There were 5,000 Hindus in Kohat and 12,000 Muslims on September 8, 1924. On September 11, 3,200 Hindus fled. The devastating anti-Hindu riots wiped out almost the entire Hindu population from the area in just two days. This is the story of the Kohat Riots that were deemed as a ‘successful attempt to completely exterminate and erase the Hindu and Sikh communities in the region’. Kohat town of North-West Frontier Province (now known as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) is located in present-day Pakistan. Notably, many prominent personalities blamed Hindus for igniting communal tension in the area. Patrick McGinn’s 1986 paper titled “Communalism and the North-West Frontier Province: the Kohat Riots, 9-10 September” provided a detailed account of the riots.

The stories narrate how the radical mob of Islamists unleashed their wrath on the Hindu colonies in Kohat. A pre-meditated attack on the Hindus resulted in the exodus of almost the entire population of Hindus from the region. There was no support from the then-British government. It is believed that the British government was dependent on the majority Muslim population in the region to maintain its stronghold. So much so, the Assistant Commissioner of Police and the Head Constable of Police were Muslims named S Ahmad Khan and Abbas Ali Shah.

On the fateful days of September 9th and 10th of, 1924, radical Islamist mobs unleashed mayhem in Hindu mohallas (neighbourhoods) in Kohat town of North-West Frontier Province (now known as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) in present-day Pakistan. The carnage was pre-meditated and resulted in the exodus of the entire Hindu population from the area. Since the British depended on the majority Muslim community to maintain their stronghold in the area, they turned a blind eye to the treatment meted out to the Hindus.

The trust that Britishers had in Muslims was evident in a letter that Lord Reading wrote to the British Secretary of State on July 23, 1924. He wrote, “The Gandhi movement could never have gained its strength but for the Treaty of Sevres which made the Mohamedans so fanatic that they joined up with the Hindus for the time being…the difficulty at present is to keep the Mohamedan and Hindu from each other’s throats, a task which I believe can only be performed by the British.”

He added, “From purely Indian considerations, I have no hesitation in saying that the peace [with Turkey] will assure us of the support of all but the extremists among the 60 or 70 million Mohamedans in India and will help materially to strengthen the British position in India.”

It is notable, that a treaty between the Allied powers (that won World War I) and the representatives of the government of Ottoman Turkey was signed in August 1920 and is known as the Treaty of Sevres. Under this treaty, the Ottoman Empire was abolished and Turkey was obliged to let go of its rights over Arab Asia and North Africa.

The Khilafat Movement – Seed of the Kohat riots

The actual idea behind the Khilafat Movement or the Caliphate movement was to revolt against the British the Indian Muslims. The Indian Muslim leaders wanted to restore the Caliph of the Ottoman Caliphate in Turkey, and it was supported by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. At that time, Gandhi himself was leading a non-cooperation movement in the country.

The support to the Khilafat movement was given in the backdrop of the idea that independence from the colonial rule of the British in India would be achieved via ‘Hindu-Muslim unity’. To date, the Islamists of the Khilafat movement are touted as freedom fighters, furthering the delusion that some leaders of the time had. The truth, however, is far from it. The Khilafat movement was about Indian Muslims fighting for the Islamic Caliphate in Turkey. The reason they were against the British was not that they wanted freedom for India, but because they were against the treatment the British gave to the Ottoman Empire and the Turkey Caliph. It was a purely Islamist movement, led by Islamists, for the cause of the Ummah.

In 1920, there was a policy change in Turkey due to the Treaty of Sevres. The Khilafat movement was poised to trickle away, however, it would not do so before claiming the lives of thousands of Hindus who bore the wrath of radical Islamists.

As per the census of 1921, the total population of Hindus and Sikhs was 5,000, and Muslims were 12,000. According to the records, in Kohat, Muslims paid only Rs 9,998 as tax, whereas Hindus paid Rs 37,322, which was almost four times the tax paid by Muslims. The records suggest there were some conversions as well where Hindus embraced Islam. Around 150 conversions were recorded every year from 1919 to 1924. At that time, Hindu organizations like Arya Samaj and Sanatan Dharma Sabha were strengthening their roots. Though the two organizations had different views, ideologies and outlooks, when it came to establishing the religious identity, they came together and supported the local Hindu community.

Every incident used to fan communal friction

The communal friction in the area was the result of several reasons. Every time an incident involving both communities happened in the region, it was used to further fan the friction between the communities. There was a Sikh named Sardar Makan Singh. His son eloped with a Muslim girl, which was not acceptable to the communities. The marriage of the couple belonging to different communities gave ground to the Islamic clerics to give highly inflammatory statements.

The ‘blasphemous’ literature that fuelled the friction

In May 1924, a wave of shock hit the Hindu community when they came across a highly objectionable and blasphemous poem published in a Muslim-centric newspaper named Lahaul. The poem read, “We shall have to burn the Gita of Kirars. We shall break the flute of Krishna. O Muslims! You will have to take up the sword and destroy the existence of Kirars and burn their goddesses.”

The genocidal poem called for the burning of Shrimad Bhagwad Gita, the destruction of the idols and the burning of the goddesses. It called the Muslims to take up weapons and destroy everything that was proof of the existence of the Hindu community that they called ‘Kirars’. It was more than enough to irk the Hindu community to take a notable step. Though the entire Hindu community was hurt by the poem, the members of Sanatan Dharma Sabha were, in particular, displeased by the Islamist poem.

Jiwan Das, who was the local secretary of the organization, decided that it was time to retaliate and published a pamphlet by the name of ‘Krishan Sandesh’ or ‘The Message of Krishna’. There were poems in the pamphlet that were written to reinstate the religious identity of the Hindus.

A poem by an author from Jammu was published in the pamphlet that mocked the Muslims. The poem read, “We have kept quiet so long, we shall have to speak out, O Mulla! You must gather up your prayer carpet and take it to Arabia. We shall build a temple to Vishnu in place of the Ka’ba, And destroy the existence of the Nimaziz.” On the day of Janmashthami, 1,000 copies of the pamphlets were distributed.

In retaliation to the poem, the Muslim clerics gave provocative speeches and called for action against Das. On September 3, 1924, a large group of Muslims under the leadership of Maulvi Ahmed Gul and Qazi Miraj Din met ACP S Ahmad Khan and demanded action against Das. They were assured by the ACP that Das would be prosecuted under IPC 505, 153A. Furthermore, directions were given to collect and burn the pamphlets.

The orders to burn the pamphlets further irked the Hindu community that was, till then, sided with the “fact” that the poem was offensive and blamed Sanatan Dharma Sabha for the same. As the pamphlets had a portrait of Bhagwan Krishna on the cover, they opposed the burning of the pamphlets. They also asked for a pardon for Das.

On September 8, Das was granted bail, but he was directed to leave the district. This was a great opportunity for the Ulemas to instigate the Muslims. They provoked the Muslims by saying that Das was acquitted in the case and concealed the information that he was only out on bail. It was more than enough to strengthen the ground for the call of action against the Hindus.

The ‘oath of talaq’

The preachings from the mosque led to the conspiracy to instigate the Muslim community. It was said, “Alas! Oh impotent Mussulmans! You have spoiled your cause by accepting bribes from the Hindus. You should die! You should have some sense of shame.”

Maulvi Ahmed Gul warned the Police to take immediate action against Das, or the Muslim community would take action as per Sharia Law. He gave the administration time till 8 AM on September 9. Shahin Shah and Mian Fazul Shah, along with other clerics, supported his call.

In the ‘oath of talaq’ taken at Haji Bahadur mosque, the Muslim community said they would divorce their wives if they failed to defend their religion.

The situation hours before the riots was tense

On the night of September 8, Muslims were parading the area with weapons. On the morning on September 9, a large group of 1,000 to 1,500 Muslims went and met Deputy Commissioner Reilly and forced him to fulfil their demands. It went on for a few hours, and by noon, half of the agitated mob had left the spot and soon appeared outside the Hindu colony. Since the Hindus learned about the provocative speeches and ‘oath of talaq’, they had anticipated there would be bloodshed. Information was passed on to the Deputy Commission, SP, via telegrams, but no one came to help them. Earlier, letters were also sent to the Chief Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner on September 6 informing them about the tense situation but no action was taken by the Police.

The riots of September 9-10, 1924

There were large mobs of Muslims comprising mainly young boys. They stormed into Hindu colonies and started pelting stones. Equipped with sticks, their presence in large numbers was enough to instigate fear among the Hindus. Before they could react, the house of Sardar Makan Singh, whose son had eloped with a Muslim girl, was burnt to ashes.

The Hindus retaliated and fired shots at them. One of the Muslims died, and several others were reported injured. The death of one of the mobsters agitated the mob further, and the fanatics went on a rampage to kill the Hindus. They did not leave any property that was owned by the members of the Hindu community. Let it be shops, temples or houses, everything was vandalized, looted and set on fire.

The rioters continued the destruction till 7 PM, after which the law enforcement agencies became active and dispersed the mob. For a short span, the situation was under control, as per the Police. However, they were not prepared for the second round of the violent mob that went on rioting the next day. Patrick McGinn mentioned that there was evidence that the Police also looted the shops with the rioters but the government categorically denied the involvement of its officers in the looting.

On September 10 at around 11 AM, a large mob of 4,000 Muslims gathered from Kohat and nearby tribal areas outside the Hindu colonies. What happened next is considered to be one of the deadliest episodes of violence in pre-Independent India.

As a result of the attack, 3,000 Hindus fled the Kohat town and took shelter in a temple nearby. However, they had to move from the temple once the rioters reached close by. The houses were looted and torched. A few Hindus had decided to stay back, only to meet a deadly fate. They were mercilessly slaughtered by the Muslim mob. The fire that gutted the houses and properties of Hindus reportedly continued to burn for over seven days.

Following the exodus, the Hindus took refuge in Rawalpindi, Punjab. The official statistics suggest 12 Hindus died and 13 went missing who were thought to be killed. 86 Hindus were reportedly injured, totalling the casualties at 155. Coming to Muslims, only one-third of casualties were reported on their side. Most of them were killed in self-defence. By the end of the Kohat Riots, almost the entire Hindu population from the area was wiped out. It was a significant demographic change in favour of Muslims.

Interestingly, the tribes from nearby areas that joined Muslims in the riot also looted and damaged some of the houses that belonged to Muslims. McGinn wrote, “Some Muslim property was destroyed in the course of the day as the tribesmen appeared to make no distinction between Hindu and Muslim property.”

Hindus did not return to the region out of fear of riots till January 1925, after a settlement was brought to the table between the Hindu and Muslim leaders by NWFP Chief Commissioner HN Bolton. However, there was a catch. Leaving the blasphemy case against Das, all the cases against the rioters were dropped as part of the settlement. No monetary compensation was provided to the Hindus. They were, however, offered loans worth Rs 5 lakh for the damages. However, the situation did not improve between the two communities.

In his book ‘Pakistan or The Partition of India’, Dr BR Ambedkar wrote, “Even after the settlement had been reached and evacuees had returned to Kohat there was no peace.”

Madan Mohan Malaviya blamed Government for anti-Hindu stand

In December 1924, Madan Mohan Malaviya sent to the Viceroy the resolution that was passed on November 30, 1924, at the Sanatan Dharma Sabha Conference which was attended by 1,200 delegates from the Panjab, Baluchistan, Sindh and the NWFP. At that time, Malaviya was a Congress politician, member of Sanatan Dharma Sabha and member of the Legislative Assembly.

In the resolution it was said, “Grief and resentment at the outrages committed against Kohat Hindus; that the authorities knew that there was a danger of violence but did nothing and failed to prevent and curtail the disturbances; that the government showed a lack of sympathy with the Hindus, who fired in self-defence, and although more Hindus than Muslims were killed, more Hindus were arrested; and that there should be a public enquiry set up consisting of individuals from all religious groups.” McGinn noted that Malaviya was the “most outspoken of the Hindu politicians in the Legislative Assembly in his criticism of the government’s handling of the situation.”

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi condemned the government for the lack of support

Though Gandhi had bowed down to the Viceroy’s refusal to grant him permission to visit Kohat, he condemned the local authorities of Kohat for the “betrayal, callous indifference, incompetence and weakness” they had shown in managing the situation. He said, “It was ’criminal’ for them to have disregarded the warnings that their lives and property were in danger given by the Hindus on 6 September and repeated on the ninth. It was ’inhuman’ not to have provided the refugees with food after their removal and to have left them to their own resources after removal to Rawalpindi.” Contrary to what Gandhi said, the government argued that it was the influence of the national politicians that stopped Kohat Hindus from returning that hindered the resettlement process.

Gandhi used the Khilafat movement to satisfy his own need to show there was “Hindu Muslim Unity”. However, the underlying religious antagonism mushroomed across the country following the fall of the Ottoman Empire in Turkey which resulted in fading away of the Khilafat Movement for some time. To “correct” the discourse, Gandhi fasted for 21 days to “restore” communal harmony.

How Hindus were blamed for the Kohat Riots

Though Hindus were wiped out from the region following the Kohat riots, several prominent personalities blamed Hindus for the riots. In 2012, a book by Arun Shourie was published with the title “The World of Fatwas Or The Sharia in Action” that contained several quotes related to the riots.

Maulana Mohammed Ali, who was part of the inquiry committee that investigated the reason behind the Kohat Riots, was quoted in the book saying, “The sufferings of the Hindus of Kohat are not unprovoked, but that, on the contrary, the facts brought to light make it clear that gross provocation was offered to the religious sentiments of the Mussalmans, and the Hindus were the first to resort to violence; and further that, though their sufferings were very great, and they are deserving of the sympathy of all Mussalmans, it was not they alone that suffered…” Maulana Mohammed Ali gave the statement in December 1924 at the sessions in Bombay of the Muslim League.

He further said, “The relations between the two communities were strained throughout 1923-24. But in no locality did this tension produce such tragic consequences as in the city of Kohat. The immediate cause of the trouble was the publication and circulation of a pamphlet containing a virulently anti-Islamic poem. Terrible riots broke out on the 9th and 10th of September 1924, the total casualties being about 155 killed and wounded… As a result of this reign of terror the whole Hindu population evacuated the city of Kohat…”

Dr BR Ambedkar, in his book [PDF] ‘Pakistan or The Partition of India (1946)’ [P164] wrote, “The immediate cause of the trouble was the publication and circulation of a pamphlet containing a virulently anti-Islamic poem. Terrible riots broke out on the 9th and 10th of September 1924, the total casualties being about 155 killed and wounded. House property to the estimated value of Rs. 9 lakhs was destroyed, and a large quantity of goods were looted. As a result of this reign of terror the whole Hindu population evacuated the city of Kohat.” Though Ambedkar called it one of “the most terrible outbreak of the year being the one that took place at Kohat which was accompanied by murder, arson and loot” in terms of Hindu-Muslim conflicts, he did not mention the anti-Hindu poem published by the Muslim publication.