Reversing the gaze-Book Review

Amar left the army disgusted by biases in 1921. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.23051.39201 Saturday, May 23, 2015 My grandfather serving as assistant secretary in the ministry of defence at delhi wrote to his elder brother serving as a superintendent of police in 1941, that dont send manzur , (his son) to the army . as per projections we have received 80 % britishers would get war commissions in Indian Army , and the projections state that british will stay in india till 1985 or so . However the situation radically changed by 1945. (Interestingly Philip Mason author of the book A Matter of honour was my grandfathers boss for some time). Reversing the Gaze: Amar Singh's Diary: A Colonial Subject's Narrative of Imperial India Short Book Review by Major A.H Amin (Retired) A very interesting book. RAO ZAFAR 11 C (FF) BABAR MASHAHDI AJAZ 42 Son of a Jaipur state minister Amar Singh started from Imperial Military Corps. 21 HORSE 24 C LANCERS Amar Singh kept a 89 volume diary. Amar Singh feels that tremendous British arrogance and snobbery was one major reason of Indian alienation . ALI AMMAR 30 C (SON OF COL IQTIDAR SHAH AND NEPHEW NAQVI OF MAJ GEN 55 ROSHAN EJAZ) CAVALRY TAIMUR 51 LANCERS SON OF BRIG MUSARRAT NAWAZ A FRIEND OF MY FATHER He described his own experience in army as a major of being treated like a Coolie by his British seniors. Note that it was deliberate British policies introduced in 1830s and 1840s onwards like restricting British Indian marriages by making mixed breeds ineligible for officer rank that enouraged this behaviour. There were mixed breeds like General Hyder Hearsay and Warburton and Skinners.But British government and the English East India Companys management was major culprit in making laws that discouraged Britishers mixing with Indians. This book covers Amar Singhs diaries between 1898 and 1905. Amar left the army disgusted by British biases in 1921. Biases were such that my father narrated that no local Pakistani could become member of Punjab Club till martial law was imposed in 1958 , 11 years after so called independence. The book describes British failure to integrate Indian aristocracy in the officer corps . It is interesting that Britishers encouraged Indian rankers as officers when Indians were allowed in officer corps and kept a 50 % quota in Indian Army for rankers. The book gives a visible message that Curzons scheme to integrate Indian aristocracy was a good scheme and far better than inducting educated middle class Indian social climbers who were ready to ditch the Britishers in a Jiffy after WW Two. An interesting continuation is Pakistan Army where I personally people from humble ground doing very well as they would accept all sorts of nonsense. Pakistani ISI efforts in selecting most third rate Afghans as so called Mujahid leaders also show same British approach of being anti aristocratic and anti independent minded. Granted that there were EXCEPTIONALLY GREAT BRITISH OFFICERS like Auchinleck who respected Indians with independent outlook as proven in Auchinlecks dealing with Nawabzada Sher Ali Khan. Major General Jahanzeb (Guides) narrated in an article that biases were such that as a young officer in the army Indian officers were made to sit on a separate dinner table in the mess in his regiment. Ironically British Army in India was also degraded and deteriorated as Britishers were forced to grant kings commissions to many thousand british rankers , clerks , bar tenders and all sorts of characters in second world war. SHAHZAD ZIA But as a British Field MARSHAL summed up the loss that Britain had already 2 left FFthe flower of its 54 CAVALRY officer corps in First World War in France . Hail German Kaiser for breaking the British back ! Hopeless Indians NAZIR could never have done it without Kaiser or Hitler !!!! SON OF 27worked on this book and made The Americans who it possible deserve high credit. COL CAVALRY SABAH DIN ALL BOOKS PROMOTED AND REVIEWED-JOURNAL OF BOOKUD REVIEWS (LOHARU) CAPTAIN A.H AMIN 15 LANCERS CAPTAIN ABBAS GUIDES CAPTAIN ASIF ZAIDI 29 FF MUMTAZ 32 C