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| Farrukh-siyar receiving Ajit Singh |
It is an
astonishing fact for historians and sociologists alike, that Hinduism managed
to hold on to India, its home, for so long. The historical path was definitely
no bed of roses. Religious aggression from abroad that lasted for nearly a
millennium, occupation by aliens, gruesome superstitions like sati, and
oppressive practices like untouchability and castes – the list is a long one,
which could have been proposed, had the religion been rooted out of India. In
fact, what is more natural than the abandonment of such an ideology, that clung
on to concepts incompatible with modernity? But still, owing a large part to
its unorganized character and the flexibility it conferred, coupled with its
readiness to assimilation of ideas, especially under duress, helped Hinduism
still going strong in its home country, which only Islam could claim among the
other major religions.
Muslim sultans who
ruled the land in the Medieval period tried all weapons in their arsenal to
convert the country into a dar ul Islam (abode of Islam), but failed.
Forcible conversions, destruction of temples, imposition of the hated poll-tax jizya,
grabbing of women from aristocratic families to harems, preferential tax rates
for Muslim traders (2.5%, whereas it was 3.5% for Jews and 5% for Hindus),
discrimination in the employment of political power - the clever little
stratagems were endless. And yet, Hinduism survived. I think we can pinpoint a
moment in time when the Hindu resurgence categorically took root and made a
point of no return. However, this is definitely a simplification of the complex
processes operating over a large period of time and need not be taken much more
seriously than the conventional practice of assigning the beginning of Middle
Ages to the Sacking of Rome in 476 and the end of it on the Fall of Constantinople
in 1453. This post is my idea of such a moment shortly after the death of
Mughal emperor Farrukh-siyar in 1719. There is no denying that this event is
related in its inspiration from the successful campaigns of Hindu chieftains
who stood up against the Mughals to make their point. The Rana of Mewar and
Shivaji comes to mind. But, there was a sense of finality when they were
defeated. Shivaji was only subdued, but his descendants got the nerve to go
forward only after the incident I am going to narrate.
The Rajputs were
handsome, fair and aristocratic. Their princesses were routinely demanded by
Mughal emperors as concubines in a kind of tribute after military victory over
them. These women were converted to Islam before marriage itself and then not
allowed to visit their homes ever again. When such a lady died, the body ended
up in a Muslim cemetery. Even Aurangzeb, the most bigoted among them, continued
the custom. But the stream of Mughal inventiveness had started drying up during
the reign of Aurangzeb himself. After his death in 1707, weak princes carried
on the mantle and Farrukh-siyar ascended the throne in 1713, after a
fratricidal war of succession.
Meanwhile, the Rajput
states were in veiled revolt against the imperial authority for the past 50
years or so. Bahadur Shah, the deceased emperor had been unable to reduce them
effectively. Ajit Singh, chief of the Rathore clan of Rajputs and ruling from
Jodhpur found the time ideal for some adventures of his choice. He forbade cow
killing, stopped the call for prayer (azan) from the Alamgiri mosque, ejected Mughal
officers from Jodhpur, destroyed their houses and occupied Ajmer, a holy site for
Muslims. Even with severely curtailed power, these things couldn’t be tolerated
by the central authority. Farrukh-siyar immediately delegated Sayyid Husain Ali
Khan, brother of Sayyid Abdullah Khan, the Wazir, to lead the march against
Jodhpur. The king had the secret objective of turning at least one of the
Sayyid brothers out of Delhi, as he rightfully suspected intrigue, judging by
the power the brothers enjoyed. The army reached Jodhpur in January 1714, but
adopting a much used Rajput tactic, Ajit Singh fled.
The commanders called
a council of war and put forward two options before the Rajput chief who
accepted defeat without even fighting. Either he must be killed and his severed
head sent to the emperor or his son surrendered as a hostage and his daughter
offered as bride to the emperor. It didn’t take much time or moral compunction
for Ajit Singh to choose between the two. His son, Abhai Singh, was to accompany
Husain Ali Khan to court and his daughter, Bai Indira Kanwar (Inder Kunwar) was
to be offered in marriage to the emperor in the mode styled ‘Dola’ (informal
marriage).
The girl was
delivered at Delhi in September 1715 and on repetition of the creed, admitted
to the Muslim faith. The marriage rites were scheduled on the night a few
days later by the chief Qazi of the court. One lakh gold coins were entered in
the deed as dowry. The bride temporarily stayed at the residence of her captor
and the emperor entered the residence as scheduled and completed the usual
ceremonies. At this point, the ulema and the more orthodox-minded of the
courtiers witnessed events not to their tastes – for the first time in Mughal
history. The rites on this occasion were a mix of Muslim and Hindu traditions.
One which caused much remark was the drink offered to the guests – a mix of
rose-water, sugar and opium, which horrified the hardliners. But it was pressed
on them on the plea that it was the custom of Rajputs. As can be expected on
similar occasions even today, many Muslims drank it, but a few objected.
Farrukh-siyar’s reign
and life was however short. The tussle between the king and his Wazir (chief
minister) grew to serious proportions. Each side plotted secretly against the
other, but professed warm relations in public. Farrukh-siyar wanted to depose
the Wazir, but lacked the courage and tact to get it implemented. The Wazir,
meanwhile, replaced all court officials with persons loyal to him alone. It
took only three years for the feud to erupt in public and in 1719, the Wazir
imprisoned the king and ruled as a regent. Farrukh-siyar was murdered in cold
blood under custody.
Sanguinary succession
struggle was the hall mark of Mughal inheritance. The entire drama was re-enacted
again at the death of the king. Ajit Singh, the dead king’s father in law, had
assumed prominence in court in the meantime. He was assigned to Agra to quell
an uprising in the fort. But Singh commenced to make excuses on the ground
that, if he left his daughter, Farrukh-siyar’s widow, behind him, she would
either poison herself or her name and fame would be assailed. Yielding to these
pleas, Abdullah Khan made the lady over to her father – another first in Mughal
annals. She performed a ceremony of purification in Hindu fashion and gave up
her Muslim attire. With all her dowry collected back, she was sent back to
Jodhpur with much fanfare. The Ulema was thunderstruck. The Qazi issued a
ruling that the giving back of a convert was entirely opposed to Islamic law.
But, in spite of the opposition, Abdullah Khan insisted on conciliating Ajit
Singh so as to coerce at least one prince out of his growing horde of enemies.
Thus ended the first episode of a woman reverting to the Hindu faith after she
had converted and entered the imperial harem. Whenever such issues originated
in the past, the ruling came invariably in favor of religious diktats and the
administration siding with the qazis.
