Written by Shri Arv Singh ji
Sardar
Jassa Singh of Ahluwalia Misl
Third Battle of Panipat
The Third Battle of Panipat took place
on 14 January 1761, at Panipat, about 60 miles north of Delhi between Maratha
and the King of Afghanistan, Ahmad Shah Abdali, supported by two
Indian Muslim allies—the Rohilla Pathans of the Ganga-Jamuna Doab,
and Shuja-ud-Daula, the Nawab of Awadh. The battle is considered
one of the largest and bloodiest fought in the 18th century with the largest
number of fatalities in a single day.
Ahmad Shah
Abdali leading the Jehadi Army of Afghans
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Slaughter of Marathas
The Marathas, under the command of Sadashiv
Rao Bhau, responded to Afghan invasion by gathering an army of between
45,000–60,000, which was accompanied by roughly 100,000 non-combatants, a
number of whom were family members desirous of making pilgrimages to Hindu holy
sites in northern India.
Slaughter of
Marathas in Panipat
The forces led by Ahmad Shah Durrani
(Abdali) came out victorious after destroying several Maratha flanks. Most of
Maratha leaders like Vilas Rao Bhau, Sadashiv Rao Bhau, Jankoji
Scindhia, and Ibrahim Gardi were killed in the battle while the Holker
escaped to the safety of Gwalior. The extent of the losses on both sides is
heavily disputed by historians, but it is believed that between 60,000–70,000
were killed in fighting, while the numbers of injured and prisoners taken vary
considerably.
Reason for Maratha Failure
The main reason for the failure of the
Marathas was that they went to war without any allies. They could have received
support from Rajputs, Jaats and Sikhs, but none of them
supported Marathas in the battle. The Marathas had interfered in the internal
affairs of the Rajput states (present-day Rajasthan) and levied heavy taxes and
huge fines on them. Their raids in the Jat territory had resulted in the loss
of trust of Jat chiefs like Suraj Mal. According to an assessment, the Sikhs
were ever ready to co-operate with the Marathas, but Marathas had treated
Sikhs, who assisted them earlier in their north-west conquest against Afghans
as a non-entity in Punjab affairs.This was because of the flawed diplomacy on
the part of Marathas in not recognizing the strategic potential of Sikhs.
The Maratha army was also burdened with
over 100,000 pilgrims who wished to worship at Hindu places of worship like
Mathura, Hardwar, Kashi, etc. Apart from just fighting the battle, the Maratha
troops had the responsibility to protect the non-combatants from Afghans. That
was the reason why Marathas suffered heavy losses even after the battle. They
could not retreat quickly as they were to protect the non-combatants who were
accompanying them.
Maratha Women
in traditional attire
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Massacre after the Battle
The Afghan cavalry and pikemen ran wild
through the streets of Panipat, killing tens of thousands of Maratha soldiers
and civilians.The women and children seeking refuge in streets of Panipat were
hounded back in Afghan camps as slaves. Children over 14 were beheaded before
their own mothers and sisters. Afghan officers who had lost their kin in battle
were permitted to carry out massacres of 'infidel' Hindus the next day also, in
Panipat and the surrounding area.They arranged victory mounds of severed heads
outside their camps. According to the eye-witness chronicles, about 40,000
Maratha prisoners were slaughtered in cold blood the day after the battle.
The unhappy prisoners were paraded in
long lines, given a little parched grain and a drink of water, and beheaded...
and the women and children who survived were driven off as slaves - twenty-two
thousand, many of them of the highest rank in the land.
Indian women
traded as sex slaves by Afghans
|
The Great Rescue
In April 1761, Abdali was returning
triumphant having destroyed Maratha power at the third battle of Panipat. His
booty included 22,000 Hindu women being taken to Afghanistan to be sold into
slavery. On the way they were to be used by the Afghan soldiers to satisfy
their lust.
So far, the Sikhs had watched this
theater from a distance by not taking any sides in this battle. The Sikhs
were at Sarbat Khalksa, their bi-annual meeting at Amritsar when the relatives
of the women pleaded for help. They heard of the slaughter of innocent,
rapes of women, and capture of more than twenty thousands Maratha women by the
afghans. They heard of the fate of their country's daughters being driven
away as Abdali's bounty. Their ire was aroused. All the Khalsa Misls got together
and passed a resolution that Abdali is taking Indian women as slaves to his
country after plundering the city of Panipat and they will free all the
slaves.
Sikh Misls
attacking Abdali's Afgan Army
|
Organizing themselves in small bands,
the Sikhs decided to attack the rear of Abdali's army carrying the Indian women
as captives. Jassa Singh led the a volunteer force and caught up with the
Afghans at the River Sutlej at Goindwal. The Afghans were dismayed at the
swiftness and ferocity of Sikh attack. Before they could gather themselves to
counter the attack, the Sikhs rescued the Maratha women and carried away much
of Abdali's booty.
Most attacks were conducted at midnight when the Afghan troops were sleeping or drunk after late night celebrations. They were caught unprepared and began to dread the midnight as they passed through the plains of Punjab. This started the tales of 12 O' clock which went on to become a joke on the Afghans. Unfortunately, Indian masses have forgotten the significance of 12 O' clock in rescuing captive women from Afghan invaders. Instead it has become a tool to ridicule the brave Sikhs.
Most attacks were conducted at midnight when the Afghan troops were sleeping or drunk after late night celebrations. They were caught unprepared and began to dread the midnight as they passed through the plains of Punjab. This started the tales of 12 O' clock which went on to become a joke on the Afghans. Unfortunately, Indian masses have forgotten the significance of 12 O' clock in rescuing captive women from Afghan invaders. Instead it has become a tool to ridicule the brave Sikhs.
The Sikhs rescued many Maratha women
who were being carried off to Afghanistan as slaves. Many widows were not
accepted back by their families and instead married Sikh soldiers.
This action of Sikh Misls required
great audacity, swift and faultless execution and a complete indifference to
danger. Jassa Singh became a household name in north India for his heroics and
was appointed as the "Jathedar" of all Misls at the next Sarbat
Khalsa.
Abdali reached the safety of Kabul with
a bruised ego and a broken nose. He had to wear a silver mask for the rest of
his life to cover his severed nose. He came back to Punjab to avenge this
humiliation and massacred thousands of Sikhs and destroyed Harmander Sahib,
Amritsar, Sikhs rose again and liberated the Harmander Sahib, hounding Abdali
back to his rat hole in Afghanstan.
Bibliography
1. http://www.indiandefencereview.com/spotlights/the-forgotten-hero-of-punjab-jassa-singh-ahluwalia/
2. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20090503/spectrum/main3.htm
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jassa_Singh_Ahluwalia
4. http://www.rediff.com/news/column/250-years-on-battle-of-panipat-revisited/20110113.htm
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Battle_of_Panipat
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