Fall of the Mughal Empire v3.c38.s10: § 21. Mahadji Sindhia takes action after the death of Afrasiyab
Fall of the Mughal Empire v3.c38.s10
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§ 21. Mahadji Sindhia takes action after the death of Afrasiyab
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Afrāsiyāb Khan was struck down by the hand of his assassin about 11 o'clock in the forenoon and died shortly after midday, though the fact of his death was kept concealed by his servants and false reports were issued that he was alive or even reviving. But the truth at last became known in the evening. A clamour and tumult broke out in his camp at Khanua. His soldiers rose against his financial manager Rajah Nārāyandās, lest they should lose their heavy arrears of pay with the death of their employer. The Kashmiri slipped away to the contingent of Gosain Himmat Bahadur for safety. Utter terror reigned among the leaderless officers and men of the fallen Mir Bakhshi; an immediate attack by the ruthless Hamadāni in their present distracted condition was expected by every one. But they were saved from such a fate by a strong man of action taking prompt control of the situation.
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Mahadji Sindhia had not yet risen from his late sleep when Zain-ul-abidin came panting into his office-tent at Rupbas after a hard ride of five miles, and sought asylum as an innocent man in fear of a false accusation of murder. Sindhia, on hearing the news, refused to admit him to his presence and at once sent him to Mirzā Ghiyās-ud-din’s tent to be kept under guard till he should be cleared by a full investigation. The Maratha chief had no certain information about Afrāsiyāb’s Muhammad Beg’s position, and returned after selecting the plain near Sayyidpurā (2½ miles west of Khanua) as the site of the decisive battle with his rival. Next day, he rode out to the place, but returned after putting the battle off to the following day. Dropping into Himmat Bahadur’s tent on his way back, he dismissed most of his tired followers and himself spent an hour there playing chess and bragging of the victory to come on the morrow. Then he returned to his own tent and sent away his remaining officers, with the exception of Zain and four others who lingered sitting down on the carpet. It was now past 11 o’clock, and Afrāsiyāb, quite at ease, took his coat and turban off and called for his luncheon to be served. A Mughal retainer of Zain who had mingled with the Mir Bakhshi’s servants, now handed him a petition, and as he was reading it the man stabbed him with a dagger from his shoulder down to his breast. The wounded general started up from his seat “like a half-slaughtered fowl”, tottered a few steps and then fell down senseless. The assassin was cut to pieces by the servants. In the confusion following the first blow, Zain-ul-abidin rushed out of the tent and mounting a fleet horse galloped to Māhādji’s camp where he reported that some one had killed Afrāsiyāb and that he had come there for safety lest he should be killed in suspicion for the crime. (2nd Nov.)
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§ 21. Mahadji Sindhia takes action after the death of Afrasiyab.
v3.c38.s10.4
Afrāsiyāb Khan was struck down by the hand of his assassin about 11 o'clock in the forenoon and died shortly after midday, though the fact of his death was kept concealed by his servants and false reports were issued that he was alive or even reviving. But the truth at last became known in the evening. A clamour and tumult broke out in his camp at Khanua. His soldiers rose against his financial manager Rajah Nārāyandās, lest they should lose their heavy arrears of pay with the death of their employer. The Kashmiri slipped away to the contingent of Gosain Himmat Bahadur for safety. Utter terror reigned among the leaderless officers and men of the fallen Mir Bakhshi; an immediate attack by the ruthless Hamadāni in their present distracted condition was expected by every one. But they were saved from such a fate by a strong man of action taking prompt control of the situation.
v3.c38.s10.5
Mahadji Sindhia had not yet risen from his late sleep when Zain-ul-abidin came panting into his office-tent at Rupbas after a hard ride of five miles, and sought asylum as an innocent man in fear of a false accusation of murder. Sindhia, on hearing the news, refused to admit him to his presence and at once sent him to Mirzā Ghiyās-ud-din’s tent to be kept under guard till he should be cleared by a full investigation. The Maratha chief had no certain information about Afrāsiyāb’s condition and he held no position in the hierarchy of imperial officers. For two hours after his spies kept bringing in conflicting reports about Afrāsiyāb’s being dead or his having recovered consciousness. To learn the truth, Mahadji left his tent at 3 p.m. with a select body of his counsellors and captains, and rode towards the Delhi camp. On the way lay the tents of Himmat Bahadur, and here Narayandas came to him and “whispered into his ears the glad tidings of Afrāsiyāb Khan being really dead.” Mahadji dismounted, held a secret talk with Himmat Bahadur, and returned to his base at Rupbās.*
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Early at night he took deep counsel with his own people. The situation caused by the sudden removal of the imperial regent was no less dangerous to him than to Afrāsiyāb’s men. Hamadāni might make a pact with the latter for sharing the vacant Delhi State and the two Musalman forces together might make a treacherous attack upon the Hindu interloper. Sindhia’s Court had the lowest opinion of the Mughalia and Hindustani Muslims and their Kashmiri underlings, as the most heartless and selfish deceivers in the world. If such men found time to consolidate their power, they would certainly pack Mahadji off without the least scruple and defraud him of the subsidy and lands promised for the vast force that he had so long employed at their call. All the Maratha ministers urged Mahadji to lose no time in bringing the situation under control by asserting his own authority and awe over every one on the spot. The quaking imperialists piteously cried to him to save them from Hamadani's impending attack. So, Mahadji sent 2,000 cavalry under Ambaji Inglé to stand on guard round the imperial camp that night.
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∗ Sindhia’s acts, 2-10 Nov.—BM. Or. 25,021 ff. 31-36 and Aiti Sfuta L. ii. No. 18 (best.) Ibrat. ii. 88-89. DY. i. 117. Nothing in G. Ali or Muna Lal.
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Then he wrote to his advanced division (under Rayaji Patil and Jivaji Bakhshi) to advance a mile or two nearer to Hamadani's camp and interpose between it and the Delhi force at Khanua, so as to intercept any attack by that rebel. The post west of Khanua vacated by these two Maratha generals was occupied next morning (3rd Nov.) by Mahadji himself, who marched there with a strong force, leaving his camp and baggage behind at Rupbās for the present. Thus a defensive wall was erected along the nearer side of Hamadāni's position. This measure also prevented the looting of Afrasiyab's tents and property by his own soldiery and closed the path of any treacherous intrigue between them and Hamadāni.
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§ 22. Sindhia crushes Md. Beg Hamadāni, c. 10 Nov. 1784.
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Meantime, Hamadāni had stationed his envoy Lachhmi Ram in Sindhia’s camp for interceding with him to make a peace. The night after the murder, Mahadji sent the envoy back to his master, demanding the surrender of all his artillery, elephants, horses and camels, after which he would be left free to go away anywhere with his family. In case of refusal, war was threatened: “I shall (said Sindhia) ride out and in one *ghari* finish his business.” On the 3rd, after Sindhia had advanced to the west of Khanua, the envoy brought to him Hamadāni’s answer, “I have 15 guns belonging to the Emperor with me. These I am prepared to surrender, but I will not give up the rest. After my death any one can take them.” Nothing was, therefore, left to Sindhia but to fight.
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The soldiers of Afrāsiyāb were in open mutiny in fear of losing their arrears of pay. They stopped the bier of the Mir Bakhshi when about to be sent to Fathpur Sikri for burial. But Sindhia pacified them by taking on himself the satisfaction of their claims. They next demanded that they should continue in the service of the State and enjoy their present jagirs. This also Sindhia promised to recommend to the Emperor. Then he distributed some money of his own to relieve the pressing needs of the contingents of Himmat Bahadur and Nārāyandās, and thus brought these two forces and their artillery over to his side. It was urgently necessary to crush Hamadani without delay. That general was busy with intrigues for seducing Afrāsiyāb’s officers, telling them “Afrāsiyāb is dead. Patil Bābā will now manage the empire and the Emperor’s State will pass into Hindu hands. Your master is dead. For whom will you remain there now? Come over to me and I shall pay you.” A plan was also formed for cutting Zain-ul-abidin out of Sindhia’s camp, giving him the Mir Bakhshi’s post in name, and the actual government of the empire to Hamadani and the Kashmiri managers of Afrāsiyāb, and driving Sindhia away!
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Mahadji acted promptly, but with admirable vigilance tact and suppleness. Three days having been wasted in futile negotiations, he called up all his camp and baggage from Rupbās to his present advanced position (6th and 7th Nov.) and completed the cordon round Hamadani with the aid of the Macheri and Jaipur contingents which had joined him, as well as the imperial troops recently taken over into his pay. He thus secured a crushing superiority in artillery fire. His own base was at Aghapur, 5 miles south of Bharatpur, while Hamadani was as before near Sayyidpurā, some six miles further south. The cannonade was opened on 7th November under Mahadji’s personal direction, as he stood in the village of Bārga, a mile south of Sayyidpurā. It was resumed next day (the 8th) with full vigour and heavy loss on both sides. Muhammad Beg Hamadāni fought grimly, having “girt up his loins for death.” But his condition was hopeless. The strict blockade had caused a famine in his camp; his Ruhelas had eaten up all their sheep goats and draught bullocks and now began to come over to Sindhia in parties as they found a way out. His Telingas, abandoning their arms, went away rather than starve or be butchered helplessly.
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Then, at last, Muhammad Beg offered the complete submission on which the exasperated Sindhia was insisting. On 10th November, he rode out with a small band of horsemen to Ambaji Ingle’s camp and surrendered. All the guns (forty-six in number) and other property found in his camp were attached and removed to the Maratha lines. His vanquished battalions were deprived of their flintlocks. His Ruhela mercenaries, after detention for two days, were sent away under a strong guard to beyond Dig, and there released, with orders not to go towards Agra. In the Maratha camp, Muhammad Beg and his officers were at first guarded as prisoners; but finally he was set free on conditions that made him powerless for mischief, namely, (1) to surrender all his arms and military equipment, (2) to send his family to Ujjain to be held in Sindhia’s capital as hostages for his fidelity, and (3) to serve in future as a servant of Sindhia. His fiefs were taken away.