldiers of the East India Company army. It was known by the Urdu word “Ghadar” meaning rebellion or revolt.
The rebellion spread rapidly in North India particularly around Lucknow and Delhi. The rebellious soldiers killed a large number of British officers, women and children. They adopted as their leader the surviving Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar without his consent. He was only a namesake Emperor who was on a generous pension given by the East India Company, and did not have any power beyond the precincts of the Red Fort, nor had the money to help the soldiers. He was reluctant to take on the British army but was helpless and had to go with the demands of rebellious soldiers.
Though initially the British had a setback, they quickly regrouped and took over Delhi. The Red Fort had about 3,000 royal families all of whom were descendants of the present and past emperors. The emperor’s court life was filled with pomp and grandeur, though he had no real authority.
Bahadur Shah himself was a refined and gentle soul and a poet. Delhi was ruled by the English Resident. The lives of the royals living in the “Lal Qila” was lavish with big mansions, large number of servants and slaves. Ghadar was a watershed moment in Indian history and the grand and elegant Mughal culture ended suddenly and dramatically.
Kulsum Zamani Begum was the beloved daughter of the last emperor Bahadur Shah. On the night he left the fort, he sent her and her family away entrusting them to the care of Khuda (God). Within a few days of leaving the Red Fort they were looted of all their money, jewels and even their expensive clothes. Finally on the way some villagers give them shelter in a thatched hut. The company soldiers were looking for the emperor’s descendants to arrest and punish. They escaped to Hyderabad, where they were given shelter by Nawab Lashkar Jung, who had given shelter to many Mughal royals who had escaped from Delhi.
In a few years the British had their way and the Princess was advised to leave Hyderabad. Some of the well-wishers of the Mughals arranged for her to travel to Mecca. One of the slaves she had freed while she was the Princess in Delhi had migrated to Mecca and had become an extremely wealthy merchant there. He looked after her very well and made her family stay comfortable.
The Ambassador of Turkey learnt that the Emperor’s daughter had taken refuge in Mecca and arranged a pension for her from the Sultan of Turkey. She lived comfortably in Mecca for a number of years. Ultimately she longed to return to her beloved Delhi. When she went back to Delhi, the English Governor out of compassion, arranged a pension for her family. The British who had taken away her dad’s empire, gave her in return a grand compensation of ten rupees a month.
Sakina Khanum was the daughter-in-law of Nawab Faulad Khan. Nawab died while fighting the company soldiers during the Ghadar. When his body was brought home by the soldiers, Sakina was writhing in severe labour pains. The Nawabs’ son had died four days earlier in the war, and his wife had passed away two years ago. Sakina delivered a boy with the help of the servants, while the corpse of the Nawab was lying in the front yard, without even a shroud. She had to run away from their mansion at midnight, taking a few jewels, some cash which was in the house and her new-born baby. The four maids who were in the house went with her.
After a few days, the maids stole all the money and jewels and deserted her. They even took away the new-born son of the Princess. She tried to eke out a living by working as a maid in households. Unfortunately for her, she had no skills needed for domestic help. After all she was the daughter-in-law of a Nawab and had lived in luxury with many servants and slaves at her command. She was frequently thrown out of many homes where she worked, as she could not work hard enough.
Finally, the Princess became a beggar for her living. After a few years, one afternoon she was begging in front of a wedding house. She was exhausted due to the hot summer sun. She had not eaten for many days and was extremely hungry. As she was begging, one young handsome boy came out of the wedding hall. Hearing her wails, he sat in front of her and gave her the food he was carrying for himself. The boy spoke to the beggar and consoled her and told that his mother was a maid in the wedding house.
As he was speaking with her, his mother came out and Sakina immediately recognised her as her maid who had deserted her and realised that the boy who fed her was her own son. After many years Sakina the beggar Princess had been reunited with her long lost son.
Qismat Baig worked as a chef at the palatial Taj Mahal hotel in Bombay. He was a recluse and an irascible and difficult man. None knew his antecedents. Whenever asked about himself he would answer that he was a Badshah and walk away. The Maharaja of Bhavnagar would frequently stay at the Taj Mahal Hotel whenever he was in Bombay, and he immensely enjoyed the food cooked by Qismat Baig.
One day the Maharaja expressed his desire to meet the chef. Qismat Baig, who never liked to meet anyone, was persuaded to visit him. When the king asked Qismat Baig as to who he was, Baig gave a long philosophical discourse. Surprised at the erudition of the chef, the king persuaded him to tell his story. Baig started recounting his long sad story. He was the son of the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah born to a slave girl. He was named Timur Shah after the great ancestor of the Mughals. The emperor had provided well for him and his mother and they lived comfortably in luxury with servants and maids. As a young boy he was well educated and would often visit a Dargah near his home in the evenings and had imbibed Sufi mysticism and Dervish practices.
When Ghadar started, his mother lost everything. He worked as an assistant to a cook and learnt the culinary art. Misfortune always haunted him. He lost his mother, wife and children to illnesses and became alone in the world. Living in Delhi made him very sad and migrated to Bombay where Timur Shah changed his name to Qismat Baig, a man of destiny. The son of the Mughal Emperor had become a Bawarchi (chef) in a hotel.
These are some of the poignant real-life stories in the book “Tears of the Begums”. Khwaja Hasan Nizami was a young man at the time of Mutiny. In later years he became a writer. He personally interviewed many survivors of nobility and recorded their tragic stories. It was published as a book “Begumat Ke Aansoo” in 1922. Ghadar was a cataclysmic event in the narrative of India. It ended the centuries of pomp of the Mughal Court and the wealthy refined and elegant lives of the aristocracy. Nobles became non-entities, Princes became paupers and Begums were reduced to beggars. The sad stories in the book bring “Aansoo” to the eyes of the readers.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / by Dr. C.D. Sreenivasa Murthy / October 11th, 2022
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