It is a blessing in disguise that the 150th Anniversary of India’s First War for Independence, 1857 is falling at a time when communal forces are trying to create a wedge between the followers of two great religions in India viz. Hinduism and Islam. Wars are won only by those who are more united and cohesive in approach. It must be remembered that our war against the communal forces and their attempts to divide the society can only be won if all the peace-loving citizens belonging to different religions stand united against these divisive forces.
1857 will always remain a watermark for the Indian society’s great united stand against the policy of divide-and-rule carried out by the British colonial forces. The greatest of uprisings against the British took place in regions with dense Hindu and Muslim population. Nearly half of those who got martyred during this period were Muslims and the combined forces of Hindus and Muslims inflicted greatest casualties on the British, be it in Kanpur and Lucknow, Meerut and other regions.
The role of erstwhile rulers of Awadh in building a society where there was no discrimination because of religious affinity is remarkable. This gave rise to the famous Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb (culture), where Muslims celebrated Diwali and Holi with élan while Hindus kept tazias on Moharram, as a symbol of respect to the great martyrs of Karbala. The last of the Awadh rulers, Wajid Ali Shah, was a beloved (and not feared) ruler, who remained in touch with the public through patronizing art and culture, even when his powers had been curbed extensively and he had become a ruler for namesake, as there was a British Resident staying at a stone’s throw distance from his seat of power. He was not in total command as several thousands of British forces that were stationed nearby, were being paid salaries by the Nawab’s exchequer. Alleged British sponsored intrigues and political murders were common and the infamous policy of divide and rule had shown rich dividends for the British several times over.
With curtailed powers, Wajid Ali Shah had taken to patronizing art and culture in a big way. He initiated a plan to develop new markets and gave fresh incentives o traders. Also, artisans were encouraged at par with the artists. Administration was still largely in the Nawab’s hand, but it was being closely watched by the British so as to find an excuse to annex Awadh – the most prosperous territory in India. At this time, the infamous event took place, whose inefficient handling by the Nawab would have created a long-lasting wedge between the Hindu and Muslims of Awadh and the British would have succeeded in their nefarious plan. However, the manner in which the Nawab handled this incident eventually revealed that he was a man who had risen above the narrow domestic walls of sectarian beliefs. This incident, though largely forgotten, should be seen as one which paved the path for the great uprising of 1857, in which the great unity between Hindus and Muslims was seen in practicality.
Hanumangarhi, not to be confused with the Ram Janambhooomi-Babri Masjid site, is a cluster of temples in Ayodhya. A Muslim living with Hindus in this area came out proclaiming that Hindus have demolished a mosque that was situated in between the temple complex. The matter took a serious turn as about a dozen Hindus and more than 70 Muslims got killed in the communal clashes that followed. The Muslims presented a petition to the Nawab and beseeched him to intervene as a Muslim on this plaint. Not to go by what they wanted, Wajid Ali Shah instituted a commission, setting a 3-member committee consisting of a Muslim, a Hindu and a British officer. These three men were Raja Man Singh, Agha Ali Khan – the nazim at Faizabad and Captain Orr of the East India Company. The commission reported that there was no mosque within the precincts of Hanumangarhi. These three men went to Ayodhya and succeeded in bringing Hindus and Muslims together. Agreement was arrived and a deed of compromise executed.
The matter would have been settled but some Muslims started an agitation claiming it to be an act of appeasement. A Muslim Maulvi Ameer Ali threatening Jehad vowed to go to Ayodhya and rebuild the mosque (very much on the lines of modern day Kar Sewaks). As he with his followers marched to Ayodhya, the Nawab sought the fatwa of the chief cleric Mujtahid Sayyad Muhammad Nasirabadi – a scholar of the famous Khandan-e-Ijtihaad family. The chief cleric in consultation with the senior most Ulema from Firangi Mahal (another Muslim institution of repute) ruled that since it was established that there was no mosque, constructing the mosque was not permissible by Islam as it would hurt the sensibilities of the Hindus. Armed with the fatwa, the Nawab’s forces confronted Maulvi Ameer Ali and his followers at Rudauli in Barabanki as he was proceeding towards Ayodhya. In the battle that ensued, Ameer Ali was killed and his followers either killed or made to flee. And the Hanumangarhi episode was resolved once for all.
It were acts like this of last Nawab of Awadh which laid the foundations of that great Hindu-Muslim unity, which historians never fail to mention. It was due to this that when the Nawab was dethroned by the British about a year later, a general atmosphere of restlessness prevailed all over Awadh, which resulted in several skirmishes even prior to the great fight for Independence in 1857. Nearly the entire population of Awadh fought against the British forces in 1857; some of the fiercest battles took place on the banks of Gomti in Lucknow and in Cawnpore (Kanpur). And irony of ironies, Mangal Pandey – the man who actually started it all at a remote cantonment in Meerut – belonged to a small village near Faizabad, in the very vicinity of Ayodhya itself.
Wajid Ali Shah’s words, in which he describes his role in the infamous Hanumangarhi episode, sums up his thinking:
Hum ishque ke bande hain
Mazhab se nahin waqif
Gar Kaaba hua to kya
Butkhana hua to kya.
(We are the votaries of love and unacquainted with religion; To us it does not matter, whether it is Kaaba or a temple.)
1857 will always remain a watermark for the Indian society’s great united stand against the policy of divide-and-rule carried out by the British colonial forces. The greatest of uprisings against the British took place in regions with dense Hindu and Muslim population. Nearly half of those who got martyred during this period were Muslims and the combined forces of Hindus and Muslims inflicted greatest casualties on the British, be it in Kanpur and Lucknow, Meerut and other regions.
The role of erstwhile rulers of Awadh in building a society where there was no discrimination because of religious affinity is remarkable. This gave rise to the famous Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb (culture), where Muslims celebrated Diwali and Holi with élan while Hindus kept tazias on Moharram, as a symbol of respect to the great martyrs of Karbala. The last of the Awadh rulers, Wajid Ali Shah, was a beloved (and not feared) ruler, who remained in touch with the public through patronizing art and culture, even when his powers had been curbed extensively and he had become a ruler for namesake, as there was a British Resident staying at a stone’s throw distance from his seat of power. He was not in total command as several thousands of British forces that were stationed nearby, were being paid salaries by the Nawab’s exchequer. Alleged British sponsored intrigues and political murders were common and the infamous policy of divide and rule had shown rich dividends for the British several times over.
With curtailed powers, Wajid Ali Shah had taken to patronizing art and culture in a big way. He initiated a plan to develop new markets and gave fresh incentives o traders. Also, artisans were encouraged at par with the artists. Administration was still largely in the Nawab’s hand, but it was being closely watched by the British so as to find an excuse to annex Awadh – the most prosperous territory in India. At this time, the infamous event took place, whose inefficient handling by the Nawab would have created a long-lasting wedge between the Hindu and Muslims of Awadh and the British would have succeeded in their nefarious plan. However, the manner in which the Nawab handled this incident eventually revealed that he was a man who had risen above the narrow domestic walls of sectarian beliefs. This incident, though largely forgotten, should be seen as one which paved the path for the great uprising of 1857, in which the great unity between Hindus and Muslims was seen in practicality.
Hanumangarhi, not to be confused with the Ram Janambhooomi-Babri Masjid site, is a cluster of temples in Ayodhya. A Muslim living with Hindus in this area came out proclaiming that Hindus have demolished a mosque that was situated in between the temple complex. The matter took a serious turn as about a dozen Hindus and more than 70 Muslims got killed in the communal clashes that followed. The Muslims presented a petition to the Nawab and beseeched him to intervene as a Muslim on this plaint. Not to go by what they wanted, Wajid Ali Shah instituted a commission, setting a 3-member committee consisting of a Muslim, a Hindu and a British officer. These three men were Raja Man Singh, Agha Ali Khan – the nazim at Faizabad and Captain Orr of the East India Company. The commission reported that there was no mosque within the precincts of Hanumangarhi. These three men went to Ayodhya and succeeded in bringing Hindus and Muslims together. Agreement was arrived and a deed of compromise executed.
The matter would have been settled but some Muslims started an agitation claiming it to be an act of appeasement. A Muslim Maulvi Ameer Ali threatening Jehad vowed to go to Ayodhya and rebuild the mosque (very much on the lines of modern day Kar Sewaks). As he with his followers marched to Ayodhya, the Nawab sought the fatwa of the chief cleric Mujtahid Sayyad Muhammad Nasirabadi – a scholar of the famous Khandan-e-Ijtihaad family. The chief cleric in consultation with the senior most Ulema from Firangi Mahal (another Muslim institution of repute) ruled that since it was established that there was no mosque, constructing the mosque was not permissible by Islam as it would hurt the sensibilities of the Hindus. Armed with the fatwa, the Nawab’s forces confronted Maulvi Ameer Ali and his followers at Rudauli in Barabanki as he was proceeding towards Ayodhya. In the battle that ensued, Ameer Ali was killed and his followers either killed or made to flee. And the Hanumangarhi episode was resolved once for all.
It were acts like this of last Nawab of Awadh which laid the foundations of that great Hindu-Muslim unity, which historians never fail to mention. It was due to this that when the Nawab was dethroned by the British about a year later, a general atmosphere of restlessness prevailed all over Awadh, which resulted in several skirmishes even prior to the great fight for Independence in 1857. Nearly the entire population of Awadh fought against the British forces in 1857; some of the fiercest battles took place on the banks of Gomti in Lucknow and in Cawnpore (Kanpur). And irony of ironies, Mangal Pandey – the man who actually started it all at a remote cantonment in Meerut – belonged to a small village near Faizabad, in the very vicinity of Ayodhya itself.
Wajid Ali Shah’s words, in which he describes his role in the infamous Hanumangarhi episode, sums up his thinking:
Hum ishque ke bande hain
Mazhab se nahin waqif
Gar Kaaba hua to kya
Butkhana hua to kya.
(We are the votaries of love and unacquainted with religion; To us it does not matter, whether it is Kaaba or a temple.)
No comments:
Post a Comment