As early as 637 AD, Arabs started sending expeditions to the Western coast of India. In the early years of the 8th century AD, the king of Ceylon had sent some ships to the Khalifa (Caliph) Walid. These ships were plundered by pirates near Debal, a port in Sindh. At that time, Dahir, a Hindu Raja, ruled over Sindh. Al-Hajjai, the Governor of Basra, demanded compensation, but Dahir refused to pay it. Hajjaj sent an expeditions againist Dahir. After tow expeditions failed, in 712 AD , he sent over another expedition, this time under his nephew and son-in-law, Mohammed- bin-Qasim.
REASONS FOR FAILURE OF ARABS IN INDIA
The conquest of Sindh by the Arabs was a triumph without any results. Not only did they fail to extend their dominions further, they could not even retain their hold on Sindh. The reasons were as follows
- New Khalifa’s Attitude towards Sindh – The new Khalifa did not make any material gain for the desert land of Sindh and hence, put a break on military help to Sindh
- Fight over caliphate – As a result of breaking out of a mutual struggle for occupying the seat of caliphate, the Arab attention was diverted from Sindh
- Distance form Baghdad – Long distance between Sindh and Baghdad (The ultimate source of power for Sindh Administration under the Arabs) and lack of communication and transport did not encourage further battle.
- Mohammed-bin-Qasim – In a very short time he conquered Debal by slaying dabir. He then conquered Brahmanabad. After this, he conquered Multan. This Practically made hime the ruler of the whole of Sindh. But his brilliant carred Administration of Arabs in Sindh came to a sad end, when he was put to death by the caliph
Administration of Arabs in Sindh
Sindh was under the Arabs for 200 years. An efficient administration was provided by them. It was divided into a number of districts, which were made over to the Arab military officers on condition of military service. The Arabs followed a tolerant religious policy.
Those who paid the Poll tax or Jizya were exempted from embracing Islam and were known as Zimmis. Mohammed-bin-Qasim was first person to impost Jizya in India
Impact of Arab rule on Sindh
Politically, the Arab conquest of Sindh is considered insignificant from the point of view of growth of Islam in India. Their victory did not leave any impact on the monarchical character of Indian polity. However, it succeeded in converting the Sindh population to Islam on a very limited and temporary scale. The Arabs did not make any permanent impact on the Indian Social System. However, its first impact was that it laid the foundation of Islam in India.
The Formal Slavery System was introduced in India by the Arabs. The earliest Muslim settlements in India were established during Arab rule.
The Arab rule in Sindh strengthened Arab trade and encouraged more Arabs to settle down on the East coast. The Sindhi tanners were trained in the art of tanning soft leather by the Arab leather workers. As a result of this, Sindhi leather demanded a higher price in foreign markets.