British Takeover of India: Modus Operandi
Contents: Introduction. 1. Not by Trade Alone. 2. Subsidiary Forces. 3. Broken Promises. 4. A New Low. 5. A Divided Nation. 6. Avadh Humbled. 7. Divide and Rule. 8. Extortions Galore. 9. Twilight of Avadh. 10. Recipe for Rajasthan. 11. A Snaring Operation. 12. Betrayal and Deceit. 13. Rajput Rulers Humbled. 14. The Erosion of Gujarat. 15. The Shackling of Marathas. 16. Squeeze on the People. 17. Ranjit Singh’s Punjab. 18. Assassination Galore. 19. British Planted Traitor. 20. Twilight in Punjab. 21. Sikhs Shock British. 22. The Aftermath. 23. The Perfidious Albions. 24. Bluff and Bribery. 25. Expansionism at Work. 26. Shady Deal with Sindhianwalas. 27. Rise of Gulab Singh. 28. Pillage and Plunder. 29. Sepoys, Sikhs and 1857. 30. A Distorted Picture. 31. Toynbee’s Fantasies. 32. Princes Back in Favour. 33. Panipat and Abdali. 34. The Forgotten Years. 35. Ranjit Singh and Tripartite Treaty. 36. Facets of Imperialism. 37. Nationhood: Facts and Fiction. Appendices.
To understand the history of a country one must acquaint oneself not only with its geography, its ecology but also the march of events that are recorded in its treaties, engagements, sanads and other relevant documents epitomising the various phases of its political, economic and social evolution.
The object of history is to know and understand the past for a better appreciation of the present and a peep into the future. In the words of the famous British historian, Dr. G.M. Trevelyan: “History in this sense is the basis of modern education in the Humanities, and the best school of citizenship. Only when it is false and lopsided can history be used amiss. True history can only do good”.
This book covers the period of Indian history from 1757, i.e. the period of ascendancy and consolidation of British rule. It challenges many of the accepted major premises and notions regarding this period of history and brings into sharp relief the policy and methods followed by the British. It also highlights the untruths, treachery, breach of solemn treaties etc., resorted to by the British at all levels, including at the level of the British Cabinet in England in their no-holds-barred game of power politics with the help of official treaties and other documents.
We should have a proper understanding of our chequered past and rich cultural heritage to move firmly and with confidence to our cherished goal. As our imperialist masters, happily defunct, recorded a lot of half-truths and injected much bias into these records, the writer has tried to correct the bias and to review the events of the bygone era in their proper perspective.
