अक्सर हम लोगो की आंखो मे बहुत खटकते है, हमे विरोधी बनकर जीना पंसद हे, क्यूकी हम गलत के खिलाफ बगावत कर बेठते है।
११०० मुकदमे जिनके नाम थे ,अंग्रेज भी जिनका नाम सुनके कापे वो थे ठाकुर मान सिंह राठोड। मान सिंह ने अपनी मौत से पहले गैंग की कमान लोकमन दीक्षित उर्फ डाकू लुक्का को सौंप दी थी। आज भी लोग इस बात पर विश्वास करते हैं कि मान सिंह जैसा बागी फिर चंबल में कभी नहीं हुआ। एक डाकू में कुछ तो बात रही होगी कि जिस पुत्र की नृशंस हत्या की वजह से मान सिंह डकैत बने उसका बेटा आगे चल कर सीमा सुरक्षा बल में आईजी बन कर सेवानिवृत हुआ।
Though a fugitive from the forces of law and order, he lived like a king, dispensing justice to the oppressed, aiding anyone in distress and going majestically anywhere he wanted. That is why India’s own Robin Hood, who is celebrated in tale and memory as “Daku Man Singh”, was actually called “Raja” by the people of the area.
Across the broken terrain and ravines of the Chambal Valley, across central India and even beyond, stories spread widely of Man Singh’s generosity to widows, vulnerable women and starving villagers, the loyalty he inspired, and the principles he never abandoned. Along with them, there was awe of his superb intelligence network, his relentless vendetta against his enemies, and his stern reckoning with the police — especially its spies and informers.
But as happens to oral narratives about larger-than-life people, tales get considerably embellished in the telling. There are few reliable sources — Mala Sen’s book on Phoolan Devi only mentions him briefly (and has a picture of his corpse), and the lurid but detailed “Chambal – the Valley of Dacoits” by Tarun Coomar Bhaduri (father of Jaya Bhaduri) has more information but has long been unavailable.
Only one fact about Man Singh, as Kenneth Anderson’s book shows, is telling. The dacoit chieftain was “pursued by 1,700 policemen of four states for 15 years in an area of approximately 8,000 square miles. He was the victor of over 80 encounters (gunfights) with police. And the cost of the operations, that eventually led to his death, was one and a half crores of rupees…”
How Man Singh managed his long “reign” is revealed by these tales recited here by legendary hunter Anderson, who provides a range of different perspectives about the man and his milieu, spanning those who experienced his beneficence to those who felt his wrath, as well as his sons and devoted lieutenants.
While Anderson was to south India what Jim Corbett was to the Himalayan foothills — a saviour of village-dwellers menaced by man-eating big cats whom he tracked himself into the jungle and eliminated — he was, like his northern counterpart, in love with the land and its people and wrote about them in at least one of his books.
In his case, it was this one (originally published in 1961 but thankfully reprinted this year), in which he deals with Man Singh, though more about the legend than the man himself, pitching it as campfire tales and stressing it does not seek to glorify him.
In the half a dozen stories, Anderson provides a vivid look at Man Singh, though he is not the principal character in any of them but only crops up at various points — even the last page — or guises to dispense justice, advice or help, or exact retribution.
The main characters instead range from two ambitious police officers who seek to eliminate Man Singh’s menace to a more lowly police constable who happens to encounter him personally but with happier results, to a lower-class girl being oppressed by her landlord to a trio of company officials who drive through the Chambal and have an unforgettable experience one night.
And then, in the most Bollywood-type tale of all, there is a lovelorn farmer’s son who loses his higher class love, wants to become a dacoit but is dissuaded by Man Singh himself. After a long chain of circumstances, he is finally reunited with his love, enjoys happiness — and goes on to do Man Singh a major good turn.
Apart from the more fantastical parts, this is the most atmospheric story. Anderson does go heavy (and a bit graphic too) on the romance part, but more than compensates for it with the evocation of the rhythms of a farmer’s life and Man Singh’s “thoughts” on his desperado’s life.
It is only in the final chapter that Anderson, drawing from a contemporary magazine article, sketches Man Singh’s life, especially how he got into banditry and what led to his downfall. Apart from an error or two — Roopa Pandit (or Pandit Roopnaryan Sharma), who became his successor, was not a relative but the son of an old friend — it is otherwise a good, short account of Man Singh’s life and career.
It is also a unique look into the causes, course and consequences of crime.
Heroism gets a few grey shades in Kenneth Anderson’s novel on India’s most dreaded bandit Man Singh (or Maan Singh) Rathore. In eyes of law, he was a bandit, but for the oppressed masses, Man Singh Rathore was a generous benefactor, a robin hood who looted the rich and donated money to the poor. As Robinhood was prince of thieves, Man Singh was king of dacoits. A man wronged by system. Misquoted as dreaded dacoit, Man Singh was not a born criminal. A Rajput by birth, Man Singh was content with his farming occupation and a happy family till a rival conspired to turn him into a ferocious outlaw. False charges of criminal actions were slapped on his family. The false charges not only stained his honor, but also sent him behind bars. When he returned back after 10 years of imprisonment, he was not the innocent Man Singh, but an avenger hell bent on vengeance. He sought vengeance, became a famed bandit loved by the poor and feared by rich. He ruled Chambal like a czar till he was rounded up and gunned down in encounter by the Gorkha army and a huge battalion of Police force in 1955. No one is born dacoit. He is either made a dacoit by circumstances or by anti-social elements. Man Singh was more of a rebel and less of a dacoit.
Though there were several bandits like, Sultana, Malkhan Singh who ruled the valleys, but no could surpass that legendary dacoit Man Singh who was chased by 1,700 policemen of four states for 15 years. The thrilling accounts of Man Singh by Kenneth Anderson give him a status of demigod. The legends of Chambal written by Kenneth are about people coming from various walks of life who cross the path with the infamous dacoit. Through the stories of these people, the legend of Man Singh starts unfolding. Each story brings you closer to the bandit. Sometime he is a benefactor of poor and sometimes he is worse adversary of Police spies. Like every dacoit, Man Singh pays a heavy price for being a bandit or a baaghi (outlaw or rebel). He loses two of his sons in encounter with the police. In the final action-packed climax, the shootout finally claims the life of the invisible Man Singh who once eluded the law for fifteen years.
Kenneth Anderson’s description about valleys and ravines of Chambal is top notch. For a moment, I didn’t feel that it was written by a foreign author who knew so much about the history of India. The portrait of rural India is beautifully painted by Kenneth through his words. To enjoy this bandit story, you need to have patience because the stories in this book unfold slowly. All the six stories in this book are unique from other. As far as history of Chambal valley is concerned, people of India knew a lot about the female bandit queen Phoolan Devi through dacoit movies that were loosely inspired by her. The 1995 biopic – The Bandit Queen gave Phoolan an international recognition. Compared to Phoolan Devi, Dacoit Man Singh was more popular than her. His courageous feats were even known to people abroad. His actions were not justifiable in eyes of law. Even if he had been Robinhood to the needy, he was also responsible for killings of several policemen who were slayed by his henchmen mercilessly. His henchman Charna was the most dangerous comrade operating in Chambal. How Policemen brought Dacoit Man Singh and his henchmen to justice is very interesting to discover in the book – Tales of Man Singh: King of Dacoits.
As long as Chambal River and the ravines exist, the name of Man Singh will be remembered with respect as a rebel who fought for the poor peasants.
Mansingh Rathore had a Robin Hood type Baghi image. He had turned baghi — after eliminating five people in order to avenge his brother’s insult. Most dacoits of Chambal had turned baghis after they had killed someone in a property dispute or family feud. He used to Loot rich person and give it to the poor people. Between 1939 and 1955; Singh is credited with 1,112 robberies and 185 murders. He had huge respect for woman. The police registered over a hundred cases against him, ranging from kidnapping to murder, until he and one of his son, Subedar Singh, were shot dead by Police in 1955 in Kakekapura Bhind district. His idol is worshipped at a temple in Khera Rathore. Man Singh dominated over the Chambal Valley, Terrorizing, plundering and killing for over two decades. Man Singh had the mandate of the people. He virtually decided important panchayat matters from the deep recesses of the Chambal ravines and forests. Along with his lieutenant, Roopa Singh, he used to govern their hearts and souls. After him the one man domination ended and a number of other gangs appeared.
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