Ajijan Bai

Ajijan Bai (born Ajijan Begum, 22 January 1824 – 20 September 1857) was a female Indian freedom fighter.^[1][2] She played a role in the Indian freedom struggle during the 1857 revolt.^[3]

Ajijan Bai
Born	Ajijan Begum 22 January 1824 Rajgarh, Malwa, Madhya Pradesh
Died	20 September 1857 (aged 33)

Early life

Ajijan Bai was born on 22 January 1824, in Rajgarh, located in the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh. Her father, Shamsher Singh, was a landlord in the area.^[4]

Role in the revolution of 1857

In 1857. She formed a group called "Mastani Toli," comprising around 400 women. These women performed mujra (traditional dance) at night to gather intelligence about British strategies, which they passed on to revolutionaries during the day.^[5]

On 1 June 1857, when Nana Sahib, Tatya Tope, Azimullah Khan, Bala Saheb, Subedar Tika Singh, and Shamsuddin Khan were planning the revolt in Kanpur, Ajijan Bai was present at the meeting. One day, Tatya Tope invited her to Bithoor for a dance performance. When he offered her money as a reward, she declined and instead requested a uniform of the revolutionary army. Tatya Tope then assigned her the task of gathering intelligence about the British.^[6]

During Holi, revolutionaries launched an attack on British soldiers from Ajijan's residence, killing many of them. After the defeat at the Battle of Bithoor, Nana Sahib and Tatya Tope fled, but Ajijan Bai was captured. General Havelock reportedly offered her clemency if she confessed her "mistakes" and revealed Tatya Tope's whereabouts. However, she refused and was executed that night by being tied to a cannon and blown apart.^[7]