RAS question
In which of the following places was the British Political Agent killed during the Revolt of 1857 in Rajasthan?
Correct answer: (D) Auwa and Kota.
During the Revolt of 1857 in Rajasthan, British Political Agents were killed at both Auwa and Kota.
Explanation
The answer is Auwa and Kota because both sites saw the killing of British Political Agents during the 1857 revolt in Rajasthan. At Auwa, Captain George Henry Monck Mason, the Political Agent of Jodhpur, was killed during the battle involving Thakur Kushal Singh's rebel forces; Mason was killed on September 18, 1857, and his head was displayed at the fort gate. Kota forms the second half of the answer: Major Burton, Political Agent at Kota, was killed when previously loyal regiments rebelled, attacked the Residency, and killed him along with his sons. The question therefore asks for a paired location, not a single cantonment centre.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Neemuch is not the answer because Colonel Abbot survived there, while the killed Political Agents were linked to Auwa and Kota.
- (B) Naseerabad saw revolt-related activity, but the killing of a British Political Agent is not placed there.
- (C) Erinpura is wrong because no killed British Political Agent is identified there; the killed Political Agents were at Auwa and Kota.
Concept
This tests the Rajasthan-specific geography of the Revolt of 1857, especially the locations and personalities attached to anti-British action. RAS often revisits such paired place-person facts because they separate Rajasthan history from the broader all-India narrative of 1857.