Geri3389994518 at 09:10, 13 February 2026

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{{Short description|Massacre in British India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}

The '''Mangarh massacre''' occurred on 17 November 1913, when British troops attacked the stronghold of [[Govindgiri|Govindgiri Banjara]] at the end of the [[Bhil]] Revolt.<ref name="Vashishtha-1991">{{Cite journal|last=Vashishtha |first=Vijay Kumar |date=1991 |title=The Bhil Revolt of 1913 Under Guru Govindgiri Among the Bhils of Southern Rajasthan and its Impact |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume=52 |pages=522–527 |jstor=44142651 }}</ref> It occurred on a hillock in the [[Mangarh Hills]] of [[Rajasthan]]. There are no accurate figures for the number of Bhil, Banjara who were killed, but estimates range from "several Bhils died"<ref name="Sehgal-1974">{{Cite book |last=Sehgal |first=K. K. |year=1974 |title=Rajasthan District Gazetteers: Banswara |publisher=Directorate, District Gazetteers |location=Jaipur |page=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.117119/page/n47/mode/1up 34] |url=https://ia804706.us.archive.org/32/items/in.ernet.dli.2015.117119/2015.117119.Rajasthan--Distict-Gazetteer-Of--Banswara.pdf }}{{Dead link|date=August 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> to the oral tradition that 1,500 Banjara tribals were killed.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Mahurkar |first=Uday |date=30 November 1999 |title=Descendants of Mangad massacare seek recognition for past tragedy |magazine=India Today |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/special-report/story/20120910-jallianwala-bagh-in-gujarat-brutal-tribal-massacre-gujarat-rajasthan-border-759622-1999-11-30 }}</ref>

== Background ==
Govindgiri Banjara was a social and religious reformer among the tribes (''[[adivasi]]'') of the Rajasthan and [[Gujarat]] areas of India.<ref name="Natani-1998">{{Cite book|last=Natani |first=Prakash Narayan |year=1998 |script-title=hi:राजस्थान का स्वाधीनता आंदोलन |trans-title=Independence Movement of Rajasthan |language=hi |publisher=Granth Vikas |location=Jaipur |pages=54–58 |oclc=40163902 }}</ref> He had run afoul of the local [[princely state]] rulers, notably [[Sant State|Sunth]], [[Banswara State|Banswara]], [[Idar State|Idar]], and [[Dungarpur State|Dungarpur]] because of his critique of the Indian hierarchy and its exploitation of the ''adivasi'', and the subsequent social disruptions by his followers that his doctrines caused.<ref name="Vashishtha-1991" /><ref name="Natani-1998" />

== October–November 1913 ==
Fleeing from an attempt by the ruler of Idar State to capture Govindgiri, Govindgiri Banjara and his adherents formed a defensive position on a hillock in the [[Mangarh Hills]] on the borders of the princely states of Banswara and Sunth.<ref name="Sehgal-1974" /> On 31 October, some of his followers attacked the police outpost at
Gadhran, looted it, killed one police constable and took another officer captive.<ref name="Parmar-1922">{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/apz5770.0001.001.umich.edu|title=The Rewakantha Directory|last=Parmar |first=Ladhabhai Harji |publisher=Parmar Press |year=1922 |location=Rajkot |page=[https://archive.org/details/apz5770.0001.001.umich.edu/page/25 25–26] }}</ref> On 1 November, some of his followers unsuccessfully attacked the Parbatgadh fort in Sunth.<ref name="Parmar-1922" /> Meanwhile, bands of Bhil from the Mangarh Hills were attacking and looting local villages in both Sunth and Banswara.<ref name="Sehgal-1974" /><ref name="Parmar-1922" /> Police were dispatched from both Banswara and Sunth to end the assembly, but negotiations failed.<ref name="Parmar-1922" /> So the rulers sought a military solution.<ref name="Sehgal-1974" /><ref name="Parmar-1922" /> Units of [[Imperial Service Troops]] and the [[Mewar Bhil Corps]] besieged the hillock.<ref name="Sehgal-1974" /> On 12 November 1913, Govindgiri and his deputy Punja Pargi (aka Punja Dhirji) sent a delegation to the British with their list of grievances, "but negotiations did not take place."<ref name="Sehgal-1974" /> However, the commanding officer did give the delegation an ultimatum: Disband before 15 November. The Bhil stood firm and stayed. On 17 November 1913, the Indian and British forces attacked the Bhil defensive works, and captured Govindgiri Banjara and his deputy Punja Pargi<ref name="Parmar-1922" /> as well as 900 prisoners.<ref name="Sehgal-1974" />

== Mangarh Dham ==
[[File:Mangargh-banswara-Rajasthan-5.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Mangarhdham Monument]]
A monument was built on the hillock honouring the victims of the massacre.<ref name="Meena">{{Cite news|last=Meena |first=Mohrsinh |newspaper=BBC News ગુજરાતી |date=15 August 2021 |script-title=gu:માનગઢ : ગુજરાતની સરહદે થયેલો એ નરસંહાર જે 'જલિયાંવાલા બાગ'થી પણ મોટો ગણાય છે |trans-title=Mangarh: The genocide on the border of Gujarat which is considered bigger than 'Jallianwala Bagh' |publisher=BBC News |language=gu |url=https://www.bbc.com/gujarati/india-58187109 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210815153216/https://www.bbc.com/gujarati/india-58187109 |archive-date=15 August 2021 |url-status=live }}</ref> In November 2022, it was declared a national monument.<ref>{{Cite news|author=Priyanka |date=4 November 2022 |title=PM Modi Declared Mangarh Dham National Monument |publisher=Current Affairs Section of Adda247 |url=https://currentaffairs.adda247.com/pm-modi-declared-mangarh-dham-national-monument/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221104125930/https://currentaffairs.adda247.com/pm-modi-declared-mangarh-dham-national-monument/ |archive-date=4 November 2022 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2017, plans were begun to put a Tribal Freedom Struggle Museum there as well.<ref name="Khaskhabar">{{Cite news|script-title=hi:बांसवाड़ा के मानगढ़ धाम में राष्ट्रीय जनजाति संग्रहालय के लिए भूमि प्रत्यावर्तन को मंजूरी |trans-title=Approval for repatriation of land for National Tribal Museum at Mangarh Dham in Banswara |language=hi |date=17 October 2017 |newspaper=Khaskhabar |url=https://www.khaskhabar.com/local/rajasthan/banswara-news/news-banswara-news--approval-of-land-repatriation-for-the-national-tribal-museum-in-mangarh-dham-of-banswara-news-hindi-1-264815-KKN.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028022317/https://www.khaskhabar.com/local/rajasthan/banswara-news/news-banswara-news--approval-of-land-repatriation-for-the-national-tribal-museum-in-mangarh-dham-of-banswara-news-hindi-1-264815-KKN.html |archive-date=28 October 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> The museum was completed in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web|title=National Tribal Freedom Struggle Museum Mangadham, Banswara |date=11 July 2022 |publisher=Rajasthan Heritage Protection Promotion Authority |url=https://artandculture.rajasthan.gov.in/content/raj/art-and-culture/rajasthan-heritage-protection---promotion-authority/en/heritage-projects/completed/rjsssmb.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220716193610/https://artandculture.rajasthan.gov.in/content/raj/art-and-culture/rajasthan-heritage-protection---promotion-authority/en/heritage-projects/completed/rjsssmb.html |archive-date=16 July 2022 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Name and legacy ==
At the time of the Mangarh massacre little note was made of it,<ref name="Meena" /><ref name="Vashishtha-1991" /><ref name="Firstpost">{{Cite news|title=Adivasi Jallianwala Bagh: The Mangarh massacre of 1913 that PM Modi spoke of in Rajasthan |date=2 November 2022 |newspaper=Firstpost |url=https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/adivasi-jallianwala-bagh-the-mangarh-massacre-of-1913-that-pm-modi-spoke-of-in-rajasthan-11554721.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221108135510/https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/adivasi-jallianwala-bagh-the-mangarh-massacre-of-1913-that-pm-modi-spoke-of-in-rajasthan-11554721.html |archive-date=8 November 2022 |url-status=live }}</ref> in part because the victims were mere tribesmen, and details only appeared in local or regional documents.<ref name="Sehgal-1974" /> However as [[Hindutva|Indian nationalism]] grew, so did interest in past injustices,<ref name="Patnaik-1993">{{Cite journal |last=Patnaik |first=Prabhat |year=1993 |title=Fascism of our times |journal=Social Scientist |volume=21 |issue=3/4 |pages=69–77 |doi=10.2307/3517631 |jstor=3517631 }}</ref> with the 1919 [[Jallianwala Bagh massacre]] taking center stage.<ref>{{Cite book|editor-last=Ramachandran |editor-first=Rajesh |year=2019 |title=Martyrdom to Freedom: 100 Years of Jallianwala Bagh |location=New Delhi |publisher=Rupa for the Tribune Trust |isbn=978-93-5333-461-1 }}</ref> As a result, the Mangarh massacre was often referred to as the '''Adivasi Jallianwala Bagh'''<ref name="Firstpost" /> or the '''Jallianwala Bagh of Vagad'''<ref name="Khaskhabar" /> in reference to the better known one.

==References==
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[[Category:Bhil]]
[[Category:Massacres in British India]]
[[Category:Massacres in 1913]]
[[Category:20th century in Rajasthan]]
[[Category:Massacres committed by the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1913]]
[[Category:1913 murders in India]]
[[Category:20th-century mass murders in India]]
[[Category:November 1913 in Asia]]
[[Category:Crime in Rajasthan]]

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Mangarh massacre - Revision history

Geri3389994518 at 09:10, 13 February 2026