Which of the following was a rumour/prophecy in circulation at the time of the uprising of 1857?

Both Options, 1 and 2

The correct answer is Option 3 - Both Options, 1 and 2

OPTION 1- The rumour of a prophecy that British rule would come to an end on the centenary of the Battle of Plassey, on 23 June 1857. Correct. There was a belief that British rule in India was destined to last for exactly one hundred years. Since the British had established their dominance at the Battle of Plassey on June 23, 1757, many believed that their rule would collapse on the centenary of that event—June 23, 1857. This prophecy gave the rebels a sense of divine timing and confidence.

OPTION 2- The British had mixed the bone dust of cows and pigs into the flour that was sold in the market to destroy the caste and religion of Hindus and Muslims. Correct.  Alongside the famous issue of greased cartridges, there was a persistent rumour that the British were trying to convert Indians to Christianity by stealth. It was widely believed that the British had ground the bones of cows and pigs into dust and mixed it into the atta (flour) sold in the markets. This struck a chord with both Hindus and Muslims, as it threatened their most fundamental religious and caste identities. 

NCERT: "Rumours and prophecies played a part in moving people to action in the revolt of 1857. The sepoys who had arrived in Delhi from Meerut had told Bahadur Shah about bullets coated with the fat of cows and pigs and that biting those bullets would corrupt their caste and religion. They were referring to the cartridges of the Enfield rifles which had just been given to them.The British tried to explain to the sepoys that this was not the case but the rumour that the new cartridges were greased with the fat of cows and pigs spread like wildfire across the sepoy lines of North India.

This was not the only rumour that was circulating in North India at the beginning of 1857. There was the rumour that the British government had hatched a gigantic conspiracy to destroy the caste and religion of Hindus and Muslims. To this end, the rumours said, the British had mixed the bone dust of cows and pigs into the flour that was sold in the market (OPTION 2). In towns and cantonments, sepoys and the common people refused to touch the atta. There was fear and suspicion that the British wanted to convert Indians to Christianity. Panic spread fast. British officers tried to allay their fears, but in vain. These fears stirred men to action. The response to the call for action was reinforced by the prophecy that British rule would come to an end on the centenary of the Battle of Plassey, on 23 June 1857 (OPTION 1).