The History of Malakand

                  

Malakand agency lies at a strategically important position as it acts as a Gateway to Swat, Dir, Chitral and Bajaur. It is in the lower Swat region amidst high mountains thick with evergreen olive and pine trees. It stands at the exit of a pass known as Malakand Pass or Darrah Malakand; now much less difficult to cross than before as one travels from Peshawar to Swat.

In history the name has appeared as Malakhand or Mulah Khandao. The name is stated to have been derived from the words Mullah Khandao. It is the combination of two words; Mullah and Khandao. Mullah means a religious saint and Kandao means a lofty place. Nowadays it is known as Malakand, and the name has been adopted in the same form by many other villages in the Swat and Dir districts.

The area surrounded by Malakand -- on the south till Sakhakot board, on the north Chakdara bridge and towards the east till Landakay comes in the limits of Malakand. In papers the area is still an agency known as Malakand Agency but full fledged district government has been established which is headed by the District Nazim Engineer Mohammad Hamayun Khan.

A part of Malakand is occupied by the Uthmankhel clan of Pukhntoons (Pathans), while towards the south, at the bottom of Malakand Pass, live the Ranizais known as Sam Ranizai. Those living beyond the pass towards Swat are Swat Ranizai. This is also evident in the administration division; where one is called the Swat Ranizai and the other as Sam Ranizai.

The road in the pass has many turns and zigzags and appears to have been scientifically designed. Being a key route to Swat, Dir, Buner, Shangla and Chitral districts the Malakand pass has remained for years the target of foreign invasions. Before the British occupation, it represented Pukhtoon grandure. It was inhabited by prominent Pukhtoon Sardars particularly Ranizais division of the Yousafzai Pathans. The chief town of Ranizais was Dheri Allahdand, where there is the tomb of a holy man, Mian Allahdad, a dervish, held in great reverence by the Pukhtoons of these parts.

Malakand today is vastly different from the land of yore. After partition major changes have taken place. The distinctive characteristic of the land is that it serves as a gateway for trade to the other districts in the Malakand Division. (Now divisional status has been abolished and district governments are set up in all the districts coming in the limits of Malakand Division). The Malakand Pass is the shortest and safest route for trade caravans going towards Swat, Dir, Bajaur, Buner, Shangla and Chitral Districts.

The soil of Malakand is loamy and moist, and is irrigated by the Swat River which flows from Swat, through Kohistan and joins the river Kabul near Peshawar. The average rainfall is not enough, therefore the soil requires artificial irrigation.

There are rare scenic places and tourist resorts in Malakand like Jabban and Malakand hydro-electric project. Water passes through a three-mile long tunnel, and has a natural fall of 350 feet. The main income- generating source in Malakand is the two power houses at Dargai and Malakand Khas. There are about 11 other suitable sites for construction of Small Hydel Power Projects that needed investors attention.

Malakand as already mentioned is surrounded by high mountains rich with mineral resources which are yet to be exploited. However, deposits of chromite iron, china clay and fuller earth have been found in Malakand. There are vast chances of mineral exploration but due to poor status of the local denizens they are not in a position to invest and exploit the mineral resources in Malakand. If investors from the other districts and provinces diverted their attention towards mineral wealth they can find and get vast mineral treasures.

Archaeologically, Malakand has a separate history. The land had remained a seat of Gandhara art culture. It has a large number of ancient relics still unexplored. Buddhism also has roots in this land and places like Penjon, Magoshah, Haryankot, Hati Darrah, Sakhakot, Batkhela etc.

After the imposition of Devolution Plan in the country, District Government has been established in Malakand. Engineer Mohammad Hamayun Khan, son of the former federal minister Mohammad Hanif Khan (Late) is the District Nazim of Malakand. With him Syed Ahmad Ali Shah Bacha works as Naib District Nazim and Abdul Jalil Khan is the existing District Coordination Officer of Malakand.

The High court extended its jurisdiction to this area in 1974 and district and civil judges work here ever since.

Brief History:

Historic ruins, founded at different places in the agency, indicate that this area was part of Ghandara civilization and Buddist peoples lived here. The last Buddist ruler, Raja Gira, seems to have ruled over here about 900 (Nine Hindered) years ago. Sultan Mahmood of Ghazni, a Muslim ruler, came here from Afghanistan through Bajaur and defeated the Buddist ruler, Raja gira.

Later, another Afghan ruler, Muhammad Ghauri, invaded this area and Islam began to spread here. The Yousafzai Pathan tribe came to inhabit this area is the wake of the invasion. About 400 years ago, successive Mughal rulers attemped in vain to capture this area. After the fall of the Mughals, Sikh rulers tried to conquer this area but we repulsed. The British had always looked at this area with covetous eyes but dared no venture to flirt with it openly. In 1882, The British approached to the elders of Malakand Agency with the request to allow the passage of post to Chitral, which was then in the Administrative sphere of Gilgit. With the common consent of Aslam Khan and Inayat Khan of Thana, Saadat khan of Alladand and Sarbiland Khan of Palai, the postal runners were allowed through the Agency in exchange for a considerable amount of money to be paid yearly to each. In 1885, the Chitral relief expedition however necessitated the British intervention in this area. British officer and troops had been besieged in Chitral by Chitralis under Sher Afzal in association with Umara Khan of jandol. To reinforce their forces there, they needed a route to Chitral as the Gilgit-Chitral road, the only route at that time, was covered with snow and they had no option left except to pass through Malakand Agency. The British therefore, laid siege of the Malakand pass. The people fought bravely and offered stubborn resistance to the enemy. The British artillery particularly proving more than a match for the old and rusty guns and swords of the natives. To fortify their position and ensure the safety of the strategically Important Chitral road, they constructed two forts at Malakand and Chakdara with many piquet overhead the surrounding hills. One of them Churchill piquet, was name after Lt. Churchill who later on became the Prime Minister of Britain. Since then the British intervened in the politics of the area. A political Agent was stationed at Malakand to mediate between the British and the people of the Area.