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| Pillar in Vellore Fort commemorating the Revolt Image from Wikipedia |
Today
is the anniversary of the Vellore Mutiny
which took place on 10 July 1806 when the Indian soldiers (sepoys) revolted against the East India Company for imposing
certain rules that the Hindus as well as Muslims did not like. The Hindus were
prohibited from wearing religious marks on their foreheads and Muslims were
required to shave their beards and trim their moustaches. The turban was
replaced with a hat which the soldiers identified with Christianity.
The
soldiers would certainly have looked smart and trim with the changes, which
indeed was the purpose. But religion, like popular condoms, is extra-sensitive,
and tickles too many tissues and issues. Half a century later, a bigger revolt
of the same nature would be triggered by very similar reasons in Meerut.
Mindless
violence followed the revolt in Vellore. The rebels killed 14 of their own
officers and 115 men of their regiment. The revolt was soon suppressed and the
rebels were punished ruthlessly.
One
of the many punishments meted out to the mutineers was blowing away from guns. The culprit was tied to the mouth of a
cannon which was then fired so that the culprit’s body would be shattered to
smithereens. The ulterior intention was to preclude religious funeral rites. It
was a terrible punishment for religious believers, a punishment that went
beyond death.
Religion
has been a cause of much brutality throughout history directly or indirectly.
While it is understandable that people would not accept the defilement of
whatever they hold as sacred, what remains beyond my comprehension is how something
like religion which is supposed to make people compassionate actually makes
them monstrously cruel.
Of
course, the East India Company was not bothered about religion. They wanted
power. And servile discipline. The Company was prompt to punish their own
officers responsible for the offensive dress regulations. All the senior
British officers involved were recalled to England. The Company even refused to
pay John Craddock, the Commander-in-Chief of the Madras Army, his passage
expenditure as he was sent back to his country. The offensive rules were
revoked.
But
why did the Company have to be so brutal in the punishments given to the
Indians? I think it was not merely about making the punishments “exemplary” for
potential rebels. I think religion makes people more inhuman than any other
entity. Would the punishment have been less severe if religion was not
involved?
Arguably
religion has been the largest killer in human history; at least, the largest
perpetrator of violence and cruelty.
We
witness religious violence even today in the country. It takes the forms of
lynching, raping, and plain shooting. Some of our leaders are openly supporting
such acts of violence too. The otherwise loquacious Prime Minister has not
condemned such acts of violence or chastised his ministers who support them. Religion lends
legality to such acts of violence!
Religion
and violence. Their harmonious coexistence is a contradiction that has baffled
me time and again. It is one of the things that makes me detest religion. I
know I can do nothing about it: except stay as far away from it as possible.
thoughtful interesting story telling
ReplyDeleteMany lives were lost in our quest to earn freedom.
ReplyDeleteHad such brave soldiers not revolted, we wouldn't be enjoying our present status.
'Jo shaheed huye hain unki zara yaad karo kurbani'
I do appreciate the contributions of every freedom fighter. The point is something else.
DeleteSecondly, did violence win independence? The British suppressed every violent revolt too easily. The Vellore Mutiny, for example, did not last beyond 24 hours. It was Gandhi's non-violence that the British could not retaliate.