Dictionary of Martyrs: India's Freedom Struggle
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DICTIONARY OF MARTYRS INDIA’S FREEDOM STRUGGLE (1857-1947) Vol. 3 Maharashtra, Gujarat and Sind (1857-1947) ii Dictionary of Martyrs: India’s Freedom Struggle (1857-1947) Vol. 3 DICTIONARY OF MARTYRSMARTYRS INDIA’S FREEDOM STRUGGLE (1857-1947) Vol. 3 Maharashtra, Gujarat and Sind (1857-1947) General Editor Y. Sudershan Rao Chairperson, ICHR Executive Editor Gopinath Ravindran Research Consultant Amit Kumar Gupta Research and Editorial Team Ashfaque Ali Rajesh Kumar Md. Naushad Ali Md. Shakeeb Athar Published by INDIAN COUNCIL OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH in association with MANAK PUBLICATIONS PVT. LTD iv Dictionary of Martyrs: India’s Freedom Struggle (1857-1947) Vol. 3 Project of INDIAN COUNCIL OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH and MINISTRY OF CULTURE, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA First Edition 2014 Published by INDIAN COUNCIL OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH 35, FEROZESHAH ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 001 in association with MANAK PUBLICATIONS PVT. LTD B-7, Saraswati Complex, Subhash Chowk, Laxmi Nagar, New Delhi 110092 INDIA Phone: 22453894, 22042529 Email: [email protected] [email protected] USA Office 8145 KOLB AVE, ALLEN PARK, M.I. 48101 USA Email: [email protected] All rights reserved © ICHR, 2014 No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. ISBN 978-93-7831-375-2 (Part 3) Laser Typeset by TABREZ ALI, Laxmi Nagar, New Delhi Printed in India by Nice Printing Press, New Delhi FROM THE GENERAL EDITOR Indiaís struggle for freedom is a long story. It actually begins from the very days of Plassey and Buxar. In fact, India had never meekly submitted to any foreign invasion as evident from the beginning of the times known to the recorded history. European companies also found stiff resistance from Indian rulers for over a century before the English expelled the French. From 1757 to 1857, the English also did not have a smooth sailing in India. Even after the close of military engagements with Indian princes, the English could not take the whole of India under its rule for various reasons. During these hundred years, we can see the efforts of Indian rulers to protect the freedom of our country from foreign yoke. The tribal communities also bravely tried to contain the expansion of the British authority over the forest and hilly regions. Their sacrifices cannot be ignored. At the very beginnings of the Companyís rule in the South, the tribal chiefs of the hilly regions of Coromandel coast put up heroic fight in the second half of 18th century against the advanced military power of the British. In a way, the 1857 Movement was also a considerable success politically because one-third of the then India was allowed by the English to continue under the native rule till as late as their withdrawal. In British India, the people chose many ways to express their resentment, though sporadically, but with alarming and increasing frequency over the years. Those who lost their wealth, power and life to defend freedom before 1857 and those who fought for freedom after 1857 till 1905 when the mainstream of Movement acquired national character, had gone unrecorded, unwept and unsung. We have been left with scant record about those who lost their lives for freedom in various types of protest against the British domination. Such protests were not clearly definable till 1905. The protests and movements from 1905 could be well defined as political, social and economical with nationalist undertones. Whatever were the visible reasons of the nation-wide protests by different sections of people, they were basically connected to the struggle for freedom. This project of preparing a dictionary of those who lost their lives in various protests and movements against the British rule, makes an attempt to record their individual contribution in brief to the overall movement for freedom, with due apologies to those who had gone unrecorded. Usually such mammoth projects cannot be completed according to the schedule because the scope of the project will be vi Dictionary of Martyrs: India’s Freedom Struggle (1857-1947) Vol. 3 expanding along with the progress of work, and because the quantum of work is inestimable at any stage of execution. However, the work done by the project team is quite appreciable. I consider this a pious duty to submit to our countrymen the Volume 3 of the Dictionary of Martyrs as the nationís homage to those who lost their lives for Indiaís freedom from foreign rule. This Project is executed by the ICHR and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. Its scope, sources, methodology and format have already been outlined in the General Editorís Note to the Part I of the Volume 1. This Volume brings up the data available on the region now known as Maharashtra, Gujarat and Sind between 1857 and 1947. Our research team has collected data regarding those who sacrificed their lives while participating in such mobilisations, organisations and occurrences as the 1857 Movement, the tribal resistances, the Khilafat and Non-Cooperation movement, the Civil Disobedience movement and the movements of the revolutionaries, peasants and workers, Praja mandals (for responsible government), as well as the Individual Satyagraha, the ìQuit Indiaî outbreak and the stirrings over the Indian Independence League, the Indian National Army and the Royal Indian Navy. Incidents like the Jungle Satyagraha of Chirner village (against the ban on collecting firewoods by the British), Bhilsí struggle against begar (forced labour) in the Political Agency of Rewa Kantha (Gujarat), Kisansí agitations against the high rates of land taxes and socially exploitative forced labour and other cesses in these regions have also been taken care of. The entries include, wherever available, information regarding the date/year, place of birth and residence, occupation and the circumstances leading to the martyrdom. The Research Team has also undertaken field trips to the Maharashtra and Gujarat States. Our sincere thanks are due to the authorities and staff of the National Archives of India, New Delhi, as well as of the State archives and libraries for the cooperation extended to our Team of Researchers. I also wish to record my appreciation of the ICHR library staff and other staff for their constant support and cooperation to the researchers of this Project. While consulting the archival sources in Maharashtra State Archives, Mumbai, the Research Team has come across various Political and Judicial proceedings on the Uprising of 1857 and participants that have not hitherto been explored or consulted on such a large scale. Contemporary newspapers, such as The Times of India, The Bombay Chronicle and notably The Sind Observer have also been consulted. The papers of the knowledgeable individuals (such as of I. L. Yajnik), well-known institutions, (such as All India Congress Committee, All India Trade Union Congress and All India States Peopleís Conference) and similar other collections available in the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi, were also consulted. Our Research Team has aspired to prepare the Dictionary as inclusive as possible and to cover telescopically the very widespread participation of almost all the segments of Indian society in the movement for independence. Of course, a work of this nature can never claim to be exhaustive. There cannot be any finality with regard to such works. If any omissions or commissions are reported by the readers, they From the General Editor vii will be taken care of while preparing the supplementary volume to be published towards the end of the Project. Professor Amit Kumar Gupta and his team of researchers ñ Dr. Rajesh Kumar, Mr. Ashfaque Ali, Dr. Md. Naushad Ali, Dr. Md. Shakeeb Athar and Muhammed Niyas. A ñ have done an admirable job in bringing out this Volume. I thank Mr. Ashok Kumar who has prepared the digital material for the press. I thank Professor T.R. Ghoble (Coordinator, Maharashtra) and his researchersñ Mrs. Swanandi Jivan Tambe and Mrs. Swati Ashutosh More ñ for providing required data of martyrs from Maharashtra (mainly from the Gazetteers and the Marathi secondary sources) to assist the Central Team. I also express my thanks to Professor Rajkumar Hans (Coordinator, Gujarat) for his valuable cooperation in completing this project. I am indebted to Professor Makrand Mehta (Gujarat) and Dr. A. S. Pathak (Maharashtra) for their willingness to act as Experts; and perform the onerous task of going through the typescript meticulously and suggesting improvements to it. I gratefully acknowledge the valuable support and guidance of Professors : Sabyasachi Bhattacharya, Arjun Dev, Mushirul Hasan, Indu Banga, Basudev Chatterji, V. Raghottam, N. Rajendran, Subhas R. Chakraborty, T.R. Ghoble, V. Ramakrishna, Swaraj Basu, and Gopinath Ravindran (Member Secretary) ñ to this project as the members of its Advisory Committee. My thanks are also due to Shri Ravindra Singh, Secretary; Shri Sanjiv Mittal and Shri Pramod Jain, Joint Secretaries; Smt. Nirmala Goyal, Deputy Secretary; Shri Kanwar Sameer, the Director and Shri J.P. Sharma in the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, for their consistent support. Last but not the least, I profusely thank the Manak Publications Pvt. Ltd. for their utmost care in bringing out this volume. Y. Sudershan Rao viii Dictionary of Martyrs: India’s Freedom Struggle (1857-1947) Vol. 3 Abbreviations ix ABBREVIATIONS Archival Records Acc No. : Accession Number AG : Akhbar-e Gwalior (1858-59), MPSAB AICC : All India Congress Committee Papers b/o : brother of BC : Bombay Chronicle (1942), MSAM BS : Bombay Sentinel (1938), MSAM Capt. : Captain CRR : Crown Representative Records d/o : daughter of Deptt : Department distt. : district Div : Division F : Foreign F. : File FR : Fortnightly Report(s) H : Home INA : Indian National Army Jud : Judgement Judl : Judicial LCC (TJ) : Lahore Conspiracy Case I (Trial/Judgement) x Dictionary of Martyrs: India’s Freedom Struggle (1857-1947) Vol.