Today is the 402nd birth anniversary of the great Lachit Borphukan, born 24 November 1622.
Lachit Divas or Lachit Borphukan Diwas is celebrated every year on 24th November in Assam and large parts of India’s North East to commemorate the heroism of Lachit Borphukan including what he showcased in the victory of the Assamese army in the Battle of Saraighat.
The Best Cadet of India’s National Defence Academy is conferred the Lachit Borphukan Gold Medal every year (since 1999). There is also a lovely bust of Lachit Borphukan installed in the NDA.
Which leads to the question – Who is/was Lachit Borphukan?
Lachit Borphukan (1622-1672) was the military commander & Borphukan in the Ahom Kingdom (1228-1826) under Raja Udayaditya Singha. The Ahom kingdom was a Indo-Burmese kingdom that ruled over the Brahmaputra Valley and almost all areas in the northeastern part of the Indian Subcontinent including areas known today to be Myanmar. It was established by Sukaphaa, a Tai-Ahom Prince.
India was already under the Islamic invasion with most of the provinces of northern, western & central India being under Mughal dominance. But constant struggle among the Invaders & the Indian kingdoms was on with the indigenous kingdoms including the Sikhs, the Marathas, the Jats, the Rajputs, the Kannads, the Tamils, the Ahoms, the Gorkhas, the Dimasas, the Manipuris etc. continuing to resist the invading clans / kingdoms, which included the Mughals, the Afghans, the Rohillas, the Turks & other Sultanates.
That the provinces of North Eastern & Southern India was still free from Islamic control was pissing Aurangzeb off a lot. Under the leadership of Aurangazeb & Abu Bakr, the Mughals had attacked Assam 17 times, & were defeated 16 times. From 1663-1669, there were a series of 17 battles between the Mughals under command of Munnawar Khan & Raja Ram Singh I, who had aligned with the Army of Nawab-e-Bangal Murshid Quli Khan (born Surya Narayan Mishra) versus The Ahoms, under command of Lachit Borphukan, aligned with the Koch Hazo Kingdom under Shambhu Singha, the Jaintia Kingdom under Ban Singh Syiem Sutnga and the Dimasa Kingdom, under Birdarpa Narayan.
These had resulting in the Mughals being defeated 16 times and only one defeat of the Ahoms in 1667, where the Mughals invaded upto Guwahati. Even that was short-lived as all the territory lost including Guwahati was again recaptured by Lachit Borphukan.
Bengal was the junction between central & northeastern India. Aurangazeb knew that it was almost impossible to defeat the Ahoms without the help of native Indians. He sent a Hindu Rajput King of a Mughal Vessel state, Raja Ram Singh I, to make diplomatic agreements with the Ahoms. The Ahoms were well aware of the Mughal policies of deep hatred towards non-muslims, so Lachit Borphukan rejected the proposal of Ram Singh I to align with the Mughals.
Now, it was time for attack no 18. On the on the Ahom Empire. It was time for the Naval Battle of Saraighat.
In 1671, the Mughal Army under the command of commander Munnawar Khan & Mirza Raja Ram Singh I attacked the Ahom Kingdom. It was a naval Battle on the rivers.
Although the Ahoms had fewer resources and manpower, the Mughals’ difficulty with the terrain gave the Ahoms an advantage. Despite this, the Mughals were able to reach the frontiers of the Ahom kingdom thanks to superior resources and guns. The Mughals reached the western border of Ahom kingdom by 1671, where the Ahom army was waiting for them.
Lachit Borphukan realised that it was impossible to defeat the cavalry and mounted forces of the Mughals on land, and knew that they were weak on the water. On the other hand, Ahom soldiers were expert naval fighters on the rivers. He decided that Sarighat near Guwahati will be the best place to block the Mughals on the river, as the river is narrowest at this place, just 1 km wide. Therefore, he made a strategic retreat to Guwahati. To force the Mughals into the water, he decided to build a series of mud walls or embankments around Guwahati. The earthen walls will join with the existing hills in the region to create a barricade.
As a result of the walls, the war moved to the river, but Lachit Borphukan became seriously ill and he could not join the war. This demoralised the soldiers and the Mughals started to gain. As the Mughal army advanced and Lachit’s health worsened, so did the spirit of the Ahom army. The Mughals had also started to advance on the land. Lachit eventually realised that his health was secondary to his responsibility to protect his people. As the Mughals inched closer to victory, Lachit Borphukan jumped into a warship and started to lead the army. He heroically commanded the soldiers despite his ill health, and what followed was a fierce battle between the Ahoms and the Mughals.
He was lying on the bed the next day, during the final day of the battle. Some soldiers came to him demotivated, saying they had lost faith in him due to his ill health. To maintain the soldiers’ ardour, he ordered his soldiers to transport his bed to the battlefield on a boat.
The motivated Ahom army launched a massive attack on the invaders and started to chase them away. When the Mughal admiral Munnawar Khan was killed by a gunshot, the Mughal naval force became leaderless and they could not maintain the attack. They lost several top leaders and ultimately had to retreat.
The Ahoms chased them up to Manas River, which became the boundary between the two kingdoms. The Mughals had invested a lot of money in the war, with hundreds of boats and thousand of men and animals, along with a large number of arms and ammunition.
Lachit Borphukan used a brilliant combination of guerilla tactics, subterfuge, diplomacy, daring and psychological warfare to attack the Mughal army. As a result, his army was able to defeat the much larger army of the Mughals. The 1671 battle under the leadership of Lachit Borphukan delivered the Mughals a tremendous psychological blow, destroying the illusion of their invincibility. It is said that the loss in the Saraighat battle was one of the factors contributing to the fall of the Mughal dynasty.
The Battle of Saraighat was the last battle in the last major attempt by the Mughals to extend their empire into Assam. After this defeat, Mughals never dared again to invade NorthEast India again Ahom empire.
In memory of India’s one of the greatest patriot and war hero, Swargadeo Udayaditya Singha built the Lachit Maidam at Hoolungapara, 16 Km away from Jorhat in Assam in 1672. The remains of this great warrior lie here and he is still remembered and honoured by the people of Assam. Assam celebrates Lachit Devas every year to commemorate Lachit Barphukans heroism and the victory of the Ahom army at Saraighat on 24 November.
Further, the government of Assam has released a special song for the occasion 2 years ago on his 400th jayanti. Check it out here…