Meet India’s first Kaiser-i-Hind - Sardar Khan Bahadur Mir Abdul Ali

The term Kaisar-i-Hind (also spelled Kaiser-e-Hind) literally means "Emperor of India" in Hindustani (a blend of Hindi and Urdu), a language that has replaced Hindi as the national language due to consistent efforts of british followed by the media industry including so called Hindi movies, TV and web programming and especially songs as also by mainstream news and internet based entertainment media while some overzealous regional political parties fight against Hindi imposition. Even Hindi speakers don't speak Hindi but Hindustani. But that will be covered separately.

The title Kaisar-i-Hind was coined in 1876 by the orientalist G.W. Leitner as the official imperial title for the British monarch in India and was later used for the Kaisar-i-Hind Medal for Public Service in India, established by Queen Victoria on 10th April 1900 though 1st April would have been a better date to introduce this.

Orientalist sounds respectable and fancy till you realize that it just a biased western scholar, artist, or 'expert' who studies or depicts Eastern cultures. 

British orientalists in India were a rather dumb and biased lot that had been busy interpreting Bharat through the lens of an islamist version of 'Hindostan' while trying to create their version of India doing everything possible to achieve the goal from forming alliances with the islamists to later for East India Company and enacting all kinds of rules to further their imperialist goals while conveniently exploiting our resources and balkanizing our lands at will.

We had recently shared a picture wherein a photograph titled: unknown Mausoleums of Brindela, near Jhansi by the british that were identified as temples built with Bundela architecture prevalent during (16th–18th centuries). link here.

The declared objective is that this medal was awarded to civilians of any nationality for distinguished service in advancing 'British Raj interests'.  Extending the scope of its mafiosa, the British intended to create an ecosystem that lords over India via tentacles across all aspects of governance and society while eating away at our civilization like patient pests.

This patronizing infrastructure was directed at creating mixed loyalties so as to stop people from uniting & forming a concentrated, worthy resistance.

The medal had three grades. The top one covered here, Kaisar-i-Hind Gold Medal for Public Service in India was awarded directly by the monarch on the recommendation of the Secretary of State for India.

What's interesting are some of the characters in the bunch of people who got these awards. The information available is patchy at best and curated at its worst but offers some insights that sheds some light on the ugly games being played in our own lands to destroy our civilization.

The very first award in the gold category which meant directly chosen by the queen was awarded to Sardar Khan Bahadur Mir Abdul Ali on 09 November 1901. 

Khan Bahadur was the title given to Abdul Ali in 1861 for identifying a critical informant who had intelligence on the plans of the sepoys during the 1857 mutiny. Must have been quite a patriotic man!

The literal meaning of mutiny is simple: an act of a group of people, especially sailors or soldiers, refusing to obey the person who is in command. But in this case those in command were also occupiers of our lands. And the one helping the current occupiers who may have been fancying the previous occupiers.

Mir Abdul Ali, whom British used to call Sherlock Holmes of India, was son of Akbar Ali who was also in the police department, and had earned a reputation for solving crimes and had retired with high honours. Abdul Ali worked with his father and helped the latter solve several cases even before joining the police force.

British queen was so desperate to regard the family of a man who had played the role of fighting against Indians in the 1857 mutiny.

Career highlights of both the father and the son:

‘A fruit doesn’t fall far away from the tree’.

Mir Akbar Ali (Father):

• Forgery detection, informant networks, crowd control during 1857 Rebellion
• Solved multiple currency forgeries; arrested two forgers in Surat (one European, one influential Indian); Chinese burglar John Wynn
• Helped identify informants during 1857; mass poisoning in Kalbadevi (two deaths)
• Aided in quelling 1857 unrest in Bombay with Charles Forjett
• General detective work on thefts/burglaries during dignitary visits (e.g., Duke of Edinburgh 1869-70)
• Awarded with title of Khan Bahadur (1861); retired 1883 after ~50+ years

Mir Abdul Ali (Son):

• Forgery, insurance fraud, political fugitives, poisoning plots; advanced surveillance
• Solved first independent case (swindler Karsandas Purushotamdas Bhansali, 1866); currency forging (1866); joint 1867 Kumbharwada stakeout on coin/note forgers (Rs 1,000 reward)
• Key role in 1875 Baroda Gaekwad poisoning of Col. Phayre (with father; Rs 3,500 reward each; led to Gaekwad's deposition)
• Arrested Maulvi Liaqat Ali (1872, 1857 fugitive linked to Nana Saheb/Rani Laxmibai; decoded notes at Byculla station)
• Intentional burning of S.S. Aurora (1870; major international news)
• Murder plot by Bombay High Court solicitor & clerk (1873); timber fraud by contractors (1876); Chapekar brothers arrest (1897)
• Khan Bahadur (1873); Sardar (1891); Kaiser-i-Hind Gold Medal (1901); retired 1903 as Superintendent

Notes:

Abdul Ali's father Akbar Ali was born in 1802 in a family of Sayyids who had fled from the Abbasid Caliphs of Baghdad to settle in India. The family had been provided with a title to settle in the village of Manchar, Khed, where Mir Abdul Ali had been born. 

By marriage he was reportedly linked to another Syed family from Narayangaon. 

He went to Bombay to seek employment and joined the Bombay Police Force on 1 September 1821 under Captain Shortt, Head of the Police. In 1852 he became a Jamadar and in 1856, a Subedar.

During the 1857 rebellion he helped the British police identify a critical informant who had intelligence on the plans of sepoys. In 1861, he received the title of Khan Bahadur and an inspector in 1865.

At Sir Frank Souter's recommendation, he too was conferred the title of Khan Bahadur in 1873. In the same year he helped uncover a murder plotted by a Bombay High Court solicitor and his clerk. Yet another investigation led to the charging of the Malharrao Gaekwar of Baroda of attempting to poison Colonel Phayre, the British Resident. In 1876 he uncovered a fraud involving contractors and forest department officers to illegally cut and trade in timber using false records. 

Sir Frank Souter noted in 1881 that on account of his being a native he was debarred from being a Superintendent. He was made a Justice of the Peace for the City of Bombay.

In 1881 Sir Frank Souter, Police Commissioner, recommended Ali to the title of First Class Sardar of the Deccan. This was seconded by Colonel Wilson and he received the title on 30 May 1891, signed by Viceroy Lansdowne. He received a Kaiser-i-Hind Gold medal in 1901. He retired in 1903.

Among the cases he solved were currency forgeries and in one case he brought to book two forgers in Surat that included a European and an influential Indian. In another case he arrested a Chinese burglar named John Wynn. Yet another case was a mass poisoning in Kalbadevi where two women had died and three others had suffered from the poisoning.

Kaiser-i-Hind Abdul Ali:

Passed the Matriculation Examination of Bombay University in 1865 and joined the Police force on 15 December of the same year. 

Abdul Ali solved his first case of a swindler named Karsandas Purushotamdas Bhansali in 1866 and in the same year also solved a case of currency forging. Another prominent case was the intentional burning of a ship, the S.S. Aurora, by its captain. He also helped locate Moulvi Liaqat Ali, an associate of Nana Saheb who was involved in murdering Europeans during 1857.

If you observe closely, Akbar and Abdul's cases mentioned above show a pattern...both the father and the son were working against native Indians who tried to throw out the British kingdom in 1857 and Abdul was even secular in solving crimes against Indian independence revolutionaries. 

Other than Karsandas Purushotamdas Bhansali case about which details aren't available , all three cases mentioned above were acts against an imperial empire...intentional burning of a ship by its captain, currency forgery against British minted currency and even helped locate Moulvi Liaqat Ali, an associate of Nana Saheb who was involved in murdering Europeans during 1857! 

Nana Saheb (1824–1859), was a key leader in the 1857 Indian Rebellion, heading the uprising in Kanpur against the East India Company. He captured Kanpur in June 1857 but was later defeated by the British.

So both the father and son were committed to the crown over civilization and especially in Abdul's case, he didn't let neither religion nor civilization came in the way of showing his allegiance to the crown.

Abdul's shamelessness didn't end there.

In 1873, he helped uncover a murder plotted by a Bombay High Court solicitor and his clerk. Yet another investigation led to the charging of the Malhar Rao Gaekwar of Baroda of attempting to poison Colonel Phayre.

Colonel eventually became General Sir Robert Phayre was a prominent British Indian Army officer who served in major 19th-century conflicts, including the First Afghan War and the 1857 Mutiny. As Resident at Baroda (1873–1874), he famously survived a poisoning attempt by Maharaja Malhar Rao Gaekwad using arsenic and diamond dust in his sherbet.

Background in brief:-

The Baroda Crisis:

Colonel Phayre was appointed British Resident of Baroda in 1873. His continuous interference in the state's internal affairs and hostile relationship with the local ruler, Maharaja Malhar Rao Gaekwad, caused major political friction.

In November 1874, Phayre accused Malhar Rao of attempting to assassinate him by lacing his sherbet with arsenic and diamond dust. This led to a major political trial where the Maharaja was deposed and exiled. 

Sir Frank Souter noted in 1881 that on account of his being a native he was debarred from being a Superintendent. He was made a Justice of the Peace for the City of Bombay. In 1881 Sir Frank Souter, Police Commissioner, recommended Ali to the title of First Class Sardar of the Deccan.

Manufactured Titles:

The shamelessness & cunning of the british empire was at display here. The term "Sardar of Deccan" generally refers to powerful 17th-century Maratha military commanders—such as Shahaji Bhonsle—who served the Deccan Sultanates (Ahmadnagar and Bijapur).

Maratha Sardar of deccan was replaced by "First class Sardar of Deccan" likely refers to elite military commanders or noblemen holding high rank, such as the 1st class Order of British India (OBI) title Sardar Bahadur in the Deccan region. These individuals, such as Mir Abdul Ali or members of the Deccan Horse, were rewarded for loyalty and service.

Sardar Bahadur was a title of honour awarded to native Indian civilians and Viceroy's commissioned officers during British rule in India. It was bestowed upon Sikhs, and was awarded for faithful service or acts of public welfare. The title was used after any military rank, but before the title holder's name.

Members of the first class of the Order of British India could also use the title of Sardar Bahadur, with members of the second class using Bahadur. The title of Sardar Bahadur was part of a wider honours system put in place by British India: It was used for Sikhs or military officials.

First Class:

Dewan Bahadur, for Hindus;

Nawab Bahadur, for Muslims;

Second Class:

Rai Bahadur, (North India) or Rao Bahadur (South India), for Hindus;

Khan Bahadur, for Muslims;

Third Class:

Rai Sahib, (North India) or Rao Sahib (South India), for Hindus.

Khan Sahib, for Muslims;

Those of other religions received the title considered most appropriate, for example native Indian Christians with a Hindu sounding name would receive a Hindu title.

He was cleverly made First Class Sardar of Deccan and not First class Nawab Bahadur of Deccan by the conniving rulers it seems to avoid repeated mutinies by the warrior Marathas and keeping the masses confused as the control of information was with them and the natives could rely on just rumours that by definition are not to be trusted.

Interestingly this was done six years after Allan Octavian Hume formed congress party in India.

A son of Abdul Ali Mir Sarfraz Ali who had trained as a lawyer in England is believed to have died in Karachi in October 1896.

And then some people have the audacity to claim:

'Sabhi ka khoon shamil hai is mitti mein, kisi ke baap ka hindostan thodi hai.'

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