By Prof. Gangmumei Kamei

Jadonang (1905 - 1931) was a complex personality and he evoked both admiration and condemnation. The British rulers and their colonial supporters tried to project Jadonang as a murderer. Was Jadonang really a mere murderer as the British would have wanted the people, especially the plains people of Manipur, to believe? Or was he a religious teacher, a social reformer, a prophet and the martyr to the cause of human freedom? Despite popular misconceptions created by the ill-informed writers both Indian and English, Jadonang’s movement was a comprehensive struggle for social and religious reform of his own people, for a social and political unity and for freedom. It was essentially his struggle for freedom which the Colonial authorities described as the Naga Raj in contrast to the British Raj which has been of interest of the historians and the posterity. The concept of Naga Raj propounded by Haipou Jadonang was on the line of several other princely states in the country before independence.

EARLY CAREER

Jadonang was born at the Rongmei village of Kambiron in south Tamenglong District of Manipur state in 1905. He was the second son of Thiudai and his mother was Chunlungliu. Jadonang was a remarkable child, something extraordinary. His father died young and he was brought up by his widow mother. She was a strong willed woman who withstood the rigors and loneliness of a widow. Jadonang was a mystic child. And he grew up to be a seer (amuh) of his village; ~ dream diviner, a priest and a reformer. He was inspired by God to tell his people to follow a particular form of reformed religion. He was also inspired to build up solidarity among his kindred people, the Rongmei, the Liangmei, Zeme and Poumei. As his village was situated on the Old Cachar Road which connected the state of Manipur and Assam, he came to see the government officials, the solidiers, the Meitei travelers and the British officer. He and his brothers had to carry out the forced labour of the British and Manipuri officers. He had fully seen the troops during the Kuki Rebellion in his area (1917 - 1919).

IMPRISONMENT AT TAMENGLONG, DECEMBER, 1928.

Jadonang heard about the Congress from his friends living in Cachar district of Assam. He also heard of Gandhi. Once Mahatma Gandhi after the AlCC session at Guwahati in 1926 was supposed to visit Silchar on his way back home, Jadonang made preparations to take a team of one hundred boys and another one hundred girls to Silchar to accord a welcome to Gandhiji. But Mahatma Gandhi did not visit Silchar and Jadonang did not go down to Silchar.

Jadonang started talking of Makam Gwandi, the kingdom of Makam people (the Zeliangrong or the Nagas). Once he made a prophecy that the British Raj (Sarkar) was coming to an end, the day of the Meitei ruler and the Kuki would also come to an end. For this prophecy, the then S.D.O of Tamenglong, S.J. Duncan issued an order (parwana) to arrest him. Jadonang was summoned to Tamenglong and the S.D.O put him to Jail for making the dangerous predictions on 6th December 1928. He was soon released after three days for unknown reason though he was to be in the jail for one week.

PREPARATION FOR THE NAGA RAJ

After his release from the jail of Tamenglong, Jadonang became a very popular figure among the people of Tamenglong. He continued to carry out his religious activities. He went on pilgrimage to the Holy Caves of God Bishnu in the Bhuban hills of eastern Cachar. He constructed temples and made idols. Mithuns were offered to the God. He taught the devotional songs and hymns to the boys and girls. Dancing was also taught. The elders of the villages in the Trans - Barak area were involved in this religious activity. He also abolished many social and religious evils. He was organising a reformed religion.

He also organized the youth as Riphen as the future soldiers. He made them to learn parade and physical exercise. He made his workers to manufacture weapons and purchase guns. He recruited nearly 500 Riphen (warriors) in the garb of religious activity.

The two years, 1929 and 1930 were the climax of popularity of Jadonang. A large number of Nagas mostly, the Zeme, Liangmei, Rongmei from Naga Hills, North Cachar valley, Tamenglong Hills and Imphal valley came to Kambiron to meet Jadonang for help in their personal problem, sickness, religious activity and political preparation.

Jadonang sent out news to villages with a customary spear. If the spear was accepted, it was the acceptance of the authority of Jadonang. And mithun was sent to Jadonang. and the mithun was sacrificed to God.

In 1930, the Government of Manipur shifted the office of the S.D.O. North ­West from Tamenglong to Imphal, There was no administration in Tamenglong Hills. The Iambus (like the dobhasis of Naga Hills) and road muhorris continued to collect house tax, forced labour and physical torture. Jadonang assisted by young Gaidinliu and others went on preparing for the Makam Gwangdi (Naga Raj).

MURDER OF MANIPURI BETEL LEAVES TRADERS

In March 1930, four Manipuri traders were killed by a mob in Kambiron in the absence of Jadonang who had gone to Nungkao. The murder was an unfortunate incident as it was in noway connected with Jadonang’s movement nor connected with him. The murder was hushed up but it proved to be the undoing of the whole plan of Jadonang. Many villages sent mithun to Jadonang who gave out that the people should be prepared for a rebellion against the Sarkar, the British. No hill house tax should be paid from 1931 onwards. The soldier should be prepared for war. He believed that it was the divine sanction against the Sarkar, the Kukis and the Meiteis should be driven out.

PROCLAMATION OF NAGA RAJ, 1931

When he was preparing for the rebellion, a Kuki Mauzadar of Henima (Tenning) infromed the Deputy Commissioner of Naga Hills. J. P. Hills who informed J. C. Higgin, the British Political Agent in Manipur of the declaration of the Naga Raj of Jadonang of Kambiron. Immediately the Political Agent took steps to arrest Jadonang as a man who proclaimed a Naga Raj. He also informed the Superintendent of Cachar District, Christopher Gimson and the Goveror of Assam. Jadonang at tha time was on a pilgrimage to Bhuban Hills and on his return he was arrested by Assam Police at Lakhipur. A Muslin police officer-Imtiaz Ali trapped him.

ARREST AND EXTRADITION TO MANIPUR

Jadonang after arrest was put in Silchar jail. But he was a subject of the princely state of Manipur, So he was extradited to Manipur and he was handed over to the political Agent at Jirighat. Political Agent, J. C. Higgin, took a column of the Assam Rifles from Imphal to Kambiron where they destroyed the temples of Jadonang, went to Jiribam to receive Jadonang from Cachar authorities. He returned to Imphal via Nungkao where the surly girl of 17, the indomitable Gaidinliu hoodwinked him and escaped. He marched across Tamenglong taking with him the revolutionary Jadonang.

JADONANG IN MANIPUR JAIL

Jadonang was put in Imphal Jail for one month. The Political Agent interrogated him and he was charged of four crimes.

     i. Self declaration of Jadonang as a God,

     ii. Proclamation of Naga Raj,

     iii. Declaration of war against the Government and the Kukis,

     iv. Obstructing the Census work of 1931.

As a sensible and intelligent person Jadonang denied all these accusations.

Political Agent had no evidence against Jadonang. At this time the report of the murder of the four Manipuri traders were leaked out and one official submitted a report to the government implicating Jadonang in the murder. So a charge of murder was put up against Jadonang. Jadonang denied the charges. But it was a tragedy that all. his followers and even his family members were so much terrorised and panicked that they were forced to speak against him in the political Agent’s Court.

EXECUTION OF JADONANG ON 29TH AUGUST, 1931 AT IMPHAL

But the Political Agent in his judgement sentenced Jadonang to death, though he himself admitted that he could not find out any body who committed the crime. Jadonang was charged of abetment of murder. True to himself Jadonang denied till the last. He was hanged at a place to the north of-the present Imphal jail in 29th August, 1931.

After his death, the freedom movement was continued by his brilliant disciple, the legendary Gaidinliu upto October, 1932. After her imprisonment, the movement I of Zeliangrong people for the Naga Raj continued upto 1940. Jadonang’s rebellion was nipped in the bud. His plan was the establishment of the Kingdom of the Nagas l which was described by Mrs. Ursula Grahem Bower as a Naga Millenium where there would be no want and no poverty, a land of plenty and prosperity. This kingdom of Jadonang was described as the Naga Raj by the British Authorities.

Jadonang’s struggle for freedom was an anti-British and anti-colonial struggle­ which has been interpreted as a part of India’s freedom struggle or as a precuser of the Naga nationalist Movement.

TRUE, JADONANG’S STRUGGLE WAS FOR HUMAN FREEDOM.