Tipu Sultan — Beyond Slander Stands the Majesty of Truth
Manjunath B. R.
The name of Tipu Sultan the ruler of Mysore in the 18th century has been a revered one in the annals of Indian history during the freedom struggle and afterwards. Everywhere both in India and abroad people have looked up to him as a courageous fighter against the British colonialism so much so that even in United States of America, France and several other countries he has been considered as an inspirational figure. Historically he became all the more noteworthy because as a rare case of a prince he laid down his life in the battlefield during the 4th Mysore war at Srirangapatna on the 4th of May 1799. Common people also remember him fondly and so he became the hero of several plays and folk ballads because he ultimately had to pledge two of his sons with the British till the time he could pay the indemnity amount of three crore rupees that was imposed on him after the third Mysore war in 1791.
However of late he has been accused of several crimes principally by the rightist reactionary Hindutva forces in our country. What started as a communal propaganda inside Karnataka and parts of Kerala has gained ominous leverage even outside of these states and history as well as contemporary situation demands certain clarifications. However we must depend upon credible sources to provide us the actual material to judge the man rather than depend upon either a positive bias in favour of him or negative prejudice against him. Consequently we must start by listing the major accusations against Tipu Sultan like; that he was an exceptionally cruel tyrant, communal bigot, he was anti-Hindu, he indulged in forcible conversions and that he imposed Urdu language as the medium of administration in his Kingdom, so on and so forth. In our examination we must depend not just on biased British records but also on the accounts of several respected English and French men, contemporary Indian historical records, chronicles, administrative orders, letters, popular narrations available in the folk tales and songs that have been passed on to us through several generations and also base ourselves on objective scientific outlook to reconstruct the role and persona of Tipu Sultan and place it contextually. The whole exercise should help us to draw appropriate lessons when the atmosphere in our country is extremely vitiated through poisonous communal propaganda.
WasTipu a cruel tyrant?
The British historians generally tried to paint Tipu Sultan as a cruel tyrant capable of inhuman torture and imposing cruel punishment on prisoners as well as his own citizens. unfortunately those who are writing so called history even today depend upon the British historians or chronicles of that period that had definite antipathy towards Tipu. Many do not know that the British considered Tipu and his father Hyder Ali as the most hated adversaries of East India company and the British colonial dream project of subjugating and exploiting Indian subcontinent. That was primary because Hyder and Tipu followed the European methods of battle, modern training of the army and weapons and thus inflicted heavy damages and defeats to the British which hardly have any parallel in 18th and 19th century India. The Britishers also recognised that Tipu and Hyder, particularly the former was an exceptionally modern administrator who had built a very rich and resourceful state. They also knew that Tipu and Hyder were also following the European route of mercantile capital formation and development. Hence the British have done their best to tarnish the image of Tipu Sultan and we will have to scrutinize those sources very keenly before admitting any slander or facts propagated by them.
Tipu Sultan lived in the feudal era when even the best of the kings acted like tyrants and there was no rule of law. If one examines the regimes of different kings in that period it would be invariably found that the most inhuman punishments were meted out to the prisoners, traitors and violators of law. This was not only true of monarchs but equally prevalent among the bourgeois democratic countries of that period like England, France, Portugal and Holland. These colonising powers which attacked and ruled India have a horrendous tradition of oppression and torture of native soldiers, princess and common people.
Certain accounts of British prisoners who allege bad treatment from the soldiers and administrators of Tipu are used by so called historians to paint a picture of unique violence and ill treatment at the hands of Tipu. While the condition of prisoners of war is bad in almost all the countries even today, how can a king of 18th century be held solely responsible for excesses or inhuman treatment that generally happens at the lower rungs of the administration is an important question to ponder over. And the accounts are that of the adversaries who are at best emotionally charged and deliberately prejudiced at the worst. On the contrary if one examines these charges vis-a-vis the treatment meted out by the Britishers towards the army and the common people of Tipu's kingdom the comparative study would be very instructive. Furthermore the humane quality of administration and the personality of the Sultan do not actually match with this description of cruelty on his part. This aspect we will take up for detailed study a little later.
The charge of forced conversions
Now we shall take up the most serious charge that there were a lot of forced religious conversions in the kingdom of Tipu Sultan and Hyder Ali. The first point that we should examine is whether the Muslim population in the main part of Tipu Kingdom ie what is now called as the old Mysore state is disproportionately high, compared to the percentage of Muslims in other parts of Karnataka or India. A cursory examination of demographic statistics doesn't prove anything affirmative of such a charge. On the contrary all over the old Mysore state we find no such narratives either by the British or the local historians. Nor do any folk tales or songs exist depicting such a huge attack on the religious belief system of the population that would have been surely recorded in the folk memory.
The British record of such conversions actually pertain to Malabar region of Kerala, Coorg and to an extent Mangalore. That will lead us to the question what actually happened there, why and how. " .. Tipu's actions of punishing rebels in Coorg and Malabar by forced conversions cannot be covered by any apologia"( editorial introduction by Irfan Habib to the book 'Resistance and Modernization under Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan', page xxvi. In further discussions we will refer to this book as 'the book of Irfan Habib').
Yet we must keep looking at the causes. One of the reasons for both violence and conversions was treachery. Though such punishments are repugnant to the modern mind they were not uncommon in those days particularly among Muslim and Christian rulers. That was also a method of inducing loyalty among the converted towards the ruler. However this mode of punishment was not given to hardened spies, agents and unrepentant elements who were simply eliminated.
On this aspect Dr Sharafudeen has the following observation to make:" it is a well-accepted fact that both Hyder and Tipu were exemplarily tolerant rulers as for as other parts of their kingdom were concerned. In Malabar they practiced inhuman persecution on their Hindu and Christian subjects. The fact was that Hyder and Tipu persecuted their Malabar subjects not on account of their religion but on account of their continued rebellion and sabotage. No strong ruler could brook rebellion and sabotage in his kingdom. And Hyder and Tipu were as ruthless to Hindus as to Muslims. Similarly the charge of forcible conversion of the Hindus and Christians by Haider and Tipu will not stand close scrutiny. It may be that Hyder and Tipu ordered the forcible conversion of some prisoners of war as a measure of punishment for rebellion and continued opposition to Mysorean authority. But they do not appear to have adopted it as state policy and gone about converting people." Further let us note the impression of historian Nikhiles Guha, who while agreeing with the positive evaluation of Tipu Sultan by Rajendra Lal Mitra, differed with him slightly on the question of Tipu's treatment of certain sections of the people in Malabar. He says ,"... Tipu's persecution was carried out to destroy the treachery in which these people (Hindus and Christians of Malabar) indulged. Religious differences fomented the discontent and so Tipu tried to win them over to the cause of Islam."(The above mentioned authors are quoted from their articles in the book, 'Tipu Sultan The tiger of Mysore' edited by Dr R. Gopal). In the same book noted historian Dr. S. Chandrasekhar has this to say, " It is a fact that he punished those who conspired against his Kingdom and joined his enemies. These punishments included forcible conversion to Islam. It was not to swell the ranks of Islam but to discredit the conspirators, demoralize them and to check their activities. He punished all his recalcitrant enemies irrespective of the faith to which they belonged. Otherwise there is no explanation for his wars against the nawabs of Kurnool, Sawanur and the Nizam of Hyderabad."
It is also to be noted that the oppressed community particularly in the Malabar region of Kerala who had been persecuted very cruelly by the feudal forces actually found some relief in Tipu's reforms and conversions. Consequently there were definitely cases of happy and voluntary conversions also. This is explained by Dr A.Muhammed Maheen, in his article written for the above mentioned book: ".... the fact remains that his invasion resulted in the liberation and emancipation of those societies which from time immemorial were suffering under the clutches of the feudal lords of Malabar. Further even those who got converted were lifted and brought over to the main stream of society by providing a series of special privileges."
However without any shred of evidence a lot of propaganda goes on through the WhatsApp University regarding mass conversions in Coorg amounting to 80,000; whereas at that time Coorg did not even have such a big population. And similarly the propaganda that 800 Vaishnavite Brahmins were slaughtered in Srirangapatna on the Deepavali day- again an improbable fictitious number- is a monstrous and fictitious charge! Fact is two traitors of the community were only punished for spying and sabotage. That serious historians and writers are forced to issue critical rejoinders to such horrendous propaganda is the irony of our Times.
Was Tipu a religious bigot?
This is another image of Tipu cultivated over a period of more than a century by Hindu nationalists who even while appreciating Tipu's anti colonial struggle tended to reflect the very same opinion of the prejudice and motivated slander of British historians who competed with each other in presenting an image of a bigoted despot. The communal rightist forces took up this narrative and painted a more gory and grotesque picture of the Sultan. Thankfully however there is enormous evidence that has been piling up over decades that suggest a different picture of Tipu Sultan.
It is true that in certain office orders and directions Tipu used religious terms and Islamic idiom that may give rise to doubts about his level of tolerance towards other religions. While transacting with the rulers of some of the Middle East countries he had used the language of religious appeal with them. However in the times that he lived, it was quite common for monarchs to be using religious idiom or appealing to the religious sentiments of the people or their counterparts in other kingdoms. Tipu or any ruler should be judged about his fairness towards people of other religions mainly through their deeds, the impartiality in their administration and imparting of justice. It is our considered opinion that Tipu passes the test when judged with these yardsticks.
Very wrong claims have been made by British historians and a section of the Indian historians have uncritically picked it up from them that Tipu hardly ever gave grants, endowments and help to the Hindu temples. Evidence speaks otherwise. The grants and endowments that Tipu gave to different temples, priests of the temples and various religious heads is too long to mention in detail. Suffice it to say that such grants run in to dozens and are spread over all the states of South India like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Tipu made special contributions to some of the Hindu deities for whom he appears to have nurtured a special fondness, like the two Vaishnavite temples in Melkote, the Shiva temple in Nanjangud (Nanjundeshwara), the temple in Kalale, so on and so forth. There is also a curious incident where the Sultan intervened to settle the dispute between two sub sects of the Vaishnavite Brahmins regarding the style of invocation at the Melkote temple and he succeeded in bringing a truce between the warring factions and at the same time set right the injustice that had been carried on from the time of a previous Hindu ruler.
However nothing is more interesting than the correspondence between Tipu Sultan and the pontif of Sringeri matha, the original monastery established as first of its kind in India by Adi Shankaracharya. Historical records say that one military commander of the Maratha army, Parshuram Bhavu had invaded Sringeri and burnt down the temple and matha damaging the property there. When the Swamiji of the Sharada peetham there decided to leave the place and go away, Tipu Sultan persuaded him with great humility and respect to stay back and bless him and his Kingdom to victory over adversaries. Tipu persuaded him with huge grants and helped to rebuild the matha. That's why even today the evening prayers are held in the name of Tipu and the event is called as "Salaam Aarathi". The correspondence between the pontiff, administrators and the Sultan numbering about 47 letters beautifully written in chaste Kannada was found in 1916 and that should have ended all the controversy about Tipu Sultan's so called bigotry, fanaticism and intolerance. The irony of a Muslim king saving a reputed Hindu monastery from the attacks of a Brahmin Peshwa should have finally buried the heaps of lies! Sadly The controversy has been artificially stoked even today. The interested may refer to the article on Tipu Sultan's relations with the Sringeri matha written by DR. A. K. Shastri in the book 'Tipu Sultan The tiger of Mysore', edited by Dr. R. Gopal and the article 'Tipu Sultan as defender of the Hindu dharma' by B. A. Sallaitor and the article, 'Endowments to Hindus and Hindu institutions' in the book on Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan edited by Irfan Habib. In the book edited by R. Gopal, Dr. M.S. Anita makes an interesting point regarding the land grant policy of Tipu Sultan towards religious institutions of different communities and points to the fact that out of 61 major land grants 59 were made towards Hindu temples and other institutions. As for the total land allotted, the area allotted to Hindus was 10 times more than what was allotted to the Muslims. All this in the south Malabar region where Tipu is accused of favoring the Muslims.
Another important point that needs to be underlined is that he entrusted the most important departments in the hands of Hindu Brahmins. Diwan Purniah who acted as his chief minister was a Maratha Brahmin. Anche Shamaiya who was in-charge of postal department—particularly letters of intelligence and spy network was again a Brahmin. Actually the list is too long to mention.
Tipu as a moderniser
Now we enter into the most important part of the discussion, that apart from the anti- British feeling and the zeal of an unwavering fighter, what else distinguishes Tipu Sultan as an extraordinary ruler. The answer would be that he was the pioneering agent of modernisation of the state and society in South India and upheld a model for the entire subcontinent. He recognised that the British were so powerful, adventurous and hardworking because there was a new spirit in their activity and that spirit came from the feeling of a nation and drive for commercial and industrial activity. Having recognised where their source of power was, Tipu decided to beat them in their own game and hence with the help of French and other nations of the west he tried to build a strong commercial and industrial base in Mysore. He also reorganized his entire army on the basis of the modern European military. This is the reason why British felt that he was the one to be eliminated first more than the Marathas, the Nizam or any other chieftain in the entire country. Let us try to now understand his attempt at modernisation and improvement in the condition of his subjects.
We shall now quote from eminent historian Prof. B. Sheik Ali: "... He took great interest in trade, commerce and crafts. His encouragement of agriculture and industry, promotion of trade and commerce, opening of factories in near and far off places, dispatch of embassies to different lands to link Mysore with the outer world and innovative measures in almost every department of the administration would speak volumes of his creative genius. His establishment of the board of admiralty, building of a Navy, issue of new coinage, his reform of calendar, new scales of weights and measures, his experiment of a new type of cooperative bank and his novel system of justice indicate the fertility of his mind".
And its effect which resulted in a prosperous state with the happy population could not be missed even by his adversities. James mill, a British historian of the rival camp had to confess: " he (Tipu) had the discernment to perceive what is generally hidden from the eyes of rulers in a more enlightened state of society, that it is the prosperity of those who labour with their hands which constitutes the principal cause of the prosperity of the state. His country was accordingly the best cultivated and the population the most flourishing in India, while under the English and their dependencies, the population of the Carnatic and Oudh, hastening to the state of deserts, were the most wretched upon the face of the earth." Again as quoted by Nikhiles Guha, historian Edward Moore while describing the experience of the British army had this to say during the third Mysore war," when a person traveling through a strange country finds it well cultivated, populous with industrious inhabitants, cities newly founded, commerce extending, towns increasing and everything flourishing so as to indicate happiness, he will naturally conclude it to be under a form of Government congenial to the minds of the people. This is a picture of Tipu's country and this is our conclusion respecting its government". Major Dirom, another member of the same team remarked," His country was everywhere full of inhabitants and apparently cultivated to the utmost extent, of which the soil was capable; while the discipline and fidelity of his troops in the field until their last overthrow were testimonies equally strong of the excellent regulations which existed in his army. His government, though strict and arbitrary was the despotism of a politic and able a sovereign". Dodwel says, Tipu "was the first Indian sovereign to apply Western methods to his administration" and Praxy Fernandes as quoted by Dr G. Venkataraman in the same book opines regarding the ruler of the country that was prosperous as follows," it reveals a man of imagination and courage, a man of strong belief and prophetic vision, of strong likes and dislikes, a soldier and scholar, a modernist, a scientist and a planner".
Agricultural reforms
The improvements in the administration of the Mysore state had started before Hyder Ali, during the regime of Chikka Devaraja Wodeyar itself. However during the administration of Tipu the whole agricultural and the related irrigational works, taxation and giving of loans to the farmers, all these attained a more pro- people character. Apart from improving and building new tanks, Tipu also gave impetus to river irrigation. The most notable project that he envisaged but could not implement due to continuous wars forced on him,was building of an anicut across river Kaveri, just at the spot where the famous Krishna Raja Sagar or KRS stands today. A stone edict with the declaration of intent of building the dam written in Urdu language in the year 1797 still stands at the place and is well preserved.
Haider and Tipu continued the work started by Chikka Devaraja wodeyar of eliminating the palegaras or the feudal chieftains. But they did it more extensively, speedily and effectively. In those days when land revenue was the chief source of income of the state, by eliminating the intermediate parasitic class of palegaras or feudal princess they actually augmented the resources of the treasury. In fact in the Mysore region itself they subjugated or removed 200 palegaras and in Malabar in a more spectacular way they removed 400 such chieftains. They started distributing the land directly to the peasants and often gave lands for tilling to landless labourers, the deprived and oppressed sections and even former soldiers by taking an assurance that they would, after an initial period of tax remission, start paying the stipulated tax to the state, depending upon the quality of the land, like dry land, wet land or plantation. Tipu also started giving interest free loans to the poor farmers called takavi loans. From the rich and parasitic farmers and officers who were holding fertile land without cultivation, he confiscated the lands and redistributed the same among the hardworking poor peasants.
There were also other innovative measures introduced by Tipu. To quote Irfan Habib,
"Tipu was also interested in furthering agriculture manufacturers. This is shown by a very interesting order he issued for the raw- sugar manufacturers to be summoned and trained in the making of candied sugar and white sugar so that they might manufacture and sell these final varieties in their own localities."
"Another indication of Tipu's farsighted innovation was the introduction of sericulture in Mysore which was to grow later into such a successful industry. The raising of mulberry trees was assigned to particular land-farmers (talukdars). Twenty-one centres ( karkhana) for the culture of silkworms were established; the worms were to be produced on a monthly basis and the proceeds paid into the treasury. Tipu looked forward to increase production year after year."
Tipu's policies regarding commerce and industries
As seen above Tipu Sultan exhibits the outlook of an enterprising merchant while introducing such activities in agriculture which reflect a commercial interest on the part of the Mysore state. This is seen further in several of his enterprises. To quote Irfan Habib once again, "Haider Ali had concentrated on . . . the manufacture of muskets. In 1787, Tipu instructed his prospective ambassadors to France to tell the French King that he had in Mysore 10 workshops (karkhanas) where countless muskets were being manufactured. . . . The Governor of Pondicherry examining one of the muskets produced by Tipu sultan's workers in 1786 thought it equal to any produced in Europe". Tipu went beyond his father and "asked his ambassadors to France to get on their own a printer of books on suitable wages and French king was also to be requested to obtain for him the services of a clock maker, a maker of China ware and maker of glass and mirrors. By 1797 he was demanding from France 10 canon founders, 10 ship builders, ten manufacturers of Chinaware, ten makers of ship clocks and wheels for engines for rising water and other kinds of wheel work and workmen versed in gold plating". "Tipu succeeded in making paper by modern methods, watches and cutlery".
Today when we are celebrating India's advances in space technology we must gratefully acknowledge Tipu Sultan and Hyder Ali's stupendous achievement in creating the Mysore rockets which terrorized the British in the second half of the 18th century. The Mysore army was manufacturing rockets which were about six and a half feet long, carrying cylinders filled with gun powder that were about 25 cm. long and 6 cm. in diameter and made of the finest steel available at that time in any part of the world. Professor Rodda Narasimha, an eminent scientist and former director of National Aerospace Laboratories, (NAL), in course of different writings and lectures explained the significance of Tipu's rockets that are on display in NASA, USA. They were the first of its kind and far superior to whatever was seen in Europe or China till then. During the Puliyur battle at the time of second Mysore war, the British suffered heavily owing to these rockets which were capable of travelling 1.4 km and causing indescribable havoc among the enemy lines. For 37 long years Britishers could not master this technology but remained frightened of the 6000 strong rocket battalion of the Sultan. Only after the death of Tipu, the British could catch hold of the rockets, take them to England and try to understand and improve upon them.
Tipu also went for building his own Navy. "Hyder Ali had realized . . . that to protect his ships against the English a Navy was also essential. With Tipu not only did these ideas assume a far more vigorous form but he developed them into a full scale project to imitate the European East India companies and make Mysore a sea power based on naval strength and Maritime trade." Tipu took over state trading in black pepper, cinnamon and textiles which he sold in Middle East. He had opened trading houses in Oman and was trying to open one more at Basra and other places there. He also planned to send in 1787 the first Indian ship to Europe with 400 passengers. Further wars however prevented the full implementation of these projects. Tipu established factories in 30 places including Srirangapatna, Bangalore, Mangalore and 17 places outside of his state including Madras, Pondicherry, Mahe, Pune, Nagpur, Kutch, Karachi and Muscat. Naturally all these tendencies of Tipu have been characterized as the tendencies of mercantile capital and the starting of the primitive form of public sector by historians like Saki in "Making history" volume 1. Prof Shaik Ali remarks, Tipu's "measures included state capitalism through governmental control of industries, trade and commerce. He became the greatest exporter and importer of goods which were sent out and brought in by his own merchant navy. State monopoly of commercial crops and precious metals helped state capitalism. The commercial regulation he issued in 1793 carried many details of the state trading corporation."
While Gurusiddaiah remarks,"it will not be improper to say that if he had been left undisturbed by his enemies he would have ushered in an industrial revolution in Mysore. There is no doubt that he was influenced by the examples of European powers. He was alone among the Indian rulers to realize that a country could be great and powerful only by developing its trade and commerce". And Bhagavan. S. Gidwani who wrote the novel “Sword of Tipu Sultan” comments thus, "Tipu's view on the economic and commercial policies was that it should be based on growth and dynamism. It is not enough merely to improve our methods of production of traditional items. We must venture into new fields of activity suitable to the richness of our soil and genius of our people".
Tipu's activities concerning banking are a matter of interest for us. He very closely observed the commercial activities of East India Company and its political ambitions flowing out of it. According to M. B. Patil who writes on his innovative banking practices, the following things are worth noting:" it stimulated him to adopt his own commercial policy and regulations to enrich state treasury. Further he was compelled to introduce his own banking to mobilize funds to facilitate his commercial activities on large scale". "He initiated a joint stock mercantile trading corporation with public participation comparable to modern day state enterprises. . . . The commercial department which he established to coordinate its activities were known as Mulikut Tujar. The object of this department was to attract by various concessions and encouragements foreign merchants to Mysore, to control and supply of commercial imports and exports like silk, sandalwood, spices etc. and to supervise and be in-charge of the state factories at home and abroad. . . . Two more branches of the state enterprise were silk and pearl fishery". Tipu Sultan in his preamble to the regulation regarding the bank instructed that it should handle purchase and sale of gold, silver, bullion, clothes, elephants, etc. and also that all goods purchased even by the ruler or the state from the government depots should be paid for. Interestingly for very small investors he guaranteed returns of 50% and for medium deposits 25% and for large scale deposits made by rich people the interest was supposed to be only 12%. His attitude was that all profits from the banking activity should be devoted for peoples' welfare programs in tune with his Islamic religious code of conduct.
All this points to a certain Bourgeois trend in the Sultan which was of course visible among many monarchs of that period like the king of Holland, Peter the Great of Russia and Napoleon Bonaparte of France. It may also provide us with the clue to understand certain incipient nationalistic sentiments in Tipu and Haider who conceived a United Hindustan as opposed to British colonialists whom they held as foreigners, though their entire conception remains within the framework of a monarchy albeit a constitutional monarchy. Let us now quote some excerpts from the last letter of Haider Ali written to his son from his death bed: ". . . India since the death of Aurangzeb , has lost her rank among the empires of Asia. This fair land is parcelled out into provinces which make war against each other. The people divided into a multitude of sects have lost their love of the country. . . . The greatest obstacle you have to conquer is the jealousy of the Europeans. The English today are all powerful in India. It is necessary to weaken them by war. The resources of Hindustan do not suffice to expel them from the lands they have invaded. Put the nations of Europe one against the other. It is by the aid of the French that you could conquer the British army which is better trained than the Indian. Europeans have surer tactics. Always use against them their own weapons. . . . Remember above all that valour can elevate us to a throne but it sufficeth not to preserve an empire. While we may seize a crown owing to the timidity of people it can escape us if we do not make haste to entrust it to their love".
These two objects, the passion to save Hindustan from British and the love for the people leading to social reforms and enterprises in trade and commerce form the backbone of the entire state policy of the plucky father and his intrepid son. Enlightened absolutism, building and protecting mercantile capital as a precursor to industrial revolution, emphasizing rule of law and ruling through written orders, humane reforms, elimination of feudatories, introducing uniform weights and measures as also a stable, uniform taxation on commercial activities, support to science and technology, drive towards a strong centralized state- all these were the hall marks of the constitutional monarchies in Europe just before the onset of bourgeois democratic revolutions. We leave it to the readers to judge whether Tipu's kingdom was on the threshold of such a progressive social tempest!
Tipu and his social reforms
Tipu's zeal for reforms was extraordinary. An observation of that period sums up his character : "a restless and energetic mind free from eastern apathy or eastern conservatism and with eager desire to profit by western science and western political philosophy".
He was conscious of the oppression of the weak by the strong, the lower caste by the upper caste, women by men, as also the social apathy and neglect towards the children, the handicapped and the orphans. There are several orders issued by his Khudadad Sarkar (government of The God) that makes explicit his above mentioned concerns.
When Tipu and Haider annexed the Malabar coast of today's Kerala they found that there was extreme oppression and injustice from time immemorial there. The rulers of Mysore who had built a more advanced civilization in their original place of rule and who both were imbued with a spirit of reform immediately started initiating several measures of social change from the top. The upper castes of the priests and the warrior community in Kerala were harassing the lower caste people, even killing them and using their women at will. Perturbed by this, Tipu issued an order which said, "Any person found keeping a woman or slave girl before or after marriage should be handed over to the authorities"(order 116). He totally prohibited extraction of free labour from the poor peasants, a common practice in feudalism and issued the following order:
"I have heard that frequently such labour is being requisitioned by Amaldars. . . . Therefore I say this to you, let strict instructions be issued forth with, for I see in such a practice the beginning of a system of slavery. There can be no glory or achievement if the foundation of our places, roads and dams or mingled with the tears and blood of humanity". Through article 5 he prevented Patels who were heads of the village from exploiting poor peasants by asking them to cultivate their lands for free. He ordered confiscation of produce from all such lands. Through order number 6 he asked his officers to visit all territories once in a year and "listen to the complaints of injustice and violence. Make it very clear to the perpetrators of violence that there are laws and there are punishments.". "No men shall be punished save in accordance with law . . . so that people may know the extent and the rigour of the law, as also their rights, duties, obligations and responsibilities. We have decided that codification of law shall be undertaken." Tipu administered an oath compulsory to all the officers and among other things it required that the officers would not allow the poor or the peasantry to be oppressed in word or deed. Through article 40 he instructed that officers who harass or take bribes from farmers and terrorize them will be severely punished. He instructed his army that no officer or soldier when he approaches a village during their military March should take any goods belonging to the peasantry without paying them. All such acts were punishable. For his army there was a special instruction, "looting a conquered enemy enriches a few, impoverishes the nation and dishonours the entire army. War must be linked to the battlefields, do not carry it to innocent civilians, honour their children and the infirm." Shudra and the untouchables were also recruited in the army and gainfully employed as soldiers. Since this community traditionally owned no land, they were granted virgin and wastelands. It increased revenue of the state not only, in the social reality it was a major step contributing to the self-reliance and self-respect of these oppressed communities. Edgar Thurston notes, "The Mysore system fully permits the holeyas and madigas (i.e., the scavengers and the animal skinners) to hold land in their own right". His zeal for land reforms is noted by Kabir Kausar in the following words," Tipu Sultan is found to be striving for the abolition of the jagirdari and zamindari system in his Kingdom. He proclaimed that the land would be owned by only those who cultivate or till it irrespective of their caste creed or religion".( Above material taken from the article 'Tipu's policy of empowering the oppressed community' by Dr K. Sadashiva, in the book, Tipu Sultan The tiger of Mysore).
Dr Muhammad Maheen has this to say about the reforms that Tipu brought in the Malabar area which the propertied and the reactionary classes very much opposed: "(Tipu and Haider) introduced fundamental changes in the prevailing social system of Malabar that consequently was taken to its very foundations. . . . The people of Malabar were following traditional social practices like polyandry and the exposure of the naked bosom by women. Being strict moralist it is quite natural that he could not have tolerated the uncultured habits of the people. Therefore he requested people to observe purity and taste in life and to become civilized by giving up their old customs and practices. So he gave instruction to the people to cover themselves decently and prohibited the habit of women exposing their bosom." Tipu generously gave aid and clothing to end this pernicious practice. "Another social evil ended by a royal decree was the practice of polyandry prevalent in the country."
He also, as reported by Dr A. Mahadevi, completely abolished prostitution and liquor sale in his Kingdom. When his minister Mir Sadiq objected to the policy of prohibition of liquor sale on the grounds of fiscal loss to the treasury, Tipu Sultan reportedly replied to him that prohibition for him was not just a religious question but more importantly something that was very much necessary to protect the physical and moral wellbeing of his subjects and so very close to his heart.
Tipu was far ahead of his times and sometimes his zeal landed him in trouble. And Malabar was an example for his over enthusiasm. But in spite of losses he achieved his object in a certain way so much so that most of the historians opine that Tipu's rule in Kerala sent positive shock-waves through a community which had remained rigid and ossified for centuries and landed its people in modern times with a jerk.
Some interesting facts
Unlike most of the monarchs of the 18th century India, Tipu, though born as a prince, was a very industrious man and at a personal level deeply moral. He avoided indulgence in sensual pleasures, attended to his office regularly and punctually, built for himself very simple houses for stay, remained actively in the battlefield most of the times, always wore elegant but simple clothes and cultivated a certain modesty and decency through which even during bath he used to cover his body entirely. Historian Kirmani narrates an interesting anecdote that happened during a visit, "one day when Tipu was sleeping two ladies of the deceased nawab's family, both of them young and beautiful (god knows with what intention good or bad) came forth from their apartments and began to rub his feet. However, while they were doing this work he woke up and when he saw them he became exceedingly angry at their presumption and trembling with rage rebuked them. To such a God fearing puritan, the unchaste and loose life seen around him would be an eyesore". Tipu forbid the employment of female servants for domestic work as it would lead to immoral activities.
Tipu was a well-educated man knowing many languages including Urdu, Persian and Kannada. It is said that he even learnt some French but could not master English. He was very fond of reading and reportedly read many important European books. Writer Gidwani narrates the incident when Tipu Sultan asked for the gift of a library during his wedding from his father and the almost illiterate father gladly and proudly fulfilled the wish of his son. Tipu wrote several books—some say numbering 18—most of which were related to his ideas on administration, military etc. But one of the books is a documentation of his fascinating dreams. It is astonishing that the Sultan even in his sleep was a deep hater of the English and that forms the theme of a majority of his dreams, apart from some dreams regarding his interest in science and technology. Famous playwright Girish karnad wrote the play "The Dreams of Tipu Sultan" based on this interesting fact.
Tipu was well acquainted with the ideas of French revolution. It would be a tall claim to say that he agreed with all the ideas of democracy and humanism in spite of being a monarch, but surely he was influenced by them. 'The rights of man'—the famous document of the great French Revolution was translated under his inspiration for the first time into an Indian language. A branch of the famous 'Jacobian club' was started in his capital Srirangapatna and till his death there used to be a 21 gun salute in memory of the French Revolution every year. In fact a 'Tree of Liberty' was planted in Srirangapatna. The French honoured him with the title Citizen Tipu and he proudly flaunted it.
The renowned writer Shiv Sundar has been writing about the admiration carried by the leaders of the American war of independence regarding the heroic exploits of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan. They had nursed the hope that the victory of the father and son against British colonialism would help their own freedom struggle. In fact the well known American leader Thomas Jefferson who was the second President of the USA was closely following the victories of Hyder and Tipu in Arcot, Cuddalore and Madras during the second Anglo-Mysore war making notes of the same and sharing it with his comrades so that they are inspired. At that time there were ballads written about the valour of Hyder Ally! After winning the war against Lord Cornwallis, the Americans celebrated their independence in New Jersey by firing 13 canons in the memory of 13 great heroes and one of them was dedicated to Hyder Ali. The Americans also named one of their warships in Pennsylvania as Hyder- Ally. At that time Frank Moor wrote, "the great and heroic Hyder Ali raised up by providence to avenge the numberless cruelties perpetrated by the English on his unoffending countryman and to check the insolence and reduce the power of Britain in the East Indies . . ." Americans even named some of their war horses after Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan. (The present author had taken these details from the research works of eminent scholar Amin Ahmed a native of Karnataka who is now residing in Canada)
Even after losing the third Mysore war and forced to keep his three sons in the custody of the British till the indemnity was paid in full, his unbending spirit was not extinguished and he kept preparing for a final showdown with his most hated enemies the British. It was a fitting finale that such a dynamic fearless man should die in the battlefield on the 4th of May 1799. Even in the last minute before his death he made one final dash with his sword at a British looter who was trying to snatch some valuable from his person. It is said that he often used to pronounce a motto that "to live like a tiger for a single day is worth much more than living hundred years as a jackal". That's why after his death, the common people of his capital Srirangapatna, both Hindus and Muslims poured into the streets beating their breasts and weeping at the death of their beloved Sultan. And immediately among the Kannada speaking village people sprang up several folk ballads in praise of the mighty Sultan, castigating the traitor Mir Sadiq.
This article is not meant to be a panegyric or an uncritical eulogy of the Sultan. Tipu undoubtedly had his faults, but his merits far outweigh them. At a time when the communal fascist forces are trying to paint a great hero of our history as an invertebrate villain, we are duty bound to present the facts accurately and leave it to the discerning readers to form their own opinion.
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