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Introduction
The uprising or War of 1 857 in India has been a matter of controversy since its inception. The British termed it a Mutiny while many Indian scholars have depicted it as a War of Independence.1 The war of 1857 is one of the most important events in the subcontinent during the nineteenth century. It changed the very fabric of Indian society and the nature of English rule in India.2 Though it began as a sepoy revolt, it spread to all the communities and sections of the population. People from all walks of life participated in this war against the East India Company.3
The outbreak started in Meerut on 10th May 1857.4 The sepoys marched towards Delhi and proclaimed Bahadur Shäh Zafar, the Mughul emperor of Delhi at the time, as their leader.5 The outbreak turned into a War of Independence because it was a planned attempt to liberate the country from a foreign yoke. However, very few princes of regional native states offered resistance to the colonial authorities in their respective areas. The list of noted freedom fighters who opposed the British include Bakht Khän Bahädur of Rohilkhand, Begum Hazrat Mahal, Maulvi Ahmad Allah of Awadh, Beni Mädho Singh of Lucknow, Kunwar Singh of Bihär, Nänä Sähib of Kanpur, Tätya Tope and RänT of Jhänsi of Bundelkhand,6 Mahmud Khän of Bijnor and Tafazzul Hussain of Farrukhäbäd.7
The English forces faced stiff resistance at Delhi, Rohilkhand and Awadh, where the revolutionaries fought with great strength. Bakht Khän defended Delhi effectively for quite a long time until his forces were obliged to withdraw from Delhi due to betrayal, lack of better strategy, inferiority in numbers and equipment.8
Beside the rulers of different states and the mutineers, people from different strata including farmers, landlords, ulema and mashaikh also joined this great upheaval and caused many difficulties for the English. Some of the 'ulamd' living at various places in the North-West Frontier of India offered tough resistance to the forces of the East India Company. A segment of this religious group was known as the Mujähidln to the Indians, and as Wahdbîs or Hindustänl Fanatics to the British.9 They were also called Hindustänl Mujähidln.
The Background of the Mujahidin Movement
The Mujähidln movement was launched by Sayyid...