The Bengal Conundrum: Hindu Kings of Bengal Were Not Meek, Fought Islamic Invaders Valiantly

It has been a year since unprecedented violence took place in West Bengal after the Assembly election results were announced. In light of the historical evidence, which seems to have been deliberately ignored, let us take a look at the myths of ‘bravery of Islamic invaders’ and ‘meek submission of Hindu kings’ in Bengal during the medieval period. Perhaps this invasion was foiled by Bishwarup Sen. Keshav Sen also claimed victory in his inscription over invaders from the West possibly Malik Saifuddin of Gaur, who sent an expedition to Banga … Minhaj also informs us that Sens occupied the throne of Banga up to 1245 AD.” Senas were followed by the Deva dynasty and historical evidence shows that Danuja Madhav Dasratha Deva of the Deva dynasty entered into a treaty with Balban, Sultan of Delhi, on equal terms. Sarkar says, “The Kamrup disaster broke the spell of the invincibility of Turkish arms with the tribes of Koch and Mech, and started them on a new career of political greatness that affected the history of Medieval Bengal for the next three centuries.” Sarkar aptly sums up the ‘Hindu resistance to Islamic invaders’ in Bengal, “Outside the home-territory of the days of Muhammad Bakhtiyar i.e. the tract between the Kosi on the west and perhaps a little beyond the Punarbhava in the east, Devkot on the north and the Ganges in the south – there were powerful Hindu Rajahs strewn all over the country who followed the policy of ‘vettasi-vritti’ with regard to the Muslim rulers of Lakhanwati … Neither Bengal, nor in fact any other part of India, was conquered by a few cavalry dashes of the Turks as the unenlightened impression goes.” You can read other articles in The Bengal Conundrum series here.