During British Raj, the communist party was affiliated to the Communist International that was under the control of Communist Party of Great Britain. Direct link with Moscow was not allowed.
The general impression regarding the communists of that time was expressed through a saying, when it rains in Moscow the lalbhais open their umbrellas in Mumbai.
Before 1948, the communists aligned with the Razakars in Hyderabad. It was said in Warangal and Nalgonda that the Razakars rule by day and the Communists at night. After the Operation Polo, the communists quickly adapted to the reality, became turncoats and fought against Razakars.
During 1950-51, four communists (Ajoy Ghosh, Dange, Rajeswara Rao and Basava Punnaiah) travelled as stowaways on a Russian ship from Calcutta port to Moscow to meet Stalin. They had discussion with CPSU members Molotov, Suslov, Malenkov and later with Stalin.
These four leaders were brought to Moscow by political journalist Nikhil Chakravartty, the editor of Mainstream who planned the entire journey. His portrait is installed in the Press Council of India. President KR Narayanan had said that Nikhil used to visit China often when he was ambassador to China.
Stalin was glad to help a revolution in India, because if it succeeds, almost the world revolution has been won. Mao conquered Tibet with Russian help.
Stalin's death in 1953, Khrushchev becoming the premier in 1958, the Indo-China war and Sino-Soviet disagreement in 1964 are the main causes the split of party into three in the late 1960s. Khrushchev and CPSU leadership initially stood for a peaceful Sino-Indian settlement, but had gone for an all-out support to India’s stance, providing a list of traitors whose loyalties lay to China. The Mitrokhin Archives had profiled each and every Indian communist traitor.
Pro-China members led by EMS and Jyoti Basu formed the CPM. The extremists like Charu Majumdar formed CPI-ML endorsing Mao’s strategy of armed rebellion against the state. China’s chairman is our chairman! was the their slogan. His disciple, Kanu Sanyal, took a five member revolutionary team to China in 1968 to take up the guerrilla warfare training.
The Book Maoist Spring Thunder by Arun Mukherjee is an unusual account of the complexities of entire Naxalite movement, covering the two major epicentres - the Naxalbari region in Siliguri Sub-division of the Darjeeling District during 1967-68 and the more virulent later phase of 1969-72 affecting Kolkata and its suburbs.
The book presents a number of important documents that would be otherwise difficult to get, that include police records as well as eight interrogation reports for arrested leaders, which give valuable personal perspectives. See link.
The author was a police officer who was posted in Darjeeling as the District's Superintendent of Police in July 1965, and was active in suppressing the naxal movement. Naxalbari was rather an obscure part of this district. The book was published after several decades in 2007, but the documents were collected much earlier, but chose not to publish it while retribution from ex-Naxals was more likely.
When the United Front Government in alliance with communists was in power in WB, a group of tribal peasants, under the leadership of the local unit of the CPM with Kanu Sanyal and Jangal Santal as its head, too control of the area of 80 square miles of forests, tea plantations and agricultural land inhabited by a population of 42,000, the majority of whom are tribals: Santals, Oraos, Mundas and Rajbanshis.
The Chinese Cultural revolution, that began in May 1966, also had made strategies for the Chinese expansionism and imposition of One China policy by force. The Naxalbari uprising was promptly lauded by Peking Radio (front paw of Indian revolution) and the People's Daily (spring thunder over India). But it was soon suppressed by the United Front Government in WB through an unprecedented police mobilization.
The Chinese strategy in Naxalbari was to take control of Siliguri Chicken neck corridor
In the 1960s Kerala was a Hotbed of maoism, taking a very dangerous turn throughout the state. But was effectively handled by the then political leadership and police department. The naxals were kicked so hard that even today they never dare to setup bases in Kerala and TN (except tribal pockets in Wayand).
The police actions were so ruthless that Naxalites just found their business too much unprofitable. Every naxalite murder was investigated thoroughly and culprits brought to book. Most of them surrendered and started leading normal lives while the some who got a divine message that this is not the right time for armed struggle became overground workers (so called intellectuals), forming their own NGO's, transporting naxal literature, weapons and ammunition, waiting for an opportune time to launch their bloody revolution and impose their dictatorship.
During emergency, The DG(Crime) of that time, Jayaram Padikkal, recruited many youngsters from the campuses in Kerala, trained them and made them infiltrate the Naxalite movements and leaked out their plans in advance. There was a perfect coordination between the politicians and police. The then Home minister, Karunakaran, gave all support for the police dept. The police infiltration were so complete that Padikkal had once proudly declared that half of the naxalites today are my boys, ie police men.
Rajan Case in Kerala
This is the story of a student who toppled a Chief Minister. see link .
Rajan, a final year student of the Regional Engineering College (REC), was allegedly taken into custody by the police from the college hostel in March 1976. He has not been heard of since. It was generally believed that the RECs scattered all over the country spawned many of Mao’s extremists preaching ideology. The investigation related to extremist attack on Kayanna police station reached REC campus. At least six of the persons arrested answered to the name Rajan.
Jayaram Padikkal, and other officials allegedly responsible for the abduction and disappearance of Rajan, were placed under suspension and later arrested. Public furore had reached such a fevered pitch that when Padikkal was produced before a court to be remanded, he only escaped being lynched thanks to the strong-arm tactics employed by a tight security ring. Police officers like Pulikodan Narayanan, K Lakshamana had to face the flak of politicians for ruthlessly dealing with Naxalites.
The rebels within congress party saw in the incident an ideal weapon to hit out. Chief Minister Karunakaran, faced with large scale demonstrations all over the state, had to resign. Karunakaran was unseated again in 1995 in the ISRO spy ring case.
In Oct 2010, Lakshamana, at the age of 75, was sentenced to life imprisonment by the CBI Special Court for the killing of Naxal Varghese in the Thirunelli forest in Wayanad 40 years ago. Lakshamana was released from prison in 2013. In March 2017, the left front government told the HC that Varghese was a notorious criminal.
The rest of the Naxalite story is too well-known - open encouragement of vandalism, desecration of statues, attacks on schools, annihilation of class enemies in a most brutal and senseless manner using secret conspiratorial mercenaries. Later, true to their ideology of eliminating anyone opposing them, these naxals were fighting among themselves when some differences cropped up. The Naxalites killing each other was the inevitable spiral of blood-thirst, some of which were alleged to have been carried out at the behest of the top leaders. The punishment for traitors were swift and brutal.
Vatican Communism
The Second Vatican Council held from 1962 to 1965, allowed faithfuls all over the world to work among the poor and marginalised sections of people and to organise and empower them to fight against their class enemies. Before that, Holy Office had officially excommunicated communists from the Catholic Church. The action group movement soon spread to African and Asian countries. The liberation theologians all over the world have been using the revolutionary teaching methods propagated by the Brazilian educationist Paulo Frire.
The Russian spy agency KGB started collaborating with with Vatican. During 1960's and 70's Delhi, like any other capital of any other country, was a hub of international espionage. Most intelligence agencies of that era depended on human intelligence officers rather than satellite, internet and drones of today. The Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) of pakistan, a drug money laundering outfit, was funding espionage also.
There are speculations that KGB might have murdered Shastri by poisoning so that Nehru family can come back to power. Shastri met President Ayub Khan and signed a no-war declaration. He died the next day. The story put out by KGB that a Muslim cook with Lal Bahadur Sastri's entourage had poisoned him in Tashkent and escaped to Pakistan may be a cover-up for what KGB had done.
Rajiv was studying in Cambridge when he first met Antonia in 1965, when she was almost 19. The Pakistani national Tahir Jahangir, who was accompanying Rajiv when they met for the first time in the Greek restaurant she was working, described how mesmerized Rajiv was when he saw Her. She was groomed and presented in front of Rajiv by KGB, to hook him. She changed her name after marriage. Sonia is a Russian name and not Italian. She took Indian citizenship only after the death of Sanjay Gandhi and after 15 years of her marriage. The London tabloid reports of that time had variously suggested that Rajiv was constantly influenced by a couple of students of European origin and that at least one of those students was later absorbed by the Vatican's intelligence wing.
Sonia Gandhi had a great influence on Indira Gandhi. Indira loved Sanjay. After Sanjay Gandhi’s death, Indira was quite vulnerable and depended on Rajiv-Sonia for suggestions and support. It is written in "The red Saree" by Javier Moro, how Sonia gained confidence of the then PM and influenced her political decisions. The book was first published in October 2010 in Spanish as El Sari Rojo, but because of intense opposition from the congress sycophants the book was not released in India.
Meneka wanted to set her foot in politics, but was completely sidelined. Meneka started "Sanjay Vichar Manch" to take advantage of the situation in her favour. It didn’t go well with Indira, and she ordered her to get out of her house. Meneka then called the press, and stormed out with a 3 month old son!
Inspired by Liberation Theology, a Jesuit priest Peter D'Mello and two of his associates formed the Kashtakari Sanghatana in 1978 in the tribal belt of Dahanu region in district Thane. Ever since its inception, its leaders have been inciting the local Adivasis in the area to take a hostile stance against the forest officials dubbing them as intruders into the Adivasis domain and usurping their ancestral property. They have also been encouraging them to encroach upon more and more forest land which was owned by their ancestors and hence rightfully belonged to them and to put up stiff resistance. Thus, converting the Adivasis into a militant force. The Dahanu-Jawhar tribal belt in the district Thane has been a communist stronghold since 1945.
Both Peter and his girl friend Shiraz Bulsara taught at TISS from 2010 to 2013, converting students to the leftist ideologues. They were instrumental in drafting the Forest Rights Act, 2006. Peter served on sub-committees of NAC. He adopted the Hindu name Pradip Deshbhakt Prabhu in 1978.
Another Vatican spy agent in India was the late YS Reddy. In Andhra Pradesh, whenever Dr Channa Reddy becomes the CM, there will be communal riots in old Hyderabad city. This happened in 1978 and 1990. In 1989, YSR lost the CM post to the old war horse Chenna Reddy. YSR hailed from a family of goons in the violence prone Rayalseema where his gang had cultivated an era of fear and murder in Cuddapah. YSR imported truck loads of goondas and stoked communal tensions through October 1990. This was the spark that the MIM needed and full flow of communal riots followed until another Christian leader Janardhan Reddy was made the CM. Having created the riot in Old Hyderabad, the Owassies fled leaving the foot soldiers to face the law!
The Hyderabad riots were a cold blooded calculation of a factional warlord to gain power. The communal violence came to an abrupt end with the exit of Channa Reddy, and Janardan Reddy taking the oath as Chief Minister. Mr Veerendra Patil of Karnataka also lost his chair due to communal riots. In 1995, K Karunakaran had to step down as CM of Kerala following violent law and order problems and ISRO spy ring case engineered by AK Antony faction. The same set of riots happened in 2002 Gujarat and the media was quick to fan the flames of violence.
China's Tibetan occupation was with full support from Stalin, OSS, Roosevelt, Nehru-Menon and Desi communists. See below links
Playing with words suzerainty and sovereignty - Link
The book Himalayan Blunder - Link
How Communism baited Tibet - Link
Kashtakari Sanghatna and its activities
Wackiest-looking borders
Some countries’ borders look like they were drawn by a chicken? Such borders tell fascinating tales and are consequences of old geopolitical power games lingering tensions, meager supplies, closed-off communities, and even violence as side effects.
The borders of Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan that cross the Ferghana Valley in Central Asia look like they’ve been tossed together in a salad.
More than 99% of Namibian land border is a simple straight line, drawn with a scale and pencil in paper. The German occupiers wanted to connect wit another german colony in East Africa, via zambezi river. The result is the Congo pedicule DRC, the panhandle like, Namibia’s huge landing strip sticking out of its northeast corner.
The Wakhan Corridor in Afghanistan is very mountainous and isolated from the world. Its purpose was to cut off Tajikistan off, to keep Russia and Britain away. In the Imperial the Great Game of cat-and-mouse, Afghanistan became the pawn.
Who is Radcliffe?
The sloppy surgery of the subcontinent was by Radcliffe, a British barrister, who had never ever traveled to Asia before, leave alone India. He had very little understanding of the socio-political culture of India and had no experience in surveying or map-making. He reached India for the first time on July 8, 1947 and was made the chairman of the two boundary committees — one for Bengal and the other for Punjab.
The division was not only supposed to focus on religious and socio-political divisions, but also on natural boundaries, water bodies and irrigation systems that would affect both countries. But Radcliffe did not obtain any district map, neither any correct census data. He drew a 2500 Km border on a large Indian map, sitting comfortably in office. The boundaries drawn in paper used the least possible scientific method.
Later, in an interview with Kuldip Nayar, Radcliffe shared his past. Muslim member came to him in private with the grievance, "My family goes to Darjeeling every summer and it would be hard on us if the place went to India". His reply was: "They should be thankful to me because I went out of the way to give them Lahore which deserved to go to India. Even otherwise, I favored the Muslims more than the Hindus".
To Nayar's query as to why a Sikh-dominated city of Lahore that was Sikhism's capital since Maharaja Ranjit Sing days was given to Pakistan, Radcliffe had a shocking answer, "I nearly gave Lahore to India. But then I realised that Pakistan would not have any large city. I had already earmarked Calcutta for India."
Lahore had Hindus and Sikhs in a majority and way up in heritage & assets. His decision to give Lahore to India and then to reverse it in favor of Pakistan was because of paucity of big towns in Pakistan.
Millions began fleeing from either side as they found that Radcliffe had sealed their fate in a country that they considered as their birth place. Lakhs died in the worst kind of violence that followed, bodies rotted on roadsides for days. Radcliffe left India, after submitting the finalised partition drawing, never to return again.
The chicken neck siliguri corridor is among world's strangest borders, also called mad maps. At its its narrowest point, it is just 17km wide. On one Side is the river Mechi, across which is Nepal. On the other, across the Mahananda from Phansidewa is Bangladesh. China has been trying to take control over the area through maoist mercenaries in Naxalbari
Rule of Red Flags from 1757 Plassey
Red Flag was the emblem of the revolutionary minded radicals of Eastern Europe during 17th and early 18th century. Most regiments of the British Army from the 17th to the 20th century wore Red coats. Their infantry has been nicknamed as redcoats or devils by the colonists during the American war of independence (1765 - 1783). The Jacobin Club that ruled France during the Reign of Terror (1793–1794) made the red flag the national emblem. Another little known fact is that Tipu was one of the founder member of the Jacobian Club of Srirangapatna. A Tree of Liberty was planted in his palace on May 15, 1797. The Red flag was ceremonially raised and Sultan wearing the liberty Red cap was described as Citizen Tippoo. The pirate ships of Ching Shih were called also the Red Flag fleets. Later the terms like Red flag, Red army, Red terror became synonymous with communism.
The true significance of the Red Shield (Roth Schild in German) was recognized and adopted by an itinerant Money Lender goldsmith in Germany by name Mayer Amschel Bauer. He opened a shop or counting house on Judenstrasse (or Jew Street) during 1950s. Over the door leading into the shop he placed a large Red Shield and changed his name to Rothschild.
The redcoats took over India after the battle of Palashi (Plassey) in 1757. A battle never took place there, exists only on paper. The commander of Bengali forces under Nawab Siraj ud-Daulah, Mir Jafar was lured with the promise of throne. After the Battle, Clive looted Nawab's treasury leaving nothing for the new Nawab and in effect fully disbanding his military power. Mir Jaffar was made a stooge Nawab. The gold and diamonds of Siraj Ud Daula was given as a personal gift to Clive.
There were several notorious pedlars and kingmakers in Clive’s Bengal — quite a few of them Armenians and local Hindu bankers.
The Armenians are believed to have arrived on the bank of Hooghly before the East India Company's Job Charnock decided to establish a British trading post in Calcutta. In the 18th and 19th centuries they ran trading companies, shipping lines, coal mines, real estate and hotels. It was also an Armenian, Khojah Israel Sarhad, in the court of Mughal emperor Farrukh Sayar who helped the BEIC get their Grand Firman in 1715, that first granted them duty-free trading rights in Bengal. Earlier in 1688, the company accessed the Mogul court with the help of an Armenian in the court.
Without Armenians, the victory at Plassey would have been a mirage for Clive and Company, especially after the chaotic situation of 1756. In the dark days succeeding the sack of Calcutta and the tragedy of the Black Hole, an Armenian merchant secretly supplied the British fugitives who had taken refuge in their ships down the river at Fulta, with boat loads of provisions for six months. If not for the humane Armenians, the British fugitives might have been starved to surrender. And in the momentous days before the famous battle of Plassey, the same Armenian was employed by Clive to negotiate with Mir Jaffar.
England before 1757 was a gaming, robbing nation, without principles, genius, character or allies. After 1757, England turned into a sink of Indian wealth. English people became gentle men, intellectuals, carrying the self induced burden of civilizing the whole world (White man's burden), moralizing the world preaching modern justice etc. France and America became their friendly allies.
The course of events that happened after Clive's victory in the battle at Palashi (Plassey) on June 23 1757 points to the prosperity of Bengal at that time. This was the first battle of the British against a princely state on the Indian Subcontinent. It was a sham battle. The battle was lost by soldiers who did not fight. Not even a single bullet was fired. The story of torrential rain drenching the nawab's ammunition and the British protecting their own with tarpaulin brought from Madras is a plain lie. Nawab's men are more aware of the weather pattern in Bengal than the British and they knew how to protect themselves and their paraphernalia from an impending rain.
After the battle, Clive immediately plundered Siraj’s treasury, leaving new Nawab Mir Jafar with nothing. Moreover, the new puppet Nawab was asked to pay a heavy amount as compensation to company officials and traders of the city for the attack on Calcutta by previous ruler and also for the black hole tragedy. Clive took a jagir, an endowment of tax revenue for life and became one of the richest men in England. The Mughal emperor, Shah Alam II, recognized British power and gave the Company official authority to collect taxes, making the Company the virtual rulers of Bengal.
England soon became a sink of Indian wealth filled by the junior and senior servants of the East India Company.
Company's greed increased several fold after the Plassey victory. The traitors also could never enjoy the fruits of victory. Jagat Seth (banker to the world) was killed by the troops of Mir Qasim in 1763. Mir Qasim was initially supported by the company as he was in friendly terms, but later he had attempted to curb their power and throw them out of Eastern India. Omichund was arrested by the English on suspicion of treachery. The Trial and Hanging of Raja Nand Kumar the first judicial murder in British India. He was the Governor of Hugli under Nawab Siraj-Ud-Daulah in 1756. He was nicknamed Black Colonel due to his loyalty to the Company in 1757.
Money Transfer during Colonial period
Money played a major role in wars all over the world. The vast majority of payments were made in specie (coins minted from gold and silver). Paper money was not yet widely accepted. The gold and silver coins looted by Clive was used in the expansion of empire in India. The specie collected from across the world were lent to the British government by the BEIC during the Napoleonic Wars that were highly expensive.
After 1757, the BEIC were having plenty of unaccounted money or black money. This money was used to create highly destructive wars throughout the world. The Indian economy continued to be haunted by the problem of black money until the Demonetization in November 2016.
British French joint venture in Asia
The traders of Britain and France often intervened in local power struggle in order to install friendly leaders by nominating and supporting different individuals for succession. The British were supporting Mohammed Ali who was based in Trichinopoly and the French were on the side of Chanda Sahib of Arcot. Clive’s real fame came from his victory at Arcot in the battle of Kaveripauk (1752). Mohammed Ali was officially recognized as the new ruler. The British PM Pitt the Elder terming Robert Clive as the heaven-born general said - "We had lost our glory, honor, and reputation everywhere but India : there the country had a heaven-born general". He took up his position as the Governor of Fort St David in June 1756 and was soon ordered to lead the expedition to Bengal — and Plassey.
The master plan for the rise and fall of Tipu was crafted by the British. Clive, who started his career in India at Madras and Cuddalore, was well familiar with the Nawabs and Maharajas of South India. Robert Clive had spent most of the years before the battle in the South (Tamil Nadu) and not in Bengal. He landed at Madras in May 1744. He had served in Madras and Cuddalore and fought in the Trichinopoly district and Arcot.
The British used Hyder Ali as a Trojan Horse to plunder the vast amount of treasures accumulated in the temples of western coast. The Mysorean treasury was virtually bankrupt in 1757. Hyder Ali, a petty officer of its army then, and his son became emperors and was soon eliminated, all within a span of 42 years.
Hyder Ali scored points from this financial breakdown in Mysore. In 1757 Hyder Ali was called to Seringapatam to join the fight against Nizam and the Marathas. Upon his arrival he found the Mysorean army in disarray and near mutiny over pay. It was Hyder Ali who arranged for the army to be paid. In 1758 Hyder Ali led successful campaigns against Marathas and Calicut. By 1759 Hyder Ali was in command of the entire Mysorean army. The young raja Krishnaraja rewarded Hyder Ali's performance by granting him the title Nawab of Mysore. He became the de facto ruler of Mysore as Sarvadhikari (Chief Minister) by 1761.
The question is how Hyder Ali arranged the money?
The unaccounted black money looted from Bengal was used (through French) to groom Hyder Ali Khan as the ruler of Mysore. The specie coins looted by BEIC was loaned to Hyder Ali through his French associates. After 1757, the British in India became predominantly powerful and the French had no option except to accept the British hegemony. After the third Carnatic war, the French agreed to support British client governments. It should be remembered that the French and British traders in India were not enemies after 1757. They mutually communicated and helped each other. The Second Opium War (1856-1860) against China was jointly fought by the British and French forces.
The French allies of Tipu remained neutral in all his conflict with the British. But for Tipu's campaigns in Kodagu and Kerala against native kingdoms, his French allies had extended their military, financial, political, diplomatic support and equipped him with modern weapons like highly armed cannonade contingent.
Why did the British help Hyder who was opposed to the British expansion? Make the enemy to fight each other and bleed
In 1758 Hyder Ali led successful campaigns against Marathas and Calicut and by 1759 he was in command of the entire Mysorean army. He became the de facto ruler of Mysore as Sarvadhikari (Chief Minister) by 1761.
The dirty undignified job of temple vault breaking, temple foundation digging, ornament snatching were done by Tipu Sultan with the aid of his local Moplah spies and the booty was accumulated at a convenient spot like bees gathering honey from flowers far away. The French generals closely monitored Tipu, all his activities and passed the information to the British.
The British and French traders were eying the vast treasures of gold in the temples of Kerala. They used the Mysore Sultans as proxy conquerors. Both Hyder Ali and Tipu were guided and closely monitored by the French generals. There were two French commanders known as Lally and Pimoran advising Haider and Tipu at the Battle of Pollilur in 1780. Tipu's forces were also joined by his French allies in some of the key events of the conflict, including the siege of Mangalore in 1783. When the French government at home signed the Treaty of Paris in 1783, the French soldiers in India officially became the friends of British, leaving Tipu's Mysore in an uncomfortable position. His French allies, by observing strict neutrality, had deserted him at all crucial moment in the war with the British. In the hope of attracting further French support, Tipu established a Jacobin club at Mysore in 1797, adopted a liberty red cap and styled himself as Citizen Tippoo.
But for Tipu's campaigns in Kodagu and Kerala against native kingdoms, his French allies extended their military, financial, political, diplomatic support and equipped him with modern weapons like highly armed cannonade contingent. This can be proved by the endless iron cannon balls that can be found in the Nalnad region of Kodagu even today.
Coorg was strategically, a buffer zone which linked Mangalore and Malabar. Kodavas were the master of the guerrilla warfare hence they succeeded every time in ambushing the enemy. Tipu first invaded Kodagu with his well-equipped 15000 army men carrying French Cannon with an intention of conquering Kodagu overnight. The troop of 5000 Kodavas retaliated, defeated Tipu’s army and chased them out of Kodagu. Likewise Tipu was defeated by Kodavas 31 times.
Tipu decided to conquer Coorg by hook or by crook. So he hatched a cowardly plan with the the French. Tipu with the help of General M. Lally requested Kodavas to make peace stating his real enemies are the British and Marathas and not the Kodavas. He invited all Kodavas unarmed for a friendly feast. On 13th December 1785, more than 125 thousand Kodavas gathered at Devattparamb on the banks of Cauvery river. When the sun set behind the mountains of Kodagu, the French forces and Tipu’s soldiers hiding behind forest shrubs attacked the unarmed Kodavas and slaughtered them in cold blood like how Colonel dyer killed people at Jallianwallah bagh.
This pillage turned entire Coorg into a graveyard. Over 60,000 Kodavas were massacred in Devattparamb and around 65,000 Kodava survivors including women and children were captured. Among them the women were raped and children were forcefully converted. The scale of the massacre was so huge that the water in the Cauvery river turned red for 12 consecutive days.
Tipu's cavalcade in North Malabar was led by the French Commander Monsieur Lally. In December 1789, Tipu Sultan attacked the Travancore lines (a defence fortification by the side or Periyar river) from the north, signalling the commencement of the Battle of Nedumkotta. Even though the Travancore state had a protection treaty with the British, the company troops stationed near Nedumkotta became passive spectators. While Tipu regrouped, Madras Governor Holland engaged in negotiations with Tipu rather than mobilizing the military. The secret pact hatched by Tipu and Holland clearly shows that Tipu never had any enemity with the British.
Tipu's attack was successfully repulsed by the Travancore soldiers alone. The Mysore army suffered major causalities in this battle and Tipu himself became permanently lame. Tipu's waterloo started here.
Again in 1790 Tipu planned the attack on Travancore using special troops called from Srirangapatam and Bangalore. The Travancore army was no match for the huge Mysore army. So the Diwan Raja Kesavadas thought out a different game plan. A temporary bund, like a small dam, was constructed upstream in Periyar River blocking large quantity of water. The victorious march of the Mysorean army reached Aluva and camped on the banks of Periyar River. However by this time, during night, a small group went upstream and managed to break the walls of the dam at Bhoothathankettu causing heavy flash floods downstream of the river. All the ammunition and gunpowder of Tipu's army got wet and became inactive. At the same time the British army was planning an attack on Srirangapatnam. Hence Tipu was forced to leave Malabar never to return.
Even though Travancore soldiers played a major part in decimating Tipu's might, the Raja of Travancore was not involved in the peace treaty concluded after the third Anglo Mysore war. The Marathas and Nizam were allowed to partake the spoils of war. When the Diwan of Travancore complained this, the response from the British was that since the war was initiated for the protection of Travancore, the state must pay for the entire war expenses.
The British were more scared about the fighting spirit of the Nair soldiers of Kerala and Sikhs of Punjab. The Travancore state single handedly beating Tipu's army was not fully liked by the British. The strategy used by the British to bring Travancore to its heels was to squeeze the treasury of the state. The state had to pay heavy amount to the British and this continued until independence.
The gold looted from temples during the Malabar campaign was stored in the Treasury at Srirangapatanam. After defeating the Mysore army in 1799, the British lifted the entire gold and carted away in clipper ships to Europe. It is preserved in the underground vaults of Bank of England.
The other impacts of Plassey battle
The British decided to give up its tax income from American colonies because the revenue from Bengal was comparatively much higher. America was not an industrialized nation then. Agriculture was the predominant occupation. The American colonies separated from Britain in 1776.
The industrial revolution in Europe and USA started soon after the Plassey victory. The wealth from the subcontinent and precious vedic knowledge were stolen and used for pure commercial advancement. The museums in London and Germany are keeping many of the stolen relics and artifacts from India.
Despite an incomplete conquest, the Company ruled most of India by the early 1800s by replicating the Bengal model elsewhere, creating compliant puppet rulers so that it could rule territory efficiently, inexpensively and irresponsibly. But the British failed to subdue the Sikhs in the Punjab, the last holdout, until 1848.
American Independence
The famine that wiped out one third of the population of Bengal in 1770 was a direct impact of the British policy like high taxes, hoarding and export of food grains etc. By the time of the famine, monopolies in grain trading had been established by the Company and its agents. Clive was back in England by the time of the famine, enjoying his wealth at home. When asked about the suffering of millions, Clive simply answered that his priorities had been to protect the interests of shareholders, not those of the local population; his responsibility was to the EIC — not to poor Indians and Bengalis whom he described as either servile, mean, submissive and humble, that he deserved no criticism for doing his job.
These answers met with howls of derision. His attitude had a much more dramatic impact on the other side of the world. Reports about how the British had behaved circulated extensively in America. Leaflets and pamphlets were widely distributed in Pennsylvania that described the EIC as an institution well versed in Tyranny, Plunder, Oppression, and Bloodshed. If the British were prepared to let those in India die from hunger, why not in the colonies in America too?
For the British, the tax income from American colonies were not significant as compared to the riches obtained from Bengal. America was not an industrialized nation then. The industrial revolution started a little later. Agriculture was the predominant occupation. Also the British army was weakened by need to fight in the Caribbean and India. Distinguished generals like William Medows, Sir Eyre Coote, Archibald Campbell, Charles Cornwallis etc started their career in America and then headed for in India. The colonies separated from Britain in 1776.
The industrial revolution in Europe started soon after the Plassey victory. The wealth from the subcontinent and precious vedic knowledge were stolen and used for their commercial advancement. The museums in London and Germany are keeping many of the stolen relics and artifacts from India.
French Revolution
The plot for a bloody revolution in Paris (French Revolution) was also hatched in London. The gold looted from Kerala and Kodagu by Tipu's French allies were used for funding the Jacobins Club of Paris. The Reign of Terror (1793 – 94) by Jacobins resulted in the death of tens of thousands of innocent people in France. Tipu Sultan himself was a member Jacobins club.
When the Jacobins Club lost its acceptance among people of Europe, especially after its reign of terror, the club was dissolved. Napoleon was promoted instead. Napoleon was expected to do a deadly campaign of loot and plunder in Europe just like how Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan conducted their military campaign in Kerala. Instead Napoleon turned against the practice of usury or money lending and soon became an enemy of the British. The British war against Napoleon was enormously expensive. Troops had to be paid, and weapons, rations had to be purchased. The vast majority of this payment had to be done in specie - coins minted from gold and silver. Paper money was not yet widely accepted, and a steady flow of hard cash was essential for the British war effort. The BEIC came forward to lent money to the British government and gold and silver coins from across the world poured into England.
China Conquest
Not many are aware about the Red Flag Fleet, the pirates that ruled the South China Seas during 17th century and early 18th century. China was a hostile nation then for the British traders. But the British converted China into a nation of opium addicts. How?
They first created a mafia under the Chinese female Kaifeng Pirate by name Ching Shih (or Zheng Shi). She commanded over 80,000 outlaws and the 1,800 pirate ships under her command was called the Red Flag Fleet. They were invincible with the expanding reserves of loot and the long range guns they used. In Pirates of the Caribbean part 3 ( 2007 ) she has a mention. Opium distribution was done by a Chinese mafia controlled by Kaifeng pirates. Chinese middle and upper class were forced at gunpoint to smoke opium. These called as "command performances", persisted until addiction took over.
After years of notoriety on the South China Seas Ching Shih finally retired by accepting an offer of amnesty from the Chinese government, but not without first negotiating to maintain the riches and power she earned as a pirate lord.
Exactly 259 years after the Plassey victory, the Brexit referendum took place on June 23 2016 in UK and Gibraltar to ask the electorate if the country should remain a member of, or leave the European Union (EU). The battle of Plassey also took place on the same date in June.
The color red symbolizes danger, so also the red flags.
The picture in the post shows the luxurious life of British in India and selling opium to Chinese by force. Only the licensed agents of BEIC was allowed to sell opium. All other drug traffickers were caught and decapitated.
How did Clive win the battle?
The local bankers like Jagat Seth, Omichand and Armenian money lenders helped Clive. Armenians are believed to have arrived on the bank of Hooghly before the East India Company's Job Charnock decided to establish a British trading post in Calcutta. In the 18th and 19th centuries they ran trading companies, shipping lines, coal mines, real estate and hotels.
There were several notorious pedlars and kingmakers in Clive’s Bengal — quite a few of them Armenians.
It was also an Armenian, Khojah Israel Sarhad, in the court of Mughal emperor Farrukh Sayar who helped the East India Company get their Grand Firman in 1715, that first granted them duty-free trading rights in Bengal. Earlier in 1688, the English company accessed the Mogul court with the help of an Armenian in the Mughal court.
Without Armenians, the victory at Plassey would have been a mirage for Clive and the Company, especially after the chaotic situation of 1756. After the Black Hole tragedy of Calcutta -
In the dark days succeeding the sack or Calcutta and the tragedy of the Black Hole, an Armenian merchant secretly supplied the British fugitives who had taken refuge in their ships down the river at Fulta, with boat loads of provisions for six months. If not for the humane Armenians, the British fugitives might have been starved to surrender. And in the momentous days before the famous battle of Plassey, the same Armenian was employed by Clive to negotiate with Mir Jaffar.
It was during Akbar’s reign that the Armenian’s wealth and influence grew. Akbar is not only believed to have had an Armenian queen, he also had an Armenian doctor and chief justice.
References
From Battle of Plassey to Brexit: June 23 is a memorable date in history of Britain - https://www.oneindia.com/feature/from-battle-plassey-brexit-june-23-memorable-date-in-british-history-2134807.html
How Robert Clive and Donald Trump are joined by history - https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-times/all-that-matters/how-robert-clive-and-donald-trump-are-joined-by-history/articleshow/56539384.cms
Also read the book, Armenians in India From the earliest times to the present day By Mesrovb Jacob Seth, 1937 - https://www.rarebooksocietyofindia.org/book_archive/196174216674_10152469741581675.pdf
Tipu, a King who was a Jacobian - https://samharshbangalore.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-king-who-was-jacobian.html
Kodava History - http://macthimmaiah.blogspot.com/
The Fort in Central Kerala that halted the juggernaut of Tipu - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nedumkotta
Waterloo of Tipu was at Nedumkotta - https://submergedhistory.blogspot.com/2017/11/the-waterloof-of-tipu-sultan-at.html
Coins That Paid for the British war against Napoleon - https://ageofrevolution.org/200-object/coins-that-paid-for-the-battle-of-waterloo/
The British Origins of the French Jacobins - https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0265691414546456
