Source: Waliullahism was Base for Freedom Struggle: Amresh Mishra
The freedom struggle started in 1803 when Shah Abdul Aziz, son of Shah Waliullah of Delhi, issued a Fatwa on India being Darul Harab and appealed to every citizen of India, Muslim or Hindu, to fight against the English and sweep them off the country. This was the first mass appeal that turned the public against the British rule and sowed the seed of independence into their hearts. These views were expressed by the eminent historian Amresh Mishra during his talk on “Role of Waliullahism in Freedom Struggle” at the headquarters of All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat in the national capital on 31 May.
Source: Waliullahism was Base for Freedom Struggle: Amresh Mishra
The freedom struggle started in 1803 when Shah Abdul Aziz, son of Shah Waliullah of Delhi, issued a Fatwa on India being Darul Harab and appealed to every citizen of India, Muslim or Hindu, to fight against the English and sweep them off the country. This was the first mass appeal that turned the public against the British rule and sowed the seed of independence into their hearts. These views were expressed by the eminent historian Amresh Mishra during his talk on “Role of Waliullahism in Freedom Struggle” at the headquarters of All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat in the national capital on 31 May.
Mishra further claimed on the basis of his research that the freedom struggle has two chapters. The first one started in 1803 after the Fatwa and extended up to 1857. According to him, the Fatwa had equally inspired the Muslims, the Jaat, the Hindu and other communities to open a front against the English at various levels in Shamli, Balakot, Patna and at different other places. He claimed that around one crore civilians out of the total of 15 crore population were killed in 1857 revolt. He said with special emphasis and a string of confidence in his tone that every revolution has some ideologies and the ideology of 1857 revolt was Waliullahism. The second chapter of freedom struggle, he said, started in 1916 with the rise of Mahatma Gandhi.
Mishra, who has also authored a book on the role of Shah Waliullah Movement in 1857 Revolt, asserted that Shah Waliullah was the first to give the Labour Theory and attacked bitterly the anti-taxation policy of the Mughal Empire. Referring to Waliuallah’s book Hujjatullah-ul-Baligha, which was written in 1760s, he claimed that the theory of Adam Smith came much later in 1770s.
The renowned historian further added that the theories of Shah Waliullah were not for some specific community only. He never fanned the differences between Hindus and Muslims and thought for the benefits of the two communities.
In answer to a question, Mishra said the Revolt of 1857 was not a total failure because it succeeded in stopping the increasing power of corporate sector. The historian, while concluding his talk, said that he and some others were trying to initiate a discussion among academicians on the contribution of Shah Waliullah Movement in the freedom struggle.