War games
RITIKA SHARMA
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Now famous for its pickle, Panipat was once known for its battle-scarred fields.
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The central prayer hall of the mosque is square and opens into wings on either side. Each wing has nine bays crowned with hemispherical domes. Notably, this mosque does not have minarets.
Photos: Ritika Sharma
Favouring the invader: The Baburi Masjid.
PEOPLE forget. A battlefield becomes famous for Pachranga pickle and handloom cloth. New names and myths are coined for the reminders of fierce battles. The printed word remains the sole witness of the past. Buried in old schoolbooks are details of the three battles of Panipat. Dust them and the perpetual traffic chaos on the stretch of National Highway dividing the town will seem yet another battle.
Blood-soaked soil
Pachranga pickle is Panipat's new identity. Sold at several hundred outlets along the highway, it is a mix of mango, lemon, chilly, ginger and lotus stem immersed in oil. But the soil of Panipat has been marinated in blood, not oil, for the last 500 years.
Ibrahim Lodi's tomb.
Sometimes coveted for its own worth, at others as the last hurdle on the road to Delhi, Panipat has always favoured the invader. Lodhis, Mughals, Surs, Marathas and Abdalis have tested their power on its dusty plain, with the outsider winning each time.
Many scholars in fact associate Panipat with a war that is the stuff of religion and mythology: Mahabharata. It is said that Panipat was one of the five patas or prasthas that King Yudhishtira had sought from his cousin Duryodhana in a proposal for peace. Archaeological finds dated to 1,000 BC, the approximate date of the Great War, support this theory.
Of the three major battles fought in Panipat, the first is by far the most famous. It was fought on the morning of April 26, 1526, between Zahir-ud-Din Muhammad "Babur" and Ibrahim Lodhi. Babur was king of Kabul, invading at the invitation of traitors and malcontents in Sultan Ibrahim Lodhi's court.
Their battle became a landmark in Indian history for two reasons. Firstly, Babur at the head of 12,000 troops was able to defeat Lodhi's 1,00,000-strong army using field guns. It was the first time artillery was employed in a battle on Indian soil. Secondly, the battle put to end the three centuries-old Delhi Sultanate and established the Mughal dynasty that would last 331 years and produce six powerful emperors, beginning with Babur.
Panchranga pickle Panipat's new identity.
Under Humayun, Babur's son and successor, the Surs, an Afghan clan, temporarily ousted the Mughals. Although Humayun reclaimed his territory after the death of Sher Shah Sur, it was left to his son, Akbar, to re-establish Mughal supremacy in the Second Battle of Panipat on November 5, 1556.
Years after the last great Mughal, Aurangzeb, passed away, Panipat erupted in battle for the third time on January 13, 1761. The Marathas, the most powerful Hindu empire in the north during the second millennium, and the forces of Afghan king Ahmad Shah Abdali fought on the plain. As always, the invader won and the Marathas never really recovered from their rout.
Reminders
The first battle of Panipat has left behind two reminders, namely, the Baburi mosque in Kabuli Bagh and Ibrahim Lodhi's tomb in Tehsil Camp, close to the Panipat bus terminus.
The mosque was raised at a site where Babur is said to have prayed in thanksgiving at the end of the battle. It was completed during 1528-29 and is possibly the first Mughal monument in the country. Ironically, few in Panipat know it for what it is. Ask for Baburi Masjid and you will be led to a 13th century Sufi shrine called Pir Qalandar, near the remains of an old fort.
A sure way to reach the mosque is to ask for Kutani Road near the old ganda nullah. The mosque's domes are visible on reaching this area on the town's outskirts. The mosque stands in the midst of a garden. Strikingly simple, it is a large, linear structure, extending north to south with the main entrance in the north.
Unlike the sandstone mosques of Delhi, the Baburi mosque in Panipat is built of thin lakhauri bricks. Ornamentation is minimal and mainly confined to the façade of the entrance.
The central prayer hall of the mosque is square on plan and opens into wings on either side. Each wing has nine bays crowned with hemispherical domes. Thus the mosque originally must have had 19 domes but today only 10 remain, as the entire southern half has collapsed. Notably, this mosque does not have minarets.
It is said that Babur's son Humayun had added a brick platform in front of the main prayer hall after his victory over Islam Shah, a successor of Sher Shah Sur, but this has more or less disintegrated.
The prayer hall inside the mosque.
If Babur's mosque is plain, Ibrahim Lodhi's tomb is spartan. There is no dome or any sepulchral structure above the grave. Rather, it lies atop a simple double-terraced platform made of lakhauri bricks. Locals play cards under the trees around the monument, mindless of its historical importance.
No mementos
The second battle of Panipat has not left behind any mementos but an obelisk at Kala Amb on the town's outskirts commemorates the third battle. The Maratha leader Sadashiv Rau Bhau is believed to have fallen at this spot, changing the course of the battle against Ahmed Shah Abdali.
There's one monument in Panipat that commemorates no battle but certainly witnessed the third. It is an ornamental gate called Bab-i-Faiz (comfort of the world) built by Nawab Sadiq in 1733 AD as the main entrance of the town. The gate still stands and is a protected monument.
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Factfile
Location: Panipat lies on National Highway 1 between Karnal and Sonepat in Haryana.
The nearest airport and railway station is New Delhi. The drive from Delhi takes around two hours.
Time to visit: Avoid the summer months. November to February is most pleasant.
For more see http://panipat.nic.in
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