Operation Polo | Indian History | Free PDF Download

BACKGROUND

• After the Siege of Golconda by Mughal Empire in 1687, the region was renamed as Deccan Subah and in 1713 Qamar-uddin Khan—(later known as Asaf Jah I or Nizam I) was appointed its Subahdar and bestowed with the title of Nizamul-Mulk by the Mughal Emperor.
• Hyderabad’s effective independence is dated to 1724.In 1798, Hyderabad became the first Indian princely state to accede to British protection under the policy of Subsidiary Alliance instituted by Arthur Wellesley and thus named as Hyderabad state.
• The State of Hyderabad under the leadership of its 7th Nizam, Mir Osman Ali, was the largest and most prosperous of all the princely states in India.

BACKGROUND

• In the Indian Independence Act 1947 the British abandoned all alliances, leaving the states with the option of opting for full independence.
• However, by 1948 almost all had acceded to either India or Pakistan. One major exception was that of Hyderabad, where the Nizam, Osman Ali Khan, Asif Jah VII, a Muslim ruler who presided over a largely Hindu population, chose independence.
• The Indian government, anxious to avoid what it termed a Balkanization of what had been the Indian Empire, was determined to effect the integration of Hyderabad into the new Indian Union.

DIPLOMACY

• The Nizam of Hyderabad initially approached the British government with a request to take on the status of an independent constitutional monarchy under the British Commonwealth of Nations. This request was however rejected by the last GovernorGeneral of India, Lord Mountbatten.
• At the time of the British withdrawal from India, the Nizam announced that he did not intend to join either new dominion.
• Accordingly, the Indian government offered Hyderabad a Standstill agreement which made an assurance that the status quo would be maintained and no military action would be taken for one year.
• In the summer of 1948, Indian officials, especially Patel, signaled an intention to invade; Britain encouraged India to resolve the issue without the use of force, but refused Nizam’s requests to help.

OPERATION

• The Nizam was in a weak position as his army numbered only 24,000 men, there were about 200,000 irregular militia called the Razakars . It is reported that the Nizam received arms supplies from Pakistan and from the Portuguese administration based in Goa.
• On 6 September an Indian police post near Chillakallu village came under heavy fire from Razakar units. The Indian Army command sent a squadron of The Poona Horse led by Abhey Singh and a company of 2/5 Gurkha Rifles to investigate who were also fired upon by the Razakars.
• The tanks of the Poona Horse then chased the Razakars to Kodar, in Hyderabad territory. In a brief action the Poona Horse destroyed one armoured car and forced the surrender of the state garrison at Koda

OPERATION

• On receiving directions from the government to seize and annex Hyderabad, the Indian army came up with the Goddard Plan (laid out by Lt. Gen. E. N. Goddard).The plan envisaged two main thrusts – from Vijayawada in the East and Solapur in the WestThe attack from Solapur was led by Major General J.N. Chaudhari and was composed of four task forces:

1. Strike Force comprising a mix of fast moving infantry, cavalry and light artillery,
2. Smash Force consisting of predominantly armoured units and artillery.
3. Kill Force composed of infantry and engineering units.
4. Vir Force which comprised infantry, anti-tank and engineering units.

OPERATION

• The attack from Vijayawada was led by Major General A.A. Rudra and comprised the 2/5 Gurkha Rifles, one squadron of the 17th (Poona) Horse, and a troop from the 19th Field Battery along with engineering and ancillary units.
• The date for the attack was fixed as 13 September, The first battle was fought at Naldurg Fort on the Solapur Secundarabad Highway.

 SUCCESS

• In the early hours of 17 September, the Indian army entered Bidar. By the morning of the 5th day of hostilities, it had become clear that the Hyderabad army and the Razakars had been routed on all fronts and with extremely heavy casualties.
• At 5 pm on 17 September the Nizam announced ceasefire thus ending the armed action.

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