In the course of sporadic uprising throughout the latter half of 1931, the Dogra army was busily employed in quelling the disturbances; the Kashmiris bared their breasts to the bayonets and guns of the army man. It was reported that not a single bullet had been found in the back of scores of dead bodies examined and post-mortem”.
At the suggestion of Khawaja Noor Shah, all the martyrs were buried in the compound of Ziarat Naqshbandi Sahib, Khanyar. As per Fida Hassnain, The soldiers arrested about 700 Muslims in the city. The next day the leaders of the Muslims, namely Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah, Chaudhary Ghulam Abbas, Moulvi Abdul Rahim, Sardar Gohar Rehman were arrested and Sheikh Sahib was locked in a solitary cell of the Hari Parbat Fort. As a protest against these atrocities, the whole valley of Kashmir observed Hartal for 19 days.
The Maharaja had failed to curb this upsurge and as such he decided to make changes in the administration. He appointed Pandit Hari Kishan Koul as the new Prime Minister of the State and issued orders for the release all political prisoners except Abdul Qadeer Khan Ghazi who was given five years rigorous imprisonment and later murdered in the jail only.
CLASHES BETWEEN PUNJABI KHATRIS AND MUSLIM : Some of the Muslim who had gone to Maharaja Bazar to get white clothes for shrouds for the martyrs, a Khatri trader allegedly passes some obscene and uncalled remarks for martyrs leading to clash between the two sides and according to, Khan, Freedom movement In Kashmir, pp.133, Kashmiri pandit made a common cause with the Khatri Hindus against their own Kashmiri Muslim and a fracas broke between Hindus and Muslim . On 14 August 1931, a call given by the All Indian Kashmir Committee. Ahrars voluntarily entered Kashmir and one Ellahi-Bakshi was killed by Dogra police at Kashmir border. His slogan was “Kashmir Chalo”. He was the first Muslim martyr from India to lay down his life for Kashmir.
THE PROPAGANDA THAT HINDUS WERE LOOTED AND MURDERED :
1) Let me quote Pandit politician and historian who rejected the communal nature of the movement, In his work: “Inside Kashmir” (1941), Prem Nath Bazaz writes:
“The driving force behind the mass agitation till the 13th July was the discontent among the rank and file of the Muslims. The attack on the jail was in no way directed against the Hindus, and those who laid down their lives at the jail gate did so fighting against an unsympathetic government… It was a fight of the tyrannized against their tyrants, of the oppressed against the oppressors”.
2)Let me quote another pandit, an authoritarian figure on Kashmir history By P.N.K. Bamzai, he states in his book, History of Kashmir, “It is from that date that the people took upon themselves the task of securing for themselves the right of democratic self-rule”
3)Gwashi Lall Koul, a journalist turned historian who wrote extensively during that period does not mention loot of pandit property in his book, Kashmir Then And Now
4)Koul was one among leaders of his pandit community, he claims to have been himself, a victim of mob fury, two days later but he does not refer to any loot or arson in his book, Kashmir then and now pp.101.
5)Pandit Jailal Kilam, a prominent leader of Hindu Yuyak Sabha and wrote a book, History of Kashmiri does not loot of pandit property or attack on Pandits.
6)Abdul Majid Zargar while questioning this 29-year-old sustained propaganda states,”Many books have been written by pandits between 1931 and 1947 but not a single one among them mentioned any large scale riot or killing on that day.
7)According to, Weekly Amar, August 31, 1931, Sutherland Prime minister of J.K Wakfield visited Vicharnag, where the report of alleged loot of pandits happened, Sutherland made a significant point that “Not a single pandit complained of being looted”
8)I too was wondering about this propaganda, it must be mentioned here that during this period, Pandit Hari Krishan Koul was the Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir and Pandit Sat Lal was magistrate of Srinagar city, whole Police Department was dominated by Pandits but still to this date they are not able to produce a single evidence regarding this propaganda . For the last 88 years, they haven’t disclosed the identities of a single person who has been killed or harmed. They haven’t produced a single document like FIR, Complaints etc. I have come to conclusion this is another feather to the propaganda list of few Pandit organization otherwise pro Kashmir Pandits never claimed this.
9) Galancy report suggested that the removal of Prime Minister of JK, Pandit Hari Krishan Koul as demanded by Muslim as genuine and Hari Singh removed him on the same day.
The inquiry commission: An inquiry commission under Barjor Dalal submitted a report on the riots of July 1931. Although Muslim leaders had already rejected because of its bias. Dalal termed Hindu leaders as Representatives but Muslim leaders as so-called representatives, he also termed banning of Friday as accidental, he didn’t entertain the plunder of Muslim shops, and much more. Barjor Dalal’s report of the Srinagar riot inquiry committee – 1931) concluded that the riots were the desired outcome of intrigues the British indulged in from 1847, but Maharaja Gulab Singh astutely overcame.
What Pandit say about this day :
a)P.N.K. Bamzai puts it, “It is from that date that the people took upon themselves the task of securing for themselves the right of democratic self-rule” ( P. N. K. Bamzai, Cultural and Political History of Kashmir, Vol. 3, p.732.)
b)Chitrilekha Zutshi, one of the modern researchers on the subject, while emphasizing the multi-causality of the incident had advised for not looking at the occurrence in a vacuum. To her, the incident was an outcome of the socio-economic and socio-political crisis in Kashmir. ( Zutshi, pp. 210-226.)
c)P.N.Bazaz, a contemporary freedom fighter and an eminent historian writes, “Historically and politically 13th July 1931 was the most important day in the annals of contemporary Kashmir. From this day the struggle for independence and freedom in the most modern sense started openly”(Bazaz, op. cit p. 147.)
Sheikh At the same time he cautioned the Kashmiri pundits about the danger for their unnecessary indulgence in anti-Muslim propaganda. (Hafiz M. Islamil, op. cit, Sept. 3, 1931, item 5.
All India Kashmir Committee:- Sir Mohammad Iqbal, called for an inquiry by the government of India into the incidents of 13 July, announced the observance of 14 August as ‘Kashmir Day80 and went so far as to suggest a review by the British parliament of the 1846 Amritsar Treaty. 80(Bazaz, Inside Kashmir, pp. 141-142.)
Meanwhile, All India Kashmir Committee had been formed on 25th July 1931 at Lahore by Amir of Jamait-i-Ahmadity, Mirza Bashir-ud-din Mohammad Ahmed with himself as the President and Maulvi Abdul Rahim Dard as its Secretary. The objective of the committee was to give moral and material support to the Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir.
Majlis e Ahrar: According to Aaysha Jalal, Self, and Sovereignty. London and New York: Rutledge, ‘’At the same time, Kashmir began to emerge as the center of politics of yet another Punjab based group known as the Majlis-i-Ahrar-i-Islam’’. Led among others by Syed Atta-Ullah Shah Bukhari, the Ahrars were composed of Anti-British urban Muslims and reformist members of the Ulema with links to the Indian National Congress. While Jammu’s Muslim cultivators had welcomed the Ahrarjathas, the Ahmadiyas and Shaikh Abdullah were locked into their own mutually supportive alliance
TRUCE Agreement: on16th August,1931 ,temporary truce was made by the government and ten representatives of the people.Hari Singh organized the visit of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and Tej Bahadur Sapru. They tried to dissuade Muslims of Kashmir about their struggle, campaigned in the valley and asked people to cooperate with the Maharaja’s government. And through the intervention of a liberal Muslim politician from British India Meher shah, an agreement was achieved between Muslim leaders of Kashmir and the government. The agreement is known as a Temporary truce. When terms of this truce were announced to people in Jama Masjid on August 28, 1931, they were very angry and the truce ended as the public was poised to take the struggle to its logical end and get rid of the occupational ruler.
Memorandum to Maharaja: According to, Saraf, Mohammed Yusuf, op.cit., p.401.; Saxena, H.L., op.cit., p.226, Saraf documented that initial draft of the Memorandum of the Muslims, in the meanwhile, was apparently prepared by Ghulam Ahmad Ashai. But as Saxena points out, the Muslim Reading Room Party had requested Dr. Mohammad Alam of Lahore, who was then in Kashmir, to prepare a memorial on their behalf and later, it was sent to Lahore for approval of the All-India Kashmir Committee. Later, it was brought to Srinagar by Abdul Rahim, who had gone to Lahore with Dr.Alam.
Shiekh Abbdullah Arrested :21 Sept. 1931: Governor summoned Shawl Sahib, Ghulam Ahmad Ashai and Molvi Hamdani for an urgent meeting and within hours Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah was arrested near Lal Mandi and his residence at Mirza Bagh was searched by forces.
Narch Paltan movement by Mirwaiz Yusuf and Meerak Shah Kashani: Narchoo is a long spear, sometimes with a five progs of blades, used for fishing, „Paltan means battalion.
Mirwaiz Yusuf Shah on whom the mantle of leadership had fallen after the arrest of Sheikh Abdullah, proclaimed a Jihad against the “Hindu Raj”. Mirwaiz apparently gave two choices to Maharaja either use democratic ways to settle the issues or declare open war on Kashmiri Muslim and call upon his nation to be ready for any state-led barbarism. Hence, there was a mass protest on the same day, i.e. 24th Sept., which was a show of strength of the Kashmiri Muslims against the monarchy. It was known as Narchu or Narichh demonstration. All the able-bodied Muslims occupied with spear, axes, lances and even a few matchlock guns and a paltan was organized, which, thus, was called Narchupaltan. This rural-urban combined demonstration was countered by Maharaja with great tact and sense. On one side, he engaged the leaders to hold talks with his representative Nawab Khusro Jang and on the other hand, prevailed upon his army and police to remain in barracks on the day. Great critic of Maharaja, Md. Yusuf Saraf appreciates this restrained action of Maharaja as any counter-attack by army could have left hundreds in pools of blood.20 (source: Singh, K. Brahma, op.cit., p.113.; Kaul, Ashok, op.cit., p.82; Singh, K. Brahma, op.cit., p.113;Singh, K. Brahma, op.cit., p.113.). According to famous folklorist Eng. Jalal-Ud-Din Shah, ‘’it was first to display of resistance by Mirwaiz Yousuf Shah .’’ Although this movement was abandoned as quickly as it came under heavy criticism of civil society. Civil society called it Nasti-Khan Harkat, as it would have ended to wide range bloodshed.
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT IN JAMMU BY ALLAH RAKHA SAGAR :
The entry of these Ahrars into the State territory had thus shifted the scene of the resistance from Srinagar to Jammu. On October 30, 1931, Allah Rakha Saghar, calling himself as the first „Dictator of the „Anjuman-e-Sarfaroshan gave an ultimatum to the State Government to accept all their demands within 24 hours.
On 1st November 1931, Saghar started a „Civil Disobedience Movement and started defying the law of the State by leading a band of 30 volunteers who carried prescribed copies of the Inquilab ( newspaper) in a procession and sold them in public, while shouting most offensive slogans against the Maharaja, the State administration and Hindus (the elite Hindu administration), while Allah Rakha Saghar, as the „Dictator, delivered short speeches at street corners at frequent intervals, in the course of which he declared that the power of the Dogra House had been broken and that its funeral had been held. On this day again, no arrests were made. ( Saxena, H.L., op.cit., p.239). The number of persons in custody in Satwari, Udhampur, and Mirpur had reached by November 6th, a figure of some 7,000.
Dissolving committee of Enquiry presided by Dalal and appointing retired Sessions Judge, Punjab, to inquire into and report on causes of any disturbances which occurred after events covered by first Srinagar Riots Enquiry Committee and measures adopted for suppression thereof. ( Telegram from the Resident, Kashmir No. 122-C, dated 9th Nov; 1931.)
DALLAL COMMISSION: Commission of inquiry appointed soon after the occurrence, i.e. on 14th July 1931, the Maharajas Government appointed a Commission of Inquiry, consisting of Sir Barjor Dalal as Chairman, and two judges of the High Court, Mr. B.R. Sawhney and Mr. Abdul Qaiyum, as official members, and two non-official members, one a Muslim and the other a Hindu. Later, the number of non-official members was raised to four, two from each of the Hindu and Muslim Communities, one each from the Jammu and Kashmir province. But, the non-official Muslim member appointed on the Enquiry Commission, named Khwaja Saad-ud-Din Shawl, submitted his resignation from the Committee on 19th July, 1931. When the Maharaja appointed Khwaja Ghulam Ahmad Ashai in his place, he too tendered his resignation, thus, defeating the spirit of enquiry.
PANDIT RAGHUNATH MATOO ORDERED SUPPRESSION OF MUSLIM PROTESTORS : According to Javid Mukhdoomi ,Chronicling Kashmir, Greater Newspaper Srinagar, Publish Date: Oct 27 2016 .’’On25 Sept.1931,protests continued unabated in Islamabad. Raghunath Matoo, Magistrate on duty, ordered forces to resort to firing in which nearly eighteen protestors were killed. In the evening imposition of Martial Law was declared.
Other incidents which he chronicled, happened on 22 Sept.1931, there was a huge public outburst near Jamia Masjid, Srinagar followed by heavy stone pelting. Maharajas forces responded by resorting to firing in which three young protestors viz Assad r/o Narparistan, Hassan Mir R/o Chinkral Mohalla and Rasool Hagroo R/o Drugjan fell to the bullets.(Ibid)
MIDDLETON COMMISSION: At the same time i.e. on 7th November, Ordinance was promulgated which gave Punjab Government power to deal with Jathas in their territory and so, prevent ingress. Thus, by 10th November, Maharaja was ready to fulfill the long pending wish of the Britishers by suggesting the name of L. Middleton, ICS, Punjab, who had requisite judicial experience and advantage of the previous acquaintance of Kashmir to enquire into the alleged excesses by state forces and police during September. In his press communiqué dated 10th November 1931, Maharaja, therefore, dissolved the committee, under Sir Barjar Dalal that was appointed by the Maharaja order dated 19th October 1931. As it was expected, Middletons services were made available to the Government immediately. So, on 12th Nov 1931, the Maharaja formally dissolved the Dalal Committee and stated that the inquiry would be conducted by an impartial Officer, possessing necessary judicial experience.
Hence, Bestrand J. Glancy, a British Officer who had served in the state in different capacities was appointed the Chairman of the Commission on the same day, the Maharaja ordered the institution of a constitutional Reforms Conference to examine the feasibility of political reforms in the state. The Government also announced that the services of Middleton, District and Session Judge, Rawalpindi, had been lent( Telegram addressed to Resident, Srinagar, repeated Pol. India, Delhi and Middletown, Rawalpindi, From the Chief Secretary to the Government of Punjab, No. 15267-S.B., dated the 11th Nov. 1931.; Telegram from Resident in Kashmir, No.F.02-C/31, dated the 12th Nov 1931; Confidential: From the Resident in Kashmir, No.F.R.C. 30, dated the 17th Nov. 1931, Report for the first half of Nov. 1931)
MIDDLETON COMMISSION BLAMED PANDIT HARI KRISHAN KOUL : –
By the end, Maharaja after getting jittery due to large-scale unrest started the search for an experienced administrator. He handpicked Pandit Raja Hari Krishan Koul and made him a minister and later on elevated him to the post of Prime Minister. Kashmiri Pandits celebrated this appointment but Muslims were suspicious. In spite of cunning maneuvers, Raja Hari Krishan Koul could not retrieve the situation. Meanwhile, Mr. L. Middleton, who had started the business of recording the evidence of the witnesses on 15th November 1931, and had concluded its job on 24th December 1931, submitted his report to the Maharaja in January 1932.
He held the state administration responsible for having used the excessive force in suppressing the September 1931 riots, thus, giving a new dimension to the Muslim agitation. The report condemned the state administration for its action. This report proved to be an icing on the cake for the Britishers. (Suri, Sat Prakash, op.cit., p.16.
94 D.No. 78-PC/32, Confidential: letters from the Resident in Kashmir, No.F-9-C-20, dated Feb 2, 1932, Report for the Second-half of January 1932.)
Glancy Commission: Abdullah’s popularity had grown to such Proportions that the British were worried about the effect events in Kashmir might have on the communal situation in India, especially in Punjab. (MriduRai, Hindu Rulers Muslim Subjects, New Delhi: Permanent Black 2003, p.270.)
Consequently, they put pressure on the durbar to form a body that would look into and remedy the more obvious Muslims grievances. Thus, it was on 20 October 1931, that Maharaja announced the appointment of a commission of inquiry headed by Bertrand J. Glancy, to inquire into the grievances and to make such recommendations as it deemed necessary. The Commission was presided over by Mr. B.J. Glancy of the Indian Political Department, he included two Muslim and two Hindu leaders in his investigating team, but Within one month of its constitution, both the Hindu Members were asked by their respective communities to resign from the Commission. But P.N. Bazaz refused to resign. Instead, he continued to participate in the deliberations of the commission against the wishes of his community for which he incurred great displeasure and opposition, whereas, Lok Nath Sharma, had left for Jammu on 14th December to attempt to find some via media regarding the issues before Glancy Commission. But, when the first session of the Commission was held at Ajaib Gharh, a complete hartal was observed by the Hindus of Jammu. Soon after, Lok Nath Sharma also resigned and on 12th January 1932, a formal boycott of the Glancy Commission was declared and had Mr. P.N. Bazaz, G.A. Ashai, and Chowdary Ghulam Abbas as its members. Mr.Lok Nath who was nominated as a member from Jammu did not remain a member for any length of time and resigned. In the report submitted later his name does not appear at all. The reason assigned for the withdrawal of the Jammu members being, that the Commission found itself unable to exclude from the scope of inquiry questions relating to the Hindu Law of Inheritance. The Commission submitted its report on 22nd March 1932. Commission appointed under the Orders of His Highness, The Maharaja Bahadur, dated the 12th Nov. 1931, to inquire into the Grievances and Complaints (Unpublished Report)
Prem Nath Bazaz: Apart from the single point of disapproval ( Eidgah to Muslim), Bazaz accepted the general proposals of the Glancy Commission as they related to Kashmiri Muslims, thereby incurring the wrath of the Sanatan Dharma Youngmens Association Apart from the single point of disapproval, Bazaz accepted the general proposals of the Glancy Commission as they related to Kashmiri Muslims, thereby incurring the wrath of the Sanatan Dharma Youngmens Association.
Actually, Pandits were furious because the commission had chosen to completely ignore the 141-page document of their demands. ( Source: Khan, G.H., op.cit., p.189.; Letter from the Resident in Kashmir, No. F.9-C/30, date the 17th December 1931, Report for the first half of December 1931, Confidential: 1. No. 545-PC/31.; Khan, G.H. op.cit., p.189).
According to Anwar Ashai, Prem Nath Bazaz was allegedly attacked by cadres of Sanathan Dharm Youngmens Association at his Kawadara Residence, so he had to run for his life and finally took refuge in Khatri colony, Abiguzar. (source: Personal Interview with Anwar Ashai )
THE ROTI (BREAD AGITATION), MAY 1932 :
The Roti Agitation was a natural outcome of the disappointment caused among the Pandits by the publication of the Glancy Commission Report. They deplored the report with regard to the lowering of educational qualifications for Government services in favor of Muslim subjects. They were perplexed by the fact that, „the Muslim majority had, after all, asserted itself even under Hindu rule.(The Ranbir (Weekly), Jammu, May 30, 1932, p.8.)
They had become apprehensive that the commission had deprived them of their means of livelihood and hence cried, „Our bread is being snatched, Their agitation, came to be known as the Roti Agitation. This was formally started in May 1932 by the Kashmiri Pandit Yuvak Sabha, which was founded in 1928 in Srinagar. It was organized by the educated young Pandits, both employed and unemployed. ( Bazaz, P.N; Inside Kashmir, op.cit., p.213., Also The Statesman, (Calcutta) May 21, 1932, and May 24, 1932.)
BAL SABHA AGITATION : The Bal Sabha, an association of the young schoolboys of tender age, was organized with a view to furthering the agitation at a time when the Roti Agitation had become almost defunct. The Bal Sabha organized meetings and took out processions. (Khan, G.H., op.cit., Lahore, p.191.)
ALL JAMMU AND KASHMIR MUSLIM CONFERENCE :
According to, Chowdhry Gulam Abbas, Kashmukash, p. 118, Carrying forward his political advantage and capitalizing the recommendations of the Glancy Commission, Muslim leadership set about giving their demands an organizational shape. Accordingly, consultations were made with Jammu leaders and the leaders of the Kashmir committee who assured full cooperation in this regard. To give a practical shape to the idea a committee was set up which drafted a constitution of the proposed organization anddecided to name it All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference.The All India Kashmir Committee dispatched Moulana Abdullah Rahim Dard, MolviIsmail Ghaznavi, SayyedHabib Shah, Editor Daily Siyasat and Mir Zahur Ahmad to Srinagar to assist Sheikh in making necessary arrangements. Financial assistance was also made available along with a car to facilitate the moment of workers. ( M. Y.Saraf Kashmir’s Fight for Freedom Vol. I, P. 482.; Taseer, op. cit., Vol. I, p. 246.
; Alfazl, Qadian Oct. 25, 1932. ). In October 1932, the Muslim leadership called a general convention of the Muslims of the state. On 15th October 1932, the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference were formed. Sheikh Abdullah was unanimously elected its first president. The inaugural session of the Conference was held on 14,15 and 16 October 1932, at the historic Pathar Masjid Srinagar under the presidentship of Shaikh Mohammad Abdullah.
Sheikh Abdul Majid, advocate, was elected as, its deputy President, while Ch. Ghulam Abbas became the General Secretary and Maulvi Sheikh Abdullah Vakil was appointed its Secretary. The committee consisting of Saad-u-din Shawl, Ch. Ghulam Abbas, Kh. Gulam Ahmad Ashai, Aga SayyidHussain, Jalali Sahib, Maulvi Sheikh Abdullah Vakil, PirHisad-ud-din, Kh. Gulam Ahmad Bhatt, Mian Ahmad Yar, Maulvi Mohammad Hussain, Munshi Abdul Aziz and Abdul MajidQureshi, made arrangements for the Conference and drafted a constitution and also adopted a party flag similar to that of the All India Muslim League. The flag hoisting ceremony was performed by Walli-Ullah-Jani-ud-Abidin, a representative of All India Kashmir committee, on 17th October 1932. ( Abdullah, Sheikh, Atish-I-Chinar, op.cit., p.160; Fazili, Manzoor, op.cit., p.47; Saraf, Mohammed Yusuf, op.cit., p.483.).
Dr. Eshraf Zainulabideen can be reached at zainlala69@gmail.com
