Which of the following best describes the role and personality traits of Shaheed Kanhu and Sidhu Murmu during the Santhal Rebellion of 1855?
- (a)Visionary tribal leaders who united the Santhal community to resist exploitation with courage and strategic acumen.
- (b)Passive intermediaries who negotiated peace treaties between the British and Santhals without resorting to conflict.
- (c)Religious preachers who inspired rebellion solely through spiritual teachings without active participation in battles.
- (d)Local zamindars who switched allegiance from British rulers to lead a revolt for personal gains.
Answer
Why
Correct — A. On 30 June 1855 the brothers Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu gathered about ten thousand Santhals and called them to drive out the zamindars, moneylenders and the British who exploited them.
They organised and led the rising themselves, and the British put it down only under martial law. United, courageous leadership against exploitation is what option (a) describes.
Why the others are wrong
- (b)Passive intermediaries who negotiated peace treaties between the British and Santhals without resorting to conflict. — They did not negotiate a peace. They raised an armed revolt, which ended only when the British declared martial law and captured the leaders.
- (c)Religious preachers who inspired rebellion solely through spiritual teachings without active participation in battles. — They did claim a divine call, from Thakur Bonga, the Santhal great spirit, but they did not stop at preaching. They organised and led the armed rising themselves.
- (d)Local zamindars who switched allegiance from British rulers to lead a revolt for personal gains. — They were Santhals, not zamindars, and zamindars were among the very people the Hul rose against, alongside moneylenders and the East India Company.
Concept
The Santhal Hul (1855-56) was a rising of the Santhals against zamindars, moneylenders (mahajans), the East India Company and the dikus, as the Santhals called outsiders.
After it was crushed, the British created a separate Santhal Parganas district, and the Santhal Parganas Tenancy Act of 1876 later protected Santhal land rights.
Sidhu and Kanhu said the call came from Thakur Bonga, so the religious framing in option (c) is not invented. It fails on 'solely' and 'without active participation'.
Key facts
- The Hul began on 30 June 1855, led by the brothers Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu.
- Their brothers Chand and Bhairav and their sisters Phulo and Jhano also took part in leading it.
- Martial law was declared on 10 November 1855 and lifted on 3 January 1856.
- 30 June is observed as Hul Diwas in Jharkhand.
Study next
Common traps
- Taking 'religious preachers' because the brothers claimed a divine call. They also organised and led the armed rising.
- Mixing up the Hul of the Santhals (1855) with the Ulgulan of the Mundas under Birsa Munda.
Sido and Kanhu are matched to the Santhal Rebellion at 18 Sep 2024, 09:00, GA Q.2, and Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu stand as distractors to Birsa Munda's Ulgulan at 23 Sep 2025, 12:30, GA Q.23.
Related PYQs
No directly related past PYQ was found.