History The tragic end of the conspirators
By Gurushala
Post Your Topicals

As fate would have it!

Historians consider the Battle of Plassey fought in 1757 between the English East India Company and the Nawab of Bengal, Siraj-ud-Daulah as one of the turning points in Indian history. The battle helped the Company seize control of Bengal. Over the next hundred years, they seized control of most of the entire Indian subcontinent, Myanmar, and Afghanistan. On the morning of 23 June, 1757 a British lieutenant-colonel went into the battle with the Nawab with around 3,000 men facing the Nawab's mammoth army of over 50,000 men. But, the unexpected happened and the British East India Company won the battle and Siraj-ud-Daulah-the Nawab of Bengal was captured and executed in the next few days. This turnaround only happened because Robert Clive, the British lieutenant-colonel planned a conspiracy with six more conspirators led by Siraj-ud-Daulah's general Mir Jafar, who dreamt of himself becoming the Nawab of Bengal. Others involved in the conspiracy were: an influential banker who was threatened by Siraj-ud-Daulah's policies, a jealous aunt who wanted her sister's son to become the Nawab, a merchant who wanted to profit from the downfall of the Nawab, and the son and son-in-law of Mir Jafar who had family interests in gaining the throne of Bengal.

As fate would have it, none of the conspirators eventually got what they aspired for and in fact, their betrayal of the Nawab triggered their own end meeting with a tragic end, in great pain and suffering. For Mir Jafar, even centuries later, his name still remains a slur to describe treacherous behavior, his palace called 'Namak Haram Deori', and his surviving generations living in ignominy, bearing the burden of his name like a cross.

Further readings:

In search of cursed Ghaseti by Amlan Home Chowdhury, TheCitizen.in

Descendant of Mir Jafar fights to erase stamp of treachery from family name by Ruben Bannerjee, India Today

Mir Jafar: The general who betrayed India and opened the door to British rule by Morgan Dunn, AllThatInteresting.com

Knowing Amir Chand and his illustrious great-grandson who sowed the seeds of Hindi nationalism by Manu.S.Pillai, Manuspillai.com

Jagat Seth of Bengal: Banker of the World by Raihana Sayeeda Kamal, The Business Standard