Some three decades ago, while travelling in Nagaland, a very enthusiastic journalist friend of mine, while conversing with the local Gaonbura (village headman), was repeatedly making an appeal to the villagers to join the mainstream. Having heard the appeal for the fourth time in just half an hour, the village chieftain stopped him and tersely said, “What mainstream are you talking about again and again? Who told you that only you are the mainstream and we are away from that? Remember, all mainstreams originate in hills and mountains. We are the mountain people, we are the mainstream.”
A billboard at the Rajiv Chowk Metro Station in Delhi reminded me of this incident. The billboard I saw was about the Assam government celebrating the 400th birth anniversary of Lachit Barphukan, an iconic figure in the history of Assam and the Northeast, born on November 24, 1622. Sadly, Lachit, often called the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj of Northeast India, figures rarely in our public discourse—not even while discussing our national heroes who had fought valiantly against invaders.
Barphukan, similar to a ‘Senapati’ or ‘Field Marshal’, was a title bestowed by the Kings of Ahom in their courts. A contemporary of Shivaji Maharaj, Lachit rose to become a ‘Barphukan’ in the court of King Chakradhwaj Singha. The story of Lachit, apart from being one of valour, is a journey of a bright boy rising to the top of the Ahomiya Court and embodying superior administrative and warfare capabilities.
History tells us that Aurangzeb ordered Mir Jumla to take control of Bengal and then attack Assam. Mir attacked Guwahati and took control. The loss of Guwahati prompted the Ahoms to agree to a tactical surrender and sign a treaty with the Mughals, defining the boundaries of both dynasties. Fauzdar Rashid Khan was asked to take control of Guwahati. In the meantime, Chakradhwaj Singha became king of Ahom. Aurangzeb sent a message from Delhi asking him to pay the decided taxes and also ordered him to accept and use Islamic royal robes.
However, the self-respecting Ahom king refused to obey the order. Instead, he readied his army to fight against the Mughals and drive them out of Guwahati. He appointed Lachit Barphukan as the commander-in-chief of the army and asked him to march to Guwahati.
Aurangzeb was furious and he ordered Ram Singh, son of the Amber king Mirza Raja Jai Singh, to take Guwahati. Rashid Khan accompanied Ram Singh. The army that the latter brought with him consisted of 30,000 infantry, 18,000 cavalries, 15,000 archers, and a fleet of 40 ships.
As the Mughals advanced, Lachit assigned territories to the top officers of his army. Barphukan, who knew the war techniques of the Mughals, built huge ramparts around Saraighat. These ramparts had to be crossed by the Mughals in order to reach Guwahati. The Ahom army built these ramparts day and night, but Lachit found that his maternal uncle was too lazy to complete the job. He found his uncle asleep when the war required sleepless labour. The battle of Saraighat was about the pride of the Ahom. Aurangzeb used all his strength to win Guwahati and expand his empire. However, Lachit fought intelligently and proved to be smarter than him.
Eventually, Aurangzeb’s army was not able to withstand the Ahoms and it was crushed from all sides. Ram Singh fled, and many officials and thousands of soldiers of the Mughal army were killed. The Battle of Saraighat was the Mughals’ last major attempt to expand their empire into Assam. Just like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, our great commander-in-chief Lachit Barphukan broke Aurangzeb’s pride.
The Battle of Plassey, The Battle of Haldighati and the Battles of Panipat have, for long, had a place of prominence in India’s medieval history. Sadly, The Battle of Saraighat remained ignored. How can historians undermine the importance of the fact that a Mughal flotilla of 40 ships coming up the river Brahmaputra with a 63,000-strong army was defeated by Lachit Barphukan and the Ahom Army?
Remember, after this devastating defeat, the Mughals stopped their efforts to invade Assam for good. Lachit Barphukan succumbed to an illness after the war on April 25, 1672. The Mughals were at the height of their power but failed to conquer Assam and the Northeast and consolidate their rule. Seventeen attempts were made by the Mughals to conquer Assam but they failed every time. Assam could keep the invaders at bay thanks to brave marshals like Veer Lachit Barphukan.
The Three Hundred and Thirty First Report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education specifically recommends inclusion of content on unsung heroes so as to make their stories instill righteousness and patriotism in the minds of students.
One must not forget that Lachit was not just a good warrior. He was a true leader. He displayed many remarkable leadership qualities. Democratic at heart, he used to periodically invite suggestions and feedback. From inspiring men by leading from the front and ensuring collective decision-making during war and peace to using indigenous guerilla tactics and mobilising locals, his qualities made him a true field marshal.
The Battle of Saraighat and the life and times of Lachit Barphukan—beyond valour, like good governance and leadership—are also important for their context and place in history. He defeated the Islamic invaders with sinister motives and nipped their Eastward expansion in the bud. In doing so, he prevented the pillage of an entire culture—what we refer to as pristine and diverse today.
When on the battlefield of Saraighat, Lachit Barphukan asserted: “Dexotkoi Momai Dangor Nohoi” ( My uncle is not greater than my motherland) and went on to punish his uncle for compromising the defence. In doing so, he has sown the seeds of the ‘Nation first’ philosophy and not ‘Family first’ and set an example.
As we celebrate 400 years of this great son of soil, let us lay our collective emphasis on correcting the literature and recreating narratives so as to not forget these ‘Barphukans’—ever again.
Vinay Sahasrabuddhe
President, ICCR and senior BJP leader