As Home Minister Rajnath Singh reiterates remarks he had made in 2015 about why Rana Pratap is not considered by historians as ‘Great’ like Akbar is, The Quint is publishing this timely piece from its archives, originally published in May 2015.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh has sparked off controversy by asking historians to revisit medieval history and provide greater emphasis to Maharana Pratap, the ruler of Mewar, who famously lost to Emperor Akbar’s army at Haldighati, but remained an irrepressible enemy of the Mughal empire till his last breath.
I have no objections to historians writing Akbar The Great. But why not Pratap The Great? The valour and sacrifice that the Maharana demonstrated in the Mewar region was equally impressive and he should be accorded more respect and dignity.
– Rajnath Singh
The comments have already led to debates and opinion pieces pitting the ‘patriotism’ of Pratap against the ‘imperialism’ of Akbar. More worryingly, some are giving the debate a communal colour, making Akbar out to be a ‘foreign’ invader, and Pratap, a Bhagat Singh-like Indian nationalist.
Is there a reasonable way to look at history? Can we look at figures from the past in a balanced manner, without pitting one against the other for the sake of politics?
Apparently there is. And it’s easy enough for 10-year-olds to understand.
In 1973, the popular comic book series, Amar Chitra Katha first brought out its title Rana Pratap. The slim comic looks at both Akbar and Rana Pratap’s motivations and attitudes without judging either of them harshly.
The introduction to Akbar begins like this:
With Akbar coming to the throne of the Mughal Empire in 1556 the Mughals had become a part of India... Akbar even married a Rajput princess. Further, he appointed Rajput nobles to the highest positions in the empire, thus winning the goodwill of the Hindus.
The comic book is equally generous in its description of Maharana Pratap.
Had he agreed to surrender, Rana Pratap could have led an easy life in Akbar’s court. But for this brave Rajput warrior king his freedom was his honour, which he cherished even more than his life.
Without engaging in political polemics, Rana Pratap is able to look at the qualities as well as flaws of both rulers and what they represented.
Akbar was not a “raid thy neighbour” sort of warlord from central Asia. He was born in India and built an empire and administrative system that would last three generations. He was also deeply secular for his time. The greatness of his empire lay not just in military might, but equally in how he was able to harness some of the best talents of his time. Raja Todarmal, Man Singh, Birbal and Tansen were all Hindus and helped build Akbar’s India.
Maharana Pratap’s bravery and patriotism is celebrated, but his stubbornness is also shown. The comic also manages to showcase him as a tragic figure, one who managed to harass the Mughal Empire, but was never able to regain Chittor.
The way we look at history should be balanced and not subject to which political dispensation is in power. Akbar was born in India and was a fairly benevolent ruler, given his times. We would be voluntarily disowning one of our greatest leaders and one of the golden ages of our history, if we branded and dismissed Akbar or indeed the Mughals as mere foreign marauders.
By the same coin, Maharana Pratap engaged in guerrilla warfare against the state, largely with the assistance of Bhil Adivasis, for almost 20 years after his loss at Haldighati. Would that allow us to call him a Naxalite?
No. Not at all.
India’s history and culture is rich enough to accommodate and celebrate diverse, even opposing figures. Or at least our comic books are.
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