Rebellions in Aurangzeb’s reign

The initial years of Aurangzeb’s reign did not see any rebellion of political importance. But when he started nursing his religious zeal, there were signs of the coming storm as early as 1669.

Destruction of Temples

Aurangzeb had claimed the throne as the Champion of the Orthodox Islam against the heretical practices of his brother Dara. When he was told that in Banaras, the Brahmins have got habitual of teaching their “wicked science” to the Muslims, an order from his majesty was given to demolish all the temples.

The orders were carried out and the temple of Vishnu at Banaras and a splendid shrine at Mathura were broken to make room for a mosque. The idols were brought to Agra and buried under the steps of the Mosque.

Rebellion of Jats

• In 1669-70, the Jats of Mathura region rose under the leadership of a local Zamindar Gokala.

Gokala was captured and executed, but the rebellion was not subdued completely. The Jats continued to stir and after Aurangzeb died, they established an sovereign Jat Kingdom in Bharatpur.

Rebellion of Satnamis

In 1672, the 4000 Hindus in today’s Haryana region who called themselves Satnamis got rebellious in the area around Delhi. They were led by one Birbhan, who took over the administration of the area around modern Narnaul in Haryana. The Satnamis were crushed when Aurangzeb intervened personally. The Satnamis fought with courage but their end was not doubtful.