A FORGOTTEN EPISODE OF LAHORE IN 1845;
COW RIOTS ERUPTED AND SILENCED IN 1871.

A concept generated in Lahore in recent times is that there was total harmony between various communities. That Hindus and Muslims were living as long time brothers. It was forgotten that the way of life of both nations were totally different and toleration of each other, did not mean harmony, as contrived today by writers. Obviously some broadminded persons on both sides learnt a certain level of co-existence.There were sects of Sikhs in Lahore, where it was even dangerous to pass by them with any ease. Fear of an unprovoked reaction from them. Yet life existed in its bad and good forms.

In this turmoil extremists reactions started after death of Ranjit Singh in 1839. Not that it was not there in his times, but he could ruthlessly curb it in any way he liked. The KOOKA sect was formed by one Baluk Ram in the year 1845. A carpenter named Ram singh inherited the position. They were interested in going back to the Pristine qualities of their religion. The Sikhs and the Hindus joined hands in this tirade and in 1845 a number of Butcher shops were raided in Lahore and some Butchers put to death. The aim that there should be no display of beef meat at Butchers shop as it was against their principles. The British were in a quandary as to what to do. Full control of Lahore was not in their  hands yet. The young puppet Dallip Singh was being groomed for complete takeover. The  Cow riots as they were called were becoming more and more destructive.

An ultimatum was issued to the KOOKAS to mend their ways and they kept quiet for some time. But it was a mum before a storm. By 1871 the riots had spread to Amritsar, and a group of 12 Kooka assassins butchered again a group of Muslim Butchers. The British were in no mood to accept the challenge to their authority, and the Kookas were ruthlessly pursued and captured by them. Out of perhaps a following of fifty thousand Kookas, 300 kookas were taken into custody, and quickly executed by the authorities. Everybody believed that it was an excess but that excess unless controlled would have left a scar on the reigning policy of the British. Anybody disturbing the status quo was a risk to their rule.

Rennell Taylor ICS Commissioner Amritsar

The people who think that there is no Two nation theory, should wake up to the fact that even in Lahore, there were separate Mohallas of the Hindus and the Muslims, and nobody dared to traverse the domain of others. And this division was always there. The theme of the Hindu mohallas was very different from the Muslim ones. The ‘SHARM’ or ‘HAIYA’ we talk of was alien to the Hindus living here, and strangely it is reported by many people of that time, that literally the Hindu girls were naked from the top and wearing flimsy dresses from the bottom. It was indeed a threat to the culture of the Muslims. And this invasion of the undressed person is something we see in our media today, and forget that it was always so. Sex was one of the ways to reach the Divine reality in that religion. In the Muslim area the approach was totally different. That is why Quaid e Azam gave us the famous saying about the two nation theory, which we repeat all the time. A simple one is:

“We are a nation with our own distinctive culture and civilization, language and literature, art and architecture, names and nomenclature, sense of value and proportion, legal laws and moral codes, customs and calendar, history and traditions, aptitudes and ambitions: in short, we have our own distinctive outlook on life and of life. By all canons of international law, we are a nation.” –

And Quaid e Azam further clarified:

  “It is extremely difficult to appreciate why our Hindu friends fail to understand the real nature of Islam and Hinduism. They are not religions in the strict sense of the word, but are, in fact, different and distinct social orders, and it is a dream that the Hindus and Muslims can ever evolve a common nationality, and this misconception of one Indian nation has troubles and will lead India to destruction if we fail to revise our notions in time. The Hindus and Muslims belong to two different religious philosophies, social customs, litterateurs. They neither intermarry nor interdine together and, indeed, they belong to two different civilizations which are based mainly on conflicting ideas and conceptions. Their aspect on life and of life are different. It is quite clear that Hindus and Mussalmans derive their inspiration from different sources of history. They have different epics, different heroes, and different episodes. Very often the hero of one is a foe of the other and, likewise, their victories and defeats overlap. To yoke together two such nations under a single state, one as a numerical minority and the other as a majority, must lead to growing discontent and final destruction of any fabric that may be so built for the government of such a state.”

The riots get repeated and flared up again in 1893:

The “cow killing riots” of 1893 were a series of violent clashes between Hindus and Muslims in British India, fueled by religious tensions surrounding the slaughter of cows, which are considered sacred by Hindus. These riots were a significant event in the history of Hindu-Muslim relations in India and were marked by intense conflict, particularly during the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, when animal sacrifice is a common practice.”

The conflict lingers on even today. Solutions hardly possible. And yet India exports it is said of billions of dollars beef every year. Hypocrisy of the worst type. Cows linger over rubbish heapos all over India. Cleaning their front yards required to move forward any time.