Himachal Archives

Maharaja Hari Singh Bahadur had ascended the throne after his uncle, Maharaja Pratap Singh had died without an heir in 1925. History has always remained divided and unfair to Maharaja Hari Singh and several eminent historians have been wilfully ignorant of the real Hari Singh and his desires. Thankfully, public notions have started to change, albeit slowly, about the man and his role in 1948 for good. Maharaja Hari Singh, son of Raja Amar Singh, became the ruler of Jammu and Kashmir, continuing the illustrious Dev dynasty of the Jamwals. However, the circumstances of his ascent were problematic to say the least. The British Resident's continued interference in the state affairs was part of the continued Great Game, and oftentimes Hari Singh had to undertake measures under duress. However, to say that the ruler was a despot is sloppy and lazy understanding of the events of the time. By then, several reforms had taken place in the state, including abolition of begar, educa...

Panchvaktar Temple of Jammu (Courtesy Amar Ujala) Raja Mal Dev of Jammu of the Dev Dynasty was perhaps one of the greatest rulers of Jammu. At the time of his ascension to the throne, there was a dramatic shift in the geopolitics of North-west India. The Tughlaq control on the throne of Delhi had weakened considerably, and in any case times were difficult for the native Hindus of the region in general. In such a scenario, Timur , the slaughterer, has turned up in India, attracted by the riches and his desire to be called the greatest general. Having created a mountain of "kafir" Hindu skulls in Delhi, he had gone towards Haridwar, causing further chaos and bloodshed there as well of the pilgrims who had come to take a dip in the Ganga. Ascending the throne in 1347 AD, Mal Dev had succeeded Jodh Dev, and was noted for good physical prowess, especially his ability to carry huge boulders upwards from the Tawi River basin. His rule actually saw the twenty two principalit...

Maharaja Pratap Singh (Source: Wikipedia) Maharaja Ranbir Singh was a beacon of the Dogra dynasty, and had certainly much to his credit, including the annexation of Gilgit-Baltistan, Hunza and Chitral, criminal and legal reforms like the introduction of the Ranbir Danda Vidhana that also took into account forensic evidences like fingerprints, and pushing for industrialization via support to shawl making, horticulture, silk production and many others. However, in the twilight of his life, frequent illnesses caused him severe disabilities, keeping him away from administrative affairs. In the absence of a strong monarch, corruption, administrative malpractices, and nepotism had taken deep roots into the Jammu and Kashmir state. Several terrible taxes that were originally introduced for the purpose of funding military campaigns continued – in fact, they became routes for siphoning money from the state coffers, rendering it bankrupt. Moreover, Ranbir Singh had three sons – Pratap S...

A lot of loose talk is put out about the cruelty of the Dogra rule in Kashmir valley, especially on the economic front. However, the picture is myopic to say the least, given how the Dogras, post their control of Kashmir valley, actually did several important changes to the Valley economy, leading it towards modernization on par with the rest of the country, and even ahead of it in several areas. While it may be a point of contention that several of these reforms were put forth under the pressure of the Britishers, the progenitors can never be disputed. One such set of considerations pertains to the revival of the Kashmir economy under the Dogra rule, which is often brushed under the carpet. I will just point out three areas of reforms that the Dogras undertook to highlight how their rule was in fact beneficial to the Kashmir valley, and the normal narrative of oppression is not as straightforward as it seems.  Controlling Famines At the time of accession, Kashmir was a ...