RAABTA

Rana Pratap rose to prominence as the new hope for Mewar after his coronation on Holi, 1st March, 1572. His subjects and chiefs had a lot of faith in his ability to remove the Timurid influence from Rajputana. In the year 1573, in February, June and November, Raja Man Singh, his father Bhagwan Das and Todal Mal came to persuade the Rana on alliances respectively. Although he received the fellow Rajputs cordially, their purpose remained unsolved. These frequent visits to his court from alliances of Akbar made Gogunda vulnerable as a capital. He decided to move to a small village at Girwa, about 8 miles from Haldighati. Not being able to reach him anymore, Akbar's chieftains were forced to prepare for war against the Rana. Under the leadership of Man Singh, Akbar's army reached Haldighati, the chosen battlefield on the banks of the Banas River. The brave Rajputs, having only half the army's strength, fought bravely, and an injured Rana was taken to safety by his favourite ...

This folklore is taken from the original story narrated by James Todd in his semi-historical account of Annals and Antiquities of Mewar, where he describes a harsh punishment from Maharana Pratap to a farmer ploughing his fields, who was ordered to scorch it. Scorched earth techniques were used by the Bhils in guerrilla warfare against enemies to prevent them from getting rations and looting crops. However, James Todd’s intention in writing this incident of execution was to show the side of a ruler who would go to any means to save his honour. However, my take on this incident, a folklore nonetheless, if true at all, is that sometimes citizens become spoils of war. It is unavoidable for any state or country, even today, to save and ensure security for all citizens of a warzone. While Todd portrays Maharana Pratap as unremorsefully cruel to a subject for disobeying him, my version is about the other side of the story.  The forests were thick, and nearby, a stream meandered silently....