Hyderabad: There were two divisions of India before independence - British ruled states and princely states. There were 562 princely states at the time of independence. The Police action was sought to include Hyderabad into India.
India became independent on August 15, 1947, but it took three years for the completion of the Constitution. On January 26, 1950, the Constitution was adopted and the country celebrated its first Republic Day. This year, India celebrates its 72nd Republic Day. Erstwhile Union Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel contributed towards unifying India.
Before India became independent, there were two divisions of the country, one comprising British ruled states and the second included princely states ruled by Kings. Pakistan came into existence on August 14. There were 562 princely states in India and the merging of the states was a herculean task. This task was entrusted to the then Union Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
266 princely states in Gujarat’s Saurashtra region
Of the 562 princely states, 266 were in Gujarat’s Saurashtra region. Among these states was a tiny one with an area equal to England’s. Sardar had the lion’s share in unifying these states and merging them with the republic of India. While some of the states merged with the republic of India voluntarily, some others rebelled. Sardar merged them with India diplomatically as well under duress of threat.
Three states rebelled
The three states which had refused to join India were Junagadh, ruled by a Nawab, Kashmir ruled by King Hari Singh and Hyderabad ruled by Nawab Asaf Ali. These three states did not want to join India. They wanted to remain independent or go with Pakistan even though they had a Hindu majority population.
Nizam of Hyderabad had announced to remain independent
The Nizam of Hyderabad had stubbornly announced to have his separate independent country. Hyderabad was a large state which, as Sardar said, if it did not merge with India would be considered cancer in India’s belly. Moreover, its 85 per cent population was Hindu. Therefore, Sardar told the Nizam to merge his state with India. But Nizam stuck to his position. Later, the Nizam even threatened to join Pakistan and armed insurrection. This compelled the Indian government to take action against Nizam Asif Ali Khan.
Efforts to persuade Nizam failed
At first, Sardar talked to Nizam but it was learnt that Nizam was getting fund and weapons from foreign countries against India. The Hyderabad state at that time had a population of 1.60 crores and Nizam had an army of 26,000 soldiers. Besides, Nizam had about 26,000 untrained armed fighters loyal to him who were known as Razakar. Leading the Razakars was Kasim Rizvi. Following mounting pressure from the Indian government to merge Hyderabad with India, the religious bigot Razakar went on a killing spree in Hyderabad raising a public outcry against the government throughout the country.
Sardar sent soldiers in the guise of police to capture Hyderabad
In view of the activities of Nizam and his Razakars, Vallabhbhai Patel sent an army of 36,000 soldiers posted in South India to encircle Hyderabad. He sent the soldiers in the guise of police to prevent the world opinion against India for launching the army’s invasion of Hyderabad. On Nizam’s side were 26,000 armed Razakars who preferred to fight the Indian soldiers but were forced to surrender. The ‘Operation Polo’ under the command of General Chowdhury which began on September 13 was over by September 17. Hyderabad was captured in 108 hours. However, there was a large scale killing in Hyderabad in the meantime.
Nizam’s appeal to the world for help
Nizam had sought the help of America and the United Nations to stop India from annexing Hyderabad. But Nizam did not get any help. On the contrary, he had to withdraw his complaint from the United Nations at Sardar’s bidding. When Sardar arrived at the Hyderabad airport, Nizam stood before him bowing his head. Showing magnanimity, Sardar made Nizam the governor of Hyderabad.
Why was it called ‘Operation Polo’?
The game of polo was very popular in South India in those days. There were several polo grounds in Hyderabad. Hence the army action in Hyderabad was named ‘Operation Polo.’
In Gujarat, the Statue of Unity stands to commemorate Sardar’s heroic achievement. Though Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s name is relevant in history for his great contribution, he did not get the fame he deserved. After his 182-metre statue of steel came up at Kevadia in Gujarat, his name and fame have spread across the world. It has been named ‘Statue of Unity’ to honour Sardar’s achievement in unifying the country.
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