History of freedom fighters in India has recorded scores of instances of unequal battles that became inevitable when imperialist forces came out with their quest for acquiring territories through the use of brute force, destroying the sovereignty and freedom of free people and bringing in the process a holocaust to the lives of innumerable men, women and children. It is a battle between the evil designs of expansionism and the powerful instinct of self-presentation. Tribals have resisted the British authority and other exploiters. For many centuries, tribals were isolated, scattered in forests. Each tribe has established its own socio cultural diversity. They launched movements against the British authority in their respective regions. Their agitations against the outsiders could be called anti-colonial. They revolted against them because of their exploitation in the form of encroachment on their land, eviction from their land, annulment of the traditional legal and social rights and customs, against enhancement of rent, for transfer of land to the tiller, abolition of feudal and semi-feudal form of ownership. On the whole, these movements had social and religious overtone. But they were directed against the issues related to their existence. Tribal Resistance Movement was an integral part of Freedom movement of India. In this historic struggle, the heroic role played by many distinguished tribal leaders like Birsa Munda, Rani Gaidinliu, Laxman Naik, and Veer Surendra Sai and many others.
1. SHAHEED VEER NARAYAN SINGH (1795–1857)
Veer Narayan Singh was a landlord from Sonakhan, Chhattisgarh. He spearheaded the 1857 war of Indian independence in Chhattisgarh. Pride of Sonakhan, Chattisgarh, Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh looted trader’s grain stock and distributed them amongst poor after the 1856 famine. He was then arrested by the British, but managed to escape the prison with the help of other prisoners and reached Sonakhan. As it was with people across the country, the people of Sonakhan had joined the revolt of 1857 against the British. Veer Narayan Singh formed an army of just 500 men and rose up against the British army, which was led by Deputy Commissioner Smith. After hours of fighting, Veer Narayan Singh was again arrested and was sentenced to death on charges of sedition. The sacrifice of Veer Narayan Singh made him a tribal leader and he became the first martyr from Chhattisgarh in the independence struggle of 1857. Government of Chhattisgarh named a cricket stadium Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium after him.
2. BIRSA MUNDA (1875-1900)
Birsa Munda was a young freedom fighter and a tribal leader, whose spirit of activism in the late nineteenth century, is remembered to be a strong mark of protest against British rule in India. Born and raised in the tribal belt around Bihar and Jharkhand, Birsa Munda’s achievements are known to be even more remarkable by virtue of the fact that he came to acquire them before he was 25. In recognition of his impact on the nationals movement, the state of Jharkhand was created on his birth anniversary in 2000. Though he lived a short span of life and the fact that the movement died out soon after his death. Though he died at the age of 25, he is still remembered as a freedom fighter, religious leader and folk hero. He believed in the importance of cultural roots and influenced people to understand the importance of land and the rights that they possess with the land. He soon realized the intention of the British was to loot their lands and push the people into the deep pit of poverty and bonded labour. He fought against the forceful seizure of land and raised a rebellion against the British and the middlemen. Under his leadership, many protests took place making his vision into a revolution. Bisra started a movement called ‘Ulgulan’, or ‘The Great Tumult’. His struggle against the exploitation and discrimination against tribals led to a big hit against the British government in the form of the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act being passed in 1908. The act restricted the passing on of land from the tribal people to non-tribals. He was arrested and passed away in prison on June 9, 1900. Birsa Munda is known to have mobilised the tribal community against the British and had also forced the colonial officials to introduce laws protecting the land rights of the tribals.
3. SHRI. ALLURI SEETHA RAM RAJU (1897-1924)
A brave son of Andhra Pradesh, Alluri Seetha Ram Raju sacrificed his life in the freedom struggle against the British. In the tribal areas, the villagers were exploited by Britishers, as they lacked knowledge and were powerless. Sri Alluri Seetarama became the voice and strength to them. He united various tribes, taught them guerrilla warfare and trained them to fight back with the colonial power. He was one of the bravest revolutionaries and freedom fighters. He was born on 4th July 1897 to Alluri Venkata Rama Raju and Suryanarayanamma. He remains an idol for the tribesmen of Andhra Pradesh.
When the British government passed the Forest Act, 1882 (that banned the villagers from practicing their traditional agricultural system of shifting cultivation, forcing them to raise particular types of crops). Alluri Seetarama initiated the famous “Rampa Rebellion” or Manyam Rebellion in 1922-1924. During the period of two years, he fought multiple times with the British troops, always winning against them. This gave him the title of “Manyam Veerudu” or the “Hero of Jungle”. The Britishers were focused on capturing and defeating him. He was captured by the British deployed Assam rifle battalion. In the year 1986, the Indian Postal Department issued a stamp on his behalf, featuring his struggle for Independence.
4. RANI GAIDINLIU (1915-1993)
Gaidinliu was born on January 26, 1915, in present-day Tamenglong district of Manipur and died in 1993. The Naga spiritual and political leader, who led an armed uprising against the British in Manipur, Nagaland and Assam, belonged to the Rongmei tribe (also known as Kabui). In 1927, at the age of 13, Gaidinliu, along with her cousin Haipou Jadonang, joined the Heraka movement, which aimed at revival of the Naga tribal religion and establish self-rule of the Nagas (Naga Raj) ending the British rule. She was arrested in 1932 when she was just 16, and was sentenced to life imprisonment by the British rulers. Between 1932 and 1947, the Naga freedom fighter was kept at several prisons across the Northeast. After being released in 1947 she continued to work for the betterment of the community. Nehru described Gaidinliu as the “daughter of the hills” and he gave her the title of ‘Rani’ for her courage. She was also awarded a Padma Bhushan. The state government has developed a park along with a statue to honour the late freedom fighter in Silchar, Assam. The Government of India issued a postal stamp in her honour in 1996, and commemorative coin in 2015.
5. SIDHU AND KANHU MURMU
Sidhu Murmu and Kanhu Murmu were the leaders of the Santhal rebellion (1855–1856), the rebellion in present-day Jharkhand and Bengal (Purulia and Bankura)in eastern India against both the British colonial authority and the corrupt zamindari system. Brothers and tribal freedom fighters Sidhu Murmu and Kanhu Murmu fought with their bows and arrows against the British in the Santhal Revolt of 1855. The revolt was organized against the Zamindars and British who auctioned away large tracts of land belonging to the Santhals, resulting in loss of land and mass exploitation.
The Murmu Bothers led a movement of liberation which turned into a full-fledged war between the Santhals and East India Company’s army. Almost 20,000 Santhals were killed in the rebellion as they stood no chance against the weapons used by the company. Sidhu and Kanhu fought till their last breath and in the end succumbed to their injuries. Although the revolution was suppressed, it marked a great change in the colonial rule and policy. The day is still celebrated among the Santhal community.
CONCLUSION
The tribes of India since time immemorial have been engaged in protecting their land and culture from the outsiders including powerful rulers like the British. Their potential, strength and energy for holding their fort till the last person is alive had always been a matter of great inspiration for common man and activists. Interestingly, the spirit of their revolutionary action has not shown any marked signs of abatement in independent India. It is because of these movements that the Indian state today recognises the rights of tribal to live and manage forests. Tribals have time and again resisted the exploitation of natural resources by the nexus of money-lenders, bureaucrats, politicians and corporate honchos. In recent times, the transnational corporate companies are invited by the state to take control over the mineral rich landmass in the tribal areas. Uncontrolled infiltration in the tribal domain by the national and multinational corporations aided and abetted by the state machinery without any commensurate wergild provided to the ‘sons of the soil’ have led to their marginalization. A feeling of lack of empowerment and lack of effective governance, compounded with appalling poverty has given rise to belligerence amongst tribal population in India. It is also a major cause of the rise of Maoist influence in the hilly regions domesticated by the tribals. It appears that when the government and its machinery fail to protect the tribals, they are forced to take up arms against their exploiters. The instances of tribal movement therefore remain a source of inspiration for all those who are exploited and marginalised.As such in A& N islands an important attempt was made by the tribals (Great Andamanese) occurredon1859 fought between the Andamanese and the British and that is known as Battle of Aberdeen which will be elaborated some time later for publication.
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