By By Akhtar Balouch..
When talking about the history of Sindh, Seth Naomal Hotchand is a name which simply cannot be left out.
Sindh's is an ancient history, one that countless historians have played a part in documenting. Where there are the remains and relics of Moenjodaro — an ancient civilisation dating back to 3000 BCE — there are also the archaeological treasures of Kaaujodaro, which could not survive the tides of time in the same way as the former have so miraculously done.
Some other day, I'll write more about the old Kaaujodaro in Mirpurkhas, in the southern parts of Sindh. For now, let's get back to Seth Naomal.
History has it that Seth Naomal helped British usurpers in their attempt at conquering Sindh.
Now why would he do that? For financial gain, or maybe a British title?
Or to perhaps avenge what his father had been put through by the 'Mirs' of Sindh?
Before going any further, keep in mind that it was only after Mir's dynasty rule had ended, and when the British had started ruling Sindh, that the Sindh of today became possible. The new Sindh — with urban centres, road networks, electricity, hospitals and schools, railway, modern irrigation and what not — was never possible under the Mir dynasty, when the region was alien to the idea of change for modernity.
Some history buffs are of the view that the irrigation system was established by the British to generate more revenue from the region, while the railway network was to serve the purpose of a transit system for the British troops in Afghanistan. About schools and hospitals, they say, it was all for the brown sahibs (the bureaucratic slaves to the foreigner sahib).
Seeing the British contribute to the infrastructure and services here, Hindus and Parsis followed suit, establishing welfare organisations and so on. Some of this infected the Muslims too, and thus began the story of welfare work in the Sindhi society.
But now I'm rambling again, so, let's return to the subject of Seth Naomal Hotchand.
The 'blasphemy' accusations
We turn to "Memoirs of Seth Naomul Hotchand of Karachi", where he writes on page 89 (third edition, printed by the Sindhi Literary Board in 1996 and translated into English in 1915):
"It was somewhere between 1831 and '32. In Nasarpur (near Mirpurkhas, southern parts of Sindh), a young boy — the son of a Hindu peasant, and upset at his teacher for, perhaps, giving him a beating — went up to the gates of a local mosque and stood there.
When a group of Muslims spotted him, they took the boy inside the mosque. This angered the Hindu community and triggered reactions like Hindu shopkeepers refusing to sell goods to Muslims, with Muslims retaliating by throwing litter into the well in Lyari, where many Hindus got their drinking water from.
"The next day, a man named Nooral Shah, and a 'Syed' by lineage, came to our neighbourhood, cursing Hindus. My younger brother, Pursuram, who was standing at the outer gate of the neighbourhood, asked Nooral Shah to refrain from it, but things heated up. In rage, Nooral Shah began claiming that Pursuram had insulted the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), and a huge Muslim crowd gathered to agitate.
"Later, Nooral Shah went to various cities of Sindh with a Quran held up to his chest, inciting Muslims [to act against the Hindus]. Somehow, my brother managed to slip out of city and go to Jaisalmer. Meanwhile, the matter was taken to the court of the ruler of Sindh, Mir Murad Ali Talpur. It was a sensitive matter, with a lot of pressure being generated by Muslim groups. Mir sahib sent for my father to send Pursuram to Hyderabad. Since Pursuram was not in Karachi, Mir sahib ordered my father to appear at his court. "
"When my father reached Hyderabad, Mir sahib referred him to the Qazi (religious judge) of Nasarpur, which is a small city not far from Hyderabad. The Qazi refused to hear the case. Then all of a sudden, Muslims attacked my father and kidnapped him. He was taken hostage for 10-12 days."
"At first, they wanted to turn him into a Muslim (meaning, circumcise him). However, my father was over 50 years old, not to mention such an act was against Islamic prescriptions as well. Along with that, the Muslims feared that the act would cause too big a reaction, so they changed their mind. Later, Mir Murad Ali regretted the incident and ordered that my father be set free at once. That's when he was finally let go."
Nevertheless, the more common understanding in Sindh remained that Hotchand had been circumcised. The incident has been described in detail in Seth Naomal's memoirs.
Well that is interesting history to know.... 1832...
Topic: Pakistan: The Nation.. The Politics... and The Religion