Dhar (guerrilla warfare)

Dhar or Dhad is a militia, often engaging in guerrilla warfare tactics, used in Indian history. It was used by several castes and ethnic groups throughout history.[1]

History

Dhars during Medieval era

Different North Indian communities would organize resistance against aggressors throughout the Indian medieval age.

The Jats of Sindh and Multan would offer resistance against Mahmud of Ghazni, harassing and inflicting many casualties on his loot-laden army on their march back to Ghazni. Mahmud would regroup, confront and defeat the Jats.[2]

The famous Rajput king, Maharana Pratap of the Kingdom of Mewar, engaged in guerrilla warfare against the Mughals. His tactics would later influence Malik Ambar and the Marathas.[3]

Historically, Khaps would raise militias to secure their own interests, often pushing for autonomy and threatening revolt if their demands were not met. During the reign of Akbar, the Mughal government would grant many concessions to prominent Jat Khaps in exchange for their support of the new tax reforms.[4] During the reign of Aurangzeb, discriminatory policies against Hindus would push the Jats to revolt under the leadership of Gokula Jat.[5] However, the revolt was quickly crushed. Rajaram would reorganize the Jats and lead another revolt, avoiding direct battles with larger Mughal forces and focusing on swift, surprise attacks.[6] Rajaram's revolt would also be put down, but it paved the way for the Bharatpur State.

Dhars during Partition Violence

During the Partition of India, Hindu dhars armed themselves and targeted local Muslims. In Mewat and its environs, Hindus of many different castes actively targeted the Muslim Meos.[1] The forces of different princely states, such as Alwar and Bharatpur, would also incite and support rioting Hindus in expelling Muslims from their state.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Wilkinson, Steven (2005). Religious Politics and Communal Violence. Oxford University Press. p. 77. ISBN 9780195672374. In the 1947 riots the leadership of the dhars was in the hands of Thakur Dhruv Singh of Pathena... He joined hands with Bacchu Singh and his military and they took the Hindu dhar to Mewat and killed people there... The Brahman-Baniya residents, who were well off, felt threatened by the Muslim Meos. The Jats went at their invitation and they looked after the food and drink of the Jats. The dhars had weapons like the lathi, vallam [spear], talvar [sword] and pharsa [axe]... The Meos began to leave in bhadon. No one stopped them.
  2. ^ Baumer, Christoph (30 May 2016). The History of Central Asia: The Age of Islam and the Mongols. Bloomsbury. pp. 207–208. ISBN 978-1838609399. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2020. In 1026, warriors of the Jats, the indigenous population of Sindh, inflicted heavy losses on Mahmud's army when he retreated from Somnath to Multan. Mahmud returned a year later to take revenge on the Jats, who had been stubbornly resisting forced Islamisation since the eighth century. As the contemporary writer Gardizi reports, Mahmud had 1,400 boats built; each boat was to carry 20 archers and be equipped with special projectiles that could be filled with naphtha. Mahmud's fleet sailed down the Jhelum and then the Indus, until it met the Jat fleet. Although the Jats had far more boats than Mahmud, their fleet was set ablaze and destroyed.
  3. ^ Chandra, Satish (1983). "Medieval India". National Council for Educational Training and Research. p. 153. Archived from the original on 11 April 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2021. Rana Pratap's defiance of the mighty Mughal empire, almost alone and unaided by the other Rajput states, constitute a glorious saga of Rajput valour and the spirit of self sacrifice for cherished principles. Rana Pratap's methods of guerrilla warfare was later elaborated further by Malik Ambar, the Deccani general, and by Shivaji.
  4. ^ Richards, John F. (1993). The Mughal Empire - Part 1 Volume 5. Cambridge University Press. pp. 89–90. ISBN 9780521566032. When state power at Delhi faltered, the allied clan council raised a large militia to mount a defense against banditry. When the Delhi regime was strong, the clan council met to insist on recognition of the legitimate autonomy of the clan councils and to protest excessive and discriminatory taxation... If relief were not forthcoming, the Jat clans and their allies mustered their militia and threatened outright revolt... Akbar made several concessions to the local clans of the upper Doab region... The [Khap] councils were to carry on as before without interference. Imposts that the Jats had resisted for centuries were to be waived. In return, however, the clan councils accepted the new revenue system... They asked for local agency in collection, but did not quarrel with its implementation.
  5. ^ Dwivedi, Girish Chandra (2003). The Jats: Their Role in the Mughal Empire. Originals. ISBN 978-81-88629-11-4.
  6. ^ Sarkar, Jadunath (1934). Fall of the Mughal Empire: 1789-1803. Calcutta: Sarkar & Sons.
  7. ^ Tuker, Francis (1950). While Memory Serves. Cassell. p. 337. Towards the end of July there was an evacuation of Muslims from Bharatpur State into Alwar State and Gurgoan district. This was caused by the Bharatpur state troops harassing Muslims, setting their houses on fire and, it was reported, shooting them at sight. Refugees crossed a river dividing the two States... About half an hour later Bharatpur troops crossed the river and attacked the refugee camp, inflicting 150 casualties... On the 5th August the large village of Tijara, containing a considerable Mussalman population, was visited by a Minister of Alwar State and a jail official, both related to the ruler of Alwar, accompanied by other State officials. They set to work to incite the Hindus of Tijara and the neighborhood against the Muslims.
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