ISLAMIZATION WILL BE STOPPED

ISLAMIZATION WILL BE STOPPED
Dr K Prabhakar Rao
Vijaynagar empire disappeared in 1649 due to internal feuds of the vassals. But another great Hindu empire started building up on the lines of Vijay nagar in South West. It was the Maratha kingdom of Chatrapathi Shivaji Maharaj that conquered entire south India soon and kept Mughals at bay.It bled Emperor Aurangzeb continuously for more than 20 years and finally he died at Ahmednagar, exhausted, defeated, financially bankrupt and friendless.Aurangzeb dug grave for his own empire by his foolish policies and religious intolerance.He was a self proclaimed puritan of Islam and it was his undoing. Shivaji Maharaj also disciplined Bijapur and Golconda before they were swallowed by Aurnagzeb. Maratha kingdom destroyed plans of Islamization of India by Mughals and but for Shivaji Maharaj and Vijaynagar empire, India would have been put into great problems by fanatic Islamists.In fact Marathas sapped entire energies of Mughals and later Mughals became pensioners of Marathas and finally they were destroyed in 1857. In fact No one can Islamize India. Hindus are not united as a whole country. But Hindus produced atleast some sections that halted Islamization of India. Same thing will happen in future too. The present rulers and future rulers too will try to appease Muslims for staying in power but their plans to destroy Hinduism in India will not meet success.Maratha power as a kingdom has vanished. But a reckoning force as Sangh Parivar has surfaced after 1947 that will give very stiff opposition to Islamists in India although all Hindus are not united at present. RSS needs to sharpen its teeth and claws and deliver concrete plans to prevent all nefarious activities by the ruling class.It should learn to growl and over come the practice of mewing.It should come out with bold productive activities for uniting Hindus to strengthen Hinduism.RSS must develop valor of Baji Prabhu Deshpande Murarbaji Deshpande and Tanaji Malsure along with planning skills of Shivaji Maharaj and his boldness.They should no more remain like a cat on wall.

INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN...267

 

                                   INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN…267

                                             Dr K Prabhakar Rao

(It is Pak military Head Quarters and a meeting is  likely to commence with army Chief  and Army commanders. Gandhi, Patel and Nehru learn about the meeting)

Gandhi. Patel. I think we must some how attend the meeting of these Generals.

Patel. Bapu. Who will allow us?

Gandhi. We have transparent bodies.  We can hide and watch. We need no Visa and passports.

Patel. That is true. How about Jawaharlal.? Will he come ?

Nehru. I shall also come. I am no less than you.

Gandhi. Fine . Let us go.For a change Jawaharl is bold enough.

Patel. Hee..Heee..heee.

Nehru. Patel. There is no requirement of saying hee..hee

( The trio  land up at Army Headquarters in Raqwalpindi. The meeting is going on. The trio slowly enter the conference room. . They are not seen by any one. They stand behind a curtain.)

Gen Kayani. Welcome Generals for today’s meeting. We are meeting after long time. In fact, I was very busy and did not find time to meet all of you.

Gen Jihadi. No matter to worry sir. We are happy.

Gen Kayani. Were you happy that I was busy and had no time to meet you guys?

Gen Jihadi. I did not mean that way. As it  is,  we are happy guys.

Gen Kayani. OK. It is fine. I am sure you guys know todays agenda.

Gen Zalim Khan. Yes sir. The agenda was circulated earlier. So we know it.

Gen Kayani. Good it was done. Otherwise I  have to explain from scratch. The main agenda is about India’s preparedness for war with  us. Gen Jihadi. What have you  done  in this regard? You  are the Chief of Intelligence wing. What information you have collected till date?

Gen Jihadi.  Sir, We did not make efforts in fact after you gave  us directives.

Gen Kayanai (angrily) Then what you have been doing all these months. Were you hatching eggs. Were you passing time playing Golf? What for you have been appointed? Is it the answer I expect from you?

Gen Zalim Khan. Sir. You are rude for no reason. Have some patience and listen to us.

Gen Kayani. Please remember. I am the chief here and I call the shots.

Gen Jihadi. Sir. What you require is the information. How we get does not matter. We know what you want to know and how much you want to know.. We also know what you want from us and to know what. Knowing the information is more important and we know what you really wanted to know and how much to give also we know. You infact  do not know how much we know. You also do not know how much we would be able to know.  Please know that we are fully aware of things  that you wanted to know.

Gen Kayani. Eeee….eeee..eee…e.eeee. Stop it. Stop it. Bloody man now stop. I just can not make out what you said. ee.eeee…eee.( Pulls his hair)

Gen Jihadi. Haa..haa..Unless you have patience how do you assimilate information?

Gen Kayani. I am getting crazy. Ee..ee..eee…eeee…. Now tell me what information you have? Is India ready to fight us? Are they ready to defeat us. Will they loose if we attack them now?

Gandhi (  From behind the curtain). Hee..Heee.. Hello General. Stop dreaming about India  loosing to you.

Gen Kayani( angrily) Who is the clown talking? I am sure it is none of you. I think some other guy spoke. Please carry out a search in the room.Shoot the bloddy bas …

( The guarss search everywhere and nothing is found. They go out. )

Gen Kayani. We were disturbed.  I was asking whether India is ready to fight us?

GenJinadi. Sir. Recently I learnt  that a great turmoil took place in India. There was some problem  between Indian Ministry of Defense and army there.

Gen Kayani. What was that? Please tell me fast. I am itching to know that.( He scratches his arm violently)

Gen Jihadi. Sir You Gen VK Singh of India.

Gen Kayani. I know him. He  is  India’s army chief. But what we have to do with him?

Gen Jihadi. Sir. Some tension was built between him and Ministry of Defense since long. First, Gen VK Singh contested his date of birth issue at court when Govt did not respond favorably for changing his date of birth which was along standing issue. The Indian highest court gave verdict infavour of the Govt.

Gen Kayani. Naturally they do. I see. Then what happened? Why he is fighting for his date of birth now as a Chief? Was he sleeping all these years? It is very strange, as army chief he could not solve his own problem.

Gen Jihadi. The issue could not be settled all these years.   He could have served for an year more if the date of birth was corrected.

Gen Kayani. That means they will have new army chief. The story is clear. Govt wanted to get rid of him  surely.That is the method to get rid of  a guy They succeeded. Hee..hee..hee.

Gen Zalim Khan. Sure. In India Civil authority is supreme. Defense forces do puppet dance.

Gen Kayani. We are lucky here. Here we call the shots. Here civilian guys get back benches whenever we want. It is in our hands. Hee..hee..Hee. We can take over whenever we want. Other guys can be put in spin just like that. All others are Lattoos (   tops) and we are strings.

Patel ( From behind curtain).  Silly guys. Do you think you guys are doing correct things? Your country suffered greatly all these years under army rule..

Gen Kayani. Who is this nut again speaking? He appears to be another guy. Guards. Search every where. Skin the guys who  are  hiding.

Patel. Hee..Hee..Hee

( Gen Kayani draws his pistol and fires towards the voice. The bullet goes through the curtain and hits the wall and is reflected. The bullet hits the photograph of Mohammed Ali Jinnah  hung on the wall. The glass breaks into pieces. One of the eye of Jinnahs  photograph is damaged)

Gen Zalim Khan. Sir, Relax. We are lucky that the bullet did not hit us. We are saved.Kindly control yourself sir.

Gen Kayani. Ok. Ok. I shall take it easy. Then what happened?

Gen Jihadi. In a fresh move the army chief declared that he was  offered a bribe of few crores some time ago by an agency if he accepted substandard Tatra trucks. This shook the govt that promptly announced an  high level probe. The army chief named a retired Lt General as the person who offered him the bribe. Hell broke loose in India.

Gen Kayani.  What was his next salvo?

Gen Jihadi. A letter written by the Army chief to the PM was leaked by some one. The letter revealed that Indian army was in very bad shape devoid of ammunition to field guns and other  weapons too. Most of the equipment was outdated and not battle worthy. He was much skeptical about Indian armys preparedness to fight enemy.A grim picture was presented.

Gen Kayani.  Yeah..Yeah.. Done. The guys are  now caught. They can not escape. Gen Jihadi. We have been spending Crores of Rs to get information on Indian army all these years. Now we have got everything free of cost from the mouth of Army chief itself. We must thank the guy who leaked the letter. He deserves to be given our coveted award, Nishan E Pakistan. ( He gets up from chair and fires few shots from his pistol into air and does jig and sings)

Look Guys the Indian are now done

Soon they will be on the mat

We are sure to reach the Redfort lawns

And celebrate our victory with bottle of VAT.

Patel( From behind the curtain). Look fools. Do not underestimate Indian army. They shall teach you befitting lesson. Keep watching.

Gen Kayani. You.. son. Of a .. Come out and face us. I shall show you. I shall make you flat.Come out. Don’t hide if you are son of a mother.

Patel. OK. I am in front of you now. Catch me if you can. Hee..heee.

Gen Kayani. Are you fooling me? If you are standing in front of me why you are not seen? Come out. Be brave.

Gandhi. I am also here and infront of you. Catch me if you can

( Gen Kayani fires  from  his pistol and the bullets strike Gen Jihadi and Gen Zalim Khan and they collapse in chairs)

Patel. Well done Kayani. Never dream of defeating India. You shall lnad up like this only. We are off now. Bye

(Gen Kayani shrieks loudly and slumps in his chair as the trio vanish from Pakistan ).

                                        CURTAIN FALLS  

BLAME GAME GOES ON

BLAME GAME Dr K Prabhakar Rao Every one expects Defense forces to be a role model for dedication, inititaive, honesty, integrity and steadfastness and efficiency. Ultimate saviors of the country are defense forces in any country.But why only these forces should be targeted? Why not civilians who are supreme in a democracy even if the degenerated democracy like in India.Our Democratic set up was copied from the Bristish parliamentary system and like copy cats we copied them and felt happy.We had no clue of our caste politics and head aches of religion that would undermine system. However the guys who wrote the document failed to realise that Indians are not Englishmen.Here Educations was very poor. The over populated country had its own problems. The natives who were robbed of power since centuries were only waiting like vultures to devour the nation after capturing political power in India. The same was predicted by Sir Winston Churchill. Exactly same thing happened.A tiger that has tasted human blood will not leave it. It goes after kill after kill till it si destroyed. What is going on in this country is same. Our political leaders have tasted the political power and the immunity it offers apart from various facilities are akin to the man eating tigers described above. They will not abdicate political ambitions. They hang on to the power even when they get physically invalid and , mentally in-alert. Yet they harbor further ambitions.Family rules and dynastic successions have become order of the day in India that is peculiar to only this nation. Gandhis name becomes an icon anda passage to power. What a shame!How one can cleanse society! Nepotism, corruption have become part of our DNA in Indians.Most amusing is that the writers preach that only Defense forces should be above all the ills while clean chit is given to the civilians. In fact all should be above all types of ills. Is it possible? Black sheep will be always there. There used to be few rare honest political leaders too in past and we had most eminent Defense personnel above board. Few incidents here and there do not make entire system bad. However in case of Civilian setup entire set up has become debris and muck.Army is a much smaller Orgaization compared to civilian set up.However in Defense forces strict code of conduct is there. In civil setup also code of conduct is there. Every political leader takes an oath when assumes his office. He betrays the oath and becomes corrupt. No other examples are required to sustain the argument after seeing what is going on now. The court cases that are going on now in the country against the scams will keep continuing for decades and invariably all the offenders will get scot free. Experience has taught us this. Every one knows about Bofors scam. Mundra affair of Nehru times is known to all. Helicopter scams is forgotten. 2G scam will go on and on for decades. Tehelca scam is also gone to winds. No major jail punishments were given and executed. However money was lost. Bofors scam is the right example to prove the point. When top guys are sustect things will not work correctly in all scams.. In such situation what we can expect? Civilian authority is supreme. But when civilian authority is highly corrupt, who will punish the corrupt and arrest mischief?PM is a helpless person. He does balancing act on tight rope. Men like LalooPrasad continue as Member of Parliament and he was the railway minister too. He is the prime accused and court case will go on till he lives and enjoys power. Once he is out from the world on his own ( wish so), the case will be struck off. Look at the no. of civil servants who are involved in various cases in AP and other states. Does it speak well of supreme civil society and immunity given to it? The nation has become a rotten one. Defense forces were and are good even now with in the prevalent conditions. But they have been discriminated, down graded and partisan treatment goes on against them. It is the most unhappy set up simmering like a cauldron. It could burst at any time although like Ostriches we feel that all is good. When civilian set up fails to deliver some changes could take place that no one can prevent. There is no other force that can counter Defense forces. The politicians should be mature enough in handling Defense problems and its men in uniform, . Treating them like all and sundry can spell doom to the nation. The date of Birth controversy of Gen VK Singh is a glaring mismanagement in MOD that could have been avoided. It has become a prestige issue for the Govt when the desperate General went to court. Why he was driven to that extent? Who will ask this question.? Inability to cater for forces is another failure on part of MOD. Pay commission problems that we had earlier with forces will keep on repeating. the govt has failed to make commission in Defense forces attractive. From where people with values will enter? All and sundry could find way into it from all walks of life in a same way as theya re entering civil services. It is national army. It is no more Royal army with officers class coming from elite class with strong financial back ground. Deterioration in defense forces thus started long ago after General ( Now FM)Cariappa transformed the British Indian army into national army of you and me. Obviously values have changed. Outside influence has affected it adversely. Who is to be blamed? Surely not the guys in uniform. It is the civilian setup that is to be blamed squarely. •

DARK DAYS AHEAD

DARK DAYS AHEAD
Dr K Prabhakar Rao


Shame on our political leaders on their conduct who leave no stone unturned to save themselves and let down the nation in the matters of security and safety of the nation. This govt has been in power for the last two years now and what they have done to upgrade our arms and equipment? the letter of the Army Chief Gen VK Singh has exposed the hollowness of Defense Ministry who are ultimate in ensuring safety and preparedness of our armed forces. But what we see now is just trash.Ministry of defense no doubt has failed to get the army prepared to fight back enemies of this country when needed. Who is to be blamed for the present state? Army is at receiving end.What happens in annual meeting between service chiefs and the PM. These meetings are rituals praising each other and all feeling happy. It will be like ..... You scratch my back and I shall scratch yours. Best youth do not join army as officers. SSB interviews are the proofs. The army selection teams visit various engg colleges for selecting youth. It is a sad story. First, many will not opt. Second is that very few get through the process to face SSB. Then at SSB ,none gets through. What a sorry state! It is not that we must reduce standards. The fact is that Army commission is treated as a last priority in career options. Girls do not opt for army officers to marry.Children of Army officers do not join army. They hate to join. there may be some odd persons here and there who are crazy of olive greens. Even such guys become fish out of water if they are in.Enough is enough. D M Mr Antony should quit and entire MOD should be cleansed before some thing drastic happens in this country that can not be reversed . Defense forces commission should stand at the top and rest must be behind.As on today, Highest service rank is General and its equivalent in other services. In other Police and paramilitary services, highest rank is one step down to the equivalent of rank of Lt Gen. We should not be surprised if these services also have full General rank officers in future.Defense forces status and prestige has systematically been undermined systematically right after gaining freedom from whites. The civilian Babus can be up to any thing in democracy to ensure their safety and position and status.Mother is always remembered in pain and soldier is remembered in war. Rest of the time they are kicked around. I still remember collection of money and gold for national Defense fund during and after Chinese war of 1962. How shameful that our leaders and even film stars went begging around for contributions from people to purchase arms.That was a sad state of affairs.Most probably true.Our leaders have swindled away huge sums to Swiss accounts and looted public money. Skeletons are rolling out daily.Army Chief became a villain because he wrote letter to PM on poor state of arms and equipment. God save our forces and this country.

INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN...266

INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN..266

Dr K Prabhakar Rao


(Gandhi, Nehru and Patel are seen strolling in the road in heavens. They come across a stiff looking man with imposing gait. He nears them and Nehru recognizes him. )

Nehru. Hello, General Thimmayya sahib. How are you? Hope all is fine. It is long since I met you.

Thimmayya. Hello Panditji. I am fine. Hope all is well with you. ( He greets Bapu and patel)

Thimmayya. Namaste Bapu and Namste Patelji. Hope you are keeping well.

Bapu. We are fine here. It is very long since we met.

Thimmayya. True. Panditji, I heard that our episode is being enacted again in India. Do you have any idea?

Nehruji. What is that? What was our episode? I am unable to recollect any thing.

Patel. Jawaharlal, You are good in forgetting important things that you goofed up.

Nehru. What goofing up I have done? Eee..eee…ee.e…eee Bapu. Look, this Patel always comments on me.

Bapu. Jawahrlal. Please learn to accept comments. Otherwise, you can not survive. For a politician these are very small things.He must brush things and give a smile ( sings and does jig).

It is a great chance for the guys
Who swallow things, forget and hide
Insults, abuses are part of the game
And be a buffalo always with a thick hide

When you get some left over of food
Accept these as divine offerings and sweet
Be happy with all the abuses on the earth
And be sure one day you shall get a big treat

Thimmayya. Great Bapu. Well sung ( He claps)

Nehru. So General Sahib. You also joined the clapping brigade.

Thimmayya. Good things must be appreciated. Panditji, Do you remember your 1962 Chienese fiasco?

Nehru. Sure. Army did so badly and we were let down.

Thimmayya. ( a bit angry) Is it you or we let the nation down?

Nehru. It has to be army only. They fought the enemy and lost badly.

Thimmayya. But it happened because you let down the nation with your Chinese policy that was cock eyed.

Nehru. Why? Why did you keep quiet?

Thimmayya. Army can not involve in politics in a democracy. We were apolitical. It is not Pakistan, where army calls shots.

Bapu. True, What the General said is hundred percent correct. It is you who let down the nation. It is you and only you. No one else can be blamed. Indian army jawans and officers sacrificed their lives.

Patel. True. It was you and Krishna Menon the Defense minister. Where he is now?

Bapu. He must be in hell suffering for his sins.

Patel. Then why Jawahar is here with us? He should have been with his stooge Menon.

Bapu. Jawahrlal also did some good things before he became the PM. So he is enjoying heavens . But this is for a short period. He has to go to hell to undergo suffering for long period.

Nehru. Ee..eee..ee. Bapu, Should I suffer? Was my sin very great?

Patel. Sure, Bapu is always correct.

Nehru. Now you must be happy Patel.

Ptael Why I should be happy? It is your doing.

Thimmayya. Panditji. I was struggling to get army equipped and expecting threat from China. You guys never listened to me. I had great tiff with Menon and I had to resign.

Patel. You did wise thing.

Nehru. But you withdrew it also.

Thimmayya. But when? I withdrew my resignation when you requested me and also promised that my grievances will be sorted out.

Nehru. True. I said that. I am not denying that.

Thimmayya. But you let me down in parliament. You castigated me there. I had to cut a sorry figure in front of army and nation too. That was not proper for you. I trusted you.

Nehru. Hello General, Promises are made to break. Can politician be trusted? Otherwise he can not be a successful politician. We make and break promises. In fact politicians are the greatest liars on the earth.Only fools believe them. Hee..heee..hee ( Sings and does fast jig)

I fooled you guys and tricked you
And I took you nuts for a bumpy camel ride
You guys like a goat believed the butcher with knife
While we politicians hide within a buffalo hide

( Nehru does jig very fast, slips down and falls suddenly. He can not get up)

Nehru. Eee…eeee…eeeee…ee.. Please save me. I am done.

Thimmayya. Panditji. You are too old for these dances. It is for youngsters.

Patel. Hee..Hee..heee

Bapu. Patel. Please take pity on him.

Thimmayya. ( Gives a hand ) Please rise Panditji. We are always ready to help politicians in this democracy. After all Civilian set up is supreme in democracy. I agree.

Nehru. Hope you are not sarcastic.

Thimmayya. Why I should be? What is rut has been told to you.

Patel. True. He is very honest.

Nehru. Does it mean that I was dishonest?

Patel. You know it better. I need not say anything on that. Honesty and dishonesty are the two sides of a coin.

Thimmayya. Panditji, Of course I did not protest and swallowed things.

Nehru. You could not do any thing. I knew it. I Expected it. I knew you would lump it down your throat.
Thimmayya. Result you have seen yourself. You cut a very sorry figure in front of the nation. Your slogan Hindi Chini Bhai Bhai.. vanished into air. They stabbed you in your back.

Nehru. I never expected it. I really trusted them. They betrayed me badly.ee..ee…ee. I lost my reputation.ee..eee..eeee

Patel. If it was there!. Why are you crying now? Relax.

Thimmayya. I am afraid, Politicins have not learnt lessons after 1962. The story is repeating now in India.

Patel What is that happening.

Thimmayya. The present General is VK Singh. He and govt is logger heads particularly the ministry of Defence.

Bapu. What exactly happened?

Thimmayya. Poor General had entered his date of birth wrongly when he joined army and later he applied for correction giving proof of 10 the class certificate. Although 38 years passed his grievance was not sorted out. He went through various ranks and finally became Army chief. Still he date of birth was not sorted out. The correction would have given him one year extra service as Chief. He has to otherwise retire in May this year.

Bapu. I see.

Patel. Was it so difficult to settle the matter? It is rather strange. If an army Chiefs grievance was not corrected that was pending for 38 years, how the govt can settle grievances of other lower ranks and officers? This is very bad indeed. It shows red tapism in civil beaurocracy.

Thimmayya. I agree.

Bapu. I fully agree. I think we have most inefficient guys sitting in MOD.

Thimmayya. That I do not know. Nehruji knows it better. I was shocked when I knew that Gen VK Singh approached Supreme court against Govt orders vexed up with the issue.

Bapu. What happened in the court?

Thimmayya. The court gave orders in favour of Govt. General accepted the verdict.He prefred to continue

Bapu. We can not comment on this issue now as the verdict was given by the highest court. It is his fate. I feel bad .

Thimmayya. The distance increased between MOD and the Army Chief day by day. One day the Chief declared that he was once offered Rs 17 Crores by Representative of a suppilier of Tatra Trucks for accepting inferior equipment. He said that he informed Defence Minister immediately. Sadly, the representative was a retired Lt General of Indian army. It seems that the conversation was also taped by the army chief.

Nehru. Why he is telling these things now? If his date of birth was corrected as desired, probably he would have kept quiet. Hee..heee.

Thimmayya. It is up to him. Now an enquiry has been ordered by the govt. The retired Lt General filed a defamation case against the Army Chief in a court.

Bapu. Any thing further?

Thimmayya. A letter written by General VK Singh to PM on Army prepared ness has been leaked out. The letter said that army is ill equipped with rusty and useless equipment and weapons including artillery and that there was no ammunition even for various weapons. This has resulted in great shock in the nation.

Patel. Haa..haaa. Our enemies have been spending lot of money for getting information on our Defense preparedness. Now they got it free.. Haa..haaa

Nehru. Who leaked it?

Thimmayya. Intelligence has declared that Army chief is free from suspicion. They are tracing the culprit. All these things are very bad. Only thing is that the Chief has not yet resigned. Only two months are left for his tenure.

Patel. Govt also does not want to buy problems with him now. As it is trapped in all scams. I also heard that all bigwigs are involved in the trucks deal and their names would come out of the tape if pressed further.

Bapu. This is a dirty shit pot infact. I feel sorry indeed. This govt has lost all credibility. It is better they quit.

Thimmayya. What I can say? If our enmies take advantage now, we have to cut a sorry figure. Antony could be another DrMonon.Man mohan singh will replace Panditji. As it is the govt of singh is limping and running from pillar to post every second day. They are neck deep in scams galore.Chee..Chee..Chee. I am ashamed.

Bapu. Why you should be ashamed? We must be ashamed. It is me , patel and this Nehru. We brought freedom as many believe. Churchill said long ago that India would be handed over to scoundrels. How true he was!
Thimmayya. I feel sad Bapu. I am helpless.

Bapu. We too. Hope for the best. Let us sing Ramdhun. It may help us.

( All sing Ramdhun )

CURTAIN FALLS

HISTORICAL TOPPUR BATTLE OF 1616 IN SOUTH INDIA

HISTORICAL TOPPUR BATTLE OF 1616 IN SOUTH INDIA

Dr K Prabhakar Rao



The most important ruler of Vijaynagar empire in the it’s twilight years was Venkata II ( Venkatapathi Raya) ( 1586–1614 CE), the younger brother of Emperor Sriranga I who became the ruler of Vijayanagara Empire. His reign of three decades saw a revival of strength and prosperity of the empire. He dealt successfully with the Deccani sultans of Bijapur and Golkonda and the internal disorders, promoting economic revival in the country. He brought rebelling Nayaks of Tamil Nadu and parts of present day Andhra Pradesh under control. Around 1592, Venkata II shifted his capital from Penukonda to Chandragiri, which was further South near the Tirupathi hills. Penukonda is now in Ananthapur district of Andhra Pradesh. The indestructible Vellore Fort in present day Tamil Nadu was used as a major base and second capital. The Northern territories of his empire were brought into order by offering easy terms on taxes and reviving agriculture which was frequently run over by the invading Bahmani Sultans. Village administration was streamlined and judiciary was stringently enforced. Several of his chieftains in his North now revolted against him, including some of Aliya Rama Raya’s descendents, but he successfully subdued them. Thus, Venkata II retrieved the fallen prestige of the empire as a result of Tallikota battle to a great extent in his illustrious rule of nearly 30 years. But after him, the empire fell into disarray.
Venkata II, in spite of having several queens sadly did not have a son, hence appointed Sriranga II, the son of his brother Rama as his successor. This was done to prevent one of his favorite queen Bayamma’s fraud on the King by borrowing a baby of her Brahmin maid and calling it as her own. While Robert Swell’s book mentions that the infant was surreptitiously introduced into the palace by Bayamma born out from the marriage of a niece of Venkata I and a Brahman boy, who had been and educated in the pretence that he was the son of King Venkata. For the fear of bad name, Venkata II kept quiet, but nominated Sri Ranga II as his successor. But Gobburi Jagga Raya, brother of the previous ruler Venkata II’s favourite Queen Obayamma claimed her putative son as the King and challenged succession of Sri Ranga II. He imprisoned Sri Ranga II and his family at Vellore fort. This however was most disliked and disapproved by Nayakas of Tanjore and Kalahasthi who were faithful vassals of Vijaynagar empire. Yachama Naika ruler of Kalahasthi ( Velama by caste), very important, very influential and patriotic Chieftain of Late Venkata II did not accept the actions of Jaggaraya.
This resulted in a civil war in the Vijayanagara Kingdom, now based in Vellore and Chandragiri. Yachama Naika arranged smuggling out of Ramdeva the rightful heir to the throne. He was the son of SriRanga II who was under captivity at Vellore. This prompted Jagga Raya to murder ruler Sri Ranga II and all his family members in the prison at Vellore. This infuriated Yachama Naika and other patriotic Chieftains and rulers of Tanjore who made a common front against Jagga Raya. Jagga Raya sought help from the Gingee Nayak and Muttu Virappa of Madurai to attack Yachamanedu ( Yachama Naika) and Rama Deva. Jagga Raya assembled a large army near Tiruchirapalli,the capital of Muttu Virappa comprising the armies of Gingee, Chera, Madurai, and some Portuguese from the coast. Yachama Naika led the forces of Vijayanagara and Kalahasti from Vellore and was joined midway by Tanjore forces headed by Raghunatha Naika. Yachama's army was further strengthened by nobles from Karnataka and (according to some accounts) Dutch and Jaffna armies. Both the Armies met at Toppur, at an open field on the northern banks of River Cauvery, between Tiruchirapalli and Grand Anicut in late months of 1616. The huge assembly of forces on either side is estimated to be as many as a Million soldiers (according to Dr. Barradas in Sewell’s Book) and considered to be one of the biggest battles in the Southern India. This was a greatest battle after Tallikota battle fought between forces of Aliya Rama Raya the defacto emperor of Vijay nagar and confederation army of Deccani sultans in 16 th century in which Rama Raya was defeated and killed owing to the betrayal of his Muslim Generals at a very crucial moment of winning the war.
In the Battle, Jagga Raya's troops could not withstand the aggression generated by the imperial forces. Yachama Naika and Raghunatha Naika , the Generals of the imperial camp led their forces with great discipline and commitmnet. They had a genuine cause and God was with them. Jagga Raya was slain by Yachama Naika on the battle field, and his army broke the ranks and took to flight. Yethiraja, the brother of Jagga Raya, had to run for his life. Muttu Virappa tried to escape but he was pursued by Yachama's General Rao Dama Nayani who captured him near Tiruchirapalli. The Nayaka of Gingee in the encounter lost all his forts except Gingee Fort and the putative son of Venkata II, cause of all trouble was captured. The victory was celebrated by the imperial armies headed by RaghunathaNayaka and Yachamanedu ( Or Yachama Naika), who planted pillars of victory and crowned Rama Deva as Rama Deva Raya, in early months of 1617. Rama Deva Raya was barely 15 years old when he ascended the throne. With this, all opposition to Sri Rama Deva was removed.
Battle of Toppur had more devastating effects on fortunes of Vijaynagar empire than the battle of Tallikota fought in 1565. After Tallikota battle, Vijay nagar empire was not destroyed. It stood ground and recouped to a great extent. It survived for another 100 years. The vassals after Toppur battle were clearly divided. Naiks of Madhura ( Madurai) and Chenji ( Jinjee) became bitter enemies of Tanjore ( Tanjavur) and Vijaynagar . They colluded with Sultans of Bijapur and Golconda from time to time and planned fall of the empire. The result was that Vijay nagar empire failed to survive for long and disintegrated within a span of 40 years after the battle during the reign of Sri Ranga III in spite of his valiant efforts. Vijaynagar empire disappeared from the scene in 1649. With this , entire South India came under the influence of Deccani sultans ( vassals of Mughals) abetted by selfish Naikas of Madhura and Chenji.

BUYING TIME WITH CROC TEARS

BUYING TIME WITH CROC TEARS

DR K Prabhakar Rao
What General VK Singh has done in writing to PM on defense preparedness is perfect. Why people should cry on it? It is his duty to do it. It is up to PM to discuss with Defence ministry and take corrective steps. Delay on his part will lead to crisis some day and enemy will gain advantage out of it. In similar situation before 1962, General Thimmaya the most internationally respected General of Indian army resigned when he developed strained relations with the then DM Krishna menon over preparedness of Army.Nehruji the PM was shit scared of the General and theories of military coup also were circulated.Although the General withdrew his resignation at the request of Nehruji it proved to be a disaster. Pandit Nehru took advantage out of it and played trick in condemning the Chief of army staff in parliament.Thus Panditji pulled crapet under the feet of General. How shameful it was! General Thimmayya who was a gentleman did not react and rest of his service was some how spent and he retired in indignation. His prestige no way was diminished while Panditji went down the history as a guy who goofed up things. Indian Debacle of 1962 against China is well known. Pandit Nehru, Menon and Lt General Kaul are squarely responsible for the debacle. Krishna menon was removed later and Gen Kaul too retired in shame and Nehruji died heart broken ( God punished him that way).In fact Nehruji should have resigned after the debacle as he was squrely respnsible for it. Every one paid for the folly. But Indian army lost the image that was built up with 1948 war with Pakistan, Hyderabad operation and Goan operation.
General VK Singh is known for integrity and govt was involved in avoidable age controversy.Throughout India 10 the class certificate is taken as a proof for the age. But for him this was not accepted. It is clear that the govt wanted to get rid of him some how. It is all the doings of Civil Babus who want to keep upper hand.Right from the days after independence civilian bureaucracy planned and achieved degradation of Indian army and there was systematic plan.Army was marginalized and relegated to the third rate or fourth rate service in India to day. Best talent never joins Indian army. Present controversy is outcome of these mishaps. Civil services wants to maintain their supremacy at all costs. Probably another debacle is awaiting us at the hands of China or Pakistan this time.Only silver line now is that PM has expressed confidence in General VK SIngh to keep him in good humour and it has to be seen whether it is genuine or like shedding Crocodile tears. Nehruji in past let down Gen Thimmayya very badly after he was persuaded to withdraw his resignation.

We have to see whether PM is buying time till General VK Singh retires in May and then get a Yes master in his place who could bow and crawl and do puppet dance in front of Babus.In fact, General VK Singh should resign immediately if he wants to maintain his and army's image.Probably a grave is being dug behind him clandestinely.

HAPPY BEAR THE RSS

HAPPY BEAR THE RSS

Dr K Prabhakar Rao

I am the happy sleeping bear
And shall not shed a drop of tear
Let the poor Hindus suffer in this state
And they curse the god for their sad fate
Long ago I marched in republic day parade
Then went to eternal sleep under a facade
Many came who ruled and vanished into dark
But I always slept and refused to growl and bark
Now once in a while I open my eyes
And shake my hair to relieve the dust
I yawn showing all my teeth to sky
Then again go to slumber and for me it is a must
Whatever happens around me please know
Goes into history as a mere silly event
I happily sleep and scratch my belly at times
And my state is like cartridge that has been spent

EVER SLEEPING BEAR

EVER SLEEPING BEAR

Dr K Prabhakar Rao

RSS is underground and playing safe too.Media channel is rarely seen by common man and is limited to only a limited educated section. In case of Muslims, they have weekly congregations at mosques throughout India on Friday and it is compulsory for Muslims to attend the Namaz at mosques on fridays and prayer is led by a Maulvi.On other days, they can even pray at homes too.In case of Hindus, there is no compulsion laid down in scriptures and is left to individuals to pray or not to pray.Hindus visit temples in all types of dresses ( Except in Guravayur) while Muslims compulsorily sport their typical attire and skull caps while going to mosques. Hindus are free birds.In fact Hindus feel shy of going to temples and many do not show pride in it.We hardly find a Hindu putting Tilak on his fore head except few. There are no organised congregations at temples. Some Babas and Swamis do give discourses herea and there some times and these are purely philosphical in nature and they teach what is good and what is bad in life.It is well known that prayer meetings at mosques have been used to stoke passions in past and such things do not happen in Hindu temples. Of late, Ramdev baba has taken up cudgels against the govt on issues of corruption and swiss money. How RSS plans to stimulate Hindu masses to get united on various issues? Religion is not a binding factor for Hindus as seen by us.In fact it was never so.Muslim generals betrayed Aliya RamaRaya of Vijay nagar in Tallikota Battle in 1646 while Hindu army was about to win. Rest is history. In history, there is no evidence of Hindu troops betraying any sultan in battle.Hemu led forces of Afghans at battle of Panipat II against Akbar and laid down his life.Hindu armies laid down lives for Tippu sultan against East India Company.Kakateeyas and Yadavas in South India fought each other constantly and Yadavas of Devagiri helped Mohd Bin Tughlaq and Khilji to defeat Kakateeyas ( 13 century). They too perished later. Hindus although were in majority in India could not prevent partition in 1947.When cases were slapped against Kanchi swamy and was arrested in midnight and flown to Chennai from AP, RSS reaction was rather absent.There was lukeworm ( If not earthworm) response. When a Maulvi Nasiruddin was arrested at Hyderabad by Gujrat police some time ago in the murder case of minister of Gujrat, Muslim reaction was intense at Hyderabad and there was criminal intimidation against Gujrat and AP police near DGP office and Gujrat police Inspector opened fire and killed a guy.There was a trouble again during funeral in the evening. Such are the reactions and all these things are brushed under carpet.I agree that Ramdev Baba episode became a controversy and even the highest court blamed Delhi police apart from blaming Babaji.RSS has been a fence sitter in all these episodes. How people get faith in such organization? They must show concrete evidence for their commitment towards Hinduism. At Present, their meetings are arranged in some big function halls displaying big paintings of Chatrapathi Shivaji Maharaj and usual rituals are followed there, apart from some stereo type lectures by chosen leaders. Some books are kept for sale at the gate and finally people vanish and action repeats at some other place. There is no crowd participation.Probably RSS would take very very long time still in uniting Hindus and by the time probably we would run out of time and India could turn into an Islamic state or into Mughalistan if present situation is not countered very strongly.RSS has do something concrete if they have to prove their existence.It is not to belittle RSS, but present trend is not inspiring in the country and is a matter of great concern and RSS today displays its helpless position with naked truths staring at its face.

VEER NARAYAN SINGH.. A MARTYR OF 1857 FROM ODISHA( ORISSA)

VEER NARAYAN SINGH.. A MARTYR OF 1857 FROM ODISHA( ORISSA)

Dr K Prabhakar Rao



Many stalwarts and patriots laid down their lives during the 1857 war with the East India Company. Many of them vanished un noticed and history has forgotten about them. Veer Narayan Singh is one among them. His contribution in the struggle was no less.Veer Narayan singh Binjhwar was a great son of the Mahanadi ( In Orissa) Valley and the soil of Chhattisgarh, He was born to the Zamindar ( Land lord) of Sonakhan in Chattisgarh state in 1795. In 1856 when Chhattisgarh was in the grip of severe famine, the merchants hoarded grain, Narayan Singh could not tolerate seeing people die of starvation. Veer Narayan Singh, was also deeply influenced by the teachings of Guru Ghasidas who founded the satnam panth.The Guruji was from Raipur district. He sought to borrow grain from merchants and ultimately, performing the duties of a 'Kshetra Pramukh', he arranged to take out grain from the warehouse and distributed it amongst the people, under intimation to Charles Elliot, the Deputy Commissioner of Raipur. But on the complaint of Makhan, a merchant, the British Governmnet arrested Narayan Singh at Sambalpur on 24th Oct 1856 on the charge of looting the grain and distributing among people and sent him to jail at Raipur.

In 1857 when the flame of revolution was ignited in the country, it lit sparks in the forest-region of Chhattisgarh and the people unanimously elected the imprisoned Narayan Singh as their leader. With the help of soldiers and the public, Narayan Singh escaped from the jail in August, 1857 and reached Sonakhan. He organised his trusted followers and had an encounter with the British army near Sonakhan. He was moved by the atrocities and the acts of devastation and destruction of the British. He surrendered himself to the British army to protect the lives of the people. Narayan Singh was charged with treason and sentenced to death. He was publicly executed on 10th December, 1857 by hanging. He sacrificed his life willingly for the country. The army contingent stationed at Raipur and the public revolted at Raipur, on 18th January, 1858 under the leadership of Hanuman Singh. A British Officer was killed. People were inspired by the immortal sacrifice of Veer Narayan Singh and seventeen of them were sentenced to death on 22nd Jan. 1858. Their sacrifice, like Veer Narayan Singh's martyrdom, was a memorable event in the history of Chhattisgarh which gave momentum to the freedom movement. Unfortunately very few people outside the state of Chattisgarh know about Veer narayan Singh and it is the sad story in India.

THE ROLE OF PEMMASANI NAYAKS FOR GROWTH OF VIJAYNAGAR EMPIRE..II

THE ROLE OF PEMMASANI NAYAKS FOR GROWTH OF
VIJAYNAGAR EMPIRE
Dr K Prabhakar Rao
PART II
The original name of Pemmasani Nayaks was Aalum Their ancestors can be traced to Bellamkonda region in AP and a section of the clan can be traced to Musunur in Krishna District indicating relation ship to Musunuri nayaks. Generations of these Nayaks served Vijaynagar rulers and distinguished themselves. They became famous as rulers of Gandikota in todays Kadapa district in AP state. Their influence spread between Krishna river to Ananathpur. Forts of Yadaki, Gutthi and Gandikota speak volumes of these Nayaks. Timma Naidu received Yadaki Pargana from Proudha Deva Raya in 1431 for his distinguished services in defeating Muslim armies of Ahmed Shah Bahmani at the battle of Gulbarga. Timma Naidu was the son of Venkatapathi Naidu.
The forts of Yadaki, Gutti and Gandikota are the symbols of Pemmasani Nayaks. During the heyday, their control extended from Krishna up to Anantapur districts. The annual income was twenty five lakhs of rupees out of which nine lakhs of rupees were paid as tribute to the Vijayanagar kings. The ancestors of Pemmasani clan (Gothram: Vallutla) belonged to Bellamkonda in ancient Kammanadu. A branch of Pemmasani clan belong to Musunurla gothram which point out their origin from the village Musunuru in Krishna district and their possible relation to the Musunuri Nayaks. History of Vijay nagar empire can not be complete without noting the contribution of Pemmasani clan.Important personalities of the clan are :-

Thimma Nayudu: Thimma was a commander in the army of Proudha Devaraya (1420-448 CE) who granted Yadaki paragana in 1422 CE after Thimma's victory over Ahmed Shah in the battle of Gulbarga (Kalubarige). He ruled Gutthi and Gandikota regions and used pay an annual tribute of nine lakhs of rupees to the Vijayanagar king. He developed Gandikota as an impregnable fort. Thimma minted his own coins with Veerabhadra’s icon. He ruled for a long time, constructed many temples and tanks and brought recognition to Gandikota. His son Veerathimma ruled Gandikota after him.
Ramalinga Nayudu: Veerathimma had a son by name Chennappa who had two sons Ramalinga and Pedathimma. Ramalinga ruled Gandikota (1509-1530 CE) during the time of Krishna Deva Raya. Ramalinga had 80,000 soldiers under him and he played a major role in the victory of Krishna Deva Raya over the combined armies of Kalubarige, Golkonda and Ahmednagar. He became the most favorite commander of Krishna Deva Raya and played a pivotal role in the battle of Raichur. His exploits in the battle were extolled by many Telugu poets. He was most feared by the Muslim Generals of Bijapur, Ahmednagar and Golconda. Ramalinga constructed many temples in Anantapur region.

Pedathimma Nayudu: Pedathimma led the Vijayanagar army to victory in many battles. He became famous for the slaying of Dastur Khan. He had three sons, Narasimha, Balichinna and Chinathimma.

Thimma Nayudu II participated in the expeditions of Krishna Deva Raya and captured Udayagiri, Addanki, Kondapalli, Rajahmundry and Katakam (Cuttack). He also played a crucial role in the conquest of Ummattur

Bangaru Thimma (Arathimma) Nayudu: After the death of Krishna Deva Raya in 1529 CE his son-in-law Aliya ( Araveeti) Rama Raya took control of the kingdom. Bahamani sultan colluded with Salakam Timmaraja and raided Vijayanagar. Ramaraya took refuge in Gandikota. Bangaru Thimma vanquished Bahamanis in a fierce battle at Komali, killed Salakam Timmaraja and restored the throne to Ramaraya .

Pedaveera Nayudu was the contemporary of Srirangaraya and Venkatapatiraya. During the twilight of Vijayanagar Empire Gandikota rulers Bojja Thimma Nayudu and Venkatagiri Nayudu steadfastly helped Sriranga Raya by keeping Golkonda and Bijapur armies at bay.

The last ruler of Gandikota was Chinna Thimma Nayudu. At the behest of the minister Podila Linganna, Mir Jumla, the General of Golkonda Nawab raided Gandikota in 1594. There was stiff resistance. The fort was captured only after Linganna plotted and poisoned Chinna Thimma. Pinnayya Nayudu, son of Chinna Thimma and still very young, was saved and taken to Mysore by his relatives. Most of the Gandikota families (sixty six surnames) migrated to Guntur, Kavetirajapuram (Chittor Dt), Madurai, Tirunelveli, Ramanathapuram etc. The Zamindaris of Ilaiyarasanadal and Kurivikulam in Tamil Nadu belong to Pemmasani families. These people are collectively called Gandikota Kammas. A section of them is called ‘Gampa Kamma’. The meaning of Gampa in Telugu is ‘Large Basket’. It is not clearly known how this name came into being.

THE ROLE OF PEMMASANI NAYAKS FOR GROWTH OF VIJAYNAGAR EMPIRE..I

THE ROLE OF PEMMASANI NAYAKS FOR GROWTH OF
VIJAYNAGAR EMPIRE

Dr K Prabhakar Rao

PART I


Successive rulers of Vijaya nagar empire that was founded by Harihara Raya and Bukka Raya brothers on the banks of Tungabhadra river in Bellary district of present Karnataka state stopped Islamization of South India very strongly with great determination for 300 years. They lived by sword. The empire was founded at a most crucial time under the guidance of saint Vidyaranya Swamy after the fall of Deccani Hindu kingdoms such as Kakateeyas of Warangal , Yadavs of Devagiri and Hoyasalas of Dwarasamudram at the hands of invading Delhi sultan Mohammed Bin Tughlaq in the 14 century. The internal rivalry between Kakateeyas of Warangal and Yadavs of Devagiri resulted in the quick fall of Warangal and Devagiri later at the hands of Mohd Bin Tughlaq in 14 century . Entire south India lay bared to the cruelties, brutalities, barbaric conduct, grave crimes and vandalization by Muslim armies that created havoc among population. Temples were looted , destroyed and desecrated. Women were raped and abducted as sex slaves. Men and children were slain and taken as slaves. All religious rituals in temples seized to exist. Copper plate Inscription of Musunoori Prolaya Naika at Vilasa in Andhra Pradesh is a testimony to the misdeeds of invading Muslims. A Muslim kingdom was established at Madhura ( Maber) right in the heart of South India. It appeared as if Hindu culture and heritage would be very seriously eroded under Islamic oppression.

However, Musunoori Prolaya Naika and later his cousin Kapayya Naika with the vassals of former Kakateeya empire and with the help of other followers waged relentless guerlilla war for 10 years against Muslims and drove away Malik Maqbool the governor of Warangal . Kapayya Naika established himself as successor to Kakateeyas at Warangal and assumed imperial titles as Andhra desa dheesa and Andhra Surathrana .The efforts of Prolaya Naika and Kapayya naika can be recognized as a greatest and most successful effort in medieval times by Hindu chieftains in restoring Hindu prestige and honor in India while in north India no such revival took place. No praise is sufficient for the efforts of Musunoori Nayakas in this direction. Soon Muslims from Karnataka were also driven out and Hindu prestige was restored to a very great extent. At this point of time, the power of Tughlaqs waned out at Delhi and Muslim viceroy at Daulatabad ( devagiri) revolted against Tughlaqs regime and established an independent kingdom. He was Hasan gangu Bahaman Shah and later he shifted his capital to Gulbarga on the northern side of Vijay nagar. This Muslim kingdom soon became a pain in the neck for Vijay nagar. Entire history of Vijay nagar is the history of warfare between the warring Hindu empire and aggressive Bahamani kingdom. Bahmani kingdom at a later date disintegrated into five provinsional kinmgdoms such as Berar, Bidar, Ahmed nagar, Bijapur and Golconda. These five kingdoms fought each other constantly and also with Vijaynagar.

Kapayya naika in fact helped Hasan Gangu Bhaman shah by sending 1500 cavalry in support of him when he revolted against Delhi’s regime at Daulatabad ( Devagiri). He aasumed that a buffer state between Delhi sultans and the Hindu kingdoms would be beneficial. But he failed to realize that Bahmani kingdom would be no different from Delhi sultanate. Ungrateful Bahman shah Bahmani after consolidation soon attacked Kapayya naika and he had to come to terms by surrendering Kaulas fort, money and few elephants. Soon Velama scion Singama Naika at Rachakonda who was a vassal of Kapayya naika revolted and established a separate kingdom. There were constant fights between Kapayya and Rachkonda rulers and Kapayya died in a battle by deceipt at Bheemavaram near Warangal with Rachankonda ruler Anapoth Naika. Vinaya Deva the sonf Kapayya Naika was earlier killed in a battle by Muhammed shah Bhamani I and thus dynasty of Kapayya became extinct. Many chieftains of Kapayya naika migrated to Vijaynagar for a living. Reddy vassals at Addanki ( Later shifted to Kondaveedu) also declared independence soon. They had constant enmity with rulers of Rachakonda and Devarkonda and fought many battles. Telangana soon fell to Velama rulers of Rachakonda. Rulers at Rachakonda and Devarakonda constantly fought with Reddy kings of Addanki and later of Kondaveedu and Vijaynagar empire in collusion with Bahmani sultans. Entire Telangana and Andhra regions became battle grounds for constant warfare. People greatly suffered in these wars. However the Rachakonda kings later lost their kingdom to Bahamani sultans. The Velama chieftains and the members of the clan migrated to Vijay nagar and served the emperor as commanders, chieftains and at places as governors. Most of them distinguished themselves for their valor, honesty , integrity, patriotism and commitment. Apart from the Velama clan, members of Kamma clan too served kings of Vijaynagar with great distinction and dedication. They rose to the position of provincial rulers, commanders, Chieftains and important advisers.

Vijaynagar empire steadily grew and consolidated itself as a paramount power in south India. The Empire was ruled by four successive dynasties such as Sangama, Saluva, Tuluva and Araveeti clans. Harihara raya was the first Sangama ruler who found the dynasty and the capital at Vijaynagar at the inspiration of Swami Vidyaranya Swamy in 14 century. The empire steadily grew a very strong and kept Muslims at bay. Bahmani kingdom and Vijay nagar empire were found rather in same period and thus fought constantly for superiority in Deccan. Reddy kingdom at Kondaveedu was finally consumed by Vijay nagar after the death of its last ruler Racha Vema Reddy who was a tyrant and was assassinated by one of his Balija chieftain named savaram Ellaih at Kondaveedu after a brief rule of five years.. The Muslim kingdom of Madhura ( Mabar ) that was found by Tughlaq was also defeated and annexed by prince Kumara Kamana of Vijaynagar during the rule of Bukka Raya I and thus only powers that were left in south India were at loggerheads all the time. Gajapathi rulers of Orissa too had a stake in the control of some provinces in south India. However during the rule of Sri Krishna Deva Raya , Gajapathi’s forces were defeated at every place and entire areas in south were captured from him. The forces of Gajapathi were driven out of Andhra provinces and a victoty pillar was erected at to potnur by Krishan Deva Raya. The clan of Pemmasani nayaks of Kamma Community distinguished themselves in bringing glory to Vijaynagar empire in all wars. Vijay nagar rulers can not be absolved of cruelties perpetuated on their own kith and kin for the sake of capturing power. They too kept close relatives under captivity to avoid trouble. It was the order of the day. Such things happened in all kingdoms such as Bahmani kingdom and Mughals and also in Rajput kingdoms in north India. Four dynasties ruled the empire and at the end of each dynasty, there was bloodshed and a powerful and new chieftain usurped the throne when the king was very weak, oppressive or was a mere infant. Murders were committed to usurp the throne and this was common in those days. Might is right was probably the principle of action. Within the dynasty too power struggle took place for the throne and the one who enjoyed confidence of influential vassals and chieftains enjoyed power as the king. But every dynasty systematically protected Hindu faith from the invading Muslims armies of Deccani sultanates or Bahmani kingdom right from the days of Harihara Raya the first king to the last emperor Sri Ranga III who died in harness devoid of the empire after he was betrayed by some of his own vassals.


TO BE CONTINUED IN PART II

THE BRAVE QUEEN AVANTI BAI OF RAMGARH ..A MARTYR OF 1857 WAR

THE BRAVE QUEEN AVANTI BAI OF RAMGARH ..A MARTYR OF 1857 WAR

Dr K Prabhakar Rao


Avantibai was the queen of Ramgarh in Mandla District of Madhya Pradesh. She was the wife of Vikramaditya singh a Lodhi Rajput ruler of Ramgarh.Lodhi, Lodha and Lodh Rajputs derived their name from word Yodha meaning warrior.They are spread mostly in North India. He died issueless and she was looking after the affairs of the State. The British took over the administration in 1851 by the doctrine of lapse. She vowed to win back her land, organised the local zamindars ( Land lords) and rulers and raised an army of about four thousand men. In 1857, the Rani led her army and in the first encounter with the British, defeated Wadington, their commander. However, in subsequent engagements, despite her courage and skill, the Rani could not hold out against the large and well-equipped British army.

Faced with the prospect of defeat and surrender, Rani Avantibai chose to sacrifice her life. She joined the ranks of martyrs on 20 March 1858 by killing herself with her own sword.