The Conspiracy Against the Marathas (1754-1756)

Marathi History Book Reading Session Summary

The Ideologue: Shah Waliullah

Background:

• Father was a Sufi
• Studied in Arabia and became a Jihadi (radicalized)
• Not a fighter himself - more of a theologian and ideologue
• His role: Inspire people and orchestrate alliances

The Crisis He Saw

The Muslim "Plight" in India (as described by Waliullah):

The Core Problem:

• Mughal Empire was collapsing
• Marathas were becoming the dominant power
• No Muslim power in India could stand up to the Marathas
• Islam itself seemed at risk of being "uprooted from India"

The Letters to Abdali

Waliullah's Strategy: Looking for a "protector" (Ratha) of Islam - someone who could stop Maratha hegemony.

Why Abdali?

• Only person with the military power to stop the Marathas
• Afghanistan's king with proven military capability
• Had successfully invaded India twice before without being stopped

The Connection:

1. Waliullah → Najib Khan (they knew each other from school)
2. Najib Khan → Ahmad Shah Abdali (fellow Afghan, natural connection)

The Pitch:

"Islam will be uprooted from India if you don't help. The Maratha power is increasing, Muslim power is decaying. We need you."

Abdali's Response:

• He was already having internal issues in Afghanistan that needed resolution
• Once those were settled, he'd come to India
• But he needed a reason and local allies - you can't just walk into a foreign country without support
• These letters gave him exactly what he needed: invitation + local allies

The Rise of Najib Khan: From Soldier to Kingmaker

The Humble Beginnings

Starting Point: Just a common soldier - nothing special initially

The Breakthrough:

• Proved himself as a capable fighter
• Got recognized by Dunde Khan (a major Rohilla chieftain)
• Dunde Khan was so impressed he married his daughter to Najib
• This marriage opened the door to the leadership circle

Building a Kingdom

The Dowry:

• Got a few villages near Saharanpur as part of the marriage deal
• Small region, but now he was a chieftain with territory to rule

The Expansion:

• With the Mughal emperor being weak and ineffective, Najib expanded his territory
• Flew under the radar and grabbed more land
• Similar strategy to how Shivaji expanded under the Adil Shahan Sultanate

Climbing the Ladder (1751-1754)

Key Move - The Delhi Defense (1753):

• Najib + Imad-ul-Mulk defended Delhi against the combined force of:
  • Safdar Jang
  • Surajmal Jat
• Marathas were also helping the Emperor during this
• Successfully defended → massive promotion to 5,000 Mansabdar

His Position by 1754:

• One of the major commanders in North India
• Had his own kingdom in Rohilkhand
• Still loosely allied with Mughals (vassal king arrangement)
• Inside scoop on all the major players from years of observation

Why Najib Wanted Abdali

The Fear Factor

Najib's Concerns:

• Marathas were expanding rapidly
• He knew he'd be "forever at the mercy of Marathas"
• As an Afghan in India (Rohilla), he had natural sympathies with Abdali
• Wanted to preserve Afghan/Muslim power in North India

The Vision

Najib's Pitch to Abdali:

"You should rule India by proxy. Replace the Mughals entirely - they're weak and useless. Give us (Rohillas) importance. We can be your local representatives. We'll work together."

The Logic:

• Mughals were dying anyway
• Why not replace them with Afghan rule?
• Najib could be Abdali's man in India
• Get rid of Maratha hegemony permanently

What He Wanted:

• Break Maratha power completely
• End their importance and overall hegemony
• He knew only Abdali could do it

The Third Conspirator: Madho Singh of Rajasthan

Why a Rajput King Wanted to Ally with Abdali

Recent History:

• Marathas had been interfering heavily in Rajasthani succession battles
• They decided which princes could rule and which couldn't
• Demanded tributes constantly
• Created massive resentment

The Calculation:

• Rajputs were already okay being vassal kings under Mughals
• But Marathas were too headstrong and intrusive
• Better to pay tribute to distant overlords than deal with Maratha interference

The Goal:

"We need to drive them south of the Narmada River. Stay in your territory. We can have long-distance relations, but don't come here and tell us who can rule."

The Price:

• Rajputs were willing to pay a steep price to cut down Maratha power
• Didn't want to eliminate Marathas entirely
• Just wanted them back in the Deccan, out of Rajasthani politics

The United Front Forms

The Alliance Against the Marathas

Members of the Anti-Maratha Coalition:

1. Shah Waliullah - The ideologue, writing letters
2. Najib Khan - The connector, had direct line to Abdali
3. Madho Singh - Rajasthani king, fed up with interference
4. Various other Muslim powers (Rohillas, remnants of Mughals)

What They All Wanted:

• Different goals but common enemy
• Cut down Maratha importance
• Drive them back to the Deccan
• Restore some form of Muslim/Northern power structure

What This Gave Abdali:

• Natural local allies - exactly what he needed
• Invitation to intervene
• Intelligence about who's who
• Guides for navigating Indian politics
• Religious justification (protecting Islam)
• Political justification (restoring order)

The Maratha Mistakes: Why They Became So Unpopular

The Military Success Without Political Wisdom

What Marathas Did Right:

• Unmatched military power
• Expanded all the way to Punjab
• Even crossed Punjab and went close to Afghanistan
• Raghunath Rao's campaigns were militarily brilliant

What Marathas Did Wrong:

Mistake #1: No Administration Left Behind

• Conquered Punjab but left no one to run the administration
• No day-to-day governance structure
• No follow-up after military victories
• Just conquered and came back

Mistake #2: Lost All Alliances in the North

• Made military victories but didn't maintain political alliances
• Interfered too much in local succession battles
• Became too headstrong and demanding
• Created enemies out of potential allies

Mistake #3: Didn't Understand Northern Politics

"They didn't understand politics because you can't just keep making military victories without understanding that you're losing alliances."

The Result:

• Created a united front against themselves
• Pushed everyone - Muslims, Rajputs, Afghans - into each other's arms
• Made themselves the common enemy
• Marathas were partially responsible for this unity

The Stage is Set

What's Coming

The book hints that a BIG CATALYST is about to happen - something that will force the Marathas to say:

"This can't be tolerated. We have to deal with this NOW."

And once that happens, Abdali will have to respond, and the collision course toward Panipat will be inevitable.

Timeline

Key Players

Geographic Context

Maratha Expansion:

• From Deccan (Peshwa's capital in Pune)
• North to Punjab
• Even reached near Afghanistan

Rohilkhand:

• Region in North India
• Najib's power base (Saharanpur)
• Afghan settlers in India

The Northern Powers:

• Delhi (Mughal capital, but weak)
• Punjab (recently conquered by Marathas, no administration)
• Awadh (Muslim state)
• Rajasthan (Rajput kingdoms)
• Rohilkhand (Afghan/Rohilla territory)

Cultural/Historical Notes

Mansabdar System

Mughal military rank system:

• 1,000 Mansabdar = Commander of 1,000 troops
• 5,000 Mansabdar = Major commander, top-tier position

Vassal Kingdom Model

• Keep your internal affairs autonomous
• Pay tribute to overlord
• Provide military support when needed
• Better than constant warfare

The Afghan Connection

• Rohillas = Afghan settlers in North India
• Natural cultural and ethnic ties to Afghanistan
• Easy for Abdali to find allies among them

Political Intelligence Value

Najib's years inside different courts gave him invaluable knowledge:

• How Marathas operate
• Mughal weaknesses
• Who's allied with whom
• Perfect position to be Abdali's guide

Key Themes

1. The Power of Letters - Shah Waliullah never fought a battle, but his letters to Abdali helped trigger a war
2. The Rise of the Self-Made Man - Najib Khan went from common soldier to kingmaker
3. Military Success ≠ Political Success - Marathas won battles but lost the political game
4. The Enemy of My Enemy - How diverse groups (Muslims, Rajputs) united against a common threat
5. Local Allies Make Foreign Invasions Possible - Abdali couldn't invade without Najib and others
6. The Importance of Administration - Conquering without governing creates power vacuums

[Session ended - the "big catalyst" event coming in the next reading]

The conspiracy is in place. The invitations are sent. The alliances are forming. The Marathas are making enemies without realizing it. The stage is set for catastrophe.