MPPSC 2019 Prelims Paper-I · Question 93 of 99

Correct — A, Fazil Mohammad Khan. He is remembered in Madhya Pradesh's history as the Bhopal figure who led the local rising during the 1857 revolt (the 'first war of independence') and gave his life in it. This is notable because the Bhopal state itself, under Nawab Sikandar Begum, stayed loyal to the British — so the rebellion there was carried by individuals like him against the official line.

• (b)Sheikh Ramzan — Not the Bhopal leader credited with leading and dying in the 1857 rising; the martyr named in MP's 1857 record for Bhopal is Fazil Mohammad Khan.
• (c)Dost Mohammad Khan — Dost Mohammad Khan was the 18th-century founder of Bhopal state (died 1728) — over a century before 1857, so he cannot be a martyr of the 1857 revolt.
• (d)Habibulla Khan — Not the person recorded as leading and sacrificing his life in the Bhopal rising of 1857; the answer sought is Fazil Mohammad Khan.

During the Revolt of 1857, central-India states responded differently: many rulers (including the Begums of Bhopal) sided with the British, while individual soldiers, nobles and townsfolk rose in rebellion. Madhya Pradesh's regional history records Fazil Mohammad Khan as the Bhopal leader who headed the local movement and became a martyr.

The distractor Dost Mohammad Khan is a classic trap — a very famous Bhopal name, but as the state's 18th-century founder he is chronologically impossible for an 1857 question. Anchoring on the date (1857) eliminates him instantly.

• 1857 is called the 'first war of independence' / first struggle for independence.
• Bhopal state under Nawab Sikandar Begum remained loyal to the British in 1857.
• Fazil Mohammad Khan is recorded as the Bhopal leader who led the local 1857 rising and died in it.
• Dost Mohammad Khan (d. 1728) was the founder of Bhopal — not an 1857 figure.

• Picking Dost Mohammad Khan because the name is famous — he predates 1857 by 130 years.
• Assuming all Bhopal leaders rebelled in 1857, when the state officially backed the British.

MPPSC asks 'which brave/leader from place X led and died in the 1857 revolt' — use the 1857 date to knock out chronologically impossible famous names.

No directly related past PYQ was found.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  During the Revolt of 1857, the ruler of Bhopal state:

  • (a)led the rebellion against the British
  • (b)remained loyal to the British
  • (c)declared independence
  • (d)fled the state

  Answer(b) remained loyal to the British — the Begum of Bhopal supported the colonial government.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Dost Mohammad Khan is associated with Bhopal because he:

  • (a)led its 1857 revolt
  • (b)founded the state of Bhopal in the early 18th century
  • (c)signed the Poona Pact
  • (d)built the Sanchi Stupa

  Answer(b) founded the state of Bhopal in the early 18th century.