September 18th, 2001
“The British conquered the world in a fit of absence of mind.” Sir John Seeley.
The kind of hypocrisy this statement embodies has made England into “perfidious Albion” for their neighbours, the French as well as the rest of the world.
The history of British activities in India provides example after example of double dealing and betrayal on the part of the British and we cite the British treatment of the Mirs of Sindh in the 19th Century.
The victories of Plassey, 23rd June 1757, Buxar 23rd October 1765 and Seringapatam 4th May 1799 transformed the East India Company from a poor trader with nothing to sell into the richest entity in the world. Individuals who served the East India Company became the richest of Britons exercising considerable political clout. In India the arrogance and rapacity of the servants of the East India Company knew no limits.
The transformation of the Company’s psyche can be seen in the difference between the sentiments expressed in the 1784 Regulatory Act passed by the British Parliament and what the Directors of the East India Company resolved just a half century later.
The 1784 Act says:
“To pursue schemes of conquest and extension of dominion in India are measures repugnant to the wish honour and policy of he nation.“
This hypocrisy was abandoned when the Directors, half a century later stated that its Agents and representatives should “overlook no just and honourable acquisition of territory”.
Here again we see that the use of the word “honourable” is quite false and an unnecessary hypocrisy.
A treaty was forced upon the Sindhi Mirs according to which the Company would have the privilege of unrestricted trade and its representatives could travel wherever they liked. The only restrictions agreed were on the use of the great waterway, the Indus for moving military supplies. As soon as the need arose for using the Indus to move materials of war to the Afghan War zone [1838] the Company informed the Mirs “contrary to the articles of the treaty between the two powers the Indus must be used for the passage of military stores”. Next year, 1839 saw an extraordinary display of Company arrogance. An expedition under General John Keane sailed into the then undeveloped harbour in February and demanded surrender of the small fort of Kalhora. Karachi was an insignificant village with around a thousand dwellings and some 6000 inhabitants. The reply to John Keane’s demand for surrender was “We are Sindhis and will fight”. The cannon of the British flattened the mud walls of the fort in no time. It was then found that the defendants were an old man, a woman and a child.
Emboldened by the success the Company and its employees lusted for an opportunity to loot Sindh. They called it “Young Egypt” and dreamed of the gold and silver jewels textiles scimitars and armour which the treasury of the Mirs was reported to hold in abundance.
The only obstacle was the ruler Mir Rustam Talpur. At eighty-five years of age the Mir was quite content with the status quo although it was to his disadvantage, The treatment he gave to his own people and to the British posted to his court made him popular and earned him the respect and the confidence of everyone.
The secret agents of the East India Company set up a rival claimant to the throne of Sindh. This was the much younger brother of the ruler called Mir Ali Murad. Soon documents started appearing which made Mir Rustam out as a malcontent plotting against the Company. “The stars in their courses” factor came into play and
E.B. Eastville who knew the area and the people fell ill and retired in 1842. His senior, the Resident, Ross Bell suddenly died.
Major James Outram replaced him Eastville and soon established rapport with the Mir’s court.
The Company’s plans for annexing Sindh became urgent after the disaster to the Company’s foray into Afghanistan when 16,000 men and camp followers were lost.
Outram was replaced by General Charles Napier and he landed at the delta on 25th October 1842. He studied the terrain and the people to be attacked. By the end of 1843 he was ready for battle.
Eastwick was to write “… with indecent haste [Napier] declared the whole country from Rori to Sialkot confiscated. He had come to Sindh with the predetermination to find hostility or create it”.
Napier himself said ” We have no right to sieze Sindh but shall do so, and a very useful and humane piece of rascality it will be”.
As the Mir had to be driven into war Napier dethroned Mir Rustam and raised Mir Ali Murad to the gaddi. Mir Rostam fled into the desert and Napier pursued him.
Outram was sent from Bombay to try for peace and he succeeded in meeting Mir Rustam and getting a new Treaty signed. All he conceded was that the whole matter would be submitted for judgement to the highest authorities in London.
The chiefs in Haidarabad, the capital, were alarmed at the developments and took advantage of Napier’s absence to attack the smaller force led by Outram. Outram’s friends at court forewarned him and he fled to the river embarked on a steamer and joined Napier upstream after losing only two officers.
On 17th October Napier’s 2800 well drilled troops supported by cannon attacked Mir Rustam. As at Plassey nearly two hundred years earlier the cavalry commander, also a Talpur, had been subverted. He took little part in the action. Worse, the artillery commander, an Anglo-Indian “fired high” as he had been persuaded to do by the Secret Service Agents of the Company.
The Sindhis set an example for bravery which should be recounted. Even their enemies were impressed.
“The Sindhis marched relentlessly into the English cannons. No fire of musketry. discharge of grape or push of bayonet could drive them back’.
“Leaping at the guns they were blown away scores at a time, their gaps being filled continuously from the rear”.
No one remembers the brave of Meeaanee or the deceit of the English except those who read the records of the English in India in the 19th Century. Alas!
[Alternate beginning]:
Itihaas : Peccavi ‘I have Sinned (Sindh)!’
The British have abrogated to themselves a sense of humour which they consider to be extraordinary and unique to themselves. They no longer have the most famous of their ‘humour’ magazines. It died with the British Empire. It was one year old when Charles Napier attacked his allies, the Mirs of Sindh and inflicted a terrible defeat upon them. ‘Punch’ [ends]