I cannot but laugh at your hypothetical state. If you post some thing from a pro muslim site, that's supposed to be correct, but if I post some thing than it is otherwise. No use trying to reply an illogical post.
Tipu was by no means a patriot. His very act of fighting the Marathas, who were the torchbearers of Indian Nationalism proves that.
He freneticlally tried to seek help from every corner of the world, but nobody paid any heed to him because they all recognised his hypocrisy.
Tipu did fight the British, but at that time, the British were not the rulers of India. So to say that Tipu became a patriot by fighting them is a big joke.
And Sparten, Tipu didn't build the first church in that part of country. Christians had existed & prospered in that part hundreds of years before Muhammad even came on the scene. Secondly I said I don't need to wread the dispatches, because I know what you are trying to drive at by citing selected portions.
Tipu was a tyrannt & a traitor to the country who wanted to become another Aurangzeb & fanatically massacred millions of Hindus & converted them to Islam forcibly, destroying thousands of temples. I have already mentioned that above.
Infact Easter, I now realise that I forgot to mention that One good thing the Britsh gave to India during their rule was freedom from the likes of Tipu Sultan. It's good that the British routed him.
Hyder Ali, The father of tipu Sultan was not king of Mysore. He was in sercive of the king of Mysore. There is no way Tipu can be called a patriot since they were not faithful to even his overlord, the Hindu king of Mysore.
Also he was no threat to Brithish. He can not even comparable to the might of British regime. Recently I have visited Mysore and seen the place where the dead body of Tipu Sultan was found after the battle among the dead bodies of his ordinary soldiers.
Tipu was not a patriot by any means, he was a traitor. His father was also a traitor, in that he didn't even remain loyal to his kind master who gave favours & kindness to an illetrate & poor person only to be backstabbed.
Some people foolishly think that he was a patriot because he fought the British. But forget the fact that this desperate traitor tried to call every known power in the world to invade India, but thankfully they came to realise tipu's hypocrisy & the hollowness of claims & nobody listened to him.
Some people foolishly think that he was a patriot because he fought the British.
Exactly my point! Its' good to see that not everyone falls for the invaders = bad defender= good attitude
Your nationalists sided with the english to defeat Mysore after previously having been in an anti-british confederacy with Mysore.
It is a pity to see that people still buy the english divide-and-conqurer tactics.
I don't mean to be pedantic, but the terms "British" and "English" are different- please treat them as such. Britain is the island that contains the English, Scots, Welsh and Cornish (debateable) The English are simply a culture and ethnicity on that island. British is a more appropriate term as it was a "British" empire, not an English one.
Tipu was by no means a patriot. His very act of fighting the
Marathas, who were the torchbearers of Indian Nationalism proves that.
Your nationalists sided with the english to defeat Mysore after previously having been in an anti-british confederacy with Mysore.
It is a pity to see that people still buy the english divide-and-conqurer tactics.
You are right Omar, Tipu's tyranny & attroicities needed to be ended.
Another reason was this guy was calling up every big power to come & invade India & sort of make it a military ground for the world's powers !
It was necessary to put a stop to this traitor attitude of tipu & his family (his father was also a documented traitor). The British rightly destroyed tipu & ended his riegn of massacres, forced conversions, destruction of temples etc....
Some more material on Tipu from the persons where he ruled. You will realise that it was written when the telcast of this serial was disputed. Later it was accepted tha Kanhaiyalal's book was a work of fiction & not history. :
1
THE SWORD OF TIPU SULTAN Making darkness by closing one's eyes
V.M. KORATH
Former Editor of Mathrubhoomi
Historical novels are usually an admixture of historical facts
and imagination. As such they are not expected to truthfully portray all the
historical events. However, authors of historical novels have the moral
responsibility to present historical facts without blatant distortions.
Mr. Bhagwan Gidwani, the author of the controversial novel, The
Sword of Tipu Sultan, does not seem to be bound by any such ethical
obligations; he does not have any qualms even to deliberately falsify
historical facts. Therefore, a tele-serial based on such a novel also cannot be
otherwise.
Mounting opposition to this controversial serial also stems
from this basic reason.
PSUEDO-RESEARCH
Mr. Gidwani claims that his novel is the result of thirteen
years of historical research. He asserts that he has studied and scrutinized
all the historical documents available from various sources in India and
abroad. Then, why did not this researcher make any effort to visit Kerala,
particularly Malabar region, the main area of Tipu Sultan's cruel military
operations for a decade, or to scrutinize the historical evidence available
from Malabar regarding the atrocities committed by Tipu Sultan, or to study the
ruins of temples destroyed in Malabar during that period?
AUTHOR'S CREDIBILITY
When a serious author is collecting historical data for
writing a historical novel on Tipu Sultan, does he not have ail obligation or
responsibility to at least visit the Malabar region, the main area of the
operations of Tipu Sultan, and try to understand the significance of his
activities there? The mere fact that Mr. Gidwani did not bother to do so, is
itself sufficient reason for suspecting the credibility and credentials of the
author.
IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF HIS FATHER
The major part of Tipu Sultan's rule was spent in conducting
military operations for subjugating Malabar. Wars of territorial conquest waged
in Malabar by Hyder Ali Khan, with the assistance of Ali Raja of Arackal and
his Mappila followers of Cannanore, were intended more for spreading the
Islamic faith by killing and forcible conversion of Hindus coupled with
widespread destruction of Hindu temples, than for expanding his kingdom.
Hyder Ali Khan had expressed his satisfaction for these cruel
achievements. A broad picture of atrocities committed against the Hindu
population of Malabar by the army of Hyder Ali Khan along with the local
Mappilas can be had from the diary notings of a Muslim officer of the Mysore
army as edited and published by the then surviving son of Tipu Sultan, Prince
Ghulam Muhammed (Cited in Malabar Manual, William Logan).
Before his efforts to conquer the entire Malabar region could
succeed, Hyder Ali Khan died in December, 1782. Tipu Sultan who succeeded his
father, considered it his primary duty to continue this unfinished jhd
started by Hyder Ali Khan. However, the Islamic fanaticism of Tipu Sultan was
much worse than that of his father. His war-cry of jhd was
"Sword" (death) or "Cap" (forcible conversion). This makes
very clear the character of Tipu Sultan's military operations started in 1783.
The intensity and nature of sufferings which the Hindu population had to bear
during the nightmarish days of Padayottakkalam (military regime) were vividly
described in many historical records preserved in the royal houses of Zamorin
and Kottayam (Pazhassi), Palghat Fort and East India Company's office. There is
no apparent reason to disbelieve them. It is absurd and against reason to
describe all this evidence as being forged for the purpose of creating enmity
between Hindus and Muslims (as presumed by Dr. C.K. Kareem and others).
During the cruel days of Islamic operations from 1783 to 1791,
thousands of Nairs besides about 30,000 Brahmins had fled Malabar, leaving
behind their entire wealth, and sought refuge in Travancore State (according to
the commission of enquiry appointed by the British soon after Tipu Sultan's
death).
This report was prepared exclusively for the information of
the British authorities and not for writing a book, or for discrediting or
defaming Tipu Sultan. Therefore, according to the learned historian, Dr. M.
Gangadharan, there is no point in disbelieving the validity of this report (Mathrubhoomi
Weekly, January, 14-20, 1990): "Besides, there is enough evidence that
a few members of Zamorin family and many Nairs were forcibly circumcised and
converted into Muhammadan faith as well as compelled to eat beef."
So far as the history of Malabar region is concerned, the most
dependable book for basic historical facts is definitely the Malabar Manual
written by William Logan. Serving in various administrative positions including
that of a Collector for 20 years upto 1886, he had gone through and extensively
researched a variety of documents for preparing his well-acclaimed book. The
present edition has been scrutinized, edited and published by the reputed
Muslim historian, Dr. C.K. Kareem, with the support of Cochin and Kerala
universities. Therefore, the authenticity of its contents cannot be doubted.
There are plenty of references in the Malabar Manual
about the cruel military operations and Islamic atrocities of Tipu Sultan in
Malabar-forcible mass circumcision and conversion, large-scale killings,
looting and destruction of hundreds of Hindu temples, and other barbarities.
If one accepts even a small portion of the Islamic atrocities
described in this monumental work of history, then Tipu Sultan can be depicted
only as a fanatic Muslim bigot. The historical works of Col. Wilks (Historical
Sketches), K.P. Padmanabha Menon and Sardar K.M. Panicker (Kerala History),
Elamkulam Kunjan Pillai (research articles) and others, also do not project
Tipu Sultan in any better light. One of the leading Congressman of
pre-independence days, K. Madhava Nair, observes on page 14 of his famous book,
Malabar Kalapam (Mappila outrage):
"The communal Mappila outrage of 1921 in Malabar could be
easily traced to the forcible mass conversion and related Islamic atrocities of
Tipu Sultan during his cruel military regime from 1783 to 1792. It is doubtful
whether the Hindus of Kerala had ever suffered so much devastation and
atrocities since the reclamation of Kerala by the mythological Lord Parasurama
in a previous Era. Many thousands of Hindus were forcibly converted into
Muhammadan faith."
Since the same Congressman admitted that Tipu had not
discriminated between Hindus and Muslims in Mysore and administered his country
well, his observations about Kerala could be accepted as impartial comments.
In 1789, Tipu Sultan marched to Kozhikode with an army of
60,000, destroyed the fort, and razed the town to the ground. Gunddart says in
his Kerala Pazhama that it is just not possible to describe the cruel
atrocities perpetrated by the barbarian Tipu Sultan in Kozhikode.
William Logan gives in his Malabar Manual a long list
of temples destroyed by Tipu Sultan and his army.
Elankulam Kunjan Pillai has recorded the situation in Malabar
as follows:
"Kozhikode was then a centre of Brahmins. There were
around 7000 Namboodiri houses of which more than 2000 houses were destroyed by
Tipu Sultan in Kozhikode alone. Sultan did not spare even children and women.
Menfolk escaped to forests and neighbouring principalities. Mappilas increased
many fold (due to forcible conversion).
"During the military regime of Tipu Sultan, Hindus were
forcibly circumcised and converted to Muhammadan faith. As a result the number
of Nairs and Brahmins declined substantially."
Atrocities committed in Malabar during the days of Tipu
Sultan's cruel military regime have been described in great detail in the
famous works of many reputed authors-Travancore State Manual of T.K.
Velu Pillai and Kerala Sahitya Charitam of Ulloor Parameshwara Iyer.
Is it not absurd to condemn what all these respected authors
have written about the atrocities of Tipu Sultan and label it as a deliberate
attempt to defame him? All the historical documents of that period clearly
indicate that Tipu Sultan's attack on Malabar had some purpose other than
simple territorial conquest. That purpose was to Islamicise the whole of
Malabar by forcibly converting all the Hindus there.
THIS WAS AN ISLAMIC WAR
Even if we concede, for the sake of argument, that all those
who call Tipu Sultan a fanatic Muslim are pro-British and all the historical
data is meant only to create hatred between Muslims and Hindus, the letters
written by Tipu Sultan himself help us to understand his real character. Some
of these letters, obtained from India Office Library, London, were published in
Bhasha Poshini magazine of Chingam 1099 (corresponding to August, 1923)
by Sardar K.M. Panicker.
The letter dated March 22, 1788, to Kantancheri Abdul Kadir, and the letter
dated December 14, 1788 to his army commander in Kozhikode, do not require
further explanation about Tipu's real intentions in Malabar.
Still, if some people want to describe Tipu Sultan as an
apostle of peace and religious tolerance, let us leave them alone - those
large-hearted admirers of Tipu! However, there is quite a large number of
people who are not that large-hearted, especially the descendants of those
Hindus who were killed by the sword of the bloodthirsty Tipu while resisting
forcible conversion and humiliation.
TIPU'S RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE-A POLITICAL GIMMICK
Tipu had committed a variety of atrocities on the Hindus in
Malabar - barbarous mass-killing, wholesale forcible circumcision and
conversion, and widespread destruction and plunder of Hindu temples. Being
fully aware of this background, if Tipu is projected as a lover of Hindu
religion and traditions and not as an intolerant Muslim fanatic, by citing some
"new evidences' obtained by certain motivated historians and apologists of
Islam such as the alleged land-grants to a few Hindu temples and Sringeri Mutt
and protection of Sree Ranganatha Swami temple near the palace, then at the
most they could be treated only as scandalous exceptions. Even this was part of
a political strategy. Writing in Mathrubhoomi Weekly (January 14-20,
1990), Dr. M. Gangadharan says. "In the socio-religious-political
conditions prevailing in Mysore of Tipu's days, such things could not be
avoided. The financial assistance to Sringeri Mutt meant for conducting
religious rites to ward off evil spirits, was clearly specified in the letter
sent by Tipu Sultan. As such, these cannot be accepted as evidence of Tipu's
respect for Hindu religion."
SAME SITUATION IN MYSORE ALSO
The orchestrated propaganda that Tipu Sultan was tolerant and
fair-minded towards the Hindus in Mysore is also without any foundation, as
explained in history of Mysore written by Lewis Rice as well as M.M. Gopalrao.
According to Lewis Rice, during the rule of Tipu Sultan, only two Hindu temples
inside the Sreerangapatanam Fort were having daily pujas while the
assets of all other temples were confiscated. Even in administrative matters,
Muslim bias was blatantly evident, especially in the matter of
taxation policy. "Muslims were exempted from all taxes. Even those who
were converted to Islamic faith were also allowed the same concessions,"
says Gopal Rao. In the case of employment, Hindus were eliminated to the
maximum extent possible. During the entire period of 16 years of Tipu Sultan's
rule, the only Hindu who had occupied any important official position was
Purnaiyya.
NIGHTMARISH DAYS OF PADAYOTTAM (MILITARY REGIME)
However, Tipu and his Padayottam were a nightmare, especially
for the Hindus of Malabar, whatever may be the arguments provided by Gidwani or
the secularist historians who have specialized in proving a wolf to be a goat.
There is no point in making it dark by closing one's eyes.
Under these circumstances, a TV serial glorifying Tipu Sultan
as a magnanimous person can only remind the Hindus of Malabar about the
nightmare experienced by their forefathers during the cruel military regime of
Tipu Sultan. That can, in turn, shatter the prevailing communal harmony and
peace in Kerala.
Opposition to the proposed TV serial on Tipu Sultan is not
inspired by religious sentiments alone. It is also not against anybody's
freedom to make a tele-serial based on a novel. It is the people's objection
and anger against the Government's attempts to project a historical personality
by suppressing, distorting and falsifying authentic historical evidence about
his life and deeds. The official media like television and radio networks have
certain basic obligations towards the public. Not to misguide the people,
especially by falsification and distortion of recorded history, is the most
important obligation. Therefore, projection of a tele-serial based on Gidwani's
scandalous novel is outside the broad framework of basic guidelines and
objectives. That should not be allowed.
And this article from a member of the Zamorin family, who were ruling the Calicut area & were also the dynasty which had welcomed Vasco - Da - Gama incidently. (He had landed in his kingdom)
RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE OF TIPU SULTAN
LATE P.C.N.
RAJA
INTRODUCTION
Tipu Sultan had, ruled his kingdom only for sixteen-and-a-half
years, from December 7, 1782 to May 4, 1799. The territory of Malabar
was under his effective control only for a short period of eight years.
If he had not secured the assistance of the wily Purnaiyya, there would
not have been so many Muhammadans in the states of Kerala and Karnataka.
Hindus also would not have become less prosperous, and fewer in number.
When that Brahmin Prime Minister, Purnaiyya, presented
to Tipu Sultan 90,000 soldiers, three crore rupees, and invaluable ornaments
made of precious stones, he was tempted to rule as the Emperor of the
South India. Tipu did not consider the Hindu rulers of Maharashtra, Coorg
and Travancore or the Muslim ruler Nizam as impediments. He was afraid
of only the British. He had convinced himself that he could easily become
the Emperor of South India if he could somehow vanquish the British. Because
of his intense and-British attitude, the so-called progressive and secular
historians have made a vain attempt to paint Tipu Sultan as a great national
hero.
Opposition to foreign powers need not always be due to
love for one's country. To achieve his selfish goal and to face the British
forces, Tipu Sultan sought the assistance of another foreign power, the
French, who were manoeuvring to establish their own domination in the
country. How is it possible, therefore, for Tipu Sultan to be an enemy
of foreign forces when he himself had sought help from Napoleon who was
then a prisoner in St. Helena Island and also the French King, Louis XVI?
Besides, he also wanted to establish Islamic rule in
the country; to achieve that he had to first defeat the British. For this
purpose, Tipu Sultan solicited the assistance of Muslim countries like
Persia, Afghanistan and Turkey. It is true that Tipu did not harm the
Raja of Cochin or anyone for that matter who surrendered and pledged loyalty
to him. But how does that make him a friend of Hindus?
Tipu and the Nizam were the only Muslim rulers in the
Deccan at that time and hence he wanted to avoid any dispute with the
Nizam. He insisted that the Nizam should agree to give his daughter in
marriage to his son. But the Nizam, considering Tipu as an upstart with
no aristocratic heredity, refused the offer. (According to Bhagwan Gidwani,
Hyder Ali Khan had suggested earlier to the Nizam that he should agree
to the marriage of his daughter to the young Tipu, then in his teens.)
As if to spite the Nizam, Tipu Sultan got another of his sons married
to the daughter of Arackal Bibi of Cannanore mainly to secure the loyalty
of Malabar Muslims for subjugating the entire Malabar region. The result
was for everybody to see in due course. It may be noted that the family
of Arackal Bibi, though converted to Islam, followed the matriarchal system
a system which the Muslim fanatic, Tipu, wanted to reform.
HE WANTED TO BE A PADISHAH
He wanted to become an Emperor after defeating the British.
He wanted to achieve his ambition after consulting the astrologers. There
were a few Brahmin astrologers in Sree Ranganatha Swami Temple. They predicted
that if some of the suggested remedial rituals were performed, Tipu would
achieve his cherished ambition. Believing that he could become the undisputed
ruler of the whole of South India, after defeating the British, he performed
all the suggested rituals in the Sree Ranaganatha Swami Temple, besides
giving costly presents to the astrologers. This act is being widely interpreted
by secularist historians as love and respect for Hindu religion and traditions!
They also doubt if there were any Hindu temples which were desecrated
or destroyed by Tipu Sultan and his Islamic army in Malabar.
The reputed historian, Lewis Rice, who wrote the History
of Mysore after going through various official records, stated as
follows: "In the vast empire of Tipu Sultan on the eve of his death,
there were only two Hindu temples having daily pujas within the Sreerangapatanam
fortress. It is only for the satisfaction of the Brahmin astrologers who
used to study his horoscope that Tipu Sultan had spared those two temples.
The entire wealth of every Hindu temple was confiscated before 1790 itself
mainly to make up for the revenue loss due to total prohibition in the
country."
There are people who proclaim to the world that Tipu
Sultan's rule was fair and progressive in his own state of Mysore. It
would be appropriate to have a look at what a Mysorean, M.A. Gopal Rao,
stated a few years ago in one of his articles: 'In a deliberately designed
taxation scheme, the religious prejudice of Tipu Sultan became quite clear.
His co-religionists, Muslims, were exempted from house tax, commodity
tax and also the levy on other items of household use. Those who were
converted to Muhammadanism, were also given similar tax exemptions. He
had even made provisions for the education of their children. Tipu Sultan
discontinued the practice of appointing Hindus in different administrative
and military jobs as practised by his father, Hyder Ali Khan, in the past.
He had deep hatred towards all non-Muslims. During the entire period of
sixteen years of his regime, Purnaiyya was the only Hindu who had adorned
the post of Dewan or minister under Tipu Sultan. In 1797 (two years before
his death) among the 65 senior Government posts, not even a single Hindu
was retained. All the Mustadirs were also Muslims. Among the 26 civil
and military officers captured by the British in 1792 there were only
6 non-Muslims. In 1789, when the Nizam of Hyderabad and other Muslim rulers
decided that only Muslims would be appointed henceforth in all Government
posts, Tipu Sultan also adopted the same policy in his Mysore State. Just
because they were Muslims, even those who were illiterate and inefficient,
were also appointed to important Government posts. Even for getting promotions,
one still had to be a Muslim under Tipu Sultan's regime. Considering the
interest and convenience of only Muslim officers, all the records relating
to tax revenue, were ordered to be written in Persian rather than in Marathi
and Kannada as followed earlier. He even tried to make Persian the State
language in place of Kannada. In the end all the Government posts were
filled by lazy and irresponsible Muslims. As a consequence the people
had to suffer a great deal because of those fun-seeking and irresponsible
Muslim officers. The Muslim officers, occupying important posts at all
levels, were all dishonest and unreliable persons. Even when people complained
to him with evidences against those officers, Tipu Sultan did not care
to inquire about the complaints lodged."
EVEN THE PLACE-NAMES WERE CHANGED
Gopal Rao had written all these on the basis of the writings
of Tipu's own son, Ghulam Muhammad, and Muslim historians like Kirmani.
Even the Hindu names of places, the Sultan could not tolerate. Therefore,
Mangalapuri (Mangalore) was changed to Jalalabad, Cannanore (Kanwapuram)
to Kusanabad, Bepur (Vaippura) to Sultanpatanam or Faruqui, Mysore to
Nazarabad, Dharwar to Quarshed-Sawad, Gooty to Faiz-Hissar, Ratnagiri
to Mustafabad, Dindigul to Khaliqabad, and Calicut (Kozhikode) to Islamabad.
It was after the death of Tipu Sultan that the local people reverted to
old names.
ISLAMIC ATROCITIES IN COORG, BEDNUR, AND MANGALORE
The cruelties which Tipu Sultan committed in Coorg, has
no parallel in history. On one occasion, he forcibly converted over ten
thousand Hindus to Muhammadanism. On another occasion, he captured and
converted to Islam more than one thousand Hindu Coorgis before imprisoning
them in the Sreerangapatanam fortress. In the period of confusion and
anarchy prevailing in Sreerangapatanam during the last war of Tipu Sultan
against the British, all the Coorgi prisoners escaped from the prison
and became Hindus again after reaching their native kingdom. Against the
solemn oath given to the Raja of Coorg, Tipu Sultan forcibly abducted
a young princess from the Coorg royal family and made her his wife against
her will.
The atrocities committed by Tipu Sultan in Bidnur in
North Karnataka during and after its capture by him, were most barbarous
and beyond description. Ayaz Khan who was Kammaran Nambiar from Chirackal
Kingdom before his forcible conversion to Islam by Hyder Ali Khan, had
been appointed as Governor of Bidnur. Tipu Sultan was jealous of and opposed
to Ayaz Khan from the very beginning because Hyder Ali Khan had considered
the latter more intelligent and smart. When Ayaz Khan learnt that Tipu
Sultan was scheming to kill him secretly, he escaped to Bombay with plenty
of gold. Tipu Sultan came to Bednur and forcibly converted its entire
population to Islam. The people accepted Islam for the sake of their lives.
After the capture of Mangalore, thousands of Christians
were also forcibly sent to Sreerangapatanam where all of them were circumcised
and converted to Islam. Tipu Sultan's justification was that during the
Portuguese domination, prior to the arrival of the British, many Muslims
had been converted to Christianity by their Missionaries. He proudly proclaimed
his action as a sort of punishment for the conversion of many Muslims
by the Portuguese.
Then he marched upto Kumbla on the northern borders of
Kerala, forcibly converting to Islam every Hindu on the way. This time,
his argument (repeated by the Muslim and secularist historians of today)
was that if all belonged to one religion - Muhammadanism - there would
be unity and consequently it would be easy to defeat the British!
INSIDE MALABAR
In Malabar, the main target of Tipu Sultan's atrocities
were Hindus and Hindu temples. According to Lewis B. Boury, the atrocities
committed by Tipu Sultan against Hindus in Malabar were worse and more
barbarous than those committed against the Hindus in Hindustan by the
notorious Mahmud of Ghazni, Alauddin Khalji, and Nadir Shah. He disputes
in his book Mukherjee's version that Tipu Sultan had converted only his
opponents. Normally even a cruel person kills or tortures only his enemies.
But that argument does not justify the cruelties committed by him against
innocent women and children.
DANCE OF THE ISLAMIC SATAN
According to the Malabar Manual of William Logan
who was the District Collector for some time, Thrichambaram and Thalipparampu
temples in Chirackal Taluqa, Thiruvangatu Temple (Brass Pagoda) in Tellicherry,
and Ponmeri Temple near Badakara were all destroyed by Tipu Sultan. The
Malabar Manual mention that the Maniyoor mosque was once a Hindu
temple. The local belief is that it was converted to a mosque during the
days of Tipu Sultan.
Vatakkankoor Raja Raja Varma in his famous literary work,
History of Sanskrit Literature in Kerala, has written the following
about the loss and destruction faced by the Hindu temples in Kerala during
the military regime (Padayottam) of Tipu Sultan: "There was no limit
as to the loss the Hindu temples suffered due to the military operations
of Tipu Sultan. Burning down the temples, destruction of the idols installed
therein and also cutting the heads of cattle over the temple deities were
the cruel entertainments of Tipu Sultan and his equally cruel army. It
was heartrending even to imagine the destruction caused by Tipu Sultan
in the famous ancient temples of Thalipparampu and Thrichambaram. The
devastation caused by this new Ravana's barbarous activities have not
yet been fully rectified."
KOZHIKODE MADE A GRAVEYARD
As per the provisions of the Treaty of Mangalore of 1784,
the British had allowed Tipu Sultan to have his suzerainty over Malabar.
'In consequence, the Hindus of Malabar had to suffer the most severe enormities
the world had ever known in history,' observes K.V. Krishna Iyer, in his
famous book, Zamorins of Calicut, based on historical records available
from the royal house of Zamorins in Calicut. "When the second-in-line
of Zamorins, Eralppad, refused to cooperate with Tipu Sultan in his military
operations against Travancore because of Tipu's crude methods of forcible
circumcision and conversion of Hindus to Islam, the enraged Tipu Sultan
took a solemn oath to circumcise and convert the Zamorin and his chieftains
and Hindu soldiers to Islamic faith," he adds.
L.B. Boury writes: "To show his ardent devotion
and steadfast faith in Muhammaddan religion, Tipu Sultan found Kozhikode
to be the most suitable place. It was because the Hindus of Malabar refused
to reject the matriarchal system, polyandry and half-nakedness of women
that the 'great reformer' Tipu Sultan tried to honour the entire population
with Islam." To the Malabar people, the Muslim harem, Muslim polygamy
and the Islamic ritual of circumcision were equally repulsive and opposed
to the ancient culture and tradition in Kerala. Tipu Sultan sought a marriage
alliance with the matriarchal Muslim family of Arackal Bibi in Cannanore.
Kozhikode was then a centre of Brahmins and had over 7000 Brahmin families
living there. Over 2000 Brahmin families perished as a result of Tipu
Sultan's Islamic cruelties. He did not spare even women and children.
Most of the men escaped to forests and foreign lands.
Elamkulam Kunjan Pillai wrote in the Mathrubhoomi
Weekly of December 25, 1955: "Muhammadans greatly increased in
number. Hindus were forcibly circumcised in thousands. As a result of
Tipu's atrocities, strength of Nairs and Chamars (Scheduled Castes) significantly
diminished in number. Namboodiris also substantially decreased in number."
The German missionary Guntest has recorded: 'Accompanied
by an army of 60,000, Tipu Sultan came to Kozhikode in 1788 and razed
it to the ground. It is not possible even to describe the brutalities
committed by that Islamic barbarian from Mysore." C.A. Parkhurst
also noted that 'Almost the entire Kozhikode was razed to the ground."
TEMPLES DESTROYED
Thali, Thiruvannur, Varackal, Puthur, Govindapuram, Thalikkunnu
and other important temples in the town of Kozhikode as well as those
nearby were completely destroyed as a result of Tipu's military operations.
Some of them were reconstructed by the Zamorin after he returned following
the defeat of Tipu Sultan in Sreerangapatanam and the Treaty of 1792.
The devastation caused by Tipu Sultan to the ancient
and holy temples of Keraladheeswaram, Thrikkandiyoor and Thriprangatu
in Vettum region was terrible. The Zamorin renovated these temples to
some extent. The famous and ancient Thirunavaya Temple, known throughout
the country as an ancient teaching-centre of the Vedas, revered by the
devotees of Vishnu from Tamil Nadu, and existing before the advent of
Christ, was also plundered and destroyed by Tipu's army (Malabar Gazetteer).
After dismantling and destroying the idol, Tipu converted the Thrikkavu
Temple into an ammunition depot in Ponnani (Malabar Manual). It
was the Zamorin who repaired the temple later. Kotikkunnu, Thrithala,
Panniyoor and other family temples of the Zamorin were plundered and destroyed.
The famous Sukapuram Temple was also desecrated. Damage done to the Perumparampu
Temple and Maranelira Temple of Azhvancherry Thamprakkal (titular head
of all Namboodiri Brahmins) in Edappadu, can be seen even today. Vengari
Temple and Thrikkulam Temple in Eranadu, Azhinjillam Temple in Ramanattukara,
Indyannur Temple, Mannur Temple and many other temples were defiled and
damaged extensively during the military regime.
Tipu Sultan reached Guruvayoor Temple only after destroying
Mammiyoor Temple and Palayur Christian Church. If the destruction caused
by Tipu's army is not visible today in the Guruvayoor Temple, it is mainly
because of the intervention of Hydrose Kutty who had been converted to
Islam by Hyder Ali Khan. He secured the safety of the temple and the continuation
of land-tax exemption allowed by Hyder Ali earlier, besides the renovation
and repairs done by the devotees later. According to available evidences,
fearing the wrath of Tipu Sultan, the sacred idol of the Guruvayoor Temple
was removed to the Ambalapuzha Sri Krishna Temple in Travancore State.
It was only after the end of Tipu's military regime, that the idol was
ceremoniously reinstated in the Guruvayoor Temple itself. Even today,
daily pujas are conducted in Ambalapuzha Sri Krishna Temple where
the idol of Guruvayoor Temple was temporarily installed and worshipped.
Damages caused to the nearby temples at Parampathali,
Panmayanadu and Vengidangu are visible even today. The deplorable state
of the architecture of the sanctum sanctorum of Parampathali Temple destroyed
during the military operations of Tipu Sultan is really heart-rending.
The atrocities committed in Kozhikode during the nightmarish days of the
military occupation are vividly described in the works of Fra Bartolomaeo
who had travelled through Kerala at that time. How cruelly Tipu Sultan,
ably assisted by the French Commander M. Lally, had treated the Hindu
and Christian population can be clearly understood from his writings.
TALKING RECORDS OF KERALA HISTORY
Govinda Pillai says in his famous book, History of
Literature; "During Malayalam Era 965 corresponding to 1789-90,
Tipu Sultan crossed over to Malabar with an army of uncivilised barbarians.
With a sort of fanatical love for Islamic faith, he destroyed many Hindu
temples and Christian churches which were the custodians of precious wealth
and religious traditions. Besides, Tipu Sultan abducted hundreds of people
and forcibly circumcised and converted them to Islam - an act which was
considered by them as more than death."
A small army of 2000 Nairs of Kadathanadu resisted the
invasion of the huge army of Tipu Sultan from a fortress in Kuttipuram
for a few weeks. They were reduced to starvation and death. Tipu Sultan
entered the fort and offered to spare their lives, provided they accepted
conversion to Islam. The unfortunate lot of 2000 Nairs were then forced
to eat beef after being converted to Islamic faith, at the end of usual
religious ritual of mass circumcision. All the members of one branch of
Parappanad Royal Family were forcibly converted to Muhammadan faith except
for one or two who escaped from the clutches of Tipu Sultan's army. Similarly,
one Thiruppad belonging to Nilamboor Royal Family was also forcibly abducted
and converted to Islam. Thereafter, it was reported that further conversions
of Hindus were attempted through those converts. In the end, when the
Kolathiri Raja surrendered and paid tribute, Tipu Sultan got him treacherously
killed without any specific reason, dragged his dead body tied to the
feet of an elephant through the streets, and finally hanged him from a
tree-top to show his Islamic contempt for Hindu Rajas.
It may be mentioned here that the entire Wodayar Royal
Family of Mysore had been humiliated and kept in prison by Hyder Ali Khan
and Tipu Sultan in their capital city, Sreerangapatanam. Even the Palghat
Raja, Ettipangi Achan who had surrendered, was imprisoned on suspicion
and later taken to Sreerangapatanam. Nothing was heard of him subsequently.
Christians in Palghat fled out of fear. Tipu Sultan terrified the entire
Hindu population in Malabar, stationing his army contingents in different
regions for the purpose. The tax initially imposed by Hyder Ali Khan was
forcibly collected by Tipu Sultan. Standing crops were confiscated. This
act provoked even some influential Mappila landlords to revolt against
Tipu Sultan.
Hyder Ali Khan had exempted temples from the payment
of land tax. But Tipu Sultan forced the temples to pay heavy taxes. The
famous Hemambika Temple at Kalpathi of the Palghat Raja who had surrendered
to Hyder Ali Khan, the Kachamkurissi Temple of the Kollamkottu Raja who
had deserted the Zamorin and sided with Hyder Ali Khan, and also the Jain
Temple at Palghat suffered serious damages due to the cruel policies of
Tipu Sultan.
Many Nair and Brahmin landlords fled the country leaving
their vast wealth behind. The Mappilas forcibly took possession of their
lands and wealth. Tipu Sultan did not object to their actions. Most of
the Mappila landlords of today claim that they purchased the ownership
of the landed properties from Nairs and Brahmins after paying heavy compensation.
These blatant lies are being repeated by them in spite of the fact that
practically nothing was paid to the Hindu landlords then or later. (The
same Islamic treachery was repeated during the Mappila riots of 1921.)
In any case, Tipu Sultan succeeded in mass killing, converting
lakhs of Hindus to Islamic faith, driving thousands out of their traditional
homes, and finally making the rest extremely poor. Many Hindus belonging
to lower castes accepted conversion to Islam under duress. However, many
others, especially the Thiyyas, fled to Tellicherry and Mahe for safety.
When the British established their rule
in Malabar and the Hindu landlords made efforts to recover their landed
properties, illegally occupied by the local Mappilas, Mullahs started
preaching to their fanatic followers that "killing of Hindu landlords
was a sacred Islamic act," leading to frequent Mappila outrages in
Malabar.1
In Cherunad, Vettathunad, Eranad, Valluvanad, Thamarassery
and other interior areas, local Mappilas unleashed a reign of terror on
the Hindu population, mainly to retain the illegally occupied land and
to establish their domination over Hindus as during Tipu's regime. Fearing
the organised robberies and violence, people could not even travel freely
in the Malabar hinterland of predominantly Mappila population.
Lt. Col. E. Phitiyan, Andriansi, Mayan, K.P. Padmanabha
Menon Sadasyathilakan T.K. Velu Pillai, Ullur Parameshwara Iyer, and other
prominent people have described vividly the various types of atrocities
committed by Tipu Sultan during the days of his Islamic rule in Malabar.
There is no count of the wealth looted from Hindu temples and taken away
by him to Sreerangapatanam. It is, therefore, very pitiable that a few
shameless Hindus of today have come forward to orchestrate the nefarious
propaganda of the fanatic Muslims, namely, that it was the imperialist
divide-and-rule policy of the British that was responsible for blaming
the Muslims for various atrocities committed against Hindus. This Big
Lie was surreptitiously entered subsequently in history books and related
records. It is obvious that these "Hindus" are speaking on the
theme of Hindu-Muslim unity and praising the 'secular' credentials of
the Muslim League, Tipu Sultan and Aurangzeb to the sky, not sincerely
for the sake of Hindu-Muslim amity but only because of their inherent
cowardice. They even proclaim that the notorious Mappila outrage of 1921
was part of the freedom struggle!
CONCLUSION
A few observations about the attack of Tipu Sultan on
the Travancore State would be appropriate in this context. If the Nedunkotta
had not been constructed earlier mainly to stop the danger from the powerful
Zamorin, the same fate would have befallen the helpless Travancore State
as well. Because of the above fortification, Tipu Sultan could wreak vengeance
only in Angamally, Alwaye, Varapuzha, Alangod and other towns on the northern
borders of Travancore State. That is what the Dewan of Travancore, Madhava
Rao, had written in the history of Travancore. It may be emphasized here
that he had relied on the original local records, not the ones published
by the European historians. He wrote: "Whatever cruelties, the local
Mappilas were desirous of indulging in the land, Tipu Sultan and his army
of Muslim converts did. The ancient and holy temples were heartlessly
defiled or burnt down. The ruins of those temples destroyed by Tipu's
fanatic army are the existing evidences of the atrocities committed by
Muslims in the country. Christian churches also had to suffer widespread
destructions. However, Tipu Sultan spared only the territories of Cochin
Raja who had surrendered to Hyder Ali Khan in the beginning itself. Still,
when Tipu Sultan and his army entered Parur and started firing at Kodungallur,
the Cochin Raja sent a letter to the Travancore Raja requesting him 'to
protect me and my family'." (A copy of the original letter was also
published in the book.)
These are the recorded facts about the atrocities unleashed
by Tipu Sultan during his military regime notoriously known as Padayottakalam.
Poets have written a number of poems about the sufferings of the people
and the land during those nightmarish days. The following was written
by a member of the Katathanad Royal Family about the consequences of Padayottakalam:
"Oh Shiva! Shiva Lingam (idol) has gone (destroyed)
from the temple, and also the Lingam (manliness) from the land:"
(This is the English translation of the Malayalam
article by P.C.N. Raja first published in Kesari Annual of 1964.
The late Raja was a senior member of the Zamorin Royal Family.)
C. NANDAGOPAL
MENON (The writer is convenor of Bombay Malayalee Samajam)
"If you love me, should you
not put up with my weakness sometimes?" - Tipu Sultan is purported
to have asked Mir Sadik who was one of his ministers. This is a remark
invented by Bhagwan S. Gidwani in his controversial novel, The Sword
of Tipu Sultan.
Across-section of the new generation of historians and
novelists is of the opinion that all the available documents and history
books on Tipu Sultan originate from the British and, therefore, they cannot
be relied upon, the ostensible policy of the British being to 'divide
and rule'. Pointing to the correspondence between Shrimad Paramahamsa
Parivrajakacharya Shri Sankaracharya of Sringeri Mutt and Tipu Sultan
during 1791-92 and 1798, they argue that Tipu was an apostle of secularism
and as such respected Hindu religious heads and places of worship. Tipu
is also identified as among the first nationalists who fought against
the British to liberate the country.
However, the arguments fall apart if one goes through
various letters and edicts issued by Tipu Sultan to various public functionaries,
including his principal military commanders, the governors of forts and
provinces, and diplomatic and commercial agents.
William Kirkpatrick, who compiled many of Tipu's letters,
writes in his book, Selected Letters of Tipoo Sultan (published
in 1811): "Tipoo knew his will to be a law the propriety of which
would never be questioned or doubted by any of his slaves He probably
measured the sentiments in question by a different standard from that
with which we estimate them. Thus the various murders and acts of treachery
which we see him directing to be carried into execution, were not criminal,
but on the contrary just, and even meritorious, in his eyes."
GREAT VICTORY
Kirkpatrick continues: "The Koran taught him that
it was not necessary to keep faith with infidels, or the enemies of the
true religion, in which case it was not difficult for him to persuade
himself that it was right to include all who opposed or refused to cooperate
in his views for the extension of that religion; or, in other words, for
his own aggrandisement."
This observation of Kirkpatrick is found to be valid
when one goes through the letter of January 19, 1790, sent to Budruz Zuman
Khan by Tipu himself. It says: "Don't you know I have achieved a
great victory recently in Malabar and over four lakh Hindus were converted
to Islam? I am determined to march against that cursed 'Raman Nair' very
soon (reference is to Rama Varma Raja of Travancore State who was popularly
known as Dharma Raja). Since I am overjoyed at the prospect of converting
him and his subjects to Islam, I have happily abandoned the idea of going
back to Srirangapatanam now" (K.M. Panicker, Bhasha Poshini,
August, 1923).
In a letter dated 8th Eezidy (February 13, 1790) addressed
to Budruz Zuman Khan, Tipu writes: "Your two letters, with the enclosed
memorandums of the Naimar (or Nair) captives, have been received. You
did right in ordering a hundred and thirty-five of them to be circumcised,
and in putting eleven of the youngest of these into the Usud Ilhye band
(or class) and the remaining ninety-four into the Ahmedy Troop, consigning
the whole, at the same time, to the charge of the Kilaaddar of Nugr"
(Selected Letters of Tipoo Sultan by Kirkpatrick).
In a letter dated January 18, 1790 to Syed Abdul Dulai,
Tipu writes: "With the grace of Prophet Mohammed and Allah, almost
all Hindus in Calicut are converted to Islam. Only on the borders of Cochin
State a few are still not converted. I am determined to convert them also
very soon. I consider this as Jehad to achieve that object" (K.M.
Panicker, Bhasha Poshini).
THEY SPEAK VOLUMES
The translation of the great seal of Tipu found in Major
Alex Dirom's comprehensive account of the Third Mysore War published as
early as 1793 in London, reads as follows:
"I am the Messenger of the true faith.
"I bring Unto you the Edicts of Truth.
"From CONQUEST and the Protection of the Royal Hyder comes my tide
of SULTAN and the world under the Sun and Moon is subject to my Signet."
The letters and the seal speak volumes of the mind of
the man who wantonly roamed and terrorised South India and the southeastern
borders of Maharashtra for a decade. It cannot be said that he did so
because the Hindus were assisting the British.
The contention of a secularist section of historians
and novelists that Tipu was a patriot since he fought the British, has
no validity. The renowned historian, Dr. I.M. Muthanna, says in his Tipu
Sultan X-Rayed that Tipu was a traitor as he invited the French
to invade India. The letter, dated April 21, 1797, written by Tipu and
classified as No. 4 in the Persian File of Records, and quoted by Muthanna
in his book, reads:
"Citizen Representatives:
"Since I manifested my friendship in writing to
you, my messengers have arrived with the following intelligence which
will not be displeasing to you.
"The Nizam, an ally of the English, and the Chief
of the Mughals, is very ill and his age leaves no prospect of his recovery.
He has four children who are disputing the right of succession. One of
them is much attached to me, (he) is the favourite of the chiefs of the
people and is expected to succeed him.
"I inform these events in order to prove to you
that it is now the moment for you to invade India. With little trouble
we shall drive the British out of India. Rely on my friendship.
"Your ally (Sd) Tipu Sultan."
That was Tipu's expression of love for India!
The world-famous Protuguese traveller, Fr. Barthoelomeo,
not a Britisher, writes in his book Voyage to East Indies: "First
a corps of 30,000 barbarians who butchered everybody on the way
followed by the field-gun unit under the French Commander, M. Lally
Tipu was riding on an elephant behind which another army of 30,000 soldiers
followed. Most of the men and women were hanged in Calicut, first mothers
were hanged with their children tied to necks of mothers. That
barbarian Tipu Sultan tied the naked Christians and Hindus to the legs
of elephants and made the elephants to move around till the bodies of
the helpless victims were torn to pieces. Temples and churches were ordered
to be burned down, desecrated and destroyed. Christian and Hindu women
were forced to marry Mohammadans and similarly their men were forced to
marry Mohammadan women.1 Those Christians
who refused to be honoured with Islam, were ordered to be killed by hanging
immediately. These atrocities were told to me by the victims of Tipu Sultan
who escaped from the clutches of his army and reached Varappuzha, which
is the centre of Carmichael Christian Mission. I myself helped many victims
to cross the Varappuzha river by boats."
COW-SLAUGHTER
"The Padayottam military occupation period won't
be forgotten by the Malayalis for generations. It was this invasion, between
Malayalam era 957 to 967 (1782 to 1792) that turned Malayalam upside down,"
says P. Raman Menon, biographer of Shaktan Tampuran, the King of Cochin
during Tipu's invasion. He adds: "There was hardly any cowshed left
in Malayalam where the Mysore Tiger did not enter." The reference
is to the mass cow-slaughter carried out by Tipu's army on his orders.
In 1783-84, 1788 and 1789-90, Tipu personally led the
attacks on Malayalam (Kerala), besides sending his army contingents to
various resistance spots during the intervening period. Well-known Muslim
historian, P.S. Syed Muhammed, author of Kerala Muslim Charitram
(History of Kerala Muslims), has this to say about these invasions: "What
happened to Kerala because of Tipu's invasion, reminds one of the invasion
of Chengez Khan and Timur in Indian history."
Vadakunkur Raja Raja Varma writes in Kerala Samskrita
Sahitya Charitram (History of Sanskrit Literature in Kerala): "The
number of temples destroyed during Tipu's invasion is countless. It was
the hobby of Tipu and his army to put the temples on fire destroy the
idols and indulge in cow-slaughter. The memory of destruction of the Talipparampu
and Trichambaram temples aches the heart."
According to the Malabar Gazetteer, the important
temples in the towns of Tali, Srivaliyanatukavu, Tiruvannur, Varakkal,
Puthur, Govindapuram, and Talikunnu were destroyed by Tipu's ravaging
armies. Even the Tirunavaya Temple known all over India as a centre of
Rig Veda teaching was destroyed. Tipu personally ordered the destruction
of Calicut which was the capital of the Zamorin Rajas.
The record books maintained at the Vadakumnatha Temple
of Trichur, Zamorins of Calicut by K.V. Krishna Iyer, and Malabar
Manual by William Logan also list hundreds of temples destroyed during
Tipu's invasion.
FAITH IN ASTROLOGY
It is common knowledge that Tipu had immense faith in
astrology. He used to keep a number of astrologers in his court who were
asked to calculate the time auspicious for his invasions. It was at the
appeals of these astrologers and his own mother that Tipu spared two temples
out of more than a dozen within Srirangapatanam Fort. Moreover, by the
end of 1790, Tipu was facing enemies from all sides. He was also defeated
at the Travancore Defence Lines. It was then that in order to appease
the Hindus of Mysore, he started giving land-grants to Hindu temples.
This view finds endorsement in the biography of the Diwan
of Travancore, Life History of Raja Kesavadas by V,R. Parameswaran
Pillai. Pillai writes: "With respect to the much-published land-grants
I had explained the reasons about 40 years back. Tipu had immense faith
in astrological predictions. It was to become an Emperor (Padushah) after
destroying the might of the British that Tipu resorted to land-grants
and other donations to Hindu temples in Mysore including Sringeri Mutt,
as per the advice of the local Brahmin astrologers. Most of these were
done after his defeat in 1791 and the humiliating Srirangapatanam Treaty
in 1792. These grants were not done out of respect or love for Hindus
or Hindu religion but for becoming Padushah as predicted by the astrologers."
Sanjay Khan, producer of the controversial TV serial
on Tipu, contended in the beginning that there was no distortion in his
serial (based on Gidwani's novel). He has now admitted in an interview
to The Week that "Gidwani's novel may not be historically correct".
Indian Express (Bombay), March 10, 1990
Footnotes:
1
A non-Muslim marrying a Muslim woman becomes a Muslim under the
"law" of Islam. Marrying a Muslim woman without getting
converted to Islam invites death penalty under that "law".
Of late there has been a concerted attempt to distort
and falsify recorded Indian history, very often even by painting dark
periods of Indian history as glorious and progressive, to suit the selfish
and perverted interests of the ruling clique. One of these attempts relates
to the life and deeds of Tipu Sultan of Mysore. Most of his active life
as Sultan of Mysore was spent in Kerala, waging wars of territorial annexation
and Islamic conversions. Therefore, the true character of Tipu Sultan
can be best judged from his activities in Kerala. The following is an
earnest attempt to present Tipu Sultan as known from the available records
of Kerala history.
HISTORICAL REFERENCES
There is ample evidence, available in many authentic
records of his military operations in Kerala, to show that Tipu Sultan
of Mysore was a fanatic Muslim tyrant who was responsible for the destruction
of hundreds of Hindu temples, large-scale forcible conversion of the Hindus,
and perpetration of unimaginable brutalities on the Hindu population in
Kerala. All the available records such as Malabar Manual of William
Logan, Historical Sketches of Col. Wilks, Voyage to East Indies
of Fra Bartolomaeo, histories of Kerala written by K.P. Padmanabha Menon
and Sardar K.M. Panicker, historical research papers of Elamkulam Kunjan
Pillai, official reports of the English Company, and the records of Chirackal,
Zamorin and Palghat royal families besides those from Trichur, Guruvayoor,
Thirunavaya and Perumanam temples, clearly and conclusively depict Tipu
Sultan as the most intolerant cruel, and fanatic Muslim ruler in the South.
His main object, like his father Hyder Ali Khan's, was to subjugate the
whole of Kerala and convert its Hindu population to Islamic faith by force.
Tipu Sultan's notorious jihd - Islamic war-slogan - was
SWORD (death) or CAP (Islamic honour, i.e. forcible conversion), a cruel
option for a hapless Hindu population. For this, his most dependable and
obedient accomplices were his equally cruel and treacherous co-religionists
- the Mappilas (local Muslim converts) of North Malabar.
NATIONAL INSULT
The ruins of hundreds of Hindu temples destroyed, and
heavy concentration of Mappilas, all along the invasion routes of Tipu's
army, are standing and conclusive proofs of the brutalities and atrocities
committed by the fanatic Tipu Sultan in Kerala. He was, all through, waging
a cruel Islamic war against the Hindu population of Kerala, with a large
Muslim army under Muslim field commanders ably assisted by the French,
and with powerful field-guns and European troops. The period of Tipu Sultan
and his father Hyder Ali Khan from 1766 to 1792 is the darkest period
in Kerala history for all types of Islamic atrocities including forcible
conversions. In spite of all these, historical documents and records are
being deliberately suppressed, distorted and falsified in order to project
this fanatic Tipu Sultan of Mysore as a liberal and magnanimous Muslim
king. Worse still, this Muslim tyrant from Mysore is being glorified and
projected as a national hero like Chhatrapati Shivaji, Maharaja Ranjit
Singh, Rana Pratap Singh, and Pazhassi Raja of Kerala. To perpetuate the
memory of this tyrant Tipu Sultan, the Central Government has released
a postal stamp. Doordarshan has sanctioned a video serial to glorify the
deeds and life of Tipu Sultan. And a special rehabilitation programme
is being worked out for the benefit of the descendants of Tipu Sultan
in Calcutta. It is an insult to our national pride and also to the Hindus
of Kerala. At this rate, who knows that tomorrow our secular Government
and the motivated Muslim and Marxist historians of Jawaharlal Nehru, Aligarh
and Islamia universities will not project as national heroes villains
like Mahmud Ghaznavi who destroyed the Somnath Temple, Babar who destroyed
the Sri Rama Temple at Ayodhya, and Aurangzeb who destroyed the Vishwanath
Temple at Kashi and the Sri Krishna Temple at Mathura? What a shame! What
a degradation!
SOURCE REFERENCE
Now, let us turn to the facts of history, compiled and
presented in Malabar Manual of William Logan published over a hundred
years ago. William Logan was Collector of Malabar and worked in various
capacities for over twenty years in Kerala, before 1886. The
highly acclaimed Malabar Manual was the result of his strenuous
research and study of various official records, oral history, and legends
of Kerala. Because the facts presented here are mainly from the Malabar
Manual as edited by Dr. C.K. Kareem,1
himself a Muslim, and published by the Charitram Publications of Trivandrum
with the assistance of Kerala and Cochin universities, we are sure, they
will be more acceptable as authentic and unbiased than any other version
of Kerala history.
To give the background of Tipu Sultan's wars and Islamic
atrocities in Kerala, it would be better to start from Hyder Ali Khan,
Tipu's father.
HYDER ALI KHAN
After the decline and disintegration of the Vijayanagaram
Empire, Raja Wodeyar enlarged his small principality into a mighty kingdom
and established the Wodeyar Dynasty with Srirangapatanam as its capital
(1578-1761). Lord Shree Ranganatha Swamy was the family deity of the Wodeyar
family and, therefore, a magnificent temple dedicated to this God was
constructed there. Since then, the capital city came to be known by the
name of the presiding deity of the place. The last king of the Wodeyar
Dynasty was Krishna Raya who was overthrown by Hyder Ali Khan, his army
chief stationed in Dindigal, with the help of the wily Purnaiyya. Hyder
Ali imprisoned all the royal family members in Srirangapatanam. Later
on, he declared himself the Sultan of Mysore with Srirangapatanam as capital
in 1761 (p. 456 of Malabar Manual). It may be noted here that Hyder
Ali Khan's father was a Punjabi Muslim settled in Mysore and serving as
a soldier with the rank of 'naik' in the army.
INVASION OF KERALA BY HYDER ALI
During that period, there were a number of small kingdoms
in Malabar. Among them, the important ones were those of Kottayam (Pazhassi)
Raja, Kolathiri (Chirackal) Raja, Kadathanad Raja in North Malabar, and
Zamorin in South Malabar. There was also a Muslim ruler under Kolathiri
Raja. He controlled the sea trade through Cannanore port. The seniormost
male member of the Arackal Muslim family was known as Ali Raja while the
seniormost female member was referred to as Arackal Bibi. The family originated
from the Hindu royal family of Chirackal or Kolathiri. Though converted
to Islam years back, the Arackal family followed their original matriarchal
system as prevalent in Kerala. And though Ali Raja was a subordinate chieftain
under Kolathiri Raja, he used to disobey the authority of Kolathiri quite
often.
When Hyder Ali Khan overran Mangalore and reached the
northern borders of Malabar, Ali Raja invited and persuaded him to subjugate
the Hindu Rajas of North Malabar and offered his assistance. But it was
only after regrouping and equipping his army with more powerful field-guns
that Hyder Ali Khan launched the long-expected Malabar invasion in 1766.
After reaching Cannanore, he appointed Ali Raja as his Naval Chief (High
Admiral) and the Raja's brother Sheik Ali as Chief of Port Authority (Intendant
of Marine). After that, Ali Raja and his brother served Hyder Ali Khan
on land and sea and aided all his military operations with a body of over
8,000 Mappilas (Muslim converts - name derived from Macca Pillai, Ma-Pillai).
None of the Hindu Rajas in Malabar at that time was under the tutelage
of the British or any other European power. The English Company, with
its headquarters in Madras and Bombay, had only some pockets of influence
in Mangalore and Tellicherry. The Kerala coast was under the influence
of the Dutch and the French who were established in Cochin and Mahe respectively.
Thus Hyder Ali's invasion of Kerala was not to fight and defeat the British,
but to subjugate the independent Hindu kingdoms and for conversions to
Islam. Neither Hyder Ali Khan nor Tipu Sultan is known to have attacked
any of the British establishments in Kerala at any time.
ATROCITIES UNDER HYDER ALI
During his southward march of conquest and plunder, Hyder
Ali allowed Ali Raja and his barbarous Mappilas to act as army scouts
and also to commit all sorts of atrocities on the Hindu population of
Malabar. The Kolathiri Raja could not offer much resistance against the
huge army of Hyder Ali which was equipped with heavy field guns. On the
other hand, Ali Raja who had been made a tributary chieftain in Cannanore,
seized and set fire to the palace of the old Kolathiri Raja. The latter
escaped with his followers and sought protection of the British in Tellicherry.
Hyder Ali now entered Kottayam (Pazhassi) Raja's territory where he encountered
resistance. There were casualties on both sides. But the Kottayam Mappilas
betrayed and deserted their Hindu king and assisted Hyder Ali Khan (p.
460).
The first serious resistance encountered by the invading
army of Hyder Ali Khan was in Kadathanad. The devastation caused by him
during his wars in Kerala was typical of fanatic Muslim invaders anywhere
in India. A broad picture of his Islamic atrocities as described by a
Muslim officer of Mysore army in his diary and as edited by Prince Ghulam
Muhammad, the eleventh and only surviving son of Tipu Sultan, is given
below. (Prince Ghulam Muhammad was later on exiled to Calcutta by the
British after the death of Tipu Sultan in 1799.)
'Nothing was to be seen on the roads for a distance of
four leagues, nothing was found but only scattered limbs and mutilated
bodies of Hindus. The country of Nairs [Hindus] was thrown into a general
consternation which was much increased by the cruelty of the Mappilas
who followed the invading cavalry of Hyder Ali Khan and massacred all
those who escaped without sparing even women and children; so that the
army advancing under the conduct of this enraged multitude [Mappilas]
instead of meeting with continued resistance, found villages, fortresses,
temples and every habitable place forsaken and deserted (p. 461).
"Wherever he (Hyder Ali Khan) turned, he found no
opponent; and every inhabitable place was forsaken and the poor inhabitants
who fled to the woods and mountains in the inclement season experienced
anguish to behold their houses in flames, fruit-trees cut down, cattles
destroyed and temples burnt. By means of Brahmin messengers despatched
to woods and mountains, Hyder Ali Khan promised pardon and mercy to the
Hindus who had fled. However, as soon as the unfortunate Hindus returned
on his promise of mercy and pardon, Hyder Ali Khan, like all the other
Muslim tyrants of North India, saw to it that they were all hanged to
death, their wives and children reduced to slavery (p. 468).
"Before quitting the country (Kerala) Hyder Ali
Khan by a solemn edict declared the Nairs deprived of all (social and
political) privileges and (ordered) not to carry arms. This ordinance
was found to make the submission of the proud Nairs absolutely impossible
because they would have thought death preferable to such humiliations
and degradation. Therefore, Hyder Ali Khan by another ordinance, consented
to restore all social and political privileges including carrying of arms,
to the Nairs who embraced the Mohammadan religion. Many nobles had to
embrace Islam; but a significantly large section (Nairs, Chieftains and
Brahmins) chose rather to take refuge in the kingdom of Travancore in
the South than to submit to the last ordinance" (p. 469).
It may be noted here that when Hyder Ali Khan reached
Calicut with his huge army, destroying everything on the way and forcibly
converting to Islam every Hindu warrior defeated or captured, the ruling
Zamorin, after sending away all his family members to Travancore State,
committed self-immolation by setting fire to his palace and ammunition
depot nearby, in order to escape personal humiliation and possible forcible
conversion to Islam.
TIPU SULTAN
Hyder Ali Khan had thus attempted and to some extent
succeeded in converting a sizeable section of Hindus, especially Nairs
and Thiyyas, to Islam by force and treachery. However, as soon as he left
Malabar, all Hindu Rajas, Chieftains and Nairs revolted and asserted their
independence. He died in December, 1782, and his son, Tipu Sultan, succeeded
him in Srirangapatanam. Tipu was also a fanatic Muslim king, but more
cruel and inhuman than his father in his Islamic wars and conversions
in Kerala.
By the time Tipu became the Sultan of Mysore towards
the end of 1782, all the Rajas and Chieftains of North Malabar had revolted
and declared their independence. The British had also become more powerful.
The immediate object of Tipu's early military operation was to subjugate
and retake the principalities which had revolted against the Mysore suzerainty
immediately after the departure of Hyder Ali Khan from Malabar. So far,
the Brahmins who were by nature quiet and honest, were usually and customarily
sent as messengers to high places. But because of Tipu's orders to "seize,
circumcise and convert the Brahmins to Islam", they started refusing
to carry his messages to Malabar. They refused to oblige even the British
who had extended and promised full protection to them. It had been confirmed
from Calicut that 200 Brahmins had been "seized, confined, made Muslims
and forced to eat beef and do other things contrary to their customs"
(p. 507).
ISLAMIC BRUTALITIES
According to the official report of Col. Fullarton of
the British forces stationed in Mangalore, worst type of brutalities on
Brahmins were committed by Tipu Sultan in 1783 during his siege of Palghat
Fort which was being defended by the Zamorin and his Hindu soldiers. "Tipu's
soldiers daily exposed the heads of many innocent Brahmins within sight
from the fort for Zamorin and his Hindu followers to see. It is asserted
that the Zamorin rather than witness such enormities and to avoid further
killing of innocent Brahmins, chose to abandon the Palghat Fort"
(p. 500).
As he proceeded with his Islamic wars against the Hindu
population in Kerala, Tipu Sultan committed many more brutalities. The
Rajas were unable to resist. But they did not like to be mute witnesses
to brutalities perpetrated by the Muslim army of Tipu. As a consequence,
the Kadathanad and Kottayam Rajas sent requests to the English Company
at Tellicherry for protection, stating that "they could no longer
trust Tipu Sultan and beseeching the Company to take the Brahmins, the
poor and the whole kingdom under their protections" (p. 507).
But the British did not render any help to the Hindu
Rajas. Tipu's brutalities were against all sections - Brahmins, Nairs
and Thiyyas of Hindu community, not excluding even women and children.
Even Christians were not spared.
"It was not only against the Brahmins who were thus
put in a state of terror of forcible circumcision and conversion; but
against all sections of Hindus. In August, 1788, a Raja of the Kshatriya
family of Parappanad and also Trichera Thiruppad, a chieftain of Nilamboor,
and many other Hindu nobles who had been carried away earlier to Coimbatore
by Tipu Sultan, were forcibly circumcised and forced to cat beef. Nairs
in desperation, under the circumstances, rose up against their Muslim
oppressors under Tipu's command in South Malabar and the Hindus of Coorg
in the North also joined them (p. 507).
"The revolt in the South Malabar was led by Ravi
Varma of the Zamorin family. Though Tipu conferred on him a jaghire (vast
are of tax-free land) mainly to appease him, the Zamorin prince, after
promptly taking charge of the jaghire, continued his revolt against the
Mysore power, more vigorously and with wider support. He soon moved to
Calicut, his traditional area of influence and authority, for better co-ordination.
Tipu sent a large Mysore army under the command of M. Lally and Mir Asrali
Khan to chase and drive out the Zamorin prince from Calicut. However,
during the above operations, Ravi Varma assisted not less than 30,000
Brahmins to flee the country and take refuge in Travancore" (p. 508).
It may be pointed out here that almost all female members
and many male members of different royal families such as Chirackal, Parappanad,
and Calicut, and chieftains' families like Punnathoor, Nilamboor, Kavalapara,
Azhvancherry Thamprakkal etc., fled to Travancore to escape the brutalities
of Tipu's army and temporarily settled down in different parts of Travancore.
Even after the fall of Tipu Sultan's regime in Srirangapatanam, many of
these families, wholly or partly, preferred to stay back in Travancore
because of the Mappilas' atrocities in the past.
The continued resistance and revolt by the Nairs and
other chieftains enraged Tipu Sultan who gave strict orders to his army
under M. Lally and Mir Asrali Khan to "surround and extricate the
whole race of Nairs from Kottayam to Palghat" (p. 508). After entrusting
Calicut to a powerful army contingent, he instructed it "to surround
the woods and seize the heads of all Nair factions". He then proceeded
to North Malabar to suppress the spreading revolt under Kadathanad and
Pazhassi Rajas. Prior to this, Tipu had sent a formal request to the English
Company at Tellicherry asking them "not to give protection and shelter
to Nairs fleeing from South Malabar" (p. 509). A similar letter had
been sent to the English Company in Tellicherry by Hyder Ali Khan in 1764
before he launched his Malabar invasion (Kerala History by A.S.
Sreedhara Menon, p. 372). These letters clearly show that neither Hyder
Ali nor Tipu was at war with the British.
It was at Kuttipuram, the headquarters of the Kadathanad
Rajas, that the huge army of Tipu Sultan with a large number of field-guns
surrounded an old fort defended by a small contingent of Nairs. After
several days of resistance, and finding it difficult to defend the fort
any longer, the Nairs submitted to the usual terms of surrender - "a
voluntary profession of the Mohammadan faith or a forced conversion with
deportation from the native land In short, either way they had to
embrace Mohammadan faith! The unhappy Nair captives gave a forced
consent and on the next day, the Islamic initiation rite of circumcision
was performed on all male members, closing the ceremony after every individual
of both sexes was forced to eat beef"(p. 510).
If this was not an Islamic war, what else was it? Do
forcible circumcision and feeding of beef form any part of normal wars
of territorial aggression? The War that Tipu Sultan waged in Kerala, was
a cruel Islamic war against the Hindu population, mainly for conversion
of Hindus by force. Yet there are degenerate Hindus in Kerala who admire
Tipu Sultan as a hero!
The doings of Tipu Sultan were held out as an example
which other detachments of the Mysore army followed. An original order
sent to various army contingents by Tipu was found among the records from
Palghat Fort, after its capture by the English Company in 1790. It has
been reproduced as a footnote on page 510 of the Malabar Manual:
"It directed (all military detachments) that every being in the district
should be honoured with Islam, that they should be traced to their hiding
places, and that all means, truth or falsehood, fraud or force, should
be employed to effect their universal conversion to Islam."
While escaping from Tipu's army, one of the princes of
the Chirackal Royal family in North Malabar was captured and killed in
an encounter after a chase of few days. As per the accounts of Tipu's
own diary and as confirmed by the English Company records, the body of
the unfortunate prince was treated with great indignities by Tipu Sultan.
"He had the dead body of the prince dragged by elephants through
his camp and it was subsequently hung up on a tree along with seventeen
of his followers who had been captured alive" (p. 512). Another chieftain,
Korangoth Nair, who had resisted Tipu, was finally captured with the help
of the French and hanged.
Such was the treatment meted out to Hindu nobles, chieftains
and their followers by Tipu Sultan of Islamic faith. He was no different
from other Muslim tyrants who had played havoc in North India such as
Mahmud Ghaznavi, Nadir Shah, Timur, Aurangzeb and Kala Pahar of Bengal.
After solemnising the marriage2
between the daughter of Arackal Bibi and his son, Abdul Khalic, and conferring
a portion of the Chirackal principality on her, Tipu Sultan proceeded
to the South to subjugate Travancore and convert more Hindus to Islam.
The persuasions and threats he delivered to the Zamorin and the Cochin
Raja to wage wars against Travancore, either directly or on his behalf,
did not succeed because Tipu was regarded by all Hindu Rajas and nobles
as a fanatic Muslim. The Cochin Raja, though a tributary to Mysore, avoided
meeting Tipu, fearing forcible conversion when invited for a special meeting.
At the same time, he continued to send his tribute to Tipu as usual while
secretly assisting Travancore to build and strengthen the long defence
line (Nedunkotta Fort) through Cochin territory against the Mysore army
(p. 516).
INVASION OF TRAVANCORE
Travancore had an alliance (Treaty of Mangalore) with
the English Company according to which "an aggression against Travancore
would be viewed as equivalent to declaration of war against the English"
(p. 566). The Dutch who were afraid of Tipu also agreed to transfer the
Kodungallur Fort to Travancore, mainly as a strategy to involve the more
powerful British in case of war with Travancore on that account. Since
Cochin was considered a tributary to Mysore, Tipu objected to the transfer
of Kodungallur Fort which was part of Cochin territory before its occupation
by the Dutch. Therefore, Tipu Sultan demanded of Travancore to (i) allow
free access to Kodungallur because the Travancore defence line had stretched
and passed through Cochin territory, and (ii) surrender all Hindu Rajas
and nobles from Malabar who had taken refuge in Travancore. But the demand
was rejected. That was his pretext for waging a war against the Travancore
State. In the meantime, the Cochin Raja, who was under the guidance and
protection of the weak Dutch, openly shook off his tributary links with
Tipu and aligned with Travancore after the firm offer of support and protection
by the British. It may be noted here that Tipu never fought against the
British in Kerala. He fought only against the Hindu Rajas. His hostilities
against the British were stepped up only when his ally, the French, waged
wars against the British in Europe or his own kingdom was threatened.
TIPU CRIPPLED AND DEFEATED
The Travancore Raja replied to Tipu explaining that he
did what he did as per the advice of the British (p. 517). That provoked
Tipu. He launched an attack against Travancore but was defeated in January,
1790. According to Mr. Powney who was the Resident Representative of the
English Company in Travancore, Tipu's attack was not only effectively
stopped by the Travancore army, Tipu himself fell down from the rampart,
was seriously wounded, and was rendered permanently lame during the counter-attack
by the Travancore forces.
Tipu and his army were camping on the banks of the Alwaye
river before launching the attack on the Travancore defence lines (Nedunkotta
Fort). The Travancore army was no match for the huge Mysore army and the
monsoon season was four or five months away. Therefore, under the guidance
of Raja Kesavadas, the Prime Minister of Travancore, a temporary bund
was constructed way up on the stream by a team headed by Kalikutty Nair.
When the Mysore army launched its assault and Nedunkotta was penetrated,
the temporary bund was breached in the midst of heavy fighting, causing
an unexpected flood which drowned many Mysore soldiers and rendered the
gunpowder wet and useless. The result was panic and confusion in the Mysore
army. The triumphant Nair forces of Travancore inflicted heavy casualties
on the- invading army. But the valiant Kalikutty Nair was also drowned
in the sudden surge of water and became a martyr.
That was the first time, January 1, 1790, when Tipu Sultan
tasted a humiliating defeat. It is recorded in Travancore history and
also confirmed by the local folklore that as the wounded Tipu was lying
unconscious in the battlefield he was rescued by a Nair soldier who quietly
carried the unconscious Sultan to the Mysore military camp during the
night and left quickly (p. 518). The brave Nair soldier could have easily
killed the unconscious Tipu as many Muslims have done to a Hindu in similar
circumstances; but his Hindu values of life prompted him to deposit the
helpless victim near the Muslim camp.
According to authentic historical records, the Nair forces
of Travancore attacked the Mysore army which was crossing the defence
fortification, and inflicted heavy casualties on it. The sudden and unexpected
attack made the Mysore Army panicky, and in the confusion Tipu Sultan
fell down from the ramparts of the fort into the ditch below along with
his palanquin. The fall made him permanently lame. Later on, the Travancore
forces recovered from the ditch the sword, the pallanquin, the dagger,
the ring and many other personal effects of Tipu and presented them to
the Dharma Raja. Some of Tipu's personal weapons and ornaments were sent
to the Nawab of Arcot on his request (Travancore History by P.
Sankunny Menon, published by Kerala Bhasha Institute, Trivandrum, pp.
191-92).
TIPU'S SECOND DEFEAT
Tipu retreated and sent for reinforcements from Coimbatore
and Srirangapatanam. He also "recalled all his Muslim troops despatched
earlier to different parts of South Malabar to hunt down and forcibly
circumcise the Hindus and convert them" (p. 518). After regrouping
and reinforcing his army, Tipu mounted another attack in March 1790 in
order to demolish the Travancore defence line. He reached upto Veropally
(Varapuzha) near Alwaye. Meanwhile, following firm assurance of support
and protection by the English Company who had by this time extended their
military power and political influence to the entire West Coast and South
India, some of the important Malabar Rajas such as Pazhassi Raja, Kolathiri
Raja and Kadathanad Raja, returned to their respective kingdoms and asserted
their independence from Mysore suzerainty. The Cochin Raja shook off his
tributary link with Mysore. The Zamorin and the Palghat Raja were promised
help by the British in their opposition to the Mysore Sultan, with the
promise of restoring their lost territories to them after the defeat of
Tipu. All the Hindu Rajas and nobles had thus joined hands with the British
against the war efforts of Tipu mainly because of his Islamic atrocities
against the Hindus in Kerala. Revolt against the Mysore occupation forces
broke out all over Malabar and spread to Coorg with the return of the
chieftains to their respective areas. Before the end of 1790, the British
captured Palghat Fort and secured the communication channel from Coimbatore
to the West Coast for assisting the Travancore forces against the Mysore
army. All along, Tipu's forces assisted by the Mappilas were devastating
and plundering the entire country as per the recorded version of Martab
Khan, Commander of the Mysore army.
By the time Tipu Sultan launched his second attack and
demolished parts of Nedungotta in May 1790, heavy monsoon rains caused
the Alwaye river to flood the countryside. Since the Mysore army was not
accustomed to fighting during rainy season, it was easy for the Travancore
army to defeat Tipu's army. That was the second defeat Tipu suffered near
Alwaye in 1790.
In the meantime, Lord Cornwallis, the Governor General,
himself assumed the command of the British forces and pushed forward towards
Srirangapatanam, headquarters of Tipu Sultan. Simultaneously, the Maratha
and the Nizam's forces also advanced from different directions. The final
assault was mounted and Srirangapatanam surrounded in January-February
1791 by a combined army consisting of the British, Maratha and the Nizam's
forces. Tipu Sultan, who-rushed to Srirangapatanam, abandoning his military
operations against Travancore, was forced to sign a treaty in 1792 ceding
the entire West Coast and half of his other possessions to the Allies,
thus relieving the Hindus of Kerala from further Islamic brutalities.
ROLE OF THE BRITISH
It may be noted here that the Maharaja of Travancore
had kept the British Governor of Madras informed about the political developments
and the imminent military operations of Tipu Sultan against Travancore.
But the then Governor of Madras, Mr. Holland, in spite of the obligations
under the Treaty of Mangalore, specifically instructed the British contingents
sent to the Travancore borders, not to assist the Travancore forces in
case of war. When the Governor General, Lord Cornwallis, heard about Travancore's
victory over Tipu's forces, he assumed at first that it was due to the
active assistance rendered by the English Company. But later on, he came
to know about the dubious actions and the corrupt character of Mr. Holland.
The Governor of Madras was believed to be in the pay of Tipu Sultan. So
he was relieved of his responsibilities and Lord Cornwallis himself assumed
command of the Madras Army. The military operations against Srirangapatanam
culminated in Tipu's surrender and the Treaty of Srirangapatanam signed
in 1792. But as far as Tipu's defeat and humiliation on the borders of
Travancore were concerned, the British played no role; the entire credit
for the victory goes to the strategy of Raja Kesava Das and the valiant
soldiers of the Travancore army. The British not only did not keep their
solemn promise to the Malabar kings and chieftains, but also insisted
that Travancore should pay heavily for the British "help".
DEATH OF TIPU SULTAN
The death scene of Tipu Sultan in 1799 has been completely
distorted in Gidwani's infamous novel. He projects Tipu as a hero and
a martyr. But as per recorded documents and official versions, Tipu, deserted
by his generals and surrounded by the Allied forces, mounted a horse and
tried to escape in the night like a coward. He was hit in the crossfire
between his personal guards and tile enemy forces, and fell down from
the rampart in the midst of dead bodies of common soldiers. Later in the
evening, a search was made for Tipu's body with the help of torches. His
body was finally recovered by one of his slaves and identified by the
Khilledar (Tipu Sultan X-rayed by Dr. I.M. Muthanna, p. 386).
Another version (by C.R.N. Murthi) is that while a bullet
hit Tipu who was lying helplessly in a semi-conscious state, one of his
lieutenants tried to rob the emerald chain from his turban. Tipu seized
a sword and cut off the leg of the robber who, in turn, shot his master
dead (Tipu Sultan X-rayed by Dr. I.M. Muthanna, p. 392).
END OF THE USURPER DYNASTY
It may be recalled here that the members of the overthrown
Wodeyar Royal Family were kept prisoners in their palaces all through
the reign of Hyder Ali Khan and Tipu Sultan. Tipu did not kill them because
of his fear of a popular uprising against him. His eleventh and only surviving
son, Prince Ghulam Muhammad, was exiled by the British to Calcutta and
the Mysore Kingdom which had been usurped by Hyder Ali Khan, was restored
to the Wodeyars. However, Prince Ghulam Muhammad was allowed to take away
with him a part of the wealth looted from Malabar and carried to Srirangapatanam
by Tipu. He was also given a substantial pension by the English. Even
today, the family trust created by Ghulam Muhammad out of this looted
wealth is the largest Muslim trust in Calcutta.
TIPU'S ATROCITIES
During the notorious Padayottakkalam from 1783 to 1792,
Tipu Sultan had committed a variety of atrocities against the Hindus and
Christians in Kerala. Some of them as narrated by the Christian victims
are vividly described by the famous traveller and historian, Fra Bartolomaco,
in his well-known book, Voyage to East India. Following is the verbatim
description of the atrocities by a Christian victim as given in the book:
"First a corps of 30,000 barbarians who butchered
everybody on the way, followed by the Field-Gun Unit under the French
Commander, M. Lally. Tipu Sultan was riding on an elephant behind which
another army of 30,000 soldiers followed. Most of the men and women were
hanged in Calicut. First mothers were hanged with children tied to the
necks of their mothers. That barbarian Tipu Sultan tied the naked Christians
and Hindus to the legs of elephants and made the elephants move about
till the bodies of the helpless victims were tom to pieces. Temples and
Churches were ordered to be burnt, desecrated and destroyed. Christian
and Hindu women were forced to marry Muhammadans and similarly their men
were forced to marry Muhammadan women. Those Christians who refused to
be 'honoured' with Islam, were ordered to be killed by hanging then and
there. The above version of the atrocities was obtained from the sorrowful
narration by the victims who escaped from Tipu's army and reached Varapuzha
(near Alwaye) which is the centre of Carmichael Christian Mission. I myself
helped many victims to cross the Varapuzha river by boats" (Cited
in Cochin History by K.P. Padmanabha Menon, p. 573).
It may be noted here that Fra Bartolomaeo was in the
West Coast around March, 1790. Evidence of Tipu's atrocities against Christians
are also available from the records of churches in Mangalore, Calicut
and Varapuzha.
TIPU'S FANATICISM
It would be very relevant to reproduce here some of the
letters which, Tipu Sultan had sent to his army commanders in different
parts of Kerala and outside. Following are from the research articles
published by Sardar K.M. Panicker in the Bhasha Poshini magazine
of Chingam 1099 of the Malayalam Era corresponding to August, 1923. They
were obtained by him from The India Office Library in London during his
intensive research regarding Kerala history. Tipu's real character is
revealed here.
1. Letter dated March 22, 1788, to Abdul Kadir: "Over
12,000 Hindus were 'honoured' with Islam. There were many Namboodiris
(Brahmins) among them. This achievement should be widely publicised
among the Hindus. There the local Hindus should be brought before you
and then converted to Islam. No Namboodiri (Brahmin) should be spared.
Also they should be confined there till the dress materials sent for
them, reach you."
2. Letter dated December 14, 1788, to his Army Chief
in Calicut: "I am sending two of my followers with Mir Hussain
Ali. With their assistance, you should capture and kill all Hindus.
Those below 20 may be kept in prison and 5,000 from the rest should
be killed by hanging from the tree-tops. These are my orders."
3. Letter dated December 21, 1788, to Sheik Kutub:
"242 Nairs are being sent as prisoners. Categorise them according
to their social and family status. After honouring them with Islam,
sufficient dress materials may be given to the men and their women."
4. Letter dated January 18, 1790, to Syed Abdul Dulai:
"With the grace of Prophet Muhammed and Allah, almost all Hindus
in Calicut are converted to Islam. Only a few are still not converted
on the borders of Cochin State. I am determined to convert them also
very soon. I consider this as Jehad to achieve that object."
5. Letter dated January 19, 1790, to Badroos Saman
Khan: "Don't you know that I have achieved a great victory recently
in Malabar and over 4 lakh Hindus were converted to Islam. I am now
determined to march against that 'Cursed Raman Nair' without delay.
(Reference is to Rama Varma Raja of Travancore State who was popularly
known as Dharma Raja for giving shelter in his state to all those who
fled Malabar.)
Thinking that he and his subjects would be soon converted
to Islam, I am overjoyed and hence abandoned the idea of returning to
Srirangapatanam."
The last two letters quoted above were written after
the first major defeat of Tipu Sultan near Alwaye on January 1, 1790.
All these letters clearly betray the real character of Tipu Sultan whom
a Kerala Muslim historian, Dr. C.K. Kareem, describes as of 'Sufi' traditions!
If this is Sufism, what about Koranic Islam?
TEMPLES DESTROYED BY TIPU
The Mysore Gazetteer says that the ravaging army
of Tipu Sultan had destroyed more than 8000 temples in South India. The
temples of Malabar and Cochin principalities had to bear the brunt of
plunder and destruction. The History of Cochin by K.P. Padmanabha
Menon and History of Kerala by A. Sreedhara Menon narrate some
of them:
"In the month of Chingam 952, Malayalam Era (corresponding
to August, 1786) Tipu's Army destroyed idols of the famous Perumanam Temple
and desecrated all the temples between Trichur and Karuvannur river.
"Irinjalakuda and Thiruvanchikulam temples were
also defiled and damaged by Tipu's Army."
Some of the other famous temples looted and desecrated
were as follows: Triprangot, Thrichembaram, Thirunavaya, Thiruvannoor,
Calicut Thali, Hemambika Temple, the Jain Temple in Palghat, Mammiyur,
Parambatali, Venkitangu, Pemmayanadu, Tiruvanjikulam, Terumanam, Vadakhumnnathan
Temple of Trichur, Belur Siva Temple, Shri Veliyanattukava, Varakkal,
Puthu, Govindapuram, Keraladhiswara, Trikkandiyur, Sukapuram, Maranehei
Temple of Aaalvancheiri Tambrakkal, Vengara Temple of Aranadu, Tikulam,
Ramanathakra, Azhinjalam Indiannur, Mannur Narayan Kanniar and Vadukunda
Siva Temple of Madai.
The Trikkavu Temple of Ponnani was converted into Military
Garrison. The Christian Pilgrimage centre of Palayur Church and Varapuzha
Church and Mission buildings were among the several churches destroyed
by the ravaging army of Tipu.
In the case of Triprayar Temple, the main deity was shifted
temporarily to Gnanappilly Mana situated in a remote village, and in the
case of Guruvayoor Temple, the idol was shifted to Ambalapuzha Sri Krishna
Temple in Travancore State before the barbarian army of Tipu Sultan reached
there. However, both of them were brought back and ceremoniously installed
after the withdrawal of Tipu from Malabar towards the end of 1790. The
Guruvayoor Temple was destroyed only partly because of the pleadings by
Hydrose Kutty who was a favourite of Hyder Ali Khan besides being a devotee
of Lord Krishna before his conversion. The damage that can be seen even
today on the installed presiding deity of Triprayar Temple is believed
to have been caused by Tipu Sultan's army.
According to certain personal diary notes of Tipu Sultan,
the Chirackal Raja offered to pay over Rs. 4 lakh in gold and silver to
save the destruction of the local Hindu temples by Tipu's army. But, true
to his character, Tipu replied that "even if the entire world is
offered to me, I will not desist from destroying Hindu temples" (Freedom
Struggle by Sardar Panicker). It was the reply of a typical Islamic
ruler!
TIPU'S LAND-GRANTS AND PUJAS
With this background in mind, we may now have a look
at the circumstances that prompted the Islamic bigot, Tipu Sultan, to
offer land-grants and financial assistance to some Hindu temples, particularly
the Sringeri Mutt.
When the astrologers predicted an approaching malefic
period from 1790 onwards and the combined forces of the British, the Nizam
and the Marathas started surrounding Srirangapatanam, Tipu Sultan panicked
and therefore did some good deeds - offering land-grants and even pujas
and feeding Brahmin - mainly to ward off the evil effects and to get assistance
from his Hindu subjects in his war efforts. He was reported to have even
fallen prostrate before His Holiness Sringeri Shankaracharya and sought
the latter's pardon and blessings (Sakthan Thampuran by P. Raman
Menon, and History of Mysore by Lewis Rice).
RESULT OF TIPU'S INVASION-HINDU EXODUS
The widespread atrocities committed by the Islamic tyrant
and his equally cruel army of Muslim converts in Kerala, can be understood
only from the authentic records available from various sources. According
to them, about half the Hindu population of Kerala fled the country to
the forests or Tellicherry and Travancore State. They included most of
the Hindu Rajas and chieftains who could not stand upto the mighty army
of barbarians and the powerful field-guns of the French. Important royal
families which migrated to Travancore State were those of Chirackal, Parappanad,
Ballussery, Kurumbranad, Kadathanad, Palghat and Calicut. The chieftain
families which did the same were those of Punnathur, Kavalappara, Azhvancherry
Thamprakkal, etc. Even the Cochin royal family moved to Vaikkom Palace
near the famous Shiva Temple when Tipu's army reached Alwaye.
Many members of the royal families of Malabar who migrated
to Travancore State preferred to stay back even after the withdrawal of
Tipu's army and restoration of peace, because of their nightmarish experience
and the peculiar psyche of the forcibly converted Muslim population in
Malabar. The prominent royal families were (1) Neerazhi Kovilakam, (2)
Gramathil Kottaram, (3) Paliyakkara, (4) Nedumparampu, (5) Chempra Madham,
(6) Ananthapuram Kottaram, (7) Ezhimatoor Palace, (8) Aranmula Kottaram,
(9) Varanathu Kovilakam, (10) Mavelikkara, (11) Ennakkadu, (12) Murikkoyikkal
Palace, (13) Mariappilly, (14) Koratti Swaroopam, (15) Kaippuzha Kovilakam,
(16) Lakshmipuram Palace, and (17) Kottapuram. The secularist admirers
of Tipu Sultan have not even heard about the records available from these
Malabar families.
The nightmarish results of Tipu's invasion of Kerala
have been aptly described by the former editor of Gazetteer of Kerala
and the renowned historian A. Sreedhara Menon. They state as follows:
ISLAMIC WARS
"Hindus3, especially
Nairs and chieftains who resisted Islamic cruelties, were the main targets
of Tipu's anger. Hundreds of Nair women and children were abducted to
Sreerangapatanam or sold as slaves to the Dutch. Nairs were hunted down
and killed and also deprived of all traditional and social privileges.
Thousands of Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Nairs and other respected classes of
Hindus were forcibly converted to Islam or driven out of their traditional
ancestral homes. Thousands sought refuge in Travancore State while hundreds
fled to forests and hills to escape Tipu's atrocities which had completely
shaken their sense of security."
"The new phase of Mysore administration in Kerala
resulted in unending wars. Extreme cruelties of the invading army had
badly affected every section of the society, leading to the mass exodus
of people from Malabar."
"Many Hindu temples, royal houses and chieftain
families were destroyed and plundered. The exodus of Brahmins and Kshatriyas
who were the patrons and custodians of traditional arts and culture, resulted
in stagnation in the cultural field also."
ECONOMIC COLLAPSE
"Many prosperous towns were destroyed while the
local and foreign trade collapsed. Peasants who had to bear the brunt
of army cruelties and coercive taxation policies, sought refuge in forests
and mountains. In many areas, cultivation of pepper stopped resulting
in the collapse of pepper trade. Consequent to the stoppage of foreign
trade coupled with the precipitate fall in cultivation and local trade,
economy of the country was also shattered; and major sections of the people
were reduced to poverty. Thus every section of society was badly affected
by the military regime of the mysore rulers."
HINDU-MUSLIM CONFLICTS
"Huge amount of wealth in the form of gold and silver
accumulated through centuries of foreign trade, vanished from the country
as a result of loot and plunder during the chaotic period of the military
regime of Hyder Ali Khan and his son, Tipu Sultan. Another serious development
which had long term bad effects was that Malabar Muslims joined hands
with the ranks of cruel invading Mysore army and proved their loyalty
to Islamic faith by committing various atrocities against Malabar Hindus.
This earned them enmity of Hindus. To gain political advantage, they resorted
to forcible conversion of Hindus to Islam and also widespread destruction
and plunder of Hindu temples. The Mysore administration under the Muslim
rulers had not only encouraged such cruelties against the Hindu population
but also gave the local Muslim converts special privileges and tax exemptions,
leading to serious cleavage and enmity for the first time, between the
two communities, Hindus and Muslims, in Kerala."
MAPPILA OUTRAGES OF 1921
According to the widely respected Congressman and freedom-fighter,
K. Madhavan Nair, "the notorious Mappila Lahala (Khilafat Riots)
of 1921 in Malabar could be easily traced to the after-effects of widespread
forcible conversions and cruelties committed by Tipu Sultan during the
Padayottakkalam". Thus Tipu Sultan was considered and depicted by
all the well-known historians from Kerala and elsewhere as an evil genius
and Islamic tyrant, much worse than even the notorious Aurangzeb who beheaded
Guru Teg Bahadur, destroyed thousands of Hindu temples including Vishwanath
Temple at Kashi and Sri Krishna Temple at Mathura, and forcibly converted
lakhs of Hindus in North India.
PROOFS OF ISLAMIC ATROCITIES
Tipu Sultan was like the notorious Kala Pahar - a renegade
Brahmin convert from Bengal - who used to celebrate every time he killed
or forcibly converted 10,000 Hindus. The darkest period in the history
of Kerala was the period of Hyder Ali Khan and Tipu Sultan from 1766 to
1792 - socially, culturally and politically. Ruins of hundreds of Hindu
temples destroyed by Tipu Sultan and his father Hyder Ali Khan are the
standing witnesses to their brutalities in Kerala. One also finds a heavy
concentration of Mappilas along the invasion routes of Tipu's army, including
the places of its temporary occupation, as in Mangalore, Cannanoor, Ponnani,
Kondotty, Malappuram, Calicut, Kodungallur, Chawakat, Alwaye, Coimbatore,
and Dindigal. This is another proof of forcible circumcision and conversion
of helpless Nairs, defenceless Thiyyas and poor Cherumans on a mass scale.
Even today, the origin of many Kshatriya, Nair and Brahmin families settled
in Travancore and Cochin can be traced back to their ancestral families
in Malabar - yet another proof of the severity of Tipu's atrocities against
Hindus during his Islamic wars in Kerala.
I cannot but laugh at your hypothetical state. If you post some thing from a pro muslim site, that's supposed to be correct, but if I post some thing than it is otherwise. No use trying to reply an illogical post.
I think you mean hypocritical and not hypothetical. I dont post from pro-ANY sites, unless you can prove me wrong, which u wont. But more importantly i dont post from xenophobic websites.
Next time you dont want to reply to an illogical post, dont reply like above.
BTW the source is given by the guy posting himself at the bottom.
well tipu sultan was a great patriot.he had the courage to fight the british when the marathas and the nizam had allied with them.hindu fundamentalist organizations consider him to be a tratior as they do with every muslim who fought against untouchability and gave the lower castes hindus the rights on par with the upper caste hindus
...Indeed a brave man who got a good run for his money against the Brits! I heard that the battle of Serignapatam (If thats' how you pronounce it- I'm not good with Indian names!) gave the Brits a bit of a bashing!
Tipu Sultan was born to a traitor. his father was employed by the mharaja of Mysore, whose throne he usurped by treachery. This was the begining of his the career of this family as traitors. Tipu tried to invite everypower in the world to invade india, but nobody paid any attention to his cries as they realised the hollowness of his claims.
Tipu was not even a brave person as he avoided fighting the Mighty Nizam & the Marathas, who were the major powers in the south at that moment. He turned at the small tiny city states of kerela, which had historically been given protection by the bigger states & so had no militaries of their own.
He simply cannot be called a patriot by fighting the british as the British were not ruling India at that time. The dominant Indian power at that time was the Marathas, whom Tipu fought. He didn't die fighting the British, he died as a coward while he was trying to flee the palace when Britishers were sure to capture the palace.
Tipu was a cruel tyrannt, committed rapes, slaughter of hindus, destroyed their temples, converted them forcibly & sought to create an islamic kaliphate. That is why the Marathas opposed him.
By his own admissions tipu was a cruel, fanatic zealot, as can be seen from his own writings.
I laugh at how people sitting thousands of miles from the place where tipu committed the horrible inhuman attroicites & crimes of war are able to claim more knowledge about the traitor tipu.
They not only seem to know more about the traitor tipu than the persons who live at the places he attacked, but also seem to know more about tipu than tipu himself !!!!!!!
The legal fight against the shameful and motivated attempt of Doordarshan and the Government of India to project the usurper king of Mysore, Tipu Sultan, as a national hero, was a long, expensive and frustrating ordeal. According to authentic and documented history of the period, Tipu Sultan had hanged to death and sold as slaves a large number of innocent men, women, and children; looted and destroyed and burnt down hundreds of Hindu temples and Christian churches; and circumcised and converted to Muhammadanism thousands of Hindus and Christians in Mangalore, Coorg, Coimbatore, Dindigal, and Kerala. He had made territorial concessions to the French whose help he sought to fight the British. He had also sent emissaries to Islamic countries - Afghanistan, Iran, and Turky - inviting them to conquer the whole of North India for the glory and spread of Islam. But the Doordarshan serial on Tipu Sultan, based on a novel entitled The Sword of Tipu Sultan by Bhagwan Gidwani, was full of deliberate distortion, fabrication, and suppression of recorded facts of history with the object of glorifying a villain as a national hero, a benevolent ruler, and a paragon of all virtues.
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