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The
old nawab had Siraj educated in his house. According
to Muzaffarnamah of Karam Ali, Alivardi Khan tried
to train him in the art of governance and other
qualities that go with a crown prince. His general
education was of formal type and perhaps not well
calculated. Owing to ungrudging affection of the
old nawab and flattery of his sycophant retinue
he might have committed some excesses in his early
years which Alivardi ignored. It may, however,
be noted that Sirajuddaula was given the charge
of the nawab's fleet at Dhaka while his younger
brother Ikramuddaula commanded the army. Alivardi
took young Siraj with him in his military campaigns
against the Marathas in 1746.
Alivardi
Khan celebrated Sirajuddaula's marriage with great
pomp and grandeur. In May 1752, the nawab declared
Sirajuddaula as his successor. On this occasion
the European trading companies in Bengal also
greeted him. During the closing years of his reign,
premature death of some family members shattered
Alivardi both mentally and physically and the
old nawab died on 10 April 1756 at the age of
eighty. Immediately before his death the nawab
advised Siraj to strive for the suppression of
the enemies (of the province) and devote himself
to secure the well-being of the subjects by removing
all evils and disorders. He implored Siraj to
nurture the goodwill of the people and follow
his (Alivardi's) footsteps. Luke Scrafton relates
that Sirajuddaula swore on the Quran at the deathbed
of his grandfather that he would not touch any
intoxicating liquor in future and that he kept
the promise ever after. Siraj ruled for little
over one year (April 1756 to June 1757) and the
Masnad of Bengal was full of thorns for him. During
his short lived- administration the young nawab
faced enemies from within the family as well as
from out-side.
Sirajuddaula's
nomination to the nawabship caused jealousy and
enmity of Ghaseti Begum (eldest sister of Siraj's
mother), Raja rajballabh, Mir Jafar Ali khan and
Shawkat Jang (Siraj's cousin). Ghaseti Begam possessed
huge wealth, which was the source of her influence
and strength. Apprehending serious opposition
from her, Sirajuddaula seized her wealth from
Motijheel Palace and placed her in confinement.
The nawab also made certain changes in high government
positions giving them to his own favourites. Mir
Mardan was appointed Bakshi (Paymaster of the
army) in place of Mir Jafar. Mohanlal was elevated
to the post of peshkar of his Dewan Khana and
he exercised great influence in the administration.
Eventually Siraj suppressed Shaukat Jang, governor
of Purnia, who was killed in a clash.
The
accession of Sirajuddaula threatened the position
of the dominant section of the ruling group in
Murshidabad, which was engaged in accumulation
of wealth during the time of the earlier nawabs.
With his assuming the reins of government, this
group apprehended that he would be a danger to
their continuous enjoyment of the sources of accumulation
of wealth, as he was trying to raise another group
to counterpoise the old one which usurped the
power of the nawab to a great extent. Sirajuddaula's
accession was a threat to the British also because
he made it absolutely clear that unlike the previous
nawabs he would not put up with the abuse of dastaks
by the British and their illegal private trade.
The threat came at a crucial time when the private
trade of the Company's servants was facing a severe
crisis.
Sirajuddaula
had genuine grievances against the English east
India company. First of all he suspected the company's
design against his succession and expressed his
annoyance to the British in no uncertain terms.
His charges against the company were, first, that
they strengthened the fortification around the
Fort William without his approval; second, that
they grossly abused the trade privileges granted
to them by the Mughal rulers by which the government
incurred heavy loss of customs duties; and third,
that they gave shelter to his officers like Krisnadas,
son of Rajballav who appropriated government funds.
The nawab also informed them of his intention
to forgive them if they removed his complaints
and agreed to trade upon the same terms and conditions
as they did in the time of Murshid Quli khan.
But the company practically showed no respect
to the nawab's demands. On the other hand, governor
Goger drake of the Calcutta Council insulted Naraigan
Singh, nawab's special envoy to Fort William.
These
events enraged the nawab and to retaliate he first
captured the Kasimbazar factory and then attacked
Calcutta and drove the English out. This attack
led to the so-called black hole incident. Following
the nawab's action at Calcutta and arrival of
reinforcement from Madras the treaty of Alinagar
was signed between him and the English by which
the nawab agreed to compensate the English their
losses at Calcutta. But the English now became
more arrogant. In fact reestablishment of the
company's settlements in Bengal, after it's defeat
at Calcutta, was possible only in two ways either
to approach the nawab to forgive the company or
to avenge the defeat by force. The English chose
to avenge and in the garb of the peace treaty
actual preparation for war began.
The
English now turned to vigorous political and secret
activities to destroy the French influence and
to replace Sirajuddaula by a person entirely friendly
to them. To this end the company successfully
made a conspiracy against the nawab and enlisted
the support of Mir Jafar, the Jagat Sheth and
other disaffected courtiers. When everything was
finalised the company's forces under Robert Clive
and Charles Watson moved towards Murshidabad for
a show down. The nawab met Clive at Palashi on
23 June 1757. The nawab was defeated in the battle
that ensued and fled from the battlefield. On
his way to Patna he was caught by a partisan of
Mir Jafar and killed by an Iranian guard at the
instance of Miran (son of Mir Jafar) on the night
preceding 3 July 1757. In the mean time the company
installed Mir Jafar as the new nawab of Bengal.
Thus the English won the victory at Palashi not
merely because of the strength of their forces
but because of the strength of the conspiracy
and the treason within Sirajuddaula's camp. The
defeat of the nawab marked the beginning of the
English ascendancy in Bengal and gradually the
entire subcontinent surrendered its destiny to
the East India Company.
Sirajuddaula
was a victim of a conspiracy, engineered and encouraged
by the British who roped in the disgruntled elements
of the darbar in their 'project' of a coup. There
is no denying that there was a simmering discontent
in the nawab's court. But resentment against or
dissatisfaction with the nawab might have created
the necessary but not the sufficient condition
for the hatching or the success of a conspiracy.
The Palashi conspiracy took the final shape only
under the aegis of the British and without their
active involvement, it would not have matured
enough to bring about the downfall of the nawab.
Thus, Sirajuddaula had to go both for the benefit
of the British and the ruling clique at Murshidabad.
And hence the Palashi revolution in which Sirajuddaula
was deposed and Mir Jafar installed.
It
may be true that as a nawab, he was a little arrogant
and perhaps also short-tempered. In other words,
he had his limitations. His main shortcomings
were his lack of firm resolution, his vacillation
and above all his bewilderment when faced with
a critical situation. But one has to remember
that he was still a young man in his early twenties,
not yet fully mature and quite a little 'intoxicated'
with his power and position. His greatest mistake
was that, in his inexperience, he tried to deal
with all his opponents at the same time, without
having recourse to necessary precautions that
they could not combine against him. His failure
to do so and his irresolution till the last moment
brought about his downfall.
Sirajuddaula's limitations
and his public and private character should be
judged considering the environment he worked in
and the cause he fought for and gave his life.
A marked change in his character was noticeable
after he had become the nawab. Alivardi's last
advice might have acted as a great influencing
factor on him. The verdict of history is that
whatever might have been his fault, Sirajuddaula
neither betrayed his master nor sold his country.
'The name of Sirajuddaula stands higher in the
scale of honour than does the name of Clive. He
was the only one of the principal actors who did
not attempt to deceive'.
Bibliography:
BK Gupta, Sirajuddaulah and the East India Company,
1756-57, Leiden, 1962; Kalikankar Datta, Sirajuddaulah,
Calcutta 1971; JN Sarkar (ed), The History of
Bengal, II, Dhaka, 1972; AK Maitreya, Siraj-uddaula
(in Bangla), Calcutta, 1304 BS; S Chaudhury, The
Prelude to Empire: Plassey Revolution of 1757,
New Delhi, 2000. |
