Victory day marked in Sindhuligadhi

Kathmandu, Oct. 1

Celebration programmes were organised in Sindhuligadhi on Saturday to mark the day when the Gorkhali forces defeated mighty British Army about 255 years ago in 1767.

Sindhuligadhi is a historical place where the Gorkhali forces defeated the then British army that was ruling India as they were coming towards Kathmandu to stop King Prithvi Narayan Shah's campaign to unify Nepal. The Gorkhali Army fought with the former valiantly there and forced them to flee the battle with homemade weapons.

The victory day is marked on Ashwin 15 of Nepali calendar which happened on October 1 this year to commemorate the defeat of the aggressor. According to historians, the Sindhuligadhi Fort was established in the 14^th century of Nepali Calendar, Bikram Samvat.

On this occasion, Samriddha Sindhuli Abhiyan (Prosper Sindhuli Campaign), Story Cycle and Sindhuliya Shrestha Society organised a programme to mark the day.

English version of Sindhuligadhi Pictorial Story was launched on the occasion. Deputy Mayor of Kamalamai Municipality, Manju Devkota, released the book.

However, the Kamalamai Municipality, which has taken the responsibility of protecting Sindhuligadhi, has been celebrating the victory day on the wrong date. After discussions with historians, it was confirmed that Ashwin 15 was the day when the Gorkhali forces defeated mighty British forces in Sindhuligadhi.

Historian Prof. Dinesh Raj Pant said that there is an authentic history of defeating the then East India Company (British Army) ruling India at Sindhuligarhi on Ashwin 15. “Celebrating the victory on any another date is to distort the history,” said Pant.

Leela Nath Ghimire, activist of the Prosperous Sindhuli Campaign, said that the local body had begun to celebrate the victory day when the date was not clear. So, when it is proven with evidence that Ashwin 15 is the correct date, it should begin to celebrate the occasion on this date.

Prosperous Sindhuli Campaign has been working in collaboration with various organisations for the promotion of Sindhuligadhi. To mark the day, cycle trip was being organised every year from Kathmandu through Sindhuligarhi to Janakpur for four years in a row. However, the cycle journey was paused in the previous years due to COVID-19 pandemic. The cycle journey for this Nepali year is set to be organised in March 2023.

Similarly, the campaign also started the construction of a trekking trail connecting the two historical forts of Sindhuli district - Hariharpur Gadhi and Sindhuligadhi. The campaign has completed the construction of the first section from Ghante in Hariharpur Garhi to Sepaha, the border of Marin Rural Municipality.

The trail has been constructed from the temple of Mahadev in Ghante, where Prithvi Narayan Sah's wife Indra Kumari offered a bell to the Lord Mahadev.

Similarly, the expedition also studied the Mahabharata hiking trail from Kavre's Namo Buddha to Sindhuli's Fikkal via historical Sindhuligadhi.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 2 October 2022.