nadir shah and the afghans, 1732–47was repugnant. Macnaghten refused, but blandly assured the nawab that
it was not the custom of the British to illtreat any captive, particularly
women. Instead Jabbar Khan was granted an audience with Shah Shuja‘,
who was told in no uncertain terms to treat the sardar with kindness.
Shah Shuja‘ played along and tried to bribe and flatter Jabbar Khan into
changing sides, only for him to reject the king’s offer of money and
high office.
Matters would have ended here had it not been for an incident that
occurred as the sardar left the British camp. Escorted by Mohan Lal,
Nawab Jabbar Khan heard the cries of a woman in great distress from
a nearby tent and insisted on investigating, only to discover that one of
the female captives from Ghazni – undoubtedly a woman of rank – was
being raped by a water carrier. Jabbar Khan was outraged and Lal, equally
shocked, managed to secure the woman’s release into the nawab’s c u s t o d y.
The water carrier was later discharged from service, but suffered no other
punishment. As Jabbar Khan parted from Lal, he angrily told him that
those who claimed that Britain’s policy was duplicitous and hypocritical
had been right all along. Britain had used him as a pawn to destroy the
heirs of Payinda Khan and he compared his friendship with Britain to the
darakht-i hanzal, or wild gourd, the leaves of which were pretty but its
fruit bitter and toxic. 74 He had been the staunchest advocate of friendship
with Britain, the nawab declared, and had hosted Burnes and other British
travellers at his own personal expense, but now he had lost ‘all confidence
and hope’ in Britain. On his return to Kabul, he would seek to redeem his
honour by raising the tribes and informing them that Britain planned to
exile their leaders and molest their women. So Britain’s greatest ally in the
Muhammadzai camp became one of her most bitter enemies. It was one
more nail in the coffin of Burnes and Macnaghten.
Nawab Jabbar Khan returned to Kabul and Dost Muhammad Khan
pleaded with the Qizilbash to join him and make a last stand at Sayyidabad
so he could die with honour, but they still refused to leave Kabul. On
2 August 1839 the Amir discharged them from their oath of allegiance,
mounted his best horse and set out for Bamiyan via the Hajigak, accom
panied by Akram Khan, Nawab Jabbar Khan and other family members
with their wives and children. When Keane heard of the Amir’s flight,
he sent Captain Outram in hot pursuit but made the mistake of sending
Hajji Khan Kakar along too. According to British sources, Hajji Khan did
everything in his power to delay the pursuit and Dost Muhammad had
reached the safety of Saighan by the time Outram reached Bamiyan, and
the pursuit was abandoned.