Shivaji Raje The Founder of Idea of Swaraj

Anupama Nair

In the last part, I wrote about the birth of Shivaji and his battle with Adil Shah. Now I am going to write about his war with the Mughals.

Shivaji’s greatness and love for Swaraj reached the ears of the cruelest Mughal emperor Aurangzeb who wanted to add the parts of the Maratha Empire to his own. For the expansion of his idea of  Swaraj, conflict with the Mughals was inevitable. Aurangzeb chose Shaista khan, to be the Viceroy of the Deccan, ordering him to invade and annex Shivaji dominions. Shaista khan left Ahmednagar in 1660 and arrived in Pune. He decided to capture the fort of Chakan to obtain supplies. Though the killedar of the fort of Chakan, Firangoji Narsala offered strong resistance to Shaista khan’s army, the Mughals captured the fort of Chakan. Shaista khan captured Swaraj's territories Pune and Supe and set up a camp at Lal Mahal in Pune.

The Mughal army began to destroy the regions around Pune. Shaista Khan adopted the strategy to occupy as much of Shivaji Maharaj’s territories as possible. Forces were dispatched to invade the Konkan region below the Ghats, Kalyan and Bhiwandi were captured by the Mughal army. Shaista Khan appointed Kartalab Khan on an expedition to the North Konkan. Shivaji defeated Kartalab Khan in Umbarkhind. He left Netoji Palkar to defend the North Konkan and he himself marched southwards and captured Dabhol, Chiplun, Sangameshwar, Rajapur, Palavani and Shringarpur.

Even after two years, Shaista Khan still would not think of leaving Pune. Shivaji Maharaj devised a bold plan, to drive away Shaista Khan. He raided Lal Mahal and in this raid, Shaista Khan lost his fingers. He was forced to leave Pune and shifted his camp to Aurangabad. The successful attack on Shaista khan resulted in the people believing the capabilities of Shivaji.

In three years’, time, Shaista Khan had ravaged the territories of the Swaraj. It was necessary to make up this loss. Surat was the richest and most prosperous port of the Mughal Empire on the west coast. Europeans i.e., the British, the Dutch and the French all had their factories there. Shivaji then devised a plan of attack on Surat. The Subedar of Surat could not put up any resistance to the Maratha army. Shivaji Maharaj obtained enormous wealth from Surat. The Surat campaign was a stunning blow to emperor Aurangzeb’s prestige. Shivaji then built forts Suvarnadurg,  Sindhudurg and Vijaydurg. He also built a fort named Padmadurg on a small island near Rajpuri in order to counter the power of the Mughals.

With a view to crush the growing power of Shivaji Maharaj, Aurangzeb sent Jai Singh of Ambar, an experienced and powerful Mughal Sardar. Jai Singh's strategy was to isolate Shivaji Maharaj from his neighboring powers so that he would get neither help nor support from them, to prevent him from breaking out into the Mughal territory, to devastate his homeland and capture his forts. As per this strategy he was trying to provoke the Adilshahi against Shivaji Maharaj. Jai Singh was concurrently instigating local rulers in the Karnataka against the Adilshah, so that the latter would be unable to help Shivaji. Jai Singh requested the Europeans to start a naval campaign against Shivaji. He also drew up a plan of capturing the forts in possession of Shivaji. Jai Singh and Diler Khan led siege to the fort of Purandar. Mughal forces were sent to various parts of Swaraj to devastate the territories. Shivaji tried hard to resist the Mughals. When the Mughals put the fort of Purandar under siege, Murarbaji Deshpande fought with the greatest courage and died a hero’s death.

Shivaji realized that in the conflict with the Mughals, his subjects had to face great losses. He began talks for a treaty with Jai Singh. A treaty between Jai Singh and Shivaji was signed in June 1665 which is known as ‘Treaty of Purandar’. In accordance with the terms of the treaty, he had to cede twenty-three forts and adjacent areas yielding a revenue of Rs four lakh to the Mughals. He also assured the Mughals of help against the Adilshahi.

Jai Singh, soon compelled Shivaji undertake a journey to visit Aurangzeb’s court at Agra in order to be formally accepted as a vassal of the Mughals. In Agra, hundreds of miles from their homeland, Shivaji and his son were placed under house arrest, where they lived under the threat of execution.

However, Shivaji pretended to be ill and, as a form of penance, began to send out enormous baskets filled with sweets to be distributed among the poor. On August 17, 1666, he and his son hid in these baskets and managed to escape. “His escape, possibly the most thrilling episode in a life filled with high drama, was to change the course of Indian history”. His followers welcomed him back as their leader, and within two years he not only had won back all the lost territory but had expanded his domain. He collected tribute from Mughal regions and plundered their rich cities, and he reorganized the army and instituted reforms for the welfare of his subjects.

Before proceeding to Agra, Shivaji Maharaj entrusted Swaraj in the safe hands of his mother. Shivaji Maharaj’s imprisonment by Aurangzeb did not deter her. Mughals from South, armies of Adilshah and Kutubshah, British and Portuguese invaders in Konkan and Gomantak (Goa) and vast army of Siddi Jauhar in Murud Janjira, all had trained their greedy eyes on the Maratha ideal of Swaraj. Jija Bai, who was very old, protected her people from these enemies for more than eight months. Beyond this, she accomplished completion of Sindudurg fort, recaptured a fort from the enemies, attended to problems of the subjects and showed her efficiency in governing the people as an able ruler.

It would be true to say Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s idea “Swarajya is my birthright”, was inspired by Jija Mata and Shivaji. I bow my head to such a great mother and Shivaji.

(to be continued….)