R Krishna Das
Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah would not love to recall the story of Maqbool Sherwani, once his own party man who changed the course of 1947-war between India and Pakistan.
The National Conference leader, who did not hesitate to become minister in Government of India, is now advocating for separatism, merging Kashmir with China and revoking special status to keep the state separate from the rest of the country.
The thoughts of Abdullah or any other Kashmiri leaders thinking on the same line was an insult to Maqbool Sherwani, who sacrificed his life so that Kashmir could remain an integral part of India.
Way back in 1947, the young Mohd Maqbool Sherwani was just 19 when he single-handedly frustrated the advance of thousands of raiders (Kabailis) from Baramulla that provided valuable time to the Indian Army to land in Srinagar and push back raiders.
Sherwani went around on his bike telling the Kabailis, who had stormed Baramulla with the help of Pakistani army on October 22, 1947, not to advance towards Srinagar as the Indian Army had reached the outskirts of Baramulla. His bluff worked. The enemy froze in its tracks for four days.
By then, Indian Army landed in Srinagar. When the Pakistani Kabailis came to know of Sherwani’s game plan, they shot him dead and crucified him. Earlier, Maqbool was captured by raiders and they offered him to join them and pass on information related to the movement of Indian army.
Sherwani refused, only because he did not want Kashmir to separate from India.
Sherwani’s bravado gave the Army precious time to prepare for the historic Battle of Shalateng, near Srinagar. Over 700 raiders were killed. Sherwani’s contribution changed the complexion of the 1947 operations and turned the tide in India’s favour.
According to eyewitnesses, the Kabailis had slung an almost dead Sherwani on a motorcycle across the petrol tank. He was put on a wooden cross, nailed and fired upon 10-15 times.
On 8th of November, 1947, raiders were driven out of Baramulla. One of the first acts of the freed people was to reclaim the dead body of Sherwani and to bury it. The Indian Army, with full military honours, buried Sherwani in the Baramulla Jama Masjid graveyard.
Since his childhood Maqbool was a dedicated activist of Sheikh Mohd Abdullah—father of Farooq. When Mohammad Ali Jinnah visited Kashmir and spoke at Baramulla on his ‘two-nation’ theory, Sherwani forced him to come down from the platform and stopped his speech.
Ever since the founding of the All Jammu and Kashmir National Conference in 1939 by Sheikh Abdullah, Maqbool Sherwani had been a staunch supporter. “When Maqbool was assassinated, his father Mohd Abdullah Sherwani met Sheikh Mohd Abdullah and asked for a livelihood for his other son. Sheikh Mohd Abdullah did not care,” the relatives recalled.
The Abdullah family claims to be the self-styled protector and representative of Kashmiri people but when it came to help the Sherwani family, they just ignored them.
The Abdullah’s and Muftis are running political shows in Kashmir only because Maqbool saved the state from being part of Pakistan. But none observes a day for the brave-heart.
It is the Indian Army that commemorates saviour of Kashmir Mohd Maqbool Sherwani every year on its Infantry Day. It has also constructed a Memorial Hall in his name in Baramulla town.
