Shivaji Escapes : A True Story

In 1659, Shivaji defeated a very powerful military commander of Bijapur, Afzal Khan; not only this, he also occupied the fort of Panhala. This fort was not very large and had limited resources. Disturbed by this setback, Bijapur wanted to do away with Shivaji somehow. When it came to know that Shivaji was in the fort of Panhala, it sent one of its most shrewd commanders, Siddi Jauhar with a strong army of 20,000 horse-mounted soldiers and 40,000 foot soldiers in addition to cannons. This army surrounded and lay siege to the fort from 2 March, 1660.

In any military operation, the leadership plays the most important role, so it is vital that the leader is protected at any cost. It has been seen on several occasions that when a commander is killed, even a large army can be defeated by a smaller not-so-powerful army. Siddi Jauhar knew that Shivaji was right in the fort, so he deployed his army all around the fort such that literally not even a bird could fly out.

In those days, forts played an important role in the battles. It was normally very difficult to attack and win a fort, though Shivaji was a great exception in this regard. During his career, he conquered about 250 forts from the enemies, this also speaks volumes of his capabilities.

The siege continued. Shivaji ordered his troops to launch a few attacks on Bijapur, so that this siege would become weakened, but it did not happen. With the passage of time, the rations and resources in the fort were depleting fast, and this could force the Marathas to surrender. His problems were further aggravated when the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb sent his powerful commander, Shaista Khan, with a large army, to finish with Shivaji.

Shivaji could no more afford to remain in the fort at Panhala, it was necessary for him to get out in view of the depleting resources and the enemies threatening to annihilate the entire empire. In such a situation, he had only two options before him: (1) to come out of the fort and fight until the end; and (2) to sneak out of the fort somehow and then take on the enemy from a position of strength from another fort. Shivaji chose the second option because he was not in a position to choose the first one, especially in view of his small force present in the fort and depleting resources. However, sneaking out of the fort was no easy task, and some stratagem would have to be applied.

On 13 July, 1660, Shivaji sent out a message to Siddi Jauhar that he would surrender the following day; this put the enemy at some ease; but the same midnight, one by one his troops started to come out of the fort in the dark. It was raining, so the rocky surroundings had become quite slippery. The enemy had surrounded the fort from all around and Shivaji needed to cross through the enemy siege. A total of 600 soldiers set off with Shivaji in a palanquin. They did not have many horses; moreover, the noise from horses could have alerted the enemy. This force started towards the fort of Vishalgarh without making any unwanted noise.

They had barely crossed the enemy lines, when at an outpost, an enemy soldier noticed them in the faint moonlight. He immediately rode his horse to alert his commander. Siddi Jauhar immediately knew what was happening. He lost no further time to despatch a force of 2,000 horsemen, under the command of Masud, his son-in-law.

Shivaji was a master strategist. He came to know that his trick had been found out, and they would be chased. So, he planned something dramatic.

The force under Masud did not take long to sight and surround a group of 40 men carrying a palanquin. He never doubted that the enemy had surrendered without any opposition. He looked inside the palanquin, and said to his troops, "Yes, Shivaji is right in it. Let us take him to the camp."

Masud rode his horse in front with puffed up chest and forehead held high. He was sure that he would be promoted because of this feat in addition to getting a handsome reward from the king himself. His joy knew no bounds, but he rarely knew the reality.

At the camp, not only Siddi Jauhar but also Masud were shocked to find that the man in the palanquin was an ordinary soldier, he was not Shivaji. They were mad at the trick that had been played on them. Siddi was mad at this, he cried at Masud hoarsely, "How stupid you are!"

Masud once again set out after Shivaji. When the Bijapur forces caught up with the retreating Marathas, they were about 8 kilometers from the fort of Vishalgarh. It was not so dark now as day was about to break. The Marathas could hear the sounds of the trotting horses, and could soon see them nearing fast raising a cloud of dust. The threat was imminent, and their purpose was not yet fulfilled. They had been walking all night, and were certainly tired, but they were determined to take on the enemy with all their might and apply all tactics they knew to check the enemy advance.

Shivaji divided his force into two groups. One group was to take Shivaji to the fort, while the other group, commanded by Baji Deshpande, was to take on the chasing enemy. The latter group was given a task to check the enemy's advance until Shivaji had made to the fort safely.

Just imagine only a couple of hundred foot-soldiers taking on a far numerous army of horsemen! But these warriors engaged the enemy and made the supreme sacrifice, but not before their leader had made it safely to the fort.

The place where this battle took place has been named Pavan Khind (or Sacred Plateau) in the honour of Baji Deshpande and his men who fell fighting keeping the highest traditions of chivalry and bravery gloriously aloft.