Undoing the damage done to Indian History-Part 7 by Aniruddha Avanipal

Dahir's final sacrifice
Mohammed Bin Qasem marched towards Bait fort which was under direct supervision of Jaisimha and Fufi, both sons of King Dahir. At a safe distance Mohammedan forces started digging entrenchment and deposited their heavy baggage there. Rasil, who was in charge of the river-guard group under Dahir, had been captured by Muslim marauders and under brutal torture made to call himself a Muslim. He was forced to help and show direction for Qasem's Muslim gangsters.

From Bait, Qasem started marching towards Rawer. He halted at Jaipur on the way and massacred the whole city in the usual Islamic style. Many of the Hindu temples there were turned into mosques overnight, male residents were slaughtered and women were abducted.

King Dahir had built a lake between Rawer and Jaipur. A selected group of Marine guides was deployed on the bridge by Dahir to patrol the area and send military intelligence on enemy movements. Dahir himself was at Kajijat on the other side of the lake. Under the neo-convert Rasil's guidance, Qasem's Muslim gangsters crossed the river three at a time. Meanwhile Qasem was advised to march the main body of his troops to other side of Kijjat and attack the city of Hindabadi. With Qasem's arrival, Hindabadi witnessed mass-rape, destruction and mayhem.

Mohammed Qasem divided his force of Muslim marauders into two main parts. One group was stationed at Jaipur on the bank of the Wadhawa river. The other group of Muslims took positions in Hindabadi. In between was King Dahir at Kajijat. All the strategic routes were being constantly menaced by Qasem's lawless troops to whom no act of rapine or treachery was too mean to penetrate.

At that point, Shashishekhar, another minister of Dahir's court, became jittery and suggested to Dahir that Indian force should go for a peace agreement with Mohammed Qasem's troop. Dahir, the very monument of courage, reminded him that the kings and ministers were privileged persons during peace time only because they were supposed to be ever ready to fight the enemy who pose a threat to the country, its culture and its religion.

Dahir's exact words were, "It is a disgrace that you talk of suing for peace. And what a peace could it be when the enemy wants to rape your women, sell you as slaves, destroy your homes, use your temples as mosques and obliterate Hinduism by converting you to Islam." The panicky minister was shamed into silence by Dahir's brave words.

It was the month of June, 712 AD. King Dahir, a great son of Mother India, was preparing for his final battle with the Islamic highway robbers of Mohammed Qasem's force. He sent his minor dependants to Rawer fort with enough food and water and himself encamped a few miles away from Qasem's troops. The battle raged for five days. Contingent after contingent of Qasem's and Dahir's forces met in a fierce hand-to-hand combat.

In his invasion, Mohammed Bin Qasem stooped to use terrorized women (a very usual trick used by Mohammedan army) in an attempt to mislead and demoralize Hindu forces. Arab chronicler Al Biladuri writes, "When the army of Islam made the attack, and a lot of the infidels were slain, a noise arose from the left and Dahir thought it came from his own forces. He cried out, 'Come heither, I am here'. The women then raised their voices and said 'Oh, King we are your women who have fallen into the hands of the Arabs and are captives.' Dahir said, 'I live as yet, who captured you ?' So saying he urged his elephant against the Muslim army. Mohammed Qasem told the naphtha throwers that the opportunity was theirs, and one of the Muslim marauders shot the naphtha arrow into Dahir's howdah and set it on fire."

Dahir's imperial bodyguards converged around him to save him from the shower of enemy arrows, spears and the onslaught of the Muslim gangsters. With the fire put out, the mahout brought the royal elephant under control and once again charged into enemy. Dahir ordered a horse to be brought alongside and climbing down from the howdah entered the thick of the fray charging fiercely into Muslim ranks. Surrounded by Arab gangsters on all sides and isolated from his bodyguards, Dahir fought very bravely taking a heavy toll of the enemy.

Overcome with bleeding and exhaustion, Dahir ultimately fell on the battle-field with his skull cleft by brutal swipes of Muslim marauders. It was about sunset when this glorious son of India sacrificed his life on the sacred banks of Indus river for saving the integrity of his motherland.

Aniruddha Avanipal
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