The subcontinent was a very wealthy region during the Mughal rule (1526 to 1857); it boasted an impressive 24.44% share of the world economy. The magnificent monument, the Taj Mahal, is a reminder of the economic power the subcontinent wielded during the Mughal era. During the 1950s, after the British left, India’s share of the world economy dropped to 4.17 per cent. Shashi Tharoor, in his book Inglorious Empire What the British Did to India (Penguin Books, 2017), proclaims that over 44 trillion dollars were stolen by the colonialist power.
The region has faced many challenges throughout its history; the biggest calamity perhaps was the arrival of the East India Company (EIC) in the subcontinent [1].
EIC was formed in 1600, and their first ship reached India in 1608. Their original intention was to establish trade between England and the subcontinent. However, intentions changed after realising that the English had superior weapon technology and a better trained and disciplined military. EIC started to get involved in local politics and subsequently dominated and controlled various states of the subcontinent. By 1857, the EIC had full control of the whole subcontinent, and the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled to Rangoon, Burma.
It is worth reminding the readers at this point that Mughal Emperor Mahiuddin Aurangzeb Alamgir (1618–1707), who could be a Mujaddid, fully established Sharia and Islamic economics throughout the subcontinent during his rule between 1658–1707 [2]. Meaning, there was a two-eyed system in the subcontinent before the EIC established a one-eyed system there. Ever since the subcontinent continues to be ruled by the one-eyed system. The two-eyed system and Islam had been eliminated from the subcontinent after the EIC conquered it.
Hearts and Mind of the Subcontinent
The war between good and evil is not over, far from it, this is a never-ending war. Wars continue beyond military victories to control the minds and hearts; to achieve that, economic, political, and social engineering is essential. It is about subjugating and shackling the minds of the colonised so they remain mentally enslaved, believing they are inferior to their masters.
In 1835, EIC decided to strike a big blow to weaken the two-eyed system. Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800 – 1859) was tasked with reconstructing the education system of the subcontinent [3]. To make the education system a one-eyed system. During his stay there between 1834 and 1838, Macaulay had this to say:
“I feel… that it is impossible for us, with our limited means, to attempt to educate the body of the people. We must at present do our best to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern, – a class of persons Indian in blood and colour, but English in tastes, in opinions, in morals and in intellect.” [3]
To be honest, Macaulay succeeded far more than he may have expected in achieving his goals. The system he created was nothing short of a bulldozer that demolished not only the self-identities or cultural identities but also threw seeds of chaos into the social fabric of the region. A region that continues to suffer from an inferiority complex and where upper-class families desire to avoid teaching their children religious knowledge. Without religion to unite the people, the gulf between the ruling elites and the public has grown ever wider. To put it bluntly, the apathy of the ruling elites is frightening.
The second blow to the Muslims came when, in 1857, as a result of the famous rebellion of Sepoys, EIC took the opportunity to end the resistance indefinitely and ensure the subjugation of the population. The source of resistance was blamed on the Ulema e Haqq of the time. So EIC decided to destroy thousands of masjids and education centres as well as massacre over 20,000 scholars of Islam. This was done using the penal system created by Macaulay.
What started with the Vasco da Gama burning 400 Muslim pilgrims in a ship had reached the point where Islam itself was facing an existential threat.
The absence of Islamic scholars had created a big vacuum. In the absence of scholars, the Muslim masses were similar to sheep without a shepherd. A group of scholars fearing that colonialism would corrupt Islam decided to establish the first major Darul Uloom Madrassa in Deoband, India, in 1866. The purpose of the education centre was to produce scholars to ensure Islam survives in these difficult times. In the Quran Allah (SWT) says:
They planned, but Allah (SWT) also planned. And Allah (SWT) is the best of planners. (Qur’an 8:30)
Despite the Islamic education centre, colonialism has had a long-lasting effect on the region as a whole. Religion has become nothing more than ritualism. Divine law no longer plays a role in politics or decision-making by the state controllers. As long as divine law is kept out of politics, the one-eyed system continues to deny the weak their rights. This is one of the criticisms thrown at the Deoband school of thought and the Wahabbi school of thought. Deobandi and Wahabbi scholars reign over the religious institutes while the corrupt politicians rule over state matters. Such states are toothless tigers when it comes to defending the rights of ordinary people.
East India Company (EIC) Legacy
Here arises one important question: EIC was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was dissolved when its mission was completed. What was the mission of EIC? Was the mission to dismantle the divine religion from the subcontinent? Just like capitalism and communism dismantled religions. Perhaps that is the big achievement and legacy of EIC.
The other legacy of EIC in the subcontinent is Mir Jafar and Mir Sadiq, the famous duo known for their treachery. In the 21st century, EIC continues to influence the politics of the subcontinent through modern-day Mir Jafars and Mir Sadiqs. And also, thanks to the education system created by Thomas Macaulay for the elites of the subcontinent. A system that should have been dismantled after 1947, alas, even today it continues to operate as designed. This is the reason we see a two-tier system in the subcontinent, one for the privileged and another for the weak.
Another legacy of EIC is the segregation of the communities based on religious identities. Using religion EIC planted the seeds for partition centuries earlier. Before the arrival of the EIC, all citizens were treated equally under the Islamic rule. However, “in the late eighteenth century, as the East India Company was gaining a political toehold on parts of South Asia, Governor General Warren Hastings established a legal system in which Muslims and non-Muslims were tried by separate law codes; henceforth, Muslims and non-Muslims would constitute juridically separate communities.” [4] Over the centuries the gulf widened between the two communities that had lived otherwise relatively harmoniously.
By 1947, the seed planted by the East India Company had grown into a tree. The fruit was two independent states, a Muslim-majority Pakistan and a Hindu-majority India.
References
[1] “East India Company,” 13 10 2024. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_India_Company.
[2] “Aurangzeb,” 15 10 2024. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurangzeb.
[3] “Thomas Babington Macaulay,” 16 10 2024. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Babington_Macaulay.
[4] R. M. Eaton, India in the Persianate Age: 1000-1765, Penguin , 2020.
