The Final Battle of the 34th, Binnakandi, January 12th 1858
One of the Manipur princes, Narendrajit Singh, who had managed to evade all detection, decided he was tired of waiting. Rallying his followers, he decided to make his cause with the 34th. On the 12th of January in the morning, he, his followers and the 34th finally came out of the jungles and took up a position in several villages on the south side of the River Barak. They 34th itself numbered only 100 strong, but the addition of the Manipuri prince and his followers had given them enough impetus to consider an attack on Lakhipur, raid it for provisions and commence their march on Manipur. Unfortunately, their intelligence was somewhat lacking at this juncture.
The Sylhet Light Infantry had been divided into three commands – one, under Captain Stevens, who was stationed at Lakhipur with 100 men on the northern bank of the River Barak, Lieutenant Ross and his detachment of 100 men, who had just returned from a “long and tedious night march” and Lieutenant Buist, who had been ordered to return to Cachar with 50 men. To his surprise, his rearguard was suddenly fired upon from across the river. Buist returned fire. Stevens, in the meantime, had received notice of the mutineers’ position through his scouts and, without delay, sent the tired Ross and his men to the south side of the river.
Still up for the fight, Ross wasted no time in deploying his men and attacked the rebels on their right flank “in a spirited manner,” keeping them so well occupied, they failed to notice Stevens and Buist crossing the river. For the next two hours, the rebels continued the fight, “beaten from house to house” through the successive villages they had occupied until they were forced to race back into the jungle.
“Seventeen dead were counted on the field, among whom was a Jemadar. Two sepoys taken prisoners
were shot, and one straggler of the retreating rebels was killed by the scouts, making a total of 20 killed besides numbers who must have been badly wounded in the engagement. On our side, we lost two men killed and two badly wounded.” One of the wounded at the river was the Manipuri prince, Narendrajit Singh. He would find his way home to Manipur but would be given up to the British by his relative, Chandra Kirti Singh, the Manipur Raja. The prince was tried and sentenced to transportation for life to the Andaman Islands. His rank did not save him but possibly made things worse.
“Narendra Singh, having been tried under Act No XIV of 1857, having been found of guilty of criminal offence, ought not to be treated as a state prisoner. Honourable President in Council agrees with Lieutenant Stewart in thinking that it would be inexpedient to sentence the prisoner capitally, if imprisoned for life it can only be transportation beyond seas.”
The Last Days of the 34th
Following Binnakandi, the 34th once again split up into smaller groups and, with the remaining Manipuri followers of the prince, continued to move along the hills. However, if they still believed they had a chance to get out of this particular disaster, they were wrong. Following Binnakandi, their Havildar Major, who had been leading them until now, along with a pundit and a sepoy, put themselves under the protection of the wounded Narendrajit Singh, who had promised to assist in returning them to their homes if they followed him now to Manipur. Thus, deserted by their leader and the Manipuris, the 34th attempted as best they could to move on, albeit in two different directions. The party moving south was caught first.
Taking a position on a steep hill covered with wooded jungle, the men believed they were, for a moment, safe. However, at the bottom of the hill ran a deep nullah surrounded by tall grass, and they did not see Stevens, who had been apprised once again of their movements by his scouts, as he moved into position. From the edge of the nullah, he gave them a volley and then charged the hill.
“They had not the slightest intimation of our approach,” wrote Stevens, “and they fled leaving all their arms and accoutrements behind (cooking at the time) also their clothes, blankets &c.” Ten were killed, and many were wounded. had they not had the jungle at such close quarters, Stevens believed “not a man would have escaped.” As such, over the next days, the remainder of the party were hounded out of the jungle by Stevens’ scouts and the villagers – on the 30th of January six mutineers in all were brought before him, among them subadars Suka Singh and Naraen Singh, both of whom Stevens ordered shot on the spot.
Lieutenant Ross was sent in pursuit of the other party. He found them, on the 25th of January, hiding in a thick jungle of bamboo. Caught unawares, Ross surrounded them and delivered a volley before ordering the attack. Thirteen men of the 34th were killed, and one was wounded. The rest, like the comrades who had faced Stevens, fled, leaving everything behind, including their muskets.
Stewart could now report:
“The following is a list showing to the total numbers of mutineers, bonafide sepoys, killed since they entered Cachar :
—
Tried and executed by Civil authority 13
Killed in action 37
Died of wounds 2
Killed by scouts 17
Found dead in jungles 2
Caught by villagers, scouts, troops both
Govt, and Munnipoorie, and tried and
executed by Military Law :— 39
Total* 110
The following individuals belonging to the camp of the mutineers have been taken prisoners and await
trial:
Regimental Bheestie – l (This person sentenced to 14 yrs transportation.)
Regimentral Barber – 1
Seikh Faqueer (Camp Follower) – 1
Chittagong Convicts – 10
Women (two badly wounded) – 12
Children – 7
TOTAL= 32
One child has died since taken, and one was accidentally shot during the action at Binnakandy. I have
the honor to solicit the Lieut. Governor’s instruction with reference to the disposal of the women and children. The convicts I am prepared to try when vested with the necessary powers.”
At the end of January, Stewart reported that the mutineers of the 34th were being brought in “by 2s and 3s,” and in all, 206 men of the three companies that had mutinied at Chittagong were dead. The rest would meet their fate in the jungles they were destined never to leave and would die of wounds, starvation and disease. Three Manipuri princes who had managed to escape from Cachar jail on the same day as the Battle of Binnakandi were caught and sent to Calcutta for trial. The last mutineer of the 34th Regiment, Bengal Native Infantry, was caught in Cachar in February. Stewart was able to end his report with a grim observation.
“The mutineers of the 34th. N. I. may be said now no longer to exist.”
Sources:
Allen, Basil Copleston. Assam District Gazetteers. Vols. I & II. Calcutta: City Press, 1905.
Behan, T. L. Bulletins and Other State Intelligence for the Year 1858. Parts I & II. London: Harrison & Sons, London Gazette Office, 1860.
Choudhury, Sujit, ed. The Mutiny Period in Cachar. Silchar: Tagore Society for Cultural Integration, 1960.
Dun, E. W. Gazetteer of Manipur. Calcutta: Superintendent of Government Printing, India, 1886.
Gait, E. A. A History of Assam. Calcutta: Thacker, Spink & Co., 1906.
Great Britain Parliament. Further Papers (Nos. 6, 8, and 9) Relative to the Insurrection in the East Indies. London: Harrison and Sons, 1858.
Huxford, H. J., comp. History of the 8th Gurkha Rifles, 1824-1949. Aldershot: Gale & Polden, Ltd., 1952
Links:
https://lapolo.in/blog/joseph-ford-sherer/
https://www.sentinelassam.com/more-news/editorial/echoes-of-sepoy-mutiny-1857-in-the-barak-valley-555156
https://mahabahu.com/impact-of-1857-revolt-in-north-east-india/
Mutiny Reflections 