A window to Northern Areas, The Muslim dated July 12, 1997
The last episode from ‘A window to Northern Areas’
Author: Syed Shams ud Din
The last episode from ‘A window to Northern Areas’
Author: Syed Shams ud Din
The deadly end to
Shribadat’s brutal rule was, in fact, a final axing of the Buddhist grip in
Brushal, as this proved to be the last nail in the coffin of that dynasty,
staged through the allured lady of the family. This however, again served to
revive the erstwhile chieftaincies. The famous German scholar Karl Jetmar,
while describing the famous localities of the areas in his book titled ‘Bilore
and Dardistan’, considers it worthwhile to mention the name of Astore, Chilas
and Gilgit. In short, the decline of the great kingdom of Bilore started after
9th century AD caused revival of the erstwhile principalities
mushrooming throughout the tracts of Brushal and the adjoining areas.
Brushal was famous
during the days of Biloristan as has been discussed earlier. The popularity of
ancient Brushal had vanished on the perpetuation of the Buddhist rule for well
over three hundred years (from 6th to 8th Century AD).
The revamping of the Brushal of the Brushal following the Shribadat’s rule
popularised Gilgit for long afterwards, instead of the ancient Brushal which
went into insignificance after 1847. This is because of the fact that options
changed and priorities renewed with the passage of time.
The tiny States of
Hunza and Nagar located parallel in the valley seem to have always remained at daggers
drawn since 14th Century AD and the rivalry of their Mirs hectically
continued until 1847. The prolific growth of their animosity touched new
heights and they would never recognise each other’s sovereignty. This
antagonism heightened during the rule of Mir Ghazanfar so much so that
obnoxious ‘palace machinations’ became order of the day to root out the other.
With all resoluteness in this context however, Mir Ghanzafar of Hunza hit upon
the idea of allying himself with the Khushwaqt dynasty of Chitral to outclass
his arch rival - the Mir of Nagar. This
approach of the Mir of Hunza provided a golden opportunity for the Khushwaqt
rulers to embark upon an expansionist spree eastward during the years that
followed.
First, the ruler of
Chitral and after that Sulaiman Shah and Gauhar Aman made intermittent
intrusions into Gilgit and at last conquered it. Their second target remained
the capture of Nagar but they met with no significant progress. However, Mir
Ghazanfar arrayed against Azur Khan
- the ruler of Nagar as the
latter proved a stumbling block in Mir Ghazanfar’s passage towards Gilgit.
Consequently, the ruler of Gilgit was unable to defend his domi nion which
eventually fell to the Khushwaqts paving their way for onward thrust towards
Nagar. This apparently forced the rulers of Punyal and Gilgit to seek assistance from the Sikh Darbar of
Srinagar. The Sikhs readily accepted their request and sent reinforcements
towards Gilgit ostensibly to help regain the lost dominion of Raja Karim Khan.
The ruler of Gilgit was
oblivious of the ulterior moltives of the Sikhs and naively took it as an
assistance from an ally. Though assisting Raja Karim Khan in retrieving his
lost kingdom, the Sikhs opened up an ominous vista aimed at defeating all the
chieftains of the area in the course of the battles that ensued and lastly
spearheaded by the Dogras at the instance of the British during the second half
of the 19th Century the Sikhs reached for the ostensible assistance
of Raja Karim Khan of Gilgit which became yet another source neo-subjugation
for all the dominions of the ancient Brushal.
The people of Brushal then realised their mistakes but the
critical juncture at which they stood now necessitated a sagacious manoeuvring
overtly in the form of a movement for a revolutionary struggle at an opportune
moment. This opportune moment came on
November 1, 1947 to an en masse revolt against the occupation forces in
the area.
It will be in the
fitness of things to mention the
significance of a few areas in the historical context that served as a
junction in the past in serving for a linkage with Baltistan for an easiest
access and free passage in the olden days. The name of Hooper-Hisper in Nagar
comes first in this regard as this place then served as a junction because of
the fact that its present gigantic glacier was at that time, quite hospitable
for such an access with Baltistan via Shigar.
This linkage however,
seems to have become bedevilled subsequently due to the formidable glacial
movement in a cyclical manner to an extent that at present no penetration of
the kind except except by sophisticated climbing equipments, is possible. Let
us also have a brief discussion on the Nagar at large and how the word
attributed to it could have originated.
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