Rewind: Rebel Prince in Nizam’s household

Mubariz-ud-Daulah fought against the Company at a time when the very idea of opposing the mighty British authority was nascent

By KSS Seshan

One of the significant rebellions against the British in Hyderabad State in the first half of the 19th Century was that of Prince Mubariz-ud-Daulah. The revolt which occurred in 1839 was a part of the Wahhabi Movement, which at that time swept across the country. In the Deccan, Prince Mubariz-ud-Daulah, the younger brother of the Nizam of Hyderabad, became the central figure of this movement and, along with several other chiefs, made a concerted effort to oust the British. The anti-British sentiment among several Indian princesses was so strong that the Kurnool Nawab, Gulam Rasool Khan, and others became close confidants of the Hyderabad prince and joined the revolt against the Company administration.

Wahhabi Movement 

The Wahhabi Movement was started by Abdul Wahhab (1691-1787) in Persia and, therefore, named after him. The main objective of the movement was to impress on the rulers to keep the welfare of the people as their primary duty in governance. It also aimed to see that the basic tenets of Islam were followed strictly and with sincerity. However, over a period of time, the movement underwent changes in its aims and objectives. The movement was popularised in India by two Islamic religious leaders, Shahwaliullah (1703-1762) and his son, Abdul Aziz (1746-1823).

The anti-British sentiment was so strong that the Kurnool Nawab Gulam Rasool Khan became close confidant of Mubariz-ud-Daulah and joined the revolt against the Company administration 

By 1820, the Wahhabi Movement spread from Bengal to the North-Western Frontier Province and from the United Provinces to Madras in the South. The main stronghold for Wahhabis was Patna. Bareilly, a staunch follower of the movement, toured the country and addressed large gatherings. He exhorted people to oppose the colonial masters who were exploiting the nation. His message was that everyone should rise above religious considerations to oppose the alien rule. He gave the slogan, Jaan ko denge, watan ko bachayenge. (Let us sacrifice our lives, but safeguard our motherland). It was on account of his tireless work that the movement became widespread. It found great support from Mubariz-ud-Daulah, who with the help of an army of spies, mustered the support of several native princes in the country and meticulously planned with utmost secrecy to oust the British from India.

Anti-British  

Mubariz-ud-Daulah was born in 1800 as the second son of Nizam Sikandar Jah (1803-1829). Nasir-ud-Daulah was the first son. Mubariz had an independent spirit from his boyhood. He developed hatred towards the English from the beginning. As the Prince of Hyderabad with greater access to wealth and a private army of more than a lakh, Mubariz devoted all his time and resources to the Wahhabi Movement and anti-British activities from a very young age.

His hatred towards the British, even when he was a young boy, was such that once his father wanted a sentry of a British army to be posted as a guard at his palace. But the young boy said he would prefer to die rather than see a British guard at his palace gate. When he came to know of the Wahhabi Movement and its avowed opposition to British rule in India, he decided to work for its success.

Mubariz’s Designs 

General Fraser, the British Resident at Hyderabad, came to know through his agents that Mubariz was carrying out correspondence with several persons in and out of the State. It was estimated that there were about 20,000 Wahhabi followers in Hyderabad alone. Wahhabis in Hyderabad believed that after driving away the British and deposing the Nizam, the Shah would appoint Mubariz as the Subedar of the Deccan.

At a highly neglected archaeological site near the famous Paigah Tombs close to Charminar is the Dargah of Burhan Shah where lies a modest tomb of Prince Mubariz-ud-Daulah

With that strong belief, Mubariz started sending his emissaries to several places like Lahore, Sindh, Gwalior, Bombay, Kurnool, Madras and Sholapur. He also secretly got a seal made with an imposing title, ‘Raisul Muslimin’. The Resident also came to know of the “hostile intentions of Mubariz” against the British government to convert the native troops at Secunderabad and Nagpur for the cause of the Wahhabi Movement. It was against this background that Mubariz came to know that the Rasool Khan was also sympathetic to the Wahhabi Movement and at once sent his allies to have a secret understanding with him.  The anti-British stand that Rasool Khan took was also due to his close association with the Wahhabi Movement, which at that time was spreading all over the country.

Rasool Khan, as a part of the understanding with Mubariz, recruited a band of committed young confidants who in the guise of fakirs and religious mendicants started visiting even remote places for the spread of the movement. He gave utmost importance to the establishment of an arsenal as requested by Mubariz. An underground arms manufacturing unit was established in the palace gardens outside the fort in Kurnool. There was also a foundry set up to cast canons of high calibre. Utmost secrecy was maintained in running these underground establishments. In the arsenals, weapons like swords, knives, daggers, guns, pistols of various sizes and gun-powder were manufactured, and stored in underground cellars of the fort. The Nawab and Mubariz wanted to equip youngsters working for the Wahhabi Movement with proper arms.

Visit that Never Happened

Enthused by the progress that the Nawab of Kurnool was making, Mubariz contemplated a personal visit to Kurnool to see how well the preparations were being carried out. It was the plan of the Wahhabis that “Mubariz will take command of the combined armies at Kurnool and after overthrowing the British, through insurrection, he would crown himself as the Nizam of Hyderabad in the place of his brother Nasir-ud-Daulah.”

General Fraser, after being convinced that the activities of Mubariz were detrimental to the British administration, spoke to Nasir-ud-Daulah and apprised him of the conspiracy that was being attempted by his brother against both the British and the government of the Nizam. Mubariz was taken into custody and put under guards in the fort of Golconda. His close associates who were involved in the spread of the Wahhabi Movement, numbering 46, were also imprisoned.

Inquiry Commission

Fraser wanted to institute a judicial inquiry into the Wahhabi conspiracy on behalf of the Company as well as the government of the Nizam. Accordingly, the government constituted a Commission of Inquiry comprising six members — three nominated by the Resident and the other three were the nominees of the Nizam’s administration.

Wahhabis in Hyderabad believed that after driving away the British and deposing the Nizam, the Shah would appoint Mubariz as the Subedar of the Deccan 

The Commission sat in sessions from 28 June 1839 to March 1840. Through its sittings, the Commission found that Mubariz was engaged in a conspiracy with the Nawab of Kurnool and also was in secret alliance with a number of other chiefs like the Nawabs of Tonk and Rampur to overthrow the Nizam and declare himself as the ruler and also to bring an insurrection against the British. The Commission also felt that Mubariz tried with his close associates to spread sedition among Muslim sepoys stationed in Secunderabad and Nagpur.

The Crucial Letter

The friendship and cooperation between Mubariz and Rasool Khan came to light through a letter written secretly by Mubariz to the latter that was intercepted by the British agents. Mubariz in that letter had spelled out his plans for the final assault on the British requesting him to “dispatch the needed arms for such an attack”. If only this letter had reached the Nawab, and had he acted, the Commission felt that the results would have been very “disastrous”.

The letter which conveyed the desire of Mubariz to visit Kurnool, unfortunately, fell into the hands of the Resident. The courier of the letter was Muhammad Khan, a trusted follower of Mubariz. The letter was concealed in an amulet and he was to deliver it secretly to the Nawab of Kurnool. On the way to Kurnool, Muhammad Khan stopped at a roadside sarai for a night’s rest in the guise of a traveller. As the English surveillance was very strict, fearing capture by the British, he tied the amulet to the hand of an old beggar woman living in the sarai. The amulet was spotted and recovered with the concealed letter by the guards while combing the area and was handed over to Fraser. Thus the entire conspiracy came to light, and thus the decision to take military action against Kurnool.

Attack on Kurnool

What was significant in the letter was the information the Commission got about the role Rasool Khan played in the anti-British campaign, his close links with Mubariz; and above all, establishing an armoury with the help of Mubariz to overthrow the British authority.

The British government immediately decided to send a large battalion of army from Madras and another one from Bellary against Rasool Khan. The military contingents arrived at Kurnool on 12 September 1839. The British armies entered the fort and unearthed a huge accumulation of arms and ammunition stored in underground cellars. The combined armies of Colonel Dice and Colonel Armstrong surrounded Johripur (outskirts of Kurnool), where the Nawab was camping. The British troops opened fire and a fierce battle ensued. The Nawab’s armies, though resisted for a while, were defeated. Rasool Khan was captured. He was deposed and his territory was confiscated by the Company administration. The Nawab was sent to Madras and from there to Trichinopoly, where he was imprisoned in the fort there.

Mubariz Imprisoned 

As a result of the findings of the Commission, Mubariz-ud-Daulah had to spend the rest of his life as a state prisoner in the Golconda Fort and died on 25th June 1854. At a highly neglected archaeological site near the famous Paigah Tombs close to Charminar, there is the Dargah of Burhan Shah in the dust-filled rubble, a discreet suburb of Hyderabad. Here lies a modest, unostentatious tomb, unworthy for the indomitable rebel against British rule, of Prince Mubariz-ud-Daulah.

The saga of the life of Mubariz stands as a testimony to the independent spirit of the young prince who sincerely made an attempt to drive away the British with the help of other prominent chiefs like the Nawab of Kurnool. His patriotic fervour, his determination to oust British rule and the sacrifice he made, served as an inspiring example for posterity. He fought his entire life for the cause of getting rid of the foreign rule at a time when the very idea to oppose the mighty British authority in Hyderabad and in the rest of the country was only in a nascent stage.

Journey of Revolt

• Mubariz-ud-Daulah – Born in 1800
• Second son of Nizam Sikandar Jah (1803-1829)
• Elder sibling Nasir-ud-Daulah
• Becomes central figure of the Wahhabi Movement
• Gives slogan, Jaan ko denge, watan ko bachayenge. (Let us sacrifice our lives, but safeguard our motherland)
• Accused of trying to overthrow the Nizam and declare himself as the ruler, and also to bring an insurrection against the British
• Taken into custody along with 46 close associates
• Spends the rest of his life as state prisoner in Golconda Fort
• Dies on 25th June 1854