The Wahabis emerged before the end of the 19th century as a set of indomitable people who were zealously committed to liberate the land from the British yoke.
The founder of the Indian Wahabis, (also known as Mohomedia tariqa) Syed Ahmed Barelvi started a crusade in eastern Bengal against the domination of foreigners. Pir Shariatulla of village Bahadurpur in district Faridpur also started the Farazia Movement, against the immediate oppressors, the zamindars, mahajans and planters who were backed by the East India Company. A similar movement was also led by Mir Nisarali of Chandpur (Barassat). These three distinguished contemporaries met in Mecca while they were on Haj. They were to the highest degree influenced by the social philosophy of Shah Walliullah, the intellectual giant of the 18th century.
Mir Nisarali stationed his headquarters in village Narkalbaria Police Station Baduri near Calcutta. Haji Shariatullah died and his son Dadu Mian brought about a qualitative change in the character of the movement of Farazia Khilqfat. Syed Ahmed founded a free state at Sitana, the western corner of India. Wilayet Ali and Enayet Ali, the two brothers of the Sadiquepur family of
Patna, had come into contact with Syed Ahmed and became his disciples. After the death of Syed Ahmed in May 1831, they kept on working alternatively in faraway places like Sitana in the west and Frontier Rajmahal,
Malda and Chittagong in east Bengal and carried on their revolutionary activities to end British domination in India. They were the pioneers in perfecting the system of despatch of men and money from India which continued with wonderful efficiency and fool-proof accuracy for a long time. In 1847, the Wahabis started full preparation for an absolute war against the British rule in India from their base camp in Sitana. Wilayet Ali became the undisputed leader.
The British took up brutal measures and the period between 1863-65, witnessed a series of trials by which all the principal leaders of the Wahabi movement were arrested. The
Ambala trial of 1864 and Patna trial of 1865 were closely interlinked. Yahaya Ali along with Mohammed Jafar and Mohammed Shaft was sentenced to death in the Ambala trial and the others were sentenced to expatriation for life. The death sentences were later converted to transportation for life. Yahaya Ali was sent to the Andamans to undergo his sentence for life imprisonment.
Ahmadullah was convicted in the Patna trial (1865) along with Fayzeli, Yahaya Ali and Farhat Ali. He was convicted for devising a conspiracy with admirable rationality and initiating an orchestrated treason. The death sentence of Ahmadullah awarded on 27th February 1865 was later on converted to deportation for life by the high court and he was also sent to the Andamans in June 1865. Amiruddin was convicted to life imprisonment in the Malda trial (1870) and was transported to the Andamans and his property was confiscated.
The most respected leader of the Wahabi Movement, Ibrahim Mandal of Islampur, was convicted in Raj Mahal trial (1870) for organising movement at Raj Shahi and was sentenced to transportation for life and was send off to the Andamans. He was, however, released in 1878 by
Lord Lytton. Amir Khan and Hashmat Khan sentenced to transportation for life were also sent to the Andamans after they were arrested in July 1869 on the charge of raising funds for crusade against the British rulers. Their names are not shown in the records of the Andamans administration. All these convicts underwent the indescribable miseries in the islands.
Much later, when many of the Indian revolutionaries were sent to the Cellular Jail in the Andamans, they were thrilled by what Trailokya Chakravarty, himself a cellular convict, said was the "unbending audacity and inflexible will" of the Wahabis.
