Bacha Khan and Fakir of Ipi: Friends or foes?
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Pashtuns were at the forefront in the struggle of Indian independence. While the majority, including Fakir of Ipi, fought with arms and ammunition, Bacha Khan led an impressive non-violent movement.
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Thread.
Pashtuns were at the forefront in the struggle of Indian independence. While the majority, including Fakir of Ipi, fought with arms and ammunition, Bacha Khan led an impressive non-violent movement.
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While it may appear to have been a simpler situation where each one of them pursued a different path to a common destination (before the partition of India) but in reality their paths would cross and would bring them against each other -- not one but a couple of times.
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Bacha Khan started off as a social reformer but soon got actively involved in resisting colonialism, joined mainstream politics, became leader of Congress & continued to do politics of non-violent resistance under the Congress party until the party gave up on him in 1947.
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Mirza Ali Khan (aka Fakir of Ipi) was from a family of religious background from Waziristan who continued to hold on to the celebrated tradition of violent resistance by Muslim holy men to the British colonialism.
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Mirza Ali Khan's rise to prominence was his involvement in the affair of Noor Ali Shah's marriage with a Hindu girl of Bannu who converted to Islam.
Read this thread for details on the story.
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Read this thread for details on the story.
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This was the time when the popular sentiment, in the Pashtun belt at least, was that the British were supporting the Hindus (and Sikhs) against the Muslims. Mirza Ali Khan's Jihad against the British quickly grew in impact and influence and so did the size of his Lashkar.
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Imp. to remember the communal violence at Kohat where the Muslim population believed that the British had sided with the Hindus against them.
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Demolition of Shaheed Ganj Mosque at Lahore was another event that reinforced the Muslims' & Pashtuns' view that British, Hindus & Sikhs were together against them. Restoration of this mosque to Muslims was one of the three demands Fakir of Ipi had made to the British.
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While Bacha Khan remained committed to the secular politics of Congress and of United India, and this costed him support in the tribal Pashtun belt the foremost.
To name a few, Haji Turangzai & his sons, Faqir of Alingar, Ghulam Nabi Chaknawari supported Mirza Khan.
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To name a few, Haji Turangzai & his sons, Faqir of Alingar, Ghulam Nabi Chaknawari supported Mirza Khan.
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The guerrilla warfare that Mirza Ali Khan adopted included raids on British convoys and settlements where he would take away the much needed ammunition, weapons and other items. Mirza Ali Khan is said to have issued Fatwa to kidnap as many Hindus to avenge the forcible
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restoration to Hindus of Islam Bibi --owing to the prevalent feeling among the tribal Pashtuns that the non-Mulsim commercial elite in the Pashtuns area were working with the British. So looting and kidnapping Hindus and their businesses became a routine in those areas.
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Imp. to remember that there were large populations of non-Muslims on the border between the settled and tribal belt. For example, Bannu had a population of about 40 thousand of whom only about 10 thousands were Muslims. And it was easier for the tribes to carry out such raids.
Then there was this famous Bannu raid in 1938 where 00s of Ipi's followers had taken control of the city without any resistance by the British or their forces. This raid made int'l headlines much to the embarrassment of the British & Congress govt of NWFP under Dr. Khan sahib.
The Lashkar looted 00s of rupees, killed several people, set fire to the shops and fire joy shots when they left.
Bacha Khan had asked and invited Gandhi to a 'healing' tour in the backdrop of all these violent and communal events. They also went to Bannu & D. I. Khan.
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Bacha Khan had asked and invited Gandhi to a 'healing' tour in the backdrop of all these violent and communal events. They also went to Bannu & D. I. Khan.
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At Bannu, Gandhi and Bacha Khan met all the grieving families whose relatives were either killed or kidnapped, and those who had fell victim to the raids. They tried to console them.
Gandhi even asked Dr. Khan sahib to resign if his govt couldn't protect these people.
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Gandhi even asked Dr. Khan sahib to resign if his govt couldn't protect these people.
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On the other hand, Dr. Khan sahib never uttered a single word against Mirza Ali Khan, none even after the Bannu Raid.
Dr. Khan actually criticized the British policy and their violence against the tribesmen , especially of Waziristan. Here is one of his speech at Simla 1937.
Dr. Khan actually criticized the British policy and their violence against the tribesmen , especially of Waziristan. Here is one of his speech at Simla 1937.
This make matters more complex. Mukulika Banerjee quotes Janan Khalifa that Bacha Khan would not only keep contact with Mirza Ali Khan but at times would materially support him as well. Dr. Khan had the Red Shirts released once when they were arrested for such a help.
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Even though the Bacha Khan and Dr. Khan sahib sympathized with Mirza Ali Khan in one way or another, their politics, however, had suffered because of him.
The political vacuum in the NWFP was soon filled & exploited by the Muslim League that pursued a separate Muslim state.
The political vacuum in the NWFP was soon filled & exploited by the Muslim League that pursued a separate Muslim state.
Bacha Khan's commitment with congress for united India further deteriorated his politics in the NWFP. It became clearer to Nehru on his visit of NWFP in 1946 that there was no future for Congress or significant support for united India in NWFP.
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When it became clearer that partition of India is inevitable, Bacha Khan got really upset. He protested with Gandhi and the Congress Working Committee on June 3, 1947 and openly called their decision of partition a treachery to the Pashtuns & Khudai Khidmatgars/Red Shirts.
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It was in this meeting that the idea of 'Pathanistan' was floated whereas Congress and Bacha Khan wanted to include a third option in the soon-to-be-held referendum in NWFP. 2-3 weeks down the line, Mirza Ali Khan and others (including Bacha Khan?) passed the Bannu Resolution
which demanded that the third option of an independent 'Pathanistan' (later renamed to Pakhtunistan), be included but it was too late and there was not enough political support to include the 3rd option. The referendum was a one-party show.
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Congress deserted Bacha Khan at the very crucial time and Bacha Khan had no option but to ask for independent Pashtunistan -- half-heartedly though.
Mirza Ali Khan, on the other hand, pursued the idea with all intensity.
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Mirza Ali Khan, on the other hand, pursued the idea with all intensity.
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Bacha Khan soon took oath of allegiance to Pakistan in 1948 disregarding the Bannu Resolution and taking away the popular political support from what Mirza Ali Khan was now pursuing.
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Bacha Khan didn't stop at that. He denied any connection of Fakir of Ipi (Mirza Ali Khan) and termed that all such rumors were spread by the enemies - which in a way also means that he didn't wish to be associated with Mirza Ali Khan at all.
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The thread would continue.
However, what is presented so far in this thread is enough to give you an idea that even though the methods of these two Pashtun stalwarts were different but it did took a toll on the politics and goals of both them. They kind of defeated each other.
However, what is presented so far in this thread is enough to give you an idea that even though the methods of these two Pashtun stalwarts were different but it did took a toll on the politics and goals of both them. They kind of defeated each other.
