A student is reading two sets of records from North India for 1856-57. In the first, a preacher educated in Hyderabad moves from village to village in a palanquin, with drumbeaters in front and followers at the rear, urging people to rise against the British. He is jailed for a time, and on his release a mutinous regiment elects him as its leader. In the second set, sepoys talk anxiously about the new rifles just given to them, which they fear will corrupt their caste and religion.
Many people came to hold a belief about the preacher in the first set of records. Which belief partly formed the basis of his authority?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → That he was invincible and had magical powers
Option (1) That he was invincible and had magical powers — Correct. The preacher is Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah, popularly called Danka Shah. Many believed he was invincible, had magical powers and could not be killed in battle, and this belief partly formed the basis of his authority.
Option (2) That he had been chosen by the Mughal emperor as his heir — Incorrect. His authority came from his preaching and from popular faith in his powers. No claim to succeed the Mughal emperor is linked with him.
Option (3) That he had been acknowledged as Raja by the headmen of the villages — Incorrect. Being acknowledged locally as the Raja fits Shah Mal, the Jat leader of pargana Barout, who set up a hall of justice in an English officer's bungalow.
Option (4) That he had been sent by the Nawab of Awadh to lead the revolt — Incorrect. The maulvi moved on his own from village to village as a preacher. He came to lead rebels when the mutinous 22 Native Infantry elected him as its leader.
NCERT (2026-27): “Two rebels of 1857 … “… When released, he was elected by the mutinous 22 Native Infantry as their leader. He fought in the famous Battle of Chinhat in which the British forces under Henry Lawrence were defeated. He came to be known for his courage and power. Many people in fact believed that he was invincible, had magical powers, and could not be killed by the British. It was this belief that partly formed the basis of his authority.” |