'Memoirs and Recollections of An Officer of the Indian Political Service' [‎42r] (83/156)

co-religionists outside the cantonement boundaries. So, although the city of
Hyderabad and the State itself remained peaceful, the more extreme Hindu Nationalists
of Secunderabad conceived that now was the moment to strike a blow for freedom from
their foreign masters.
\
The trouble started quite suddenly amongst the militant Hindu students in the large
High School or College in the centre of the city. The Superintendent of Police asked
me to come immediately. The students were on the rampage; they had damaged the
buildings and attacked the teaching staff; and now they had taken to the street to
incite the inhabitants to join them. With the help of the police, we evicted the
students from their college which I ordered to be closed. Acts of violence were being
perpetrated all over the urban area; isolated point-duty policemen were being attacked,
shops looted by rowdies, and pedestrians and motorists molested and stoned. On the
first day, a large number of students were arrested, but later released after a certain
amount of school-boy chastisement. Those so treated gave us no further trouble, but
the most radical of them, the 'Badmashes' of the bazaars, were more difficult to deal
with. Rioting went on for several days and our Secunderabad police were becoming
exhausted as incidents multiplied in different areas. We requisitioned for their use
the motor transport of the Civil Defence Services. Finally, at the height of the
disturbances, with the agreement of the Resident, I obtained reinforcements from the
Hyderabad City Police Force who quickly came to our aid under the command of the
British Inspector General of the Nizam's Police. These exclusively Muslim policemen
stood no nonsense from our Hindu rioting mobs. In one particular menacing situation
when a crowd of about 10,000 rioters faced the police in the main street, amt from
the roof tops, Mr. Taylor, the I.G., ordered the police to fire their tear gas con
tainers into the rear of the mob, and then drove those in front back on the smoke.
On another occasion when a similar situation developed in a side street, I was with
a small force of Secunderabad police armed with 'lathies' only, who were getting the
worst of it from the mob. Behind me, however, we had half a dozen policemen armed
with the, old-fashioned muskets firing buckshot. After charges by the 'lathi' armed
police had failed to disperse the mob, I read out - above the clamour and for the
first time in my life - the Riot Act. The Superintendent of Police then brought up
the armed police, who were ordered to load their muskets. Seeing that we meant business
the crowd began to back away down the side alleys, thereby averting a very ticklish
situation. I am glad to say that it never occurred to any of us to summon assistance
from the massive British and Indian Military Forces stationed in and around Secunderabad
At this stage of the war, there was something like three Divisions of British, Indian
and African troops training in the vicinity in preparation for the final advance into
Burma and for the re-conquest of Malaya. Eventually as the revolt in Northern India
was contained, the Anti-Government Nationalists in Secunderabad called it a day.