The heart touching story of Rani Padmini-The Queen of Chittor

In 12th and 13th centuries, Rawal Ratan Singh was the King of Chittor. Rani Padmini, the wife of King Rawal Ratan Singh and Queen of Chittor and often a mythological figure for her womanhood and sacrifice.

During those days, the Sultanate of Delhi- the kingdom set up by the invaders was nevertheless growing in power. That time Allah-ud-din Khilji was the Sultan and who made repeated attack on Mewar on one reason and the other.

At the same time Chittor was under the Rule of Rawal Ratan Singh, a brave and noble warrior King. As well a patron of the arts. In his court were many talented people one of whom was a musician named Raghav Chetan. But unknown to everyone, he was also a sorcerer. He used his evil talent to run down his competitor but unluckily was caught red-handed. On hearing this King was angry and he punished Raghav Chetan to send away from his kingdom after blackening his face and making him ride on donkey.

Due to this, Raghav Chetan became an uncompromising enemy of the King. Raghav Chetan made his way towards Delhi with the aim of trying to incite the Sultan of Delhi Allah-ud-din Khilji to attack chittor.

When Raghav Chetan come near to Delhi, was settled down in one of the forests nearby Delhi which the Sultan used frequently for hunting deers. One day he saw the hunt party entering the forest, he started playing a melodious tone on his flute. Hunt party get surprised, and they found Raghav Chetan was playing a flute . Raghav Chetan was then brought before sultan, and the Sultan asked him to come to his court at Delhi.The cunning Raghav-Chetan asked the king as to why he wants to have a ordinary musician like himself when there were many other beautiful objects to be had. The Sultan wondering what Raghav Chetan meant, Sultan asked him to clarify. Then he told about Rani Padmini's beauty, Allah-ud-din's lust was aroused and immediately on returning to his capital he gave orders to his army to march on Chittor.

But he get disappointed, due to the fort to be heavily defended. Hopefull to have a look at the legendary beauty of Padimini, he send word to King Ratan Singh that he looked upon padmini as his sister and wanted to meet her. On hearing this, the unsuspecting Ratansen asked Padmini to see the 'brother'. But Padmini was more wordly-wise and she refused to meet the lustful Sultan personally.

Rani Padmini then convinced by her husband, She agreed to allow Allah-ud -din to see her only in a mirror.On the word being sent to Allah-ud-din that Padmini would see him, he came to the fort with his selected and best warriors who secretly made a careful examination of the fort's defences on their way to the Palace. On seeing Padmini, in a mirror, the lustful Sultan decided that he should secure Padmini for himself. While returing to his camp, Sultan was accompanied for some way by King Ratan Singh. Taking this opportunity, Sultan skillfully kidnapped Ratan Singh and took him as a prisoner into his camp and demanded that Padmini come and surrender herself before Sultan, if she wanted her husband king Ratan Singh alive again.

The Rajput generals decided to beat the Sultan at his own game and sent back a word that Padmini would be given to Sultan the next morning. On the following day at the crack of dawn, one hundred and fifity palaquins (covered cases in which royal ladies were carried in medieveal times) left the fort and made their way towards Sultan's camps. The palanquins stopped before the tent where king Ratan singh was being held prisoner. Seeing that the palanquins had come from Chittor, and thinking that they had brought along with them his queen, king Ratan Singh was mortified. But get surprised, because his queen is not there in the palanquins but her women servant and fully armed soldiers, who quickly freed Ratan Singh and galloped away towards Chittor on horses grabbed from Sultan's stables.

On hearing that, the lustful Sultan was furious and ordered his army to attack on Chittor. But hard as they tried the Sultans army could not break into the fort. Sultan decided to lay seige to the fort. The seige was the prolonged effort to gain the fort. Finally King Ratnasingh gave orders that the Rajputs would open the gates and fight to finish with the besieging troops. On hearing of this decision, Padmini decided that with their men-folk going into the unequal struggle with the Sultan's army in which they were sure to perish, the women of Chittor had either to commit suicides or face dishonour at the hands of the victorious enemy.

The choice was in favour of suicide through Jauhar. A huge pyre was lit and followed by their queen, all the women of Chittor jumped into the flames and deceived the lustful enemy waiting outside. With their womenfolk dead, the men of Chittor had nothing to live for. Their charged out of the fort and fought on furiously with the vastly Powerful array of the Sultan, till all of them perished. After this phyrrhic victory the Sultan's troops entered the fort only to be confronted with ashes and burnt bones of the women whose honour they were going to violate to satisfy their lust.

These women who committed Jauhar had to perish but their memory has been kept alive till today by bards and songs which glorify their act which was right in those days and circumstances. Thus a halo of honour is given to their supreme sacrifice.

Rajput Surnames

Chauhans Chauhans originated as feudatories of the Pratiharas and rose to power in the wake of the decline of that power. Their state was initially centered around Sambhar in present-day Rajasthan. In the 11th century, they founded the city of Ajmer which became their capital. In the 12th century, their the then King Prithviraj Chauhan acquired Delhi from his maternal grand father,the then Tomar King Anangpal II Tomar (see above under Tomars or Tanwars). Their most famous ruler was Prithviraj Chauhan, who won the First Battle of Tarain against an invading Muslim army but lost the Second Battle of Tarain the following year. This loss heralded a prolonged period of Muslim rule over northern India.

Sisodia The Sisodias suryavanshi Rajputs were also known as the Ranas of Mewar, old Ranas states are to be found in many parts of India, and Nepal. The earliest history of the clan calims that they had moved from Lahore that was also known as 'Lohkot' or 'Lavasthali' to Shiv Desh, or Chitor in V.S 191. In V.S 193 their ancestor Maharaja Kanak sen whose 21 had ruled over Lahore. Later he also defeated the Kushan Satrap Rudradama who ruled over Gujarat had moved to Gujarat on a punitive expedition against Dihraj Dev Parmar the ruler of Idar (Gujarat). There he established his capital Vallabhi. They trace their descent from Bappa Rawal, purported scion of the Guhilot or Guhila or Gehlot or Gahlot clan, who established himself as ruler of Mewar in 734 AD, ruling from the fortress of Chittor (or Chittorgarh). According to legend and clan history, Bappa grew up as a cowherd in the town of Kailashpuri (now Eklingji) but spent much of his time studying the Vedas in the hermitage of the sage Harita Rishi. He learned to respect Lord Eklingji, and later Harita Rishi gave him the title of the Diwan of Eklingji, one that has become a legacy for the succeeding maharanas. When he was 15 Bappa came to know that he was the nephew of the ruler of Chittor who had been ousted by the ruler of Malwa. He left Kailashpuri, went to the fortress city of Chittor and snatched his kingdom back from the prince of Malwa, Man Singh Mori. In the 9th century bad luck fell upon the Gehlots who were driven away by the Pratiharas who in turn made way for the Rashtrakutas and Paramaras


Bhati Bhati Rajputs are a chandravansh Rajput clan from the Jaiselmer region of western Rajasthan. The Maharajas of Jaisalmer trace their lineage back to Jaitsimha, a ruler of the Bhati Rajput clan. The major opponents of the Bhati Rajputs were the powerful Rathor clans of Jodhpur and Bikaner. They used to fight battles for the possession of forts, waterholes or cattle. Jaisalmer was positioned strategically and was a halting point along a traditional trade route traversed by the camel caravans of Indian and Asian merchants. The route linked India to Central Asia, Egypt, Arabia, Persia, Africa and the West.Bhati Rajputs were proficient horse riders,marksman and warriors. Their reign spread to the Punjab,Sindh and beyond, to Afghanistan. The City of Ghazni was named after a brave Bhatti warrior. In Lahore, a monument exists to this day, which is called the Bhati Gate, named so probably because it opens in the direction of the "Sandal Bar", an area ruled by Rai Sandal Khan Bhati Rajput.They earned too much by imposing the taxes levies on the passing Carvans.they were known as a great shooter with Gun.


Jadeja Jadeja(Gujarati: જાડેજા Hindi: जाडेजा) is the name of a major clan of (Yadav) [1] Yaduvanshi[citation needed][1] or Chandravanshi Rajputs. The Chandravanshi[2], claiming descent from Chandra, the Hindu Moon-god, in English known as the Lunar Dynasty. They ruled huge parts of Kathiawar peninsula and Kutch as kings and princes for several centuries.


Vaghela Vaghela is a Kshatriya name. (Hindi: क्षत्रिय, kṣatriya from Sanskrit: क्षत्र, kṣatra) It is one of the four varnas (Social Orders) in Hinduism. It constitutes the military and noble order of the traditional Vedic-Hindu social system as outlined by the Vedas and the Laws of Manu. Lord Rama, Lord Krishna, Lord Buddha and Lord Mahavira all belonged to this social order. Initially in ancient Vedic society, this positions was achieved on the merits of a person's aptitude (guna), conduct (karma), and nature (swabhava). Over the years it became hereditary
The Vaghelas were an Indian dynasty of Gujarat. The Vaghelas were based in the town of Dholka, and were feudatories of the Solanki dynasty, who ruled Gujarat from the 10th to the 13th centuries. The Solanki went into decline in the thirteenth century, and by 1243 the Vaghelas were firmly in control of Gujarat. They restored stability to Gujarat for the latter half of the 13th century, and the Vaghela kings and officials were dedicated patrons of the arts and temple-building. They established a a rather shortlived (76 years) but powerful dynasty. The two rulers of this dynasty, Virdhaval and Vishaldev, were responsible for consolidating the stabilizing the prosperity of Gujarat after the fall of the Solankis. Virdhaval was the first Vaghela king, and two of his Jain minister brothers, who were also his two distinguished Dewans (chief ministers), Vastupal and Tejpal, built the exquisite Dilwara Temples on Mount Abu in Rajasthan, and temples at the Girnar and Shetrunjay hills. His successor Vishaldev built temples at Dabhoi and founded Vishalnagar. Karandev was the last Vaghela king and also the last Hindu ruler of Gujarat, who died in the 1304 conquest of Gujarat by Ala-ud-din Khilji, Sultan of Delhi. With his defeat Gujarat not only became part of the Muslim empire but the Rajput hold over Gujarat lost for ever.


Rathore Rathore(राठौड़) The Rathore or Rathor or Rathod is a Rajput tribe of India. Rathors in India are a Suryavansh Rajput clan from the Marwar region of western Rajasthan, inhabiting Idar state of Gujarat and also the Chhapra and Muzaffarpur districts of Bihar in very small numbers. In India, their native languages are Hindi and its dialects (such as Rajasthani, Marwari and other languages of Rajasthan, Gujarati and Kutchi in Gujarat, as well as Punjabi in the Punjab a dialect of Punjabi called Rathi spoken in Ratia and Tohana in present day Haryana.Rathore are the people from the west Rajasthan. Rathore's have many gotras, most of these gotras are from the name of the great warriors of the past and gotras are being used by their family members. Some of these gotras are: Jodha, Bidawat, Banirot, Champawat, mertiya and so forth. Rathore's were said to be the worshipers of sun. To understand the huge clan of Rathore's we will have understand their areas they occupy. Rathore's of Jodhpur were supreme in present districts such as - Jodhpur, Pali, Ajmer, Nagaur, Barmer, Sirohi. Rathore,s of Bikaner were occupant of the area that included districts Bikaner, Churu, Ganganagar, Hanumangarh. Dynasties belonging to this clan ruled a number of kingdoms and princely states in Rajasthan and neighbouring states before India's independence in 1947. The largest and oldest among these was Jodhpur, in Marwar and Bikaner. Also the Idar State in Gujrat. The Maharaja of Jodhpur, is regarded as the head of the extended Rathore clan of Hindu Rajputs. Even in the modern times the clout of this clan in the democratic world is such that a large number of MLAs and MPs have been elected from among them.


Katoch The Katoch clan is considered to be one of the oldest surviving clan in the world. They first find mention in the mythological Hindu epic The Mahabharta and the second mentions in the recorded history of Alexander the Great's war records. One of the Indian kings who fought Alexander on the river Beas was a Katoch king Parmanand Chandra famously known as Porus. In past centuries, they ruled several princely states in the region. The originator of the clan was Rajanaka Bhumi Chand. Their famous Maharaja Sansar Chand-II was a great ruler. The ruler Rajanaka Bhumi Chand Katoch founded the Jwalaji Temple (now in Himachal Pradesh).


Nirwan The Nirwan (also spelled as Chauhan) Their state was initially centered around khetri, khandela, alsisar malsisar,srimadhopur, alwar, jhunjhunu, sikar, churu, According to legend and clan history, the Nirwan are with Maharana Pratap against Akbar in Haldighati Battle. Nirwan's have many gotras, most of these gotras are Baloji, Pithoraji, Kaluji.Nirwan gotra is also found in yadavs [2] and jats.


Kachwaha The Kachwaha (also spelled as Kachavāhā,Kacchavahas, Kachhawa, Kuchhwaha & Kushwah including Kacchapghata, Kakutstha, and Kurma) are a Suryavanshi Rajput clan who ruled a number of kingdoms and princely states in India such as Alwar, Maihar, Talcher, while the largest and oldest state was Amber (city) later known as Jaipur. The Pachrang flag of the former Jaipur state. Prior to the adoption of the Pachrang (five coloured) flag by Raja Man Singh I of Amber, the original flag of the Kachwahas was known as the 'Jharshahi' (tree-marked) flagJaipur(Jainagara), an extension of the old kingdom of Amber, was founded by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II in 1727.The Maharaja of Jaipur is regarded as the head of the extended Kachwaha clan. Overall, sub-clans of the Kachwaha number around 71. Prominent sub-clans of the Kachhawa clan include: Rajawat, Shekhawat, Sheobramhpota, Naruka, Nathawat, Khangarot and Kumbhani. The Kachhawas belong to the Suryavanshi lineage, which claims descent from the Surya and Sun Dynasty of the ancient Kshatriyas. Specifically, they claim descent from Kusha[1] younger of the twin sons of Rama, hero of the Ramayana, to whom patrilineal descent from Surya is in turn ascribed. Indeed, the name Kachawaha is held by many[2] to be a patronymic derived from the name "Kusha". Prominent Sub-clans are Shekhawat, Naruka, Rajawat, Nathawat, Kalyanot, Jamwal, Minhas, Manhas, Baghel, Jasrotia, Nindar.


Solankis Solankis were descended from the Chalukyas of Karnataka who ruled much of peninsular India between the 6th and 12th centuries. In the 10th century, a local branch of the clan established control over Gujarat and ruled a state centered around the town of Patan. They went into decline in the 13th century and were displaced by the Vaghela.


Paramaras Paramara were near-neighbours of the Solankis. They originated as feudatories of the Rashtrakutas and rose to power in the 10th century. They ruled Malwa and the area at the border between present-day Gujarat and Rajasthan. Bhoja, the celebrated king of Malwa, belonged to this dynasty. In the 12th century, the Paramaras declined in power due to conflict with the Solankis and succumbed to attack from the Delhi sultanate in 1305.


Chandelas In the early 10th century, the Chandelas ruled the fortress-city of Kalinjar. A dynastic struggle (c.912-914 CE) among the Pratiharas provided them with the opportunity to extend their domain. They captured the strategic fortress of Gwalior (c.950) under the leadership of Dhanga (ruled 950-1008).


Tomars or Tanwars Tomar or Tuvars, or Tanwars, are Chandravanshi Rajputs, and descended from Mahabharat's great hero, Arjun, through his son Abhimanyu, and grandson, Parikshat. Chakravarti Samrat (King) Yudhishtra, founded Indraprastha, present day Delhi. Tomars (King Anangpal Tomar) conquered and re-established the Delhi Kingdom in CE 792 and founded the city of 'Dhillika,' (modern Delhi). Besides Delhi, Tomar's rule covered western U.P. and most of present day Haryana and Punjab. Tomar's rule lasted until CE 1162 when last Tomar King Anangpal II appointed Prithviraj Chauhan, his grandson (his daughter's son), and King of Ajmer- as 'catetaker,' since his own sons were very young at that time. According to the accounts kept by Tomar/ Tanwar 'Jagas,' King Anangpal Tomar appointed Prithviraj Chauhan as caretaker only when he went on a religious pilgrimage. It is also said by Tanwar 'Jagas' that when King Anangpal returned, Prithviraj refused to hand over the kingdom to him. It is worth mentioning that 'Jagas' are a caste in Rajasthen who are hereditary keepers of genealogical records of Rajputs, and present 'Jagas' of Tomar/Tanwar Rajputs reside near Jaipur, Rajasthan.


Dhanetiya In A.D.685 Chakravarti Manik Rae Chauhan who we consider as the founder of the great chauhan recovered Ajmer and Sambhar in Rajputana. Prithviraj chauhan , the descendant of Manik rae chauhan emperor of Northern India. He has many progeny, he established many dynasties throughout rajwaras father of the various tribes such as Dhanetiya,Bhaduria etc.these all are the descendant of Manik Rae Chauhan.These are all emerged from Agni that’s why known as Agnivanshi or Agnikulas. Mostly having the Vatsa gotras.Dhanetiya's setteled at shahabhad in kota laterly they came under hada's of koth or kota

Maharana Pratap

Maharana Pratap, the eldest son of the founder of Udaipur Maharana Udai Singh was born to Sonagari Queen Jayawanti on Jyestha Sudi third day of Vikram Era 1597 (i.e. May 9, 1540) Sunday at 47 Ghati 13 Pal past sunrise. Born is Ardra Naksatra, his birth was considered not only auspicious but the astrologers also made the prediction that the child will bring shining glory to the name of the clan.

He was initiated into education and leasing worthy of a prince and, when adult, he mastered the skills in the use of arms and weapons including horse riding. But owing to mutual jealousy among the queens of Udai Singh, he was deprived of his father’s have and affection, and was forced live in a village below the ridge of Chittorgarh. His maternal grand father Akheraj Sonagar (pali) had died in the battle of Sumel Girari in 1600 Vikram Era. Thus, neither he received the from his father nor did he get maternal grand father’s care for long.

First Marriage of Pratap and Founding of Udaipur
At around age of 17 years Pratap was married to Ajabade, the daughter of Rao Ram Rakh Panwar. Amar Singh was born to her in the month of Chaitra Sudi 7, Thursday of Vikram Era 1613 (i.e. 16 March, 1559). At this time Maharana Udai Singh had gone to Ekaling Ji for Darshana (holy Vision of the lord) and from there he moved towards village Ahar in the cause of hunting. After consultations and discussions with his chieftains and advisers he started construction of a palace and establishment of a city towards the north of present day Udaipur the ruins of which exist to-day, known as Moti Mahal

Hero of the Age – Maharana Pratap
The Third Saka (Supreme Sacrifice) of Chittor and Pratap
When emperor Akabar evivaded Chittor in 1967, Maharana Udai Singh abandoned Chittorgarh following the advice of his chief cans and Generals. Though Pratap desired to stay back and protect the fort but the chief fans and Generals did not agree to expose the future king of Mewar to the jows of death and sent him to mountains alongwith his father on the night of 23 febuary 1568 the last Jauhar (a ritualistic self emulation by the women in order to protect their chastity and honour before their warrior husbands march for the final and last assault) was organized and in the morning of the following day the warriors threw open the Fort gates and wade the supreme sacrifice (the Saka, in popular lane). With the fort fell to the hands of Akabar. Akabar not only ordered the killing of innocent residents women and children but also offended sentiments of Hindus by destroying and desecrating the temples and idols in the fort.

This incident of Jauhar and Saka at Chittor made a deep impression on the heart of Pratap. He was full of hatred for Akabar who indulged in this merciless killing. The Supreme Sacrifice made by the women and the warriors for upholding the honour and respect of their nation family, clan and religion because the source of expiration for Pratap to resolve for a struggle ful life
Repression of the Vagadiya Chauhans
Pratap first demonstrated his bravery by attacking the Vagadiya Chauhans. In the battle at the banks of Som river Karansi the cousin of Rana Sanwaldas was killed. Being defeated the Vagadiya Chauhans Conceded a large part of Vagad lard to Mewar. This enhanced the fame of Pratap and the attention of the common masses and feudal heads started centering towards the browsing of Pratap.

Coronation of Pratap
Living for a while in the difficult mountain terrains at Kumbhaner alongwith his father, Pratap made his residence at Gogunda where Maharana Udai Singh died on 28 Feb.,1572. In accordance with the desire of Bhatiyani queen Dheer bai, Maharana Udai Singh had declared his son Jagamal as his heir apparent but despite strong desires of the queen and the Maharana, Jagamal could not realize his dreams. After the death of the Maharana Jagamal occupied the Royal Throne but he did not participate in the funeral rites the former ruler of Gwalior Ram Singh Tanwar enquired about Jagamal after which the noble heads came to know about Jagamal having been made the heir-apparent. At this point Man Singh Sonagare, the maternal uncle of Pratap raised objection and said to Rawat Sanga ( the predecenor of Devagarh nobles) – you Belong to the clan of Chunda therefore, this ought to have been decided after consultation with you. Then, Rawat Krishna das and Rawat Sanga said – “pratap is the eldest son, and worthy also, hence, he will be the Maharana.” After completing the last rites, the noble chieftains made Pratap to occupy the Royal Throne and spoke to Jagamal – “In your capacity as the younger brother, your seat is in front of the Royal Throne”. Thus, on 28 feb, 1572- the day of Holi Pratap’s coronation was performed at Gogunda Afterward, the coronation ceremony was celebrated at Kumbhalwer which was attended by Rao Chandra Sen (Jodhpur) the brother-in-low (Sister’s husband) of Pratap as Nell.

Making Kumbhalmer and Gogunda as centres, Pratap started ruling over Mewar. He conquered the CHHAPPAn area, defeating the rathors, then he ensured full protection of entire Godwad and the Arawali ranges. At that time, the territories lying to the North-east and South-east of Mewar had fallen to the hands of Akabar and almost all the kings of Rajasthan had accepted authority of Akabar, the only exception being Pratap who never bowed his head before the emperor. After Pratap’s coronation, Akabar kept sying over his activities for one year. Hoping that Pratap too will follow the path of other kings and will himself join the Royal service but this did not happen and Akabar decided to send emissaries to Pratap to prevail upon him

Akabar Sends three Emissaries to make Pratap accept his authority
First of all, at the orders of Akabar, Prince Man Singh Kachhawah came to Pratap lowing Gujarat in april 1573 and traveling via Eedar and Dungarpur, Pratap come to Udaipur from Gogunda and extended an affectionate wel-come to Man Singh near Udaipur. Though, Man Singh tried his best to prevail upon Pratap to come to the Royal court but Pratap did not agree. Tension developed between the two at the time of taking food and maan Singh left angrily and reported the mother to Akabar. On eruption of rebellion again in Gujarat, Akabar invaded Gujarat and suppressed the rebellion on 2 Sep. 1573 and from there ordered some army generals two under the leadership of King Bhagawan das (Amer) to go to the Rana.

Elderly bhagwan das , it was hoped, will succeed in prevailing upon Pratap to accept subjection Bhagwandas reached Eedar after first conguering the strong fort of Badanagar. The ruler of that place Narayan Das Rathore, who was Pratap’s father-in-low, accepted subjection under Akabar there after Bhagawan das went to Gogunda to meet Pratap. Although, Pratap welcomed Bhagawan das with due respects, he tactfully sefured the proposal to present him self in the court of Akabar. After two months itself, under orders from Akabar king Todarmal, while returning from Gujarat met Pratap, but had to return disappointed. This fully convinced Akabar to believe that Pratap can not be pressed down without using military might, he resolved to send Army on Pratap.

Pratap’s Reaction
Despite efforts having been made to prevail upon Pratap, he did not accept subjection of Akabar, rather remained firm on his earlier decision. What will be the consequences of all this? Pratap know this very well. Therefore, he quickened his campaign of organizing the soldiers. He stored food- items in Forts like Kumbhalmer and established many posts to protect Gogunda his main centre.

The Battle of Haldighati

Prince Mana Singh left Ajmer on 2 April, 1576 and reached Mandalgarh to launch attack on maharana Pratap. Staying there fore two months he organized the Royal Army and then moved his army towards Gogunda. On the way , he encamped at Mohi and Molela – the two villages. Onreceiving this information Pratap came to lohsing from Gogunda. This place is 9 miles away to the south-west of Haldighati From here to Haldighati the path is so narrow that not more than two men could walk together on this at a time.

It Pratap had preferred to stay here and wait for the arrival of the Royal Army, they would have had no other option but to move through this narrow path and would have been killed in the narrow valley. But Pratap and his soldiers were very eager and deprecate to fight in the open area. So, Pratap alongwith his soldiers reached khamnor though the inaccessible path. The battle was fought in the morning of 18 June, 1576 in the wide open area between Haldighati and village Khamanor. In Man Prakash, written in the praise of Man Singh it is stated – Pratap said to Madhav Singh – the younger brother of Man Singh Kachhawah, don’t feel happy in this battle field, I am soon going to end your happiness with alongwith king Man Singh in a moment. I say this under oath in the name of lord vishnu that you can not cherish the thought of Victory, so leery as I am alive.” And for the first time launched such a severe attack that the Mughal army ran miles away, but soon the scenario changed. Fighting from Pratap’s side many warriors in cluding Ramdas Medaliya, Tanwar Ram Shah of Gwalior alongwith his three sons, Jhala Beeda Jhala Mansingh, Man Singh Sonagara, Dodiya Bheem Shankar das Rathore, Rawat Naitsee, charam Jaisa and many others sacrificed their lives fighting fiercely. At last Pratap and his remaining soldiers had to abandon the battle field. Although the Royal army won, but the purpose, for which the bottle was fought- was not achieved, neither Pratap could be captioned nor did his attitude charge.


Post Battle Activities
The Royal army moved forward after the battle of Haldighati captured Gogunda the place of Pratap there they dug around a moat as they were afraid of the Mewar army. Pratap now made his stay in the strong fort of Kumbhalmer. After a short while Pratap reached Gogunda via village Kolyari, re-captured Gounda after forcing the Mughals to flee from there and placed Mandana Kumpawat there for its protection. He had good neighborly relations with the rulers to Sirohi, Jalore and Eedar. So to weaken the friendly ties the Royal army attacked them and brought Taj Khan of Jalore and Surtan of Sirohi under subjection – still, they continued supporting Pratap and they did not become averse to Pratap.
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Attack by Akabar
In Oct., 1576 Akabar himself resolved to invade Mewar. He was confident of accomplishing the task which his generals could not do. So Akabar left Ajmer on 13 oct., 1576 with a huge army. King Bhagawan das and prince Man Singh were sent to Gogunda under the command of Kutubuddin Khan. When Pratap got this information, he left Gogunda and went into the mountains. The Royal army went searching for Pratap in the caves of mountains but he could not be traced. Staying at village Mohi, Akbar made several efforts to capture Pratap but he did not succeed. Army generals were placed in the areas of Mohi and Madariya, and the campaign to search Pratap was given impetus. But all efforts failed. About Fazal writes while attempting to hide the failures of army generals – “They went into the territory of the Rama, but finding no clue to trace him returned back. Akabar got angry with them and suspended them from royal duties, and re-instated them when the begged for pardon. Hararred as he left, aKabar finally left Udaipur on 27 Nov, 1576 and went to Mahawa via Banswara. Thus, staying in Mewar for about a month and a half Akabar put all his might and skills in actions to suppress Pratap, but he did not get success. Rawal Pratap Singh of Banswara and Rawal Aasakaran of Dungarpur accepted subjection lender Akabar but Pratap Continued to give thorny pricks to the heart of Akabar. Soon after Akabar left, Pratap not only re-captured the Royal posts, but also closed all important exit points of Mewar people under the Mughal areas stopped cultivating lands with the reruls that Royal army stanted failing grant hardships due to non-supply of rations and restrictions of movements. Akabar sent his huge army those and came himself as well, to suppress Pratap but failures did not part campany with him.

Pratap was annoyed with the rulers of Dungarpur and Banswara because they did not support and stand by him ceramal the son of Dungarpur ruler Aasakaran aligned with Pratap and persuaded Pratap to send his army on Aasakaran and promised to pay Pratap 4000 Memudi for this favour Pratap at that time, was in dire need of money and he saw in this offer an opportunity to suppress his opponent therefore Pratap immediately sent his army to invade Dungarpur. When the army besieged the fort, Parvati, the wife of Dungarpur Rawal Aaskaran infomed her brother Rao Chandrasen of Jodhpur about this envision. At this Rao Chandra sen came to Dungarpur with his prominent warriors and entered the fort through the back-gate of thefoot when sesamal informed Pratap of this development, Pratap ordered his army not to take any action against Rao Chandra sen and removed his army from Dungarpur. Rao Chandrasen called Aaskaram in and handed him over the fort when Akabar invaded Dungar, Chandrasen went to Banswara, then came to village Kotara and lived there, Pratap met him there.
Invasions by Shahabag Khan against Pratap
On 15 oct., 1577 army was again sent to attack Pratap under the command of Shahbag Khan and Mir Baksi, king Bhagwandas and prince Man singh were also with them. The army, this time, intended to occupy the strong fort of Kumbhalmer. Shahbag first captive Kelwara, situated at the ridges of Khumbhalmer and then laid siege of khumbhalmer. Facing shortage of food items Pratap left the fort in the night and assigned to task of Protecting the fort to his maternal uncle Bham Sonagae. The ammunition got destroyed by the fire from a big cannon that cracked. Bham and other Rajput worriers came out opening the Fort Gate and made the supreme sacrifice while fighting on 3 April, 1578. Kumbhalmer was captured but Pratap was not caught therefore, instead of dying stationed in the fort, Pratap thought it better to abandon the fort and continue with the struggle in the style of his fathers paticies.

Pratap left kumbhalmer and went to Ranapur and then stayed for quite long in village choolye under the state of Eedar. Bhamashah and Tarachard went to Rampura and took shelter. After shahabag khan left mewar, bhamashah returned from rampura and after plundering villages of malwa and mewar, offered good amount of wealth to Maharana Pratap. For this favour Bhamashah was made Prime Minister replacing Rana Mahan see. After returning from chooliya, Pratap spent his time in mountain terrains around Kamalnath and Awargarh. After about 8 months, Akabar again ordered Shahabag Khan to invade Mewar with the warning that if you will not bring Maharana under subjection, you will be beheaded. So, he left fatehpur sikari on 15 Dec. 1578 for Mewar. Despite the exhaustive efforts for three months, no where about of Pratap could be known Tarachand fell down from horse while fighting with shahabag Khan but Devara Saindas of Runija sawed his life.

Third attack by Shahabag Khan and Pratap leaves for Godawad
On 11 Nov., 1579 Shahabag Khan moved from sambhar to launch third attack on Pratap this time many Rajputs were killed fighting with shahabagkhan. Royal posts were established at many important places and strict vigil was enforced to moniter movements of Pratap, Pratap went to the mountains of Soondha in Godawad where Dewal Padihars were ruling. Thkur Raydhawal Dewal of loyana extended warn welcome to pratap and gave his daughter to Pratap in marriage. Pratap got dug a well (Bavadi) and stabled a garden at Soondha, Decorated Raydhawal with the title of Rana. When in May 1580 Shahabag Marched to Bengal, Pratap came back to Mewar and lived at village Dholan (sayara area).

Shahabag Khan had stabled authority over Jawar Chhappan and Vagad in addition to kumbhalmer and established Royal posts there. Pratap suspended action against the mughals for some time due to fall in military strength. He territories under his control and increasing the strength of his army. After three years he chalked out plans to attack the Royal posts making Dholan as his main centre of activities

The Battle of Dever and Victory of Pratap
Pratap launched an attack on the Royal Post at Dever a village situated in Dever valley of Arawali ranges north east of kumbhalmer. The post commander Sulteen Khan lead the Royal off the legs of the elephant with blows of swards and the elephant fell down. Then sultan khan fought riding a horse. Prince Amar Singh demonstrated great bravery in this battle the Amar Kavya states – He pierced his spear through Sulteen Khan and the house together. Other soldiers ran away and Pratap got victory. Pratap got the triumphing victory in this battle. James To & describes Dever as the marathon of Mewar. Marathon is a place in Greece where the Greeks foxed the inamains to flee away from the war

Demise of Pratap
In January 1597, while pulling the sting of bow to hunt a tiger he developed pain in his intenstine and fell sick. Seeing him grim faced, the Rawat of Salumber asked him for the reason, I am worried and doubtful at the prospects as to weather my son Amar Singh, who, I know, is prone to a comfortable life-style will be able to up hold the glory of Mewar and the tradition of my family and clan. It you nobles make a promise to protect the glory of the kingdom of Mewar, I may die in peace, All the chieftains of Mewar, present there at that time, when took the oath in the name of the throne of Bappa Rawal, then Pratap breathed his last on 19 January 1597 and thus came the end to a golden era of struggle for freedom.

Chetak - The Royal Horse
Chetak was the famous horse of Rana Pratap, whom Pratap rode during the gruesome Battle of Haldighati (June 21, 1576). Chetak died in this battle and since then has been immortalized in the ballads of Rajasthan. This famous warhorse was of Kathiawari breed. Folklore has it that Chetak's coat had a blue tinge. That is why Rana Pratap is sometime referred as the "Rider of the Blue Horse" in ballads.

No story of this famous battle can be complete without mentioning the exploits of Chetak in this battle. It was while mounted on Chetak that Pratap made that daring attempt on the life of Imperial Mughal Commander Man Singh. Again it was Chetak who carried away Pratap to safety from the lost battle even though being grievously wounded himself.

During the course of the battle When Pratap saw that the battle's tide was turning against him, he decided to settle the issue one way or other in a spectacular and quintessentially Rajput manner. Imperial commander Man Singh was directing the battle seated on an elephant. Pratap charged frontally at the Imperial army, hacked his way through the massed ranks of enemy combatants and reached in front of Man Singh's elephant. Once there, Chetak reared high in the air and planted his hooves on the forehead of Man Singh's elephant. Pratap threw his lance at Man Singh, who had the necessary quick reflexes to duck in time. The blow fell on the mahout (elephant driver) instead, who was killed instantly. In the general melee that followed, Chetak received a fatal wound on one of his legs. This was the turning point of the battle. Mewar's bold gamble to siege the battle in its favor had failed. As Man Singh was whisked away to safety, Pratap found himself surrounded by enemy soldiers.

This was the moment of decision for Pratap, whether to seek personal glory by embracing martyrdom on the battlefield, or to live and keep the flame of resistance burning. If he lived, Mewar stood another chance. In fact every rebel anywhere in India against the Mughal empire would have a rallying figure. But with him gone, the sun would set on Indian aspirations forever. Mewar own fate would be sealed.

Maharana was loath to leave a battle in between, but was prevailed upon by his faithful followers. By some accounts one of the Jhala sardar literally snatched the Royal Insignia from Maharana's person and wore them himself, thus making him a target for the Mughal Army.

As Mughal army fell upon the Jhala sardar mistaking him for Maharana, Maharana left the battlefield with some of his loyal followers. Chetak was exhausted and seriously wounded, but labored on carrying his master. About 2 miles from the site of the battle he came across a small stream. It was here while trying to leap across the stream Chetak collapsed.

Maharana erected a small and beautiful monument for his beloved companion at the place where Chetak fell. This cenotaph still exists near the village of Jharol in in Rajsamand District. Chetak lives on in poetic traditions as the epitome of loyalty.


Bhama Shah - The Loyal Lieutenant of Rana

Bhama Shah ––– The Saviour Minister
Bhama Shah, the son of Bharmal –– Kiledar of Ranthambhore, came of the Oswal family of Chitor and was born on the 25th June, 1547 A.D. By dint of merit and ability, he won the favour of his young master and rose by degrees to higher position and ranks. He under the leadership of Pratap, fought gallantly at the fierce and famous battles of Haldighati (1576 A.D.) and made several desperate attacks upon the divisions of the Mughal army at Nadol, Diver, Ranakpur, etc., being impressed with his valourous actions and rare ability of civil and military acumen, Pratap entrusted the management of Finances and the State forces to him. He well stood to the task. He not only consolidated Pratap’s authority in Mewar but also overran nearly the whole of Malwa. In this exploit he exacted tribute amounting to 25 lakhs of rupees and 20 thousand Asharfis and presented the entire collection to the Rana at the village of Chulia. Besides this huge amount he was providing countless concealed hordes of silver, gold and jewels, of which he maintained confidential notes with him, time and again, to lessen the financial stringency of the State, occasioned by frequent wars and aiding in Pratap’s scheme of the consolidating programmes of his new capital –– Chawand. For all this Bhama is remembered with esteem as a brave and benevolent ‘Saviour’ Minister of the State.

After Bhama Shah’s death on the 16th January, 1600, his son and grandson also served the State as ministers in three successive reigns of Pratap, Amar and Karan Singh, with efficiency and honesty. The loyalty, fidelity and rare status enjoyed by Bhama Shah and his successors was duly recognized by the State by allowing the main head of the progeny of Bhama to be honoured by Tika mark on the occasions of the community dinners of the Oswals. This practice continued to our own days, in one form or the other. By virtue of his conspicuous ability, and successful military operations, he earned the name of an unrivalled minister of Mewar.

RANI LAKSHMI BAI

JHANSI KI RANI was the great heroine of the First War of Indian Freedom. She became a widow at the tender age of 18 and lived only till 22 yet she has inspired many and is still a living legend. She was the embodiment of patriotism, self-respect and heroism. Her life is a thrilling story of womanliness, courage, adventure, deathless patriotism and martyrdom. In her tender body there was a lions spirit.


At birth she was named Manu. The young Manu, unfortunately she lost her mother when she was only four. The entire duty of bringing up the daughter fell on her father. Along with formal education she acquired the skill in sword fighting, horse riding and shooting. Manu later became the wife of Gangadhar Rao, Maharaj of Jhansi, in 1842. From then on she was known as Maharani Laksmi Bai of Jhansi.


In 1851 Maharani Lakshmi Bai bore a son but her fate was cruel and she lost her child within three months. The Maharaja passed away on the 21st November 1853. Although prior to this the Maharaja and Maharani adopted a boy the British government claimed they did not recognise the right of the adopted boy. Thus they tried to buy off the Rani however she stated: "No, impossible! I shall not surrender my Jhansi!"It did not take her long to realise how difficult it was for the small state of Jhansi to oppose the British when even the Peshwas and Kings of Delhi had bowed down to the British Demands. The Rani’s battle now was against the British who had cunningly taken her kingdom from her.


After the British took over her government her daily routine changed. Every morning from 4am to 8am were set apart for bathing, worship, meditation and prayer. From 8am to 11am she would go out for a horse ride, practise shooting, and practise swordmanship and shooting with the reins held on her teeth. Thereafter she would bathe again, feed the hungry, give alms to the poor and then have food; then rested for a while. After that she would chant the Ramanyan. She would then exercise lightly in the evening. Later she would go through some religious books and hear religious sermons. Then she worshipped her chosen deity and had supper. All things were done methodically, according to her strict timetable. Such a dedicated and devoted women!


All these disciplined and training patterns came in use during the Indian Mutiny in 1857. Many lives were lost and innocence people killed. Although Bharat did not gain independence the Rani did win back Jhansi and created the state to its former glory having a full treasury and army of women matching the army of men. However Sir Hugh Rose attacked Jhansi on 17th March 1858. The next day’s battle was the Rani’s last. Her death was heroic, her army had declined as they were out numbered by the opposition. The British Army had encircled her and her men. There was no escape blood was flowing, darkness was approaching. The British army was pursuing her. After a great struggle the Rani died muttering quotes from the Bhagvad Gita.


When she went to War and took up arms she was the very embodiment of the War Goddess Kali. She was beautiful and frail. But her radiance made men diffident. She was young in years, but her decisions were mature. Such an confident and dominant women! A lesson is to be learnt for us all from her experiences! The words of the British General Sir Hugh Rose who fought against the Maharani several times and was defeated time and time again stated: "Of the mutineers the bravest and the greatest commander was the Rani".

Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj

Chatrapati Shivaji - The chastiser of the Mughals

Shivaji Bhosle, also known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Raje Bhosle(Born:February 19, 1627, Died: March 4, 1680) was the founder of Maratha empire in western India in 1674.

He raised a strong army and navy, constructed and repaired forts, used guerilla warfare tactics, developed a strong intelligence network, gave equal treatment to the people from all religions and castes based on merit, and functioned like a seasoned Statesman and General. He appointed ministers with specific functions such as Internal security, Foreign affairs, Finance, Law and Justice, Religious matters, Defense etc. He introduced systems in revenue collection and warned the officials against harassment of subjects. He thought ahead of times and was a true visionary. In his private life, his moral virtues were exceptionally high. His thoughts and deeds were inspired by the teachings of his mother Jijabai, teacher Dadaji Konddev, great saints like Dnyaneshwar & Tukaram and the valiancy and ideals of the Lords Rama and Krishna

The Marathas - Samurais from Western India
The Marathas are a proud and hardy race who are a sub-set of the wider Hindu Community. They are first mentioned in Indian history as the stout fighters in the army of the Chalukya King Pulikeshin who resisted the Southward march of Emperor Harsha in the 7th century C.E

The Maratha dynasties of the ancient (pre-Muslim) period are the Chalukyas (500 C.E. to 750C.E.), the Rastrakutas (750 C.E. to 978 C.E. and the Yadavas or Jadhavs (1175 C.E. to 1318 C.E.).

The Marathas were the first who crossed Malik Kafur's path, when he invaded the deccan in 1314 C.E. They were then led by the last scion of the Yadava dynasty - Ramdev Rai Yadava who ruled from Devagiri (today's Daulatabad). In their first clash with the Muslims; the Marathas lost to the invaders and accepted the status of being vassals and mercenaries of their Muslim overlords.

The Marathas before Shivaji were Mercenaries and revenue Collectors for the Muslim Rulers
In keeping with the feudal tradition, the Maratha Sardars (Generals), before Shivaji kept shifting their loyalties from one Muslim ruler to another. And there were many Muslim rulers like the Adilshahis at Bijapur, the Nizamshahis at Ahmednagar (Berar), the Qutubshahis at Golkonda (Hyderabad), etc.

Shahji Bhosale, who was Shivaji's father typified this practice of shifting loyalties from one Muslim overlord to another. He was from time-to-time in the service of the Mughals, the Adilshahis and the Nizamshahis. The thought of establishing an independent Maratha-Hindu kingdom, does seem to have crossed his mind, but he never really got about to doing it successfully. The germ of this idea however seems to have got rubbed into Shivaji - his son by Jijabai.

Shivaji Maharaj - the Visionary Saint-SoldierShivaji was born in the year 1627 at the Fort of Shivneri in Maharashtra in Western India. Shivaji's mother, Jijabai was a direct descendant of the erstwhile Yadav royal family of Devagiri. She seems to have nursed deep within her mind the idea of recovering independence from Muslim rule which her Yadav forebears had lost in the year 1318. Shivaji grew up with these ideas embedded into him. His childhood stories are those of playing games in which he and his friends attacked and captured forts held by the enemy.
The Oath of Independence - at Raireshwar

When Shivaji was seventeen, he decided to transform what were till then simply games to a reality. He and his friends encouraged by Jijabai and his Guru Dadoji Kondeo; decided to take a formal oath to free the country from the shackles of Muslim tyranny. This was done in the year 1645 in a dark cavern housing a small temple to the Hindu God Shiva (locally called Raireshwar).

Here Shivaji and his select band of teenaged Maratha friends slit their thumbs and poured the blood oozing from it on the Shiva-linga (Phallus representing the Lord Shiva). By this act they declared a blood-feud against Mughal tyranny. This was the beginning of a long and arduous Maratha-Mughal struggle that went on for the next century and a half to culminate in the defeat of the Mughals and their replacement by the Marathas as the dominant power in India


Shivaji's encounter with Afzal Khan

When Shivaji started his military career by capturing the fortress of Torana, it sent shockwaves in the Adilshshi court at Bijapur. Here was a local Hindu chieftain, daring to challenge the might of a Muslim ruler. The retribution was swift and Adil Shah sent in his most fearsome general named Afzal Khan to bring back Shivaji dead or alive to Bijapur. Afzal Khan who was reputed to be more than six feet tall and of a real massive built, set on his mission and in order to lure Shivaji down into the plains, he destroyed the Hindu temples at Tuljapur, Pandharpur and Shikhar Shenganapur.

Afzal Goes Up to Pratapgad

This ploy failed to work and Shivaji stuck to his Hill fastness in the Sahyadris. Shivaji even sent a letter to Afzal Khan praising the legendary strength of Afzal Khan's powerful arms and his reputed fearlessness. Shivaji addressed him as his uncle and said that he was afraid to come down to meet Afzal Khan. Shivaji asked him to come up into the hills to meet him and on condition that Afzal Khan came with not more than few select soldiers. The proud Khan felt that the Dekkhan-Ka-Chuha (Rat of the Deccan as the Muslims scornfully addressed Shivaji) had really chickened out.



Afzal Meets his Nemesis in Shivaji

Khan-Saheb agreed to go up the hills at Pratapgad to meet his nemesis. When the meeting took place, Afzal Khan embraced Shivaji and with his diminutive enemy (Shivaji was less than five feet in height) in his grip, Afzal suddenly pulled out his dagger and tried to stab Shivaji. When Afzal's dagger could not plunge into Shivaji Maharaj due to the protective armour which Shivaji was wearing, Afzal tried to throttle him. But the wily Maratha was more than prepared for this as he had come down not only with full armour that was hidden by his thick satin robes, but he also had with him the 'Wagh Nakh' - a sharp weapon resembling tiger claws that could be hidden in the grip of one's fist. In addition, he had the Bichhwa - curved dagger hidden in the pocket of his waistcoat.

Jiwa Mahalaya

On sensing that the Khan meant to throttle him, Shivaji pierced the tiger claws deep into Khan's belly and pulled out his intestines. After which Shivaji repeatedly stabbed him with the bichhwa. The Khan bellowed "Daga" "Daga" and yelled for Syed Banda, his bodyguard to come to his rescue. When Syed Banda, also a burly Muslim was about to strike Shivaji with his sword, Shivaji's bodyguard Jiva Mahalya struck off Banda's upraised arm in the air itself.

Santaji Kawji

After this commotion, the bleeding Khan tried to make good his escape and rushed into his palanquin. As the palanquin bearers set off with the fleeing Khan, Santaji Kawji, another of Shivaji's select warriors cut-off the feet of the bearers and Khans' palanquin, with its load of Khansaab fell to the ground. Santaji Kawji, then finished off the task of sending Khan to his final resting place. Khan's army which was waiting in the valley was ruthlessly massacred by the Marathas who were hiding behind every crevice and bush in the densely wooded jungles around the Pratapgad fort. At the place where this encounter took place on 10th November 1659 between Shivaji Maharaj and the Khan, there stands today a Kabar (grave) erected by Shivaji for the departed Khan's soul to rest in peace.

Bijapur Stymied

The result of this dramatic encounter was that the Bijapur ruler panicked and after that never posed a serious threat to the growing Maratha power. The next Muslim power which Shivaji turned to was that of the Mughals. Here was the real challenge for Shivaji. The Bijapur rulers were a provincial power, while the Mughals were an power of imperial dimensions whose writ ran almost all over Northern India.

The Siege of Panhalgad

Despite this defeat, Bijapur's Adil Shah made one last attempt to check Shivaji by sending another general named Siddhi Jouhar against him. Siddhi besiged Panhalgad where Shivaji was camping. The seige went on for some months, from summer till the monsoons. But Shivaji Maharaj slipped out of Panhalgad and reached safely at Vishalgad.

The Brave Deed of Baji Prabhu Deshpande

It is during this escape that Baji Prabhu Deshpande held the pursuing enemy troops at a narrow pass called Ghod Khind. Baji Prabhu immortalized himself by laying down his life but ensured that his Master reached safely at Vishalgad. This narrow pass is today known as Pawan Khind i.e. a Holy Pass. Made holy by Baji Prabhu's memorably brave deed.

Encounter with Shaista Khan - Aurangzeb's Uncle

The next Khan to come down 'literally' before Shivaji was Shaista Khan. On hearing Shivaji's depredations, Aurangzeb was furious and wanted to desperately crush this infidel upstart. He sent his uncle maternal Shaista Khan with a large and powerful army to checkmate Shivaji.

But even this time the wily Maratha proved that brain was stronger than the brawn.

Shaista Khan came into Maharashtra and started devstating towns, villages fields, temples, forts and everything that came in his path.

Shaista Establishes his Harem in Shivaji's Devghar (Prayer Room)

To provoke Shivaji, Shaista Khan established his camp in Shivaji's home in Pune called Lal-Mahal. And to top it up, he put up his Harem in Shivaji's Devghar (prayer room).
Shaista is Lucky - He Only Loses His Fingers

Shivaji bided his time for many months and one on fine day (night), he with a select band of Maratha Samurais, sneaked into Pune and into the Lal-Mahal. He tracked down the sleeping Khan to his bed. The Khan sensing that his time was up tried jumping out of the window. At that point Shivaji cut off the Khan's fingers with which he was holding on to the window sill.

On the Khan's wife's pleading before Shivaji to spare her husband's life as she considered Shivaji to be her brother. And so killing her husband would mean making her a widow, Shivaji spared the Khan's life. This was a mistake for which Shivaji was to pay dearly later. Shivaji made good his escape from the Khan's lair, but not before the treacherous Khan ordered his troops to give chase and try to capture the fleeing Shivaji.

Shaista's Retreat from Maharashtra
The Khan however, decided that enough was enough and returned to Delhi - without his fingers. This happened in April 1663

The failure of his uncle peeved Aurang to no end and he now sent another general to subjugate Shivaji. This was Mirza Raja Jai Singh, Aurangzeb's Hindu general who was also the scion of the house of the Suryavanshi Kachhawaha's who we saw earlier had ingratiated themselves to the Mughal rulers by giving away their daughters in marriage to the Mughal Padishah. (The Moghuls incidentally never returned the favour by giving, or even offerring, their daughters to the Rajputs!). This Mirza Raja Jaisingh who came with a powerful force was smarter than Shaista Khan sent earlier by Aurangzeb. Mirzaji laid siege to Purandar alongwith a systematic loot and destruction of rural Maharashtra.

The Brave Deed of Murar Baji
When Raja Jai Singh and his general Diler Khan laid siege to the Fort of Purandar. Murar Baji was the Maratha Fort Commandant at Purandar. To break the morale of the Maratha troops, Diler Khan launched a viscious attack on the fort and laid waste the surrounding countryside. The Mughals succeeded in forcing their way into the outer defenses of Purandar.

But the Marathas were not easily intimidated, they withdrew to the inner fort (bali-killa) and kept on their attack on the besieging Mughals. One day, Murar Baji decided to rain hell on the enemy and the Marathas stormed out of the fort and fell upon the Mughals who were occupying the outer fort. In face of the Maratha attack, the Mughals broke ranks and fled to their main camp in the plains below, where Diler Khan was camping.

Seeing the ferocity of the Maratha attack, Diler Khan, decided to tempt Murar Baji with an offer of making him a general in the Mughal army if he betrayed Shivaji. When news of this offer reached Murar Baji, in the midst of the battle, his rage knew no bounds, and in a rash act he pushed into the ranks of the Mughal troops, hacking right, left and center towards Diler Khan and shouted at him that he would reply Diler's offer by cutting off his head and taking it to Shivaji Maharaj.

Murar Baji had left his own troops behind and was now surrounded by Mughal troops on all sides, but he could only see Diler, whose head he wanted. This act was brave but rash and cost Murar Baji his life. Their leader dead, the Marathas withdrew into the fort. The news of this battle and the passing away of Murar Baji and the long drawn siege along with the destruction of the countryside forced Shivaji to reach out for a compromise with Jai Singh in the interests of the sufferring population of Maharashtra.

The Treaty of Purandar
The treaty of Purandar signed between Mirza Raja Jai Singh and Shivaji Maharaj had among many conditions, one condition that Shivaji accompany Mirzaji to Agra. Shivaji decided to go to Agra in 1666.

Shivaji's Visit to Aurangzeb at Agra

At Agra, when Shivaji presented himself at the Moghul court, Aurangzeb deliberately insulted him by making him stand behind a lesser noble whom Shivaji has once defeated in battle. This was a calculated humiliation that Aurang had arranged for Shivaji. As a result Shivaji left the court in a huff. This gave Aurangzeb an excuse to declare Shivaji of having committed the offence of insulting the Mughal court.

Imprisonment of Shivaji

Aurangzeb detained Shivaji in Mirza Raja Jai Singh's house where Shivaji had put up. Shivaji seems to have read Aurangzeb's mind of having him put to death. Aurag had made plans to shift Shivaji into the proper Mughal dungeons.

Shivaji's Escape from Aurang's Clutches

Shivaji struck upon an idea and said that he wanted to make peace with God by sending fruit and sweetmeats to Brahmins and holy men. To this Aurangzeb consented. One fine day Shivaji and his son Sambhaji hid himself in two of the sizable baskets in which fruits and sweetmeats had been packed everyday and made good their escape from Aurnag's custody. In doing this Shivaji must have had in mind what had happened to his general Netaji Palkar who after being captured by the Mughals had been forced to embrace Islam and change his name to Quli Mohammed Khan. Netaji was forced to serve as a Mughal soldier in Afghanistan, till he too made good his escape and returned to Shivaji to reconvert to Hinduism and join the forces of Swaraja once again. Others were not so lucky, they were made to convert to Islam and some others were simly tortured to death - as was to happen later with Shivaji's son Shambhu Raje or Sambhaji, ater Shivaji's death.

Coronation of Shivaji as Chattrapati

After returning to the deccan, Shivaji again raised an army and recaptured all the forts that he had been made to surrender to the Mughals as per the treaty of Purandar. In this phase we see the exploits of his brave general Tanaji Malusare who perished while recapturing the invincible fort of Kondana from Uday Bhan - the renegade Rajput who was the Mughal commandant of the fort. After all the forts had been recaptured, Shivaji was pursuaded by Gaga Bhatt (a brahmin from Benaras) and his mother the ageing Jijabai to formally crown himself as the king of the Marathas. The coronation took place at Raigad on the 6th of June 1674.


Shivaji Maharaj's Seal. Shivaji Maharaj was the first Hindu King to ascend a throne after a long time. During the Dark Days of Muslim Tyranny, Shivaji Maharaj was one of the very few (along with the Ranas of Mewad), to issue his own coinage. Shivaji's coinage was in Sanskrit. The coins were in two main denominations, the Shivrai made of copper was a lower denomination coin and the Hon was a gold coin of a higher denomination. To erase the memory of Shivaji Maharaj, Aurangzeb issued an order after the passing away of Shivaji Maharaj that all Hons were to be imponded and melted. That Aurang did not succeed in erazing Shivaji Maharaj's illustruous personality from our memory is another matter

A "Nazarana" - The Daughter-in-law of the Muslim Subahdar of Kalyan

During the days after the coronation, many Maratha generals presented Nazaranas (tribute in kind) to the newly anointed King of Maharashtra. It was then a practice of the Muslims to abduct any fair maiden and to force her into the harem as a concubine. (A harem is a term for the living quarters of abducted women, nominally treated as wives.) On one such occasion, following the "illustrious" example set by the Muslim aggressors, a Maratha Sardar also (general) abducted a daughter-in-law of the Muslim Subahadar of Kalyan, near Mumbai (Kalyan was then under Mughal occupation).

This Sardar presented this "Nazarana" to Shivaji Maharaj, expecting to be patted on the back for such a "fair" tribute. Shivaji Maharaj's reaction at this occasion, gives us an insight into the mind of the person who lived 300 years before us. Shivaji not only chided the general, but warned him and all the other Maratha generals that such a heinous offence would henceforth attract a penalty of the offender's hands being chopped off. The dazed general was asked by Shivaji to return with full honours, the daughter-in-law of the Muslim Subahadar of Kalyan.

The Maratha ballads (Povadas) that describe this event say that on hearing Shivaji's dialogue in Marathi the teenaged girl is said to have exclaimed "Ya Allah, yeh aadmi nahin farishta hai. Ees farishtey pe kamyaabi bahal karna." ("O Lord, this is not an ordinary man but an angel. Bestow success on this angel.") The Maratha balladeers, while narrating this event say that "Asseech amuchi aai asatee,sundar roopavati; amhi hee sundar zhalo asato - vadaley Chattrapati" ("If my mother had been as beautiful, I too would have been as beautiful - exclaimed Chattrapati"). These dialogues might as well be a later romanticization of what actually happened. But it proves a point - Shivaji Maharaj had risen above the attitudes of religious bigotry, and beastly behaviour that had come to typify the Indian ruling class under Muslim rule.

Karnataka and Tamil Nadu Campaigns of Shivaji
After this Shivaji launched his campaign in Karnatak, which took him up to Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu. The period from 1674 up his passing away in 1680 was a relatively peaceful period, as the Mughal made no more attempts to molest the Marathas. Only after the passing away of Shivaji Maharaj did Aurang again dared to venture into Maharashtra, and then too he did not entrust the task to any general. He came himself in 1682 and stayed on in the deccan till his death in 1707.

The Marathas After Shivaji Maharaj - Sambhaji
After the passing away of their illustrious leader, the marathas fell into relative disarray. Shivaji's eldest son Sambhaji did not prove adequate to the responsibility of preserving the flame of independence to which his father had given the initial spark. Sambhaji was extremely fearless and brave. Maratha chronicles (Bakhars) refer to him as in fact more assertive and independent than his father. But in addition to all this Sambhaji also had vices like wine and women. In his eventful life, Shivaji Maharaj did not seem to have had enough time to groom his successor. Sambhaji's temper had a short fuse. During Shivaji's life-time itself, he had once quarreled with his father and had gone over to join the Mughals as one of their Mansabdars. Subsequently, he realized his folly and came back to his father and repented. But this act of his deeply hurt his father nad also displayed his chimerical nature for which he was to pay later with a painful death.

Sambhaji's Assassination

Sambhaji did not falter in battling the Mughals, as well as the Portuguese. In those days Aurnagzeb had come over to the Deccan. After subjugating the Bijapur and Golkonda kingdoms, he turned his attention on the Marathas. He carried on a ceaseless campaign against the Marathas. Sambhaji performed many daring acts in this guerrilla campaign especially in the Konkan region. But in spite of his bravery, his short temper and his vices went against him. One night, when he was passing thru Sangmeshwar with a small band of bodygaurds, he was waylaid by the Mughals and was brought in chains before Aurangzeb.

On being presented to Aurabgzeb, Sambhaji was asked to surrender all his forts, accept Islam and enter the service of the Mughal Emperor. To this affront, Sambhaji scronfully replied that he could consider this if Aurangzeb gave him his daughter in marriage and proclaimed him as the successor to the Mughal throne! On hearing this Aurang flew into a rage and decided to torture Sambhaji to death. Sambhaji's eyes were gouged, his tongue was cut off, followed by his arms and legs. Sambhaji died an inhuman death, but till the agonizing end he never recanted his faith.

Rajaram, Tarabai and Shahu
After Sambhaji's assassination, his step-brother Rajaram became the king. He was not especially brave and is said to have been physically weak. During his time Aurangzeb besieged and captured Raigad. Instead of fighting the enemy, Rajaram fled from Raigad when the fort was about to be besieged. Raigad fell into the hands of the Mughals in 1689 when a renegade Maratha called Suryaji Pisal betrayed the defences of the fort to the besieging Mughals. During the capture of Raigad, Sambhaji' wife Yesubai and his son Shahu were taken captive by the Mughals. Rajaram's life as Chattrapati was spent mostly in fleeing from the Mughal armies. Nevertheless during his times, the generals like Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav carried out a whirlwind guerrilla campaign to harras the Mughal army and never let Aurangzeb rest in one place. Thus in spite of his presence in the Deccan for more than 25 years from 1680 to 1707, Aurang could not subsume the flame of independence lit by Shivaji Maharaj

Aurang's Death in 1707
When Aurang died in 1707, his son Azamshah who was with him at his deathbed, proclaimed himself the Mughal Emperor and prepared to battle his elder brother Muaazam, who was then in Kabul. To ensure that the Marathas came over to his side, Azamshah released Shahu who was till then held as a prisoner by the Mughals. Shahu had been a prisoner for 18 years from 1689 up to 1707. When Shahu staked his claim to the throne, Tarabi was ruling. A battle between the two was inevitable. This battle fought at Khed went in favour of Shahu and he became the Chattrapati. He was incidentally the last de facto Chattrapati of the Marathas.



The Spread of the Maratha Empire.
The Marathas rose to the status of Imperial Rulers of India. Their rise from freedom fighters for swarajya to the rulers of Marathi Daulat (Empire) took place from 1720 to 1761 and lasted till 1803 when they were supplanted by the British.

The Peshwas - Baji Rao, Balaji Baji Rao, Madhav Rao

As we saw above, after Shahu, the de facto executive power passed into the hands of the hereditary Prime Ministers the Peshwas. Balaji Viawanath Bhatt was succeeded by his son Baji Rao the first. Baji Rao was a very able and ambitious soldier and he was the one who consolidated Maratha power in North India.

history and the fissiparous tendencies he let loose ultimately let to the downfall of the Maratha empire.

His first mistake was to go back on the agreement between his grandfather Balaji Viswanath Bhatt and Kanhoji Angre according to which the Peshwa was to have no direct control over the Maratha Navy. He attacked the his own navy and weakened one arm of the Maratha might.

During his rule, North India was invaded by Ahmed Shah Abdali first in 1756. Balaji Baji Rao then sent his brother Raghunath Rao along with Malharrao Holkar to defeat Abdali. Raghunath rao not only defeated Abdali but chased him up to the Khyber pass till Attock in Paktoonistan. .

This success of Raghunath Rao aroused the jealousy of Balaji Baji Rao's wife Gopikabai, who started conspiring against Raghunath Rao to undermine his influence. This led to corresponding jealousy from Anandibai who was Ragunath Rao's wife. The unfortunate fallout of this court intrigue ws to end in the disastrous 3rd battle of Panipat in 1761.Let us see the event that led to this catastrophe at Panipat.

The Persian Invasion of 1740 by Nadir Shah

Some 80 years after Shivaji when the Mughal Empire had been weakened by repeated Maratha attacks, the Afghan raider Ahmed Shah Durrani (Abdali) invaded North India. As the Mughals were past their prime and were now living at the mercy of the Marathas, they did not dare oppose Ahmed Shah. The task of challenging him was left to the Marathas. The Marathas who then were on their ascendancy in North India had since the first Persian-Afghan invasion by Nadir Shah, the king of Persia in 1740, established themselves as a dominant power in Northern India. The 20 years from 1740 to 1760 saw a see-saw battle between the Afghans and the Marathas for the domination of North India.

With the defeat of Mohammed Shah, the Moghul Emperor in 1740 by Nadir Shah (in whose army Ahmed Shah Abdali was a general), the Mughal power steadily declined and its place was usurped by the Rohillas who were led by an ambitious and ruthless chieftain named Najib Khan. Najib's ambition was to supplant the Moghal Emperor and crown himself as the ruler of India by capturing Delhi.

The Marathas Liberate Punjab

But the growing power of the Marathas in their northward expansion, stood between Najib and his ambition. To overcome the Marathas, in 1755, Najib invited Ahmed Shah Abdali from Afghanistan to help him in defeating the Marathas and crown himself the ruler of India. In this, he was thwarted by the Marathas who decisively defeated the Rohillas and Afghans near Delhi in 1756. The defeat was so decisive that Najib Khan surrendered to the Marathas and became their prisoner. The Maratha forces were led by Shrimant Raghunath Rao and Malhar Rao Holkar.

After defeating the Afghan-Rohilla forces, the Marathas pursued the Afghans into the Punjab and beyond up to the Khyber pass. The last frontier of the Marathas was at Attock in today's NWFP (or Paktoonistan) on the Afghan border. (This campaign of the Marathas led by Shrimant Raghunath Rao is called as Raghu's Bharari - i.e. whirlwind campaign.

Thus after nearly 800 after the last Punjabi King Tirlochan Pal Shahi had been defeated by Mahmud of Ghazni in 1020 C.E. did that part of India come under Indian rule in 1756 due to the liberation of Punjab by the Marathas.
Meanwhile with machinations and trickery, Najib Khan won over Malhar Rao Holkar and secured his release. On his release Najib started to undermine the Marathas once again and treacherously killed Dattaji Shinde (eldest brother of Mahadji Shinde). Najib continued to battle the Shindes in 1757-58 and with his newly found confidence again invited Ahmed Shah Abdali to invade India.

PANIPAT - A Result of Court Intrigues at Pune

The court intrigues at Shaniwarwada in Pune between Gopikabai (Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao's wife) and Anandibai (Raghunath Rao's wife) led to the sidetracking of Raghunath Rao in favour of the Peshwas cousin, Sadashiv Rao Bhau (along with Viswas Rao the Peshwa's son and successor) as the Supreme commander of the Maratha forces that were to give battle to Abdali a second time. It was unfortunate for the Marathas, that due to rivalries, a successful commander like Raghunath Rao was bypassed in favour of another general.

The 3rd Battle of Panipat

When Abdali launched his second invasion in 1759 the Marathas who after their successes in 1756 had been hibernating in Maharashtra and Central India again woke up and in alliance with the Jat King Suraj Mal of Bharatpur formed an alliance. This alliance led by Shrimant Sadshiv Rao Bhau and Shrimant Vishwas Rao (the Peshwa Shrimant Balaji Baji Rao's son) won spectacular victories and captured Delhi and Kunjapura (where the Afghan treasury and armoury was located). Here the alliance developed cracks due to the Maratha insistence on not allowing the Jats to loot Delhi. This ultimately split the alliance and Suraj Mal withdrew from the alliance. The Marathas consequently marched upto Panipat, but instead of continuing their attacks to completely defeat the partly defeated Abdali and Najib Khan, they stayed put at Panipat, blocking the way of the Afghans back to Afghanistan. Seeing their way back to their homeland blocked, the Afghans now became restless. They in turn, decided to block the way of the Marathas back into the Deccan.

Stand-off for one year

This stand-off continued for one whole year from the 14th of January 1760 up to the 14th of January 1761. This led to the fall in the morale of the stranded Marathas and ultimatley led to their defeat at Panipat. The Marathi term "Sankrant Kosalali" meaing "Sankranth has befallen us" comes from this event. During this stand-off the Afghans cut-off all supplies to the huge Maratha army. The Afghans with Najib Khan meanwhile also recaptured Delhi and Kunjpura. On the decisive day of 14th January 1761 (Makar Sankranti), the Marathas decided to break-through the Afghan blockade and re-enter Deccan. The disastrous battle saw about one hundred thousand Maratha troops being slaughtered in a matter of eight hours. But the Afghans too suffered heavy losses and decided enough was enough and went back to Afghanistan never to return to India.

The defeat of the Marathas and the withdrawal of the Afghans created a power vacuum in North India in the period 1761-1790. It was this vacuum that was filled up by the rising British power. But more of this later.

The Story of Ajmal Kasab

Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab (13 September 1987 – 21 November 2012) was a Pakistani militant, who was a member of the Lashkar-e-Taiba Islamist group, through which he took part in the 2008 Mumbai attacks in India. Kasab was the only attacker captured alive by police. The government of Pakistan initially denied that Kasab was from Pakistan, but in January 2009, it officially accepted that he was a Pakistani citizen.
On 3 May 2010, an Indian court convicted him of murder, waging war on India, possessing explosives, and other charges. On 6 May 2010, the same trial court sentenced him to death on four counts and to a life sentence on five other counts. Kasab was sentenced to death for attacking Mumbai and killing 166 people on 26 November 2008 along with nine other terrorists. He was found guilty of 80 offences, including waging war against the nation, which is punishable by the death penalty. Kasab's death sentence was upheld by the Bombay High Court on 21 February 2011. The verdict was upheld by the Supreme Court of India on 29 August 2012. He was hanged on 21 November 2012 at 7:30 a.m. and buried at the Yerwada Jail in Pune.

Background

Kasab was born in Faridkot village in the Okara District of Punjab, Pakistan, to Amir Shahban Kasab and Noor Illahi. His father is a dahi puri vendorwhile his elder brother, Afzal, works as a labourer in Lahore. His elder sister, Rukaiyya Husain, is married and still lives in the village. A younger sister, Suraiyya, and brother, Munir, live in Faridkot with their parents.The family belongs to the Qassab community.
According to reports, the village of Faridkot is quite impoverished and isolated, despite being close to a larger town, Depalpur, Pakistan. On the side of a building, just outside Faridkot, graffiti in large lettering says, in Urdu, "Go for jihad. Go for jihad. Markaz Dawat ul-Irshad". 'Markaz Dawat ul-Irshad' is a parent organisation of Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Early life

Kasab briefly joined his brother in Lahore and then returned to Faridkot.He left home after a fight with his father in 2005. He had asked for new clothes on Eid, but his father could not provide them, which made him angry. He then became involved in petty crime with his friend Muzaffar Lal Khan, soon moving on to armed robbery. On 21 December 2007, Eid al-Adha, they were in Rawalpindi trying to buy weapons when they encountered members of Jama'at-ud-Da'wah, the political wing of Lashkar-e-Taiba, distributing pamphlets. After a brief chat, they decided to sign up for training with the Lashkar-e-Taiba, ending up at their base camp, Markaz Taiba.
Initial reports offered a conflicting view of Kasab as fluent in English, and from a middle-class background. However, an interrogator and deputy commissioner of the Mumbai Police stated that he spoke rough Hindi and barely any English.
Some sourcessaid his father asked him to join Lashkar-e-Taiba so that he could use the money they gave him to run the family.When asked about this, Kasab's father told reporters, "I don't sell my sons.."
Villagers of Okara claimed on camera that he was at their village six months before the Mumbai attack. They said that he asked his mother to bless him as he was going for Jihad, and claimed that he demonstrated his wrestling skills to a few village boys that day.

Training

Ajmal Kasab is alleged to be among a group of 24 men who received training in marine warfare at a remote camp in mountainous Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir in Pakistan. Part of the training is reported to have taken place on the Mangla Dam reservoir.
Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, a senior commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, reportedly offered to pay his family Rs.150,000 for his participation in the attacks.Another report said the 23-year-old was recruited from his home, in part, based on a pledge by recruiters to pay Rs.100,000 to his family when he became a martyr. Other sources put the reward to US $4,000.

Stages of training

This batch of 26 went through the following stages of training:

• Psychological: Indoctrination to Islamist propaganda, including compiled footage of Indian atrocities in Jammu & Kashmir,and imagery of atrocities suffered by Muslims in India, Chechnya, Palestine and across the globe.
• Basic Combat: Lashkar's basic combat training and terror methodology course, the Daura Aam.
• Advanced Training: Selected to undergo advanced combat training at a camp near Mansehra, a course the organisation calls the Daura Khaas. According to a unnamed source at the US Defense Department This includes advanced weapons and explosives training supervised by retired personnel of the Pakistan Army, along with survival training and further indoctrination.
• Commando Training: Finally, an even smaller group selected for specialised commando tactics training and marine navigation training given to the Fedayeen unit selected in order to target Mumbai.

From the batch of 25, 10 were handpicked for the Mumbai mission. They also received training in swimming and sailing, besides the use of high-end weapons and explosives under the supervision of LeT commanders. According to a media report citing an unnamed former Defence Department Official of the US, the intelligence agencies of the US had determined that former officers from Pakistan's Army and Inter-Services Intelligence agency assisted actively and continuously in training. They were given blueprints of all the four targets – Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, Oberoi Trident hotel and Nariman House.

Involvement in 2008 Mumbai attacks

Kasab was captured on CCTV during his attacks at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus along with another terrorist, Ismail Khan. Kasab reportedly told the police that they wanted to replicate the Islamabad Marriott hotel attack, and reduce the Taj Hotel to rubble, replicating the 9/11 attacks in India.
Kasab and his accomplice Abu Dera Ismail Khan, then aged 25, attacked the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) railway station. They then moved on to attack a police vehicle (a white Toyota Qualis) at Cama Hospital, in which senior Mumbai police officers (Maharashtra ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar and Additional Commissioner of Mumbai Police Ashok Kamte) were travelling. After killing them in a gun battle and taking two constables hostagein the Qualis, Kasab and Ismail Khan drove towards Metro cinema. Kasab joked about the bulletproof vests worn by the police and killed one constable when his mobile phone rang. They fired some shots into a crowd gathered at Metro Cinema. They then drove towards Vidhan Bhavan where they fired a few more shots. Their vehicle had a tire puncture, so they stole a silver Škoda Laura and drove towards Girgaum Chowpatty.
Earlier, the D B Marg police had got a message from police control at about 10 pm, saying that two heavily armed men were at large after gunning down commuters at CST. 15 policemen from D B Marg were sent to Chowpatty where they set up a double barricade on Marine Drive armed with two self-loading rifles (SLRs), two revolvers and lathis (batons).
The Škoda reached Chowpatty and halted 40 to 50 feet from the barricade. It then reversed and tried to make a U-turn. A shootout ensued and Ismail Khan was killed. Kasab lay motionless playing dead. Assistant sub-inspector Tukaram Omble, who was armed only with a lathi, was killed when the police charged the car.Omble took five bullets, but held on to Kasab's weapon, enabling his colleagues to capture him alive. A mob gathered and attacked the two terrorists. This incident was captured on video.
Some reports said that Ajmal Kasab was shot and had bullet wounds in his hand or both hands. There are other reports by doctors who treated him that he had no bullet wounds.
While it is reported that he told the police that he was trained to "kill to the last breath", when he was arrested, he pleaded with the medical staff: "I do not want to die. Put me on saline". Later, after interrogation in the hospital by the police, he said: "Now, I do not want to live", requesting the interrogators to kill him for the safety of his family in Pakistan who could be killed or tortured for his surrender to Indian police. Fidayeen suicide squad terrorists are strictly instructed by Lashkar commanders not to be captured and interrogated, use aliases instead of their real names and hide their nationality. He is also quoted as saying "I have done right, I have no regrets". Reports also surfaced that the group planned to escape safely after the attack, ruling out this being a suicide mission.
Kasab has told interrogators that right through the fighting, the Lashkar headquarters from Karachi, Pakistan, remained in touch with the group, calling their phones through a voice-over-internet service. Investigators have succeeded in reconstructing the group's journey through the Garmin GPS set that has been seized from him. The mail sent from a bogus group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen claiming responsibility has been traced to a Russian proxy which was then traced back to Lahore with the help of the FBI. It was in fact the Lashkar-e-Taiba operating under an alternate name after being banned by U.S.

Nationality

After the attacks, India asserted that Kasab is a Pakistani national based on his confession and other evidences gathered from him. Several reporters visited Kasab's village and verified the facts provided by him.Former Pakistan Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif confirmed that Kasab was from Faridkot village in Pakistan, and criticised President Zardari for cordoning off the village and not allowing his parents to meet anyone.
Investigative journalist Saeed Shah travelled to Kasab's village and produced national identity card numbers of his parents; soon after they themselves disappeared on the night of 3 December 2008.
Also, the Mumbai Police said that much of the information that Kasab provided had proved to be accurate. He disclosed the location of a fishing trawler, MV Kuber, that the terrorists used to enter Mumbai's coastal waters. He also told investigators where they would find the ship captain's body, a satellite phone and a global-positioning device, which they did.
Despite mounting evidence, Pakistani officials, including President Asif Ali Zardari, initially denied the assertion that Ajmal Kasab was Pakistani.Pakistani government officials attempted to erase evidence that there was a Lashkar-e-Taiba office in Deepalpur. The office was hurriedly closed in the week of 7 December. Moreover, at Faridkot many residents and local plainclothes police appeared to be trying to cover up Kasab's connection with the village. The atmosphere turned hostile, and several reporters who went to Faridkot were intimidated.In early December, dealing a major blow to Pakistan's claims, Kasab's father admitted in an interview that the captured terrorist was his son.
In January 2009, Pakistan's national security advisor Mahmud Ali Durrani admitted to Kasab being a Pakistani citizen while speaking to the CNN-IBN news channel. The Pakistan Government then hastily acknowledged that Ajmal Kasab was a Pakistani, but also announced that Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani had fired Durrani for "failing to take Gilani and other stakeholders into confidence" before making this information public, and for "a lack of coordination on matters of national security."

Police interrogation

Naming confusion

On 6 December 2008, The Hindu reported that the police officers who interrogated him did not speak his language, Urdu, and misinterpreted his caste origin "kasai", meaning butcher, to be a surname, writing it as "Kasav".
The Times of India reported a different version of the error. The paper stated that the police officers correctly understood that Ajmal Kasab does not have a surname. In order to satisfy an administrative requirement that people have surnames, the officers 'used the "Indian way"' by asking Kasab for his father's profession, and decided to use this word, "butcher", or "Kasab" in Urdu, as his surname.
Various officials made minor corrections they thought were needed to the Latin alphabet spelling. Eventually, native Hindi and Punjabi speaking police officers talked to Kasab and discovered the error. The Hindu refers to him as either "Mohammad Ajmal Amir, son of Mohammad Amir Iman" or "Mohammad Ajmal Amir 'Kasab'".

Confessions

Kasab was caught at Girgaum Chowpatty Naka in Mumbai trying to escape in a car and taken to the Nair hospital. According to preliminary investigations by intelligence agencies, Ajmal Kasab was from Faridkot in Pakistan (near Deepalpur, not to be confused with other towns of the same name in Pakistan and India)and had received arms training in Pakistan. Ammunition, a satellite phone and a layout plan of Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus was recovered from him. He provided many clues to the investigation agencies and reportedly described how they arrived at Mumbai from Karachi via Porbandar. He said that he and other terrorists had received revolvers, AK-47s, ammunition and dried fruit from their coordinator. Kasab reportedly told the police that they wanted to replicate the Marriott hotel attack in Islamabad, and reduce the Taj Hotel to rubble, replicating the 11 September attacks in US. Kasab also told Indian police that the terrorists targeted Nariman House, where the Chabad center was located, because it was frequented by Israelis, who were targeted to "avenge atrocities on Palestinians."
Mumbai Joint Police Commissioner of Crime Rakesh Maria said, information came out from his interview with Kasab that he is from the Faridkot village in the Okara district of Pakistan's Punjab province. He is the son of Mohammed Amir Kasab. Pakistani authorities repeatedly said there was no evidence of such a person in Pakistan. But reporters visited the village near Deepalpur, in Okara district, and identified the parents as named by Mumbai police. Villagers confirmed that he indeed lived there. On the night of 3 December 2008, the parents were whisked away by a bearded Mullah, and since then, there was evidence of a cover-up by plainclothes police. Villagers changed their stories, and reporters who visit there are now being intimidated.
It is reported that Kasab told the police that he and his associate, Ismail Khan, were the ones who shot Anti-Terror Squad chief Hemant Karkare, encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar and Additional Commissioner Ashok Kamte. According to the police, Kasab entered the Taj posing as a student from Mauritius and had stored explosives in one of the hotel's rooms.
In December 2009, Kasab retracted his confession in court, claiming he had come to Mumbai to act in Bollywood films and was arrested by the Mumbai police three days before the attacks.

Confessions on video

He repeatedly asked the interrogators to turn the camera off and warned them he would not speak otherwise. Nonetheless the following confessions were caught on video:
Kasab told the interrogators "it [Jihad] is about killing and getting killed and becoming famous." "Come, kill and die after a killing spree. By this one will become famous and will also make Allah proud," when police asked him what he understood about jihad.
According to the officer, Kasab spoke Pathani Hindi and told the police that he threw up the moment he saw all the blood and gore. "Kasab said that he could not bear the sight of dead bodies and after creating enough havoc wanted to go back to Pakistan," the officer said.
"We were told that our big brother India is so rich and we are dying of poverty and hunger. My father sells dahi wada on a stall in Lahore and we did not even get enough food to eat from his earnings. I was promised that once they knew that I was successful in my operation, they would give Rs.150,000 (around US$ 3,352), to my family," said Kasab.
He shocked police through his readiness to switch loyalties now that he was apprehended. "If you give me regular meals and money I will do the same for you that I did for them," he said.
"When we asked whether he knew any verses from the Quran that described jihad, Kasab said he did not," police said. "In fact he did not know much about Islam or its tenets," according to a police source.

Face to face with Abu Jundal

On 9 August 2012, Kasab was brought face-to-face with Abu Jundal, the handler of Mumbai attacks, at the Arthur Road jail where they identified each other. Kasab also admitted that Jundal had taught him Hindi.

Other reports

In a press conference, the Mumbai city police commissioner said "The person we have caught alive is certainly a Pakistani. They were all trained by ex-army officers, some for a year, some for more than a year". On 23 November they set sail from Karachi unarmed to be picked up by a larger vessel. They hijacked the Indian fishing trawler Kuber and set sail for Mumbai.
The Times reported on 3 December that Indian police were going to submit Kasab to a narco analysis test to definitively determine his nationality.
According to Daily News and Analysis, Kasab began reading the autobiography of India's non-violent leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in early March 2009, in response to gradual coaxing by prison guards

Legal issues

Several Indian lawyers refused to represent Kasab citing ethical concerns. A resolution was passed unanimously by the Bombay Metropolitan Magistrate Court's Bar Association, which has more than 1,000 members, saying that none of its members will defend any of the accused of the terror attacks.In December 2008, the Chief Justice of India K. G. Balakrishnan said that for a fair trial, Kasab needed to get a lawyer.
Kasab wrote to the Pakistani High Commission in India requesting help and legal aid. In the letter, he confirmed the nationality of himself and the nine slain terrorists as Pakistani. He also asked the Pakistani High Commission to take custody of the body of fellow terrorist Ismail Khan, who was killed in an encounter in south Mumbai on 26 November 2008.Pakistani officials confirmed the receipt of the letter and were reported to be studying its details. However, no further updates were given on the matter by Pakistan.

Trial

His conviction was based on CCTV footage showing him striding across the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus with an AK-47 and a backpack. Towards the end of December 2008, Ujjwal Nikam was appointed as Public Prosecutor for trying Kasab and in January 2009 M. L. Tahiliyani was appointed the judge for the case. Indian investigators filed a 11,000 page Chargesheet against Kasab on 25 February 2009. Due to the fact that the chargesheet was written in Marathi and English, Kasab had requested that an Urdu translation of the charge sheet be given to him. He was charged with murder, conspiracy and waging war against India along with other crimes. His trial was originally scheduled to start on 15 April 2009 but was postponed as his lawyer, Anjali Waghmare was dismissed for a conflict of interest. It resumed on 17 April 2009 after Abbas Kazmi was assigned as his new defence counsel. On 20 April 2009, the prosecution submitted a list of charges against him, including the murder of 166 people. On 6 May 2009, Kasab pleaded not guilty to 86 charges. The same month he was identified by eyewitnesses who testified witnessing his actual arrival and him firing at the victims. Later the doctors who treated him also identified him. On 2 June 2009, Kasab told the judge he now also understood Marathi.
In June 2009, the special court issued non-bailable warrants against 22 absconding accused including Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafeez Saeed and chief of operations of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Zaki-ur-Rehman Laqvi. On 20 July 2009 Kasab retracted his non-guilty plea and pleaded guilty to all charges. On 18 December 2009, he retracted his guilty plea and claimed that he was framed and his confession was obtained by torture. Instead he claimed to have come to Mumbai 20 days before the attacks and was simply roaming at Juhu beach when police arrested him. The trial concluded on 31 March 2010 and on 3 May the verdict was pronounced — Kasab was found guilty of murder, conspiracy, and of waging war against India. On 6 May 2010, he was sentenced to the death penalty.
A Bombay High Court bench, composed of Justice Ranjanaa Desai and Justice Ranjit More, heard Kasab's appeal against the death penalty and upheld the sentence given by the trial court in their verdict on 21 February 2011. On 30 July 2011, Kasab moved to Supreme Court of India, challenging his conviction and sentence in the case. Thus, a bench composed of Justice Aftab Alam and Justice Chandramouli Kr. Prasad stayed the orders of the Bombay High Court so as to follow the due process of law, and started hearing the case.
On 29 August 2012, Kasab was found guilty of waging war and was sentenced to death by the Supreme Court of India.

Execution

Kasab's plea for clemency was rejected by President Pranab Mukherjee on 5 November 2012 On 7 November, Minister of Home Affairs Sushilkumar Shinde confirmed the President's rejection of the petition. The following day, the Maharashtra state government was formally notified and requested to take action. The date of 21 November was then fixed for the execution, and the Indian government faxed their decision to the Pakistani Foreign Office.
Kasab was formally informed of his execution on 12 November, after which he requested government officials to inform his mother. On the night of 18-19 November, a senior prison official at Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai read Kasab's death warrant to him, informing him at the same time that his petition for clemency had been rejected. Kasab was then asked to sign his death warrant, which he did. He was secretly transferred under heavy guard to Yerwada Jail in Pune, arriving in the early morning of 19 November. The death and funeral of nationalist politician Bal Thackeray also aided in diverting attention from Kasab.An officer at Arthur Road Jail stated anonymously "Throughout the journey from Mumbai to Pune, he did not cause any trouble. In fact ever since his appeal had been rejected by the Supreme Court, his attitude was that of resignation. He knew that his death was a foregone conclusion and it was a matter of time and did not even react much when we informed him that his mercy petition had been rejected by the President. Hence towards the end he did not emote much or display any remorse. He did not shed a single tear during the last few days.”
The Pune police were not informed of the execution and only the jail superintendent at Yerwada was made aware of Kasab's identity. During the day he was at Yerwada, Kasab was placed in a special cell and no other inmates were informed of his presence. It was only a few minutes before Kasab's execution that the executioner was informed whom he would be hanging. Although the executioner was not named, anonymous sources at Yerwada later told journalists the hangman was a central Maharashtrian Muslim who had been called in on 19 November to prepare for the execution; like the prison and police officers, he was placed under strict secrecy oaths. The same sources also said a team of around 10 police and government officials was present.
Though nervous in the final minutes before his execution, Kasab remained quiet and offered prayers. He was hanged on 21 November 2012 at 7:30, according to an announcement by Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde."Ajmal Kasab was hanged at 7:30 am. It took the Maharashtra government less than two weeks to hang Kasab after President Pranab Mukherjee rejected his mercy petition on November 5."Kasab neither made any last requests nor wrote a will. Despite earlier media reports to the contrary, Kasab did not struggle, plead for mercy or say any last words. “His eyes stayed downcast, and he didn’t say a word,” a police official present at the execution told The Hindu. "He didn’t shout or struggle, and the end came quickly. I’ve seen lots of colourful stories in the media today [on Wednesday] about his remembering his mother and praying for forgiveness. I wish they were true, because we Indians love a good tearjerker, but the fact is he didn’t say one single word. Frankly, I’m not sure if he fully understood exactly what was going on. It’s also possible he’d ceased to care.” He was pronounced dead by doctors after about 10 minutes; a Muslim cleric was in attendance to give him his last rites.
After the government contemplated burial at sea, a decision was finally made to bury Kasab in the compound of Yerwada Jail, Pune. Ansar Burney, a human rights activist in Pakistan, later indicated that he wanted to help repatriate Kasab's body to Pakistan citing humanitarian reasons.The Indian government has stated that it would consider a formal application if offered.Shinde later stated that his body was buried in India as Pakistan had reportedly refused to claim it.