By Rakesh
Krishnan
An
interesting and very informative article. A must read for Americans/Obama
Administration.
Sikhs Vs Pathans - Winning in Afghanistan/span
The western
media says no country has ever conquered Afghanistan, but the fact they
conveniently forget is that not too long ago the Indians conquered and ruled
Afghanistan, an episode of history that is carved into the recesses of the
Afghan mind. The Story Begins:
If there’s
one thing that the western media keeps parroting, it is the fairy tale that no
power – from Alexander 2300 years ago to Britain in the 19th century or Russia
30 years ago – was able to conquer Afghanistan.
It reeks of
ignorance, and reporters in western countries have exhibited a lot of that.
Remember, this is the same bunch that swallowed the lie that al-Qaeda was
getting help from Iraq, when in reality Iraq under Saddam Hussein was the most
secular country in West Asia.
But how
could experienced and Pulitzer Prize winning writers ignore facts? Don’t they
have armies of researchers at their back and call? Newspapers like the New York
Times and The Guardian have excellent research departments that can dig out the
region’s history. But they haven’t, which makes you wonder if they are
whitewashing the facts – excuse the pun!
The fact is
that just 180 years ago Maharajah Ranjit Singh (1799-1839), the Sikh ruler of
Punjab, and his brilliant commander Hari Singh Nalwa, defeated the Afghans and
the tribes of the Khyber Pass area. Had it not been for Ranjit Singh, Peshawar
and the north-west frontier province of India (handed over to Pakistan in 1947
when India was divided) would have been part of Afghanistan today.
Imagine an
even bigger operating field for the Taliban and al-Qaeda. But first a flashback
to the past. Afghanistan had always been a part of India; it was called
Gandhar, from which the modern Kandahar originates. It was a vibrant ancient
Indian province that gave the world excellent art, architecture, literature and
scientific knowledge. After Alexander’s ill-fated invasion in the 4th century
BC, it became even more eclectic – a melting pot of Indian and Greek cultures,
a world far removed from today’s Taliban infested badlands.
It was an
Indian province until 1735 when Nadir Shah of Iran emboldened by the weakness
of India's latter Mughals ransacked Delhi. Hundreds of thousands of Hindus and
Muslims were slaughtered in cold blood by the Persians. This was a highly
opportunistic and reckless act because for the past 25 centuries India and Iran
had respected each other’s borders, and though always a bit nervous of each
other, the two empires never tried to subvert each other. But because of his
greed Nadir Shah changed the equation. He annexed Afghanistan and asked the
Indians to forget about ever getting it back.
However,
Ranjit Singh was not prepared to play according to the Persian script. Nadir
Shah’s successor Ahmad Shah Abdali had been launching repeated raids into
Punjab and Delhi. To check this Ranjit Singh decided to build a modern and
powerful army with the employment of Frenchmen, Italians, Greeks, Russians,
Germans and Austrians. In fact, two of the foreign officers who entered the
maharaja’s service, Ventura and Allard, had served under Napoleon. Says
historian Shiv Kumar Gupta: “All these officers were basically engaged by
Ranjit Singh for modernization of his troops. He never put them in supreme
command.”
After
conquering Multan in 1818 and Kashmir in 1819, Ranjit Singh led his legions
across the Indus and took Dera Ghazi Khan in 1820 and Dera Ismail Khan in 1821.
Alarmed, the Afghans called for a jehad under the leadership of Azim Khan
Burkazi, the ruler of Kabul. A big Afghan army collected on the bank of the
Kabul River at Naushehra, but Ranjit Singh won a decisive victory and the
Afghans were dispersed in 1823. Peshawar was subdued in 1834.
The Afghan
and Pathans had always considered themselves superior to the Indians. They
especially looked down upon Indian Muslims and contemptuously referred to them
as Hindko. The fact that the Indians were superior in all respects – wealth,
culture, literature, art – mattered little to them, as physical stature and
lightness of skin was the only basis for this peacock-like strutting. Says
historian Kirpal Singh, “The pride of the Afghans and Pathans was pricked for
the first time as they had been defeated by the Sikhs whom they considered
infidels. Undoubtedly, they were agitated and used to say Khalsa Hum Khuda
Shuda (Khalsa too has become believer of God).”
So how did
Ranjit Singh manage to conquer such fierce mountain people? Mainly by using a
blend of sustained aggression latter soothed by Indian magnanimity. Of course,
his biggest weapon was the scourge of the Afghans – Hari Singh, who in one
battle defeated 20,000 Hazaras, the same people who are today tormenting
American and European forces.
To defeat
the cunning and fierce Hazaras on their treacherous home turf was no mean feat
but to do that with only 7000 men was the stuff of legend. Indeed, Hari Singh
had become a legend. He realised that to dominate the warlike tribes, the Sikhs
had to give them the same treatment the Afghans had given the Indians in the
past. Says Kirpal Singh, “Hari Singh set up a very strong administration in the
Peshawar valley. He levied a cess of Rs 4 per house on the Yusafzais. This cess
was to be collected in cash or in kind. For its realization, personal household
property could be appropriated. There was scarcely a village which was not
burnt. In such awe were his visitations held that Nalwa’s name was used by
Afghan mothers as a term of fright to hush their unruly children.”
Though the
spell of Afghan supremacy was broken, the region predominantly populated by
turbulent and warlike Muslim tribes could not be securely held unless a large
army was permanently stationed there. A force of 12,000 men was posted with
Hari Singh to quell any sign of turbulence and to realize the revenue. “The
terror of the name of the Khalsa resounded in the valley,” says Kirpal Singh.
“Part of the city of Peshawar was burnt and the residence of the governor was
razed to the ground.”
Ranjit
Singh ensured that the Afghans never again became a threat to India. These are
the same people who massacred three British armies, and against whom the
Americans and Pakistanis are now totally struggling. The wild tribes of Swat
and Khyber were also tamed.
There are
three reasons why Ranjit Singh won a decisive victory in Afghanistan and the
northwest whereas the Western invasion is floundering.
Firstly,
fierce tactics were followed by a period of liberal and secular rule. In fact,
secularism was the defining character of Ranjit Singh’s rule. There was no
state religion, and religious tolerance was an article of his faith. He refused
to treat Muslims like second class citizens. Compare this with the strafing of
wedding parties by US and European troops or the instance of Czech troops
wearing Nazi uniforms.
When his
victorious army passed through the streets of Peshawar, the Maharajah issued
strict instructions to his commanders to observe restraint in keeping with the
Sikh tradition, not to damage any mosque, not to insult any woman and not to
destroy any crops.
Two, like
the NATO forces in Afghanistan today, Ranjit Singh’s army was a coalition too.
The Indian king’s forces were made up of Sikhs and Hindus, while the artillery
almost fully comprised Muslims. Over half a dozen European nations are
assisting US troops just as European specialists worked for Ranjit Singh. Also,
perhaps for the first time in Indian history the Mazhabis, or 'untouchables',
become a regular component of the army. (While betrayals, disunity and
overconfidence had been the bane of Indian kingdoms throughout history, another
key weakness was that only the warrior castes would do the fighting, which
ruled out 80 per cent of others from fighting for their king. Even when in dire
situations where tribes such as the Bhils were engaged to fight invaders, they
were mostly given side roles.)
However,
Ranjit’s Singh’s forces worked with one united purpose and that was to secure
the empire. Today, the US is reluctant to do all the fighting, while the
British forces are simply not up to the task of taking on the fierce Afghans,
rely instead on bribes to keep away the Taliban fighters. Which Afghan will
show respect such an opponent? The British, Ukrainians, Poles, Australians,
Czechs, and a gaggle of over 40 nationalities are in Afghanistan only to curry
favor with America and wrap up their respective free trade agreements. Nobody, it
seems, has the nerve to take on the Afghans, except from 30,000 ft in the air.
Around 30
years ago, the Russian general Nikolai Ogarkov advised Leonid Brezhnev’s
cabinet not to invade Afghanistan, saying that the country was unconquerable;
today NATO generals are asking Barack Obama to get out of the place or else the
Americans will have to leave in the same state as they left Vietnam – i n their
underpants. But 180 years ago the Indians showed how a mixture of ferocity,
valour and empathy could tame Afghanistan. And that’s the third reason: at the
end of the day, the Indians just did a much better job of fighting.
(About
the author: Rakesh Krishnan is a features writer at Fairfax New Zealand. He has
previously worked with Business world, India Today and Hindustan Times, and was
news editor with the Financial Express, Delhi.)
By the kind courtesy of Col Gurcharan Singh Brar,
No comments:
Post a Comment