Post-1857 resistance

The 1857 war led to the bloodshed of thousands of freedom fighters who, with meagre resources, outdated ammunition, insufficient training, and lack of central leadership and coordination managed to engage the forces of East India Company for a long period of time with their passion for freedom.

The defeat in the 1857 war came as a big blow to the forces of freedom as a large number of people were killed, or arrested and hanged to death, or sent to the Isles of Andaman as punishment. The British colonisers, who were shaken by the massive resistance war in 1857, made every effort to eliminate the chances of potential resistance in the future. Their oppressive acts, however, could not extinguish the flame of freedom – and violent resistance movements continued to emerge even after 1857.

One such example was the resistance movement of the peasants that was launched during 1859 to 1862. The peasants were forced to grow the crops ordered by the British rulers. One such crop was indigo which was required by the British in their own factories. The direct implication of growing indigo for the Indian peasants was that they could not grow crops that were a source of their livelihood. Also, the colonisers would not give the peasants the right price.

Besides this, indigo proved injurious to the life of the soil. The indigo movement launched and supported by Hindus and Muslims finally forced the government to bring an end to the policy of forcible cultivation of Indigo in 1860.

During 1860 to 1870 the British faced stiff resistance by the tribes of Jaintia and Garo. The initial cause was the road the British were planning to construct to connect Barhamaputra valley with Silhet. This was considered an encroachment by the tribes of Jaintia and Garo who put up resistance against the construction of road. The resistance was responded by the British fiercely; and they burnt the houses of the rebels.

The situation was further aggravated when in 1860 the British levied new taxes on the houses and incomes of local people, making their lives miserable. The people of the Jaintia and Garo tribes resisted and defied these orders. This movement, spread over years, finally came to an end when the leader of the Garo tribe, Pa Togan Sangma, was defeated and the leader of the Jaintia tribe, U Kiang Nongbah, was publically hanged to death.

Another prominent resistance movement was led by Birsa Munda during 1899-1900 for the people of his tribe. The British colonisers’ new land system infringed on their rights and the bonder labour practice dislocated them. This situation was not acceptable to the Munda tribe and they stood up for their rights under the leadership of Birsa Munda. They attacked police stations and churches to express their resentment. Birsa fought valiantly and engaged the British for a long time but was finally defeated by the British forces. He was eventually jailed, where he breathed his last.

Besides these resistance movements of peasants and tribes there was stiff resistance by religious quarters, especially Shah Waliullah’s followers. It is important to note that Syed Ahmed Shaheed along with Shah Ismaeel Saheed waged a war against the Sikhs who were supported by the British. After a prolonged struggle the followers of Syed Ahmed Shaheed were defeated at Balakot in 1831. This was almost three decades before the 1857 war. During 1857 Haji Imdadullah Mahajir Makki, Qasim Nanotvi, Rasheed Gangohi fought during the war of freedom. Another important name is Fazal Khairabadi whose role in 1857 war was significant.

In 1863-64 there was a strong resistance in the tribal area called Yaghistan. Maulana Jaffar Thanesari and his colleagues became part of this struggle against the British. In 1864 Maulana Jaffar Thanesari was tried in the court at Ambla along with ten other people. He was accused of supplying money and men to the freedom fighters. Maulana Jaffer Thanesari, Maulvi Yahya Ali, and Shaikh Mohammad Shafi were sentenced to be hanged till death. Later the death sentence was changed and he, along with his colleagues, was sent to Andaman, popularly known as Kalapani, on December 8, 1865 where was to live for 20 years until 1885.

Another resistance movement, headed by Shaikhul Hind Mehmoodul Hassan, is known as ‘Reshmi Roomal Tehreek’. The objective of this movement was to liberate India from the British. Shahikhul Hind, Mehmoodul Hassan, tried to gather the support of Ottoman, Turkey, Germany, and Afghanistan. Ghalib Pasha, the governor of Hejaz, supported the freedom of India from the British and asked the people to support Shaikhul Hind.

These letters were smuggled to India in a secret compartment of a wooden box. Multiple copies were made of these letters with the help of camera. The intelligence agencies, however, found out and a number of people were arrested before the plan was actually executed. Shaikhul Hind Mehmoodul Hassan was arrested in Mecca and was sent to Malta for three years. He was released in 1920.

In 1928 a protest was lodged against the Simon Commission and a procession was taken out. The police lathi-charged the procession and Lala Lajpat Roy, a renowned Congress leader was injured and later breathed his last. Bhagat Singh, a young man of radical thoughts vowed with his colleagues Shivaram Rajguru, Sukhdev Thapar, and Chandrashekhar Azad to kill Scott, who was responsible for the lathi charge that led to the death of Lala Lajpay Roy. They, however, ended up killing Saunders, an assistant superintendent of police.

With these radical movements there were other movements too running parallel to them. The central objective of all these movements was regaining freedom for India – an end that was coming closer with each passing day.

The writer is an educationist.

Email: shahidksiddiqui@gmail.com