A ballad of Baro-Bhuiyans of Bengal

The Baro-Bhuiyans were predominant and had ruled a vast land in Eastern Bengal prior to the arrival of Turkish noblemen who established the Sultanate in Bengal in the eleventh/twelfth century AD. It is believed that those Bhuiyans who had fought against the Mughal aggression in the sixteenth century were known as Baro-Bhuiyans.
In fact, fighters against the moguls were many more than twelve.
The Baro-Bhyiyans were Zamindars or landlords who had resisted the Mughal advance for three decades. After 1612 when Islam Khan forced them to submit, in consequence, the influence of Bhuiyans somewhat diminished. But their role was never wiped out.
The Baro-Bhuiyans flourished during the chaotic period of Afghan rule. Following the conquest of Bengal by Mughal emperors Akbar and Jahangir, they received proper treatment from the Mughals and rose to power in Bhati.
Bhati is a low-lying area of Bengal, encompassing whole stretches to Hijli, Jessore, Faridpur, Dhaka, Mymenshingh, part of Tripura (Comilla) and Noakhali (then known as Bhulua and Rouchnabad Parganas). Trace of Bhuiyans is also found in Sylhet district and Assam--known as Uijan (upper-stream region).
Among the Baro-Bhuiyans, Isa Khan was the most famous in the medieval Bengal. He was the ruler of Bhati realm. He was born in 1529. His father Sulaiman Khan, a descendant of an Afghan chieftain, had settled in Bengal.
The medieval Bengal had been under Sultanate rule for 200 years to 1538 AD. Then Sher Shah conquered Gaur, the capital of Sultan Ghiyas Uddin Mahmud. But there is no trace of Sher Shah's influence in the revering tracts of Bengal.
Sulaiman Khan had carved out an independent principality in the Bhati region comprising a part of greater Dhaka district and southern portion of greater Mymensingh. Sulaiman Khan had rebelled against Islam Shah Sur more than once and was killed in 1548.
Isa Khan was in his teens at the time. He was brought up by his paternal uncle Qutub Uddin. Isa spent his childhood and youth in Bhati. During that period, Taj Khan, another Afghan chieftain, helped Isa obtain an estate in Sonergaon and Mymensingh Pargana in 1564 at the age of 35 as a vassal of the said chieftain. By winning the grace of the Afghan, he gradually increased his strength and status. And by 1571, Mughal Court designated him as the ruler of Bhati.
In 1576, Isa's compatriot Afghan chieftain was defeated by the Mughals in Rajmahal, although Isa Khan played a leading role in the local resistance.
As an astute and farsighted person, he realized it was next to impossible to face Mughal emperor Akbar the Great single-handed. Hence, he established rapport with neighbouring Bhuiyans (landlords) and Afghan chieftains and forged an anti-Mughal politico - military alliance with them.
He also made friendship with Amar Manikya and Raghu Dev, the neighbouring Kings of Tripura Hill-tracts and Kamrup respectively.
In 1578, Mughal Subedar Khan Jahan invaded the Bhati region and encamped in Bhawal - Isa's heartland. Isa's problem compounded following betrayal of two Afghan chieftains--Karimdad Musazai and Ibrahim Naral-who sided with the Mughals.
Undaunted, Isa Khan stood defiant. A large Mughal naval force under two commanders waged a fierce naval battle in Kastul, now in Kishoreganj district. But they suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of Isa and his allied forces.
The Mughal army took to flight, and the Subedar was compelled to quit Bhati. Thus Isa Khan thwarted Mughal expansion in East Bengal.
The next Mughal Viceroy, Sahbaz Khan, led an army putsch while Isa Khan was in an expedition elsewhere and ravaged Katrabo, the home and capital of Isa, as well as Khizirpur, Sonargaon and Egarashindhur.
Isa Khan hurried back from the expedition and with his ally Masum Khan Kabuli put up a stiff resistance and defeated the Mughals in the battle of Egarashindhur and Bhawal. The attackers were forced back to Tanda, the local headquarters of the Mughals.
Shahbaz Khan again marched towards Bhati. Tired of constant battles, Isa Khan sent presents and proposed peace to the Mughal Viceroy and succeeded in forestalling the invasion. Then Isa remained undisturbed in his own territory for almost a decade.
But the Mughals in Delhi were averse to seeing a rising hero in Bengal and they wanted to crush Isa Khan. In September 1597, the Mughals sent a large force by land and water under the overall command of General Mansingh and his son Durjon Singh.
The battle took place 12 miles off Vikrampur. In this encounter Durjon Singh was killed.
But in the following year, Mansingh himself with an enlarged Mughal army led an invasion and crushed the backbone of Baro-Bhuiyans, destroyed Sonargaon and other places of Isa Khan e.g. Jangle Bari, Eagarshindhur and Katrabo.
Isa Khan died in September 1599 at the age of about 70.
During his lifetime, Isa Khan had brilliantly maintained his independence against the Mughals for a quarter of a century.
His independent domain comprised a vast chunk of land in Dhaka district, the whole of Mymensingh and a part of Tripura district.
After his death his son Musa Khan reigned in some part of Bhati and did not excel. His period lasted some time during the reign of Mughal emperor Jahangir. Then Musa became obscure.
Mughal historian Abul Fazl and Mirza Nathan acknowledge that Isa Khan was the Chief or Chieftain of 12 Zaminders or Bhuiyans of Bengal. Elsewhere, Mirza Nathan mentioned Musa Khan and his 12 Zamindar allies.
In a recent year, a vernacular newspaper ran a feature on the ruins of Isa Khan's Junglebari and traced a direct descendant of Isa Khan living in a dilapidated building.
Following Isa Khan's defeat by Mansingh and subsequent turmoil, a large number of dependants of the Bhuiyans dispersed to far-flung Bhati regions spread over Dhaka district, Mymensingh, Tripura and Noakhali where they established their individual domains.
They lived their life comfortably while the Mughals did not disturb any more as they found them helpful in matters of maintaining law and order, as also in the collection of tax and revenue.
During the period starting from Sultanate (1200AD), Pathan dynasties, Mughal Empire and the British Raj, rural aristocracy, particularly in Bhati regions, belonged to these Bhuiyan families. It is said that Bhuiyans have lived in Bengal for more than nine centuries.
Although Mughals had broken their backbone, they were not wiped out or annihilated. Bhuiyans had always remained active in rural Bengal and at the national level over these years - and at present Bhuiyans are found well-established in different professions.
Some milestones are found in the Bengal-British story. In 1793, Lord Cornwallis, Governor-General of India, instituted a "Permanent Settlement" of the lands of Bengal. Earlier, using the Sunset Law, East India Company had given a death blow and grabbed lands of many Bhuiyains, Chieftains and others.
By this measure, intermediaries who had collected revenue of the land taxes on behalf of the Mughals and later for the British Raj became owners of the lands on which they had gathered revenue.
The new landlords were required to pay a fixed fee to government and were left to collect rents indiscriminately from the peasants/farmers who had now become their tenants. In the process, wings of the Bhuiyans were clipped and their undisputed status in rural Bengal was relegated next to the newly-created class of Zamindars. But they maintained a pivotal role on their subjects.
In the process, the East India Company had made the lands marketable and diverted Indians' money to lands and they monopolized production and sale of opium, salt, tobacco and other essential household requirements.
This practice had lasted till the mid-nineteenth century. Then, following the Sepoy mutiny of 1857 and the takeover by Crown (Queen Victoria) over the East India Company's rule in India, in August 1858, the market opened up for the Indians.
Since then, the Indians flourished in every sector of trade, commerce and industry. Finally, in the early 50's of the last century, Zamindari system was abolished altogether and the intermediary role of Bhuiyans also came to an end.
Since then, the term 'Baro- Bhuiyans' has survived in popular tales.
Regrettably, many other facets of Bhuiyans' socioeconomic lifestyles have been uncovered largely because article's size and the author's range both have limits. Within those limits, however, it is hoped the article may have offered a flavour of an important part of the Bhuiyans ballad.
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Mr. ABM Ahsanullah is a retired government officer and a descendant of a Bhuiyan family who can be reached at
e-mail: [email protected]