RAS question
Thakur Kushal Singh, who led the anti-British resistance at Auwa in 1857, belonged to which state?
Correct answer: (B) Jodhpur (Marwar).
Thakur Kushal Singh, who led the 1857 anti-British resistance at Auwa, belonged to Jodhpur (Marwar).
Explanation
Thakur Kushal Singh was the feudal chief of Auwa in Marwar, which fixes his state association as Jodhpur (Marwar), not any other Rajputana state. The Ministry of Culture's Digital District Repository describes Auwa as the main centre of the 1857 uprising in the erstwhile princely state of Jodhpur and says Kushal Singh led the uprising there after joining rebel troops against Maharaja Takhat Singh, who supported the British. During the Battle of Auwa, British Political Agent Captain Mason was killed and his head was hung from the Auwa fort gate, a key RAS marker for the episode. Auwa's local resistance was part of Marwar's 1857 politics, not a separate episode from Jodhpur state.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Jaipur is wrong because Auwa's 1857 uprising occurred in the erstwhile princely state of Jodhpur, and Kushal Singh was the chief of Auwa in Marwar.
- (C) Bikaner is wrong because Kushal Singh's resistance was centred at Auwa in Jodhpur (Marwar), while Bikaner followed a pro-British alignment.
- (D) Mewar is wrong because Kushal Singh belonged to Marwar, not Mewar, and Auwa was tied to Jodhpur state.
Concept
The Revolt of 1857 in Rajasthan connects local leaders, resistance centres and princely-state politics. Auwa recurs in RAS because it is a compact way to ask about Marwar's role in the uprising.