During centuries-old Islamic rule in India there
had also been the emergence of several Hindu empires led by fiercest, ablest
Hindu monarchs and generals conveying desires of the subjugated Hindu community
to attain freedom. Bengal was no exception to this too; several Hindu
chieftains rose up through centuries and prime of them included Raja
Pratapaditya and, Raja Sitaram with a few others. But none of them could match
Raja Ganesha or Raja Kans or Raja Danujamardanadeva; his stupendous rise in the
politics of mediaeval Bengal (in 1415 AD) by overthrowing the Ilyas Shahi
dynasty or the first independent Muslim dynasty then fragmented Islamic
hegemony in the region and this was based on his vengeful or rancorous
activities. His supremacy perturbed Sufi saints or Darbesh such
that Sheikh Nur Qutub-ul-Alam, well-known Muslim Chisti saint, sent a letter to
Ibrahim Shah Sharqi or the Sultan of Jaunpur to raid Bengal and relieve them
from the rule of this Kafir or infidel.
Raja Ganesha’s rule witnessed several ups and
downs – his son was converted to Islam under compulsion and then reconverted to
Hinduism. Nevertheless, with the help of other Hindu kings he formed a
confederacy that posed severest challenges to the dream of establishing an
Islamic empire. It is worth mentioning, Raja Ganesha assisted by other Hindu
kings controlled entire Bengal even if for a brief period – remaining a dream
for others in the following centuries only.
On the word of a British historian, “Raja
Kans is the most interesting figure among the kings of Bengal. We feel that
this obscure Hindu, who rose to supreme power in Bengal, and who for a time
broke the bonds of Islam, must have been a man of vigor and capacity.”
An account of this battle, might of Sheo
Singh has been narrated by Mulla Taqyya, courtier during the reign of both
Akbar and Jehangir, and it has been translated into English from the original
Farsi language by Sri Kishori Mohan Maitra of Asiatic Society.
It is in the following lines.
“When Raja Kans, the Hindu zamindar, became
dominant over the whole of the province of Bengal, he determined to wipe out
the Muslims, and made it his aim to exterminate the root of Islam from his
kingdom. During that time, Sheo Singh, the zamindar of Tirhut, rebelled against
his father, Raja Deva Singh, and made an alliance with Raja Kans and thus
became an independent ruler of the province of tirhut. He grew in power and
through the incitement of Raja Kans, he began to rob and plunder the muslims of
his territory and caused most of the missionaries and leaders of Islam in
Darbhanga to taste the beverage of martyrdom and thus made his holiness Makhdum
Shah Sultan Hussain an object of his injury. At this time, the successor of
Makhdum Shah was Alaul Auq at Pandua, when Sultan Ibrahim Sharqi sent an army
in the year 805 (Hizira) at the request of Nur Qutubul-Islam, the worthy son of
Alaul Huq with a view to wage war against the wicked Kafirs of Bengal in order
to suppress Raja Kans. When the royal retinue reached Tirhut, Sheo Singh made a
stand against him. Although the Sultan was on his way to Bengal, when heard the
news of Sheo Singh reaching the neighborhood of his camps, the flames of
Sultan’s anger rose high and with great courage, he turned the range of his
attention in his direction. In the end, he (Sheo Singh) found that it was not
possible for him to oppose him ((Ibrahim) in open battle. He escaped into some
other direction till he reached Lehra, which was the strongest fort there and
he took shelter there. After some tine, the fort was conquered and he was taken
prisoner. The whole territory of Tirhut was again transferred to his father as
a loyal servant of the Sultan. As all the roads, which were being blocked, were
open again, the Sultan set out in the direction of Bengal in order to suppress
Raja Kans.”
“Sheo Singh along with Raja Kans or Ganesh tried
to form a Hindu brigade in Bengal, orchestrate a Hindu uprising to avenge the
Hindu persecution. Singh, despite being defeated in the war against Ibrahim,
demonstrated great valiance and it seemed once that the Hindu king would emerge
victorious. Relations between Sheo Singh and Sultan Ibrahim Sharqi had been
sour as Sheo Singh, no matter being a subordinate king, introduced coins in his
own name.” (Source: Annual Report of the Archeological Survey of India;
1913-14, pp. 248-49).
