PAKISTAN KAHANI | EP 02 | SILK LETTER MOVEMENT (1907-1920) | THE FIGHT FOR FREEDOM | THE PRESS

A Tale of Remarkable Struggle for Freedom

Silk Letter Movement (1907-1920)

This is 20th century Hyderabad of Sindh, on a dilapidated old-fashioned house, a dervish dressed in torn old clothes sews a one-yard-long handkerchief from a needle thread, suddenly there is an explosion in the house, the person having attributes of a dervish looks up and sees few British and Sikh soldiers coming towards him, he manages to escape, but his handkerchief falls into the hands of British soldiers.
“Thus the incredible attempt to revolt against the long-established tyranny fails, from India to Turkey and Afghanistan to Russia, Burma, and China, and Germany, the long journey of misery begins for the leaders and workers of the Silk Letter Movement.”
What was the reality of the handkerchief that dervish had, who were the religious and political leaders, who started the Silk Letter Movement, and why did the amazing effort of resistance spread over miles for 15 years fail?

Over a period of almost a century from 1857 to 1947, there were several attempts to break British oppression from India which ultimately ended with the success of the Pakistan Movement, the Silk Letter Movement was one such attempt aimed at inciting a general uprising against the occupying British government and for the success of this uprising, and the success of this coup involved the support of world powers, including Turkey, Germany, China, and Russia. The Silk Letter Movement was led by Maulana Mahmood Al-Hassan, while prominent personalities included Maulana Muhammad Ali, Moti Lal Nehru, Maulana Obaidullah and Rajendra Prasad.

Under this movement, 10 projects were formed, including Hindu-Muslim Alliance, getting help from world powers, the formation of the interim government, and also included the preparation of maps of attacks and uprisings. The movement's last plan was a coup and an external attack, the plan was for the Turkish army to invade India via Afghanistan, for which the Afghan government would provide the route and the movement's activists would support the Turkish army by revolting at the local level.

In October 1915, Maulana Obaidullah Sindhi travelled to Kabul on the orders of his leader to carry out the planned coup. He met with powerful government figures there and declared an independent government abroad, Its president nominated was Raja Mahendra Pratab Singh, while the Prime Minister was Maulvi Barakatullah and while the Home Minister was Maulana Obaidullah Sindhi.

On the other hand, during the same period, a meeting between Maulana Mahmud al-Hassan and the Ottoman commander Anwar Pasha took place in Madinah, during which the Turkish military invasion of Afghanistan and the Indonesian uprising were discussed. During the meeting, the agreement between the Turkish government, the movement, and the Afghan government were finalized. One agreement was reached between the Turkish government and the movement, while the other was between the Afghan government and the Turkish government. Maulana Mahmood sent the agreement between the Afghan government and Turkey from Madinah Sharif to Kabul for approval from the Afghan Amir.

The agreements were meticulously handed over to Afghan Amir Habibullah Khan, who initially was reluctant to join the project, but under pressure from his commanders and chiefs, he also signed. After approval by the Emir of Afghanistan, Maulana Obaidullah Sindhi, based in Kabul, hired a skilled craftsman to re-send the treaty to Madinah. Maulana Mahmud al-Hassan, who wrote the entire text of the treaty on a handkerchief, the signatures of Amir Habibullah and his three sons were again taken on the handkerchief. He handed the handkerchief to a new Muslim merchant who traded cloth in India so that it could be sent back to Madina Sharif via Peshawar, Bahawalpur, and Sindh. The merchant mixed these handkerchiefs with other silk clothes. The handkerchief came from Kabul to a man named Sheikh Abdul Haq in Peshawar and came to Khawaja Ghulam Muhammad in Bahalpur at 4 in the morning.

Although the handkerchief was captured by the British troops, Sheikh Abdul Rahim managed to escape from them. With the handkerchief in hand, all the plans of the movement were exposed to the British government, and all the intentions of the coup were exposed. The British government started rounding up revolutionaries all over the country. Workers were subjected to the worst torture.

Maulana Mahmood Al-Hassan, the founder of the movement, was arrested in Makkah. He was tried in an Egyptian military court and sent to Malta as a prisoner of war.
Pakistan Kahani Episode 1:
   • PAKISTAN KAHANI | EP 01 | THE FIGHT FOR FR...  
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