Arab Invasion of Sindh

Arab Invasion of Sindh

Arab Invasion of Sindh

The Arabs were the carriers of Indian trade with the west for centuries before they became Muslims. It is, therefore, to be expected that their conversion would not be without effect upon India. They appear to have led their first expedition to Thana (Near Bombay) on the west coast as early as A.D. 636-37.  But they could not achieve much success in this campaign. The next attempt was made in A.D. 644 by land through the Makran coast into western Sindh. The expedition was sent by Caliph Othman as a survey expedition and its leader Hakimbin-Jabala al’  Abdi reported, “Water is scarce, the fruits are poor, and the robbers are bold; if a few troops are sent they will be slain, if many, they will starve.” After this disheartening survey no further expeditions appear to have been made until the Arabs were provoked in A.D. 711.

Cause of the Arab Invasion

The first and foremost reason of the invasion of Sindh was to plunder the wealth of India. The Arabs had commercial relations with India since long. Indian rulers had not only welcomed them but also provide several facilities to them, but after their conversion to Islam, a change appeared in their attitude and instead of increasing their trade relations, they began to think of plundering the rich coasts of India.

     The Arab also wanted to expand Islam. By now they had extended the Muslim empire up to Kabul in the cast and they intended to attain victory in Sindh in order to preach the religion of the prophet in India. India was a country where mostly Hindus lived; hence the aim of the followers of Islam was to spread Islam in India.

Immediate Cause of Invasion

A party of Arabs was returning from the Malabar coast with gifts for Caliph Walid I at Damascus and his co-viceroy Hajjaj at Basrah. It was plundered by pirates near the mouth of the Indus and the Arabs were detained at the port of Debal (Karachi). A demand for the restitution was made to the ruler of Sindh, but it was met with evasion. Hence, a punitive expedition was at once dispatched by Hajjaj, but it could not succeed. Another was sent in its wake with no better results. Finally, in the autumn of A.D. 711 the enraged governor of Iraq dispatched his own nephew and son-in-law, Imaduddin Muhammad-bin-K  asim, with a powerful army consisting of 6000 Syrian horses, an equal number of Iraqi camels and 3000 Bactrian baggage animals. Muhammad-bin-Qasim was a youth of seventeen but his success showed that he had an old head over young shoulders.

The Result of Sindh

It will be remembered that Sindh was at this time under a Brahman ruler of the Chack dynsasty which had come into power by the overthrow of Rai Sahasi only a generation earlier. The rapidity with which Sindh was conquered by Muhammad-bin-Qasim, as we shall presently see, seems quite natural in the light of the internal weakness of the country. According to the Chachnama, there was not much love lost between the rulers and the ruled in Sindh at this time. The Brahmans were not merely usurpers but also ruled like usurpers. The basic population was mostly Buddhist by religion and Jat by race. The Chach family was, therefore, alien both in race and religion.

     Chach, the founder of the dynasty was only a minister of Rai Sahasi. On the latter’s death he usurped the throne and married the widowed queen. This was evidently not liked by the subjects. But the Brahman adventurer ruled them with an iron hand. The Jats were harassed and humiliated. Chach son made himself master over all the surrounding country and he also tried to cultivate relations with the established ruling families by marrying his daughter to a prince of Kashmir.

     Dahir, the son of Chach, was ruling over Sindh when the Arabs invaded Sindh. Even then the usurper had not established cordial relations with his subjects. Discontent among the subjects was rendered worse by domestic discord in the Chach family. This was the unhappy state of the ill-assorted kingdom of Sindh when it was faced with the crisis brought on by Dahir’s tactlessness in dealing with the legitimate grievance of the Arabs. The invaders were further assisted by an Arab contingent who appears to have been already in Dahir’s service, but refused to fight against their own coreligionists. In contrast to this, Dahir’s own countrymen, the discontented Jats, made common cause with the enemy to overthrow the oppressor.

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Milan Tomic

Hi. I’m Designer of Blog Magic. I’m CEO/Founder of ThemeXpose. I’m Creative Art Director, Web Designer, UI/UX Designer, Interaction Designer, Industrial Designer, Web Developer, Business Enthusiast, StartUp Enthusiast, Speaker, Writer and Photographer. Inspired to make things looks better.

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