Manipur meant a lot for the Ahom kingdom in the yesteryears and that can very well be hold through the story, the real story of Manipuri princess Kuranganayani’s who was married to the Ahom king Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha. It was then when Assam was having its golden period and Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha was at his best. The king of Manipur, Jay Singha was in the shelter of Swargadeo as he was not being able to fight back Mann (Burmese) who has attacked his country Manipur. Jay Singha wanted Sawrgadeo to help him in conquering the Manns (Burmese) and he decided to offer his daughter Kuranganayani to the king. Swargadeo, later on, after discussing the matter with his higher officials decided to marry Kuranganayani. So, it was in such a situation that Kuranganayani became the queen of Assam.
Before that in this context, let’s throw some light on the incident that took place with the Manipuri king Jay Singha. The throne of Jay Singha was in threat from the Manns who are also known as the Burmese. The origin of this particular tribe is Burma. It was under the leadership of Mantora, the Burmese attacked Manipur in 1758 and this led to the escape of Jay Singha from Manipur to Assam. Then Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha helped him in the battle of ‘Latakata Ron’ in the 1768 and got the throne back to Jay Singha. After being the king of Manipur again in 1773, Jay Singha gifted his most valuable possession, his daughter Kuranganayani to Rajeswar Singha.
After Swargadeo’s decision to marry her, she and all her family members were being taken to Assam and Swargadeo’s most trusted higher official Kirti Chandra Borbaruah considered her as his daughter and took great care of her. Even when she was married to Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha, all the required things of marriage were being arranged by him and his wife. She then got married to Swargadeo according to the Chaklang marriage procedure.
The beauty and charm of Kuranganayani made her achieve a particular place
in Rajeswar Singha’s heart as a result of which she was being named as the grand queen (Borkuwari). This bridge that Kuranganayani Kuwori built between Assam and Manipur is found to be existed now also. Still there is that friendly and helpful relation between both the states as it was once. In other words, princess Kuranganayani was the beginning of this closeness between the two states.
The love and care received from the people of Assam made Kuranganayani Kuwori and all her relatives who came along with her, love this country. They had the same patriotism in their mind and heart as that of the other Assamese people. One incident that took place while Kuranganoyani Kuwori was the queen of Assam is enough to show her love for this place. After Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha’s death, his brother Lakhmi Singha became the king and during his reign the Moran attacked and imprisoned Lakhmi Singha in Joydol. Romakanta set in the throne and his brother Ragho took the title of ‘Borbaruah’. Ragho Borbaruah without the consent of Kuranganayani Kuwori married her by force and also married the daughters of other higher officials of the Ahom kingdom. He thus, married 100 ladies and this made everybody of the Ahom kingdom become very angry on him. Kunganayani Kuwori was one among those and she along with others planned for throwing the Morans out of Assam. All were involved in this plan and certain worth-mentioning officials among them are Kuwoiganya Bhogi Buragohain’s son Ghanashyam Gohain Hazarika, Sotai-Alia Dol-Bandha Rajmantri Borgohain’s son and Laithapona Borgohain’s grandson Bailung, Bhadrasen of Bokotial, both sons of Jado Tamuli Ramkrishnai and Ramnath and Khanikar Bhuyan’s son Kekeru Kalita Hazarika.
The crudeness of the Moran increased in such a rate that Ragho Borbaruah punished all the higher executives of Ahom kingdom. Buragohain, Borgohain, Borbaruah, Borphukon, Dekaphukon etc all those executives were sentenced to death by Ragho Borbaruah. He even hit the Ahom king Lakhmi Singha too when Lakhmi Singha denied to bow down in front of Muwamoria Mahanta. At this, everybody get enraged and decided to fight back and throw the Morans out of the Assam. Around two hundred people gathered for a meeting in this regard and all of them planned to kill Ragho Borbaruah on the day of Sot Bihu (last day of the Sot month). They decided to go in disguise by pretending to be the Sekoni-kubua dal of Motok and then meet and kill Ragho. After that decision, everybody present in the meting decided to meet Kuranganayani Kuwori and take her advice. For that purposes, Kekeru Kalita Hazarika was being chosen to meet her.
Here comes the context of Kuranganayani Kuwori again. When Ragho Borbaruah married her by force she too played tricks on him. She never let him touch her and for that she avoided sleeping with him at nights. She had a very faithful and obedient servant, named Hunai. It is this Hunai, who replaced Kuranganayani Kuwori by sleeping with Ragho Borbaurah at nights and he could not perceive her as lamps were not being lighted while sleeping. Kekeru Kalita Hazarika,used to know Hunai and with her help he somehow made it to meet Kuranganayani.
Kuranganayani then informed it to Kalita that she still has maintained her self-esteem and feels really bad for such things happening with her. She said that she has always been faithful to her husband and even though Ragho Borbaruah married her, she has not allowed him to touch her. It is Hunai that is helping her by being so loyal. The duo planned as to how to kill Ragho Borbaruah. According to the plan, on the day of Bihu it will be implemented and Ragho Borbaruah will be put to death. Kalita then after coming back from her discussed it with other officials and made other required discussions and preparations. They sat down for further discussions on the next day too and allocated particular jobs like preparing various kinds of weapons, to all.
It was Kuranganayani Kuwori who played the key role in killing Ragho Borbaruah and making Lakhmi Singha the king again. On the last day of the Sot month (April-Month), Kuranganayani advised Ragho to pay honor to all and take blesses. She convinced him that the subjects of Assam are in all praise for him and wants to gift him their tokens of love. At this Ragho Borbaruah got flattered and agreed to do whatever Kuranganayani said him. He even praised her by saying that she for being a princess only knows what to do when; others do not possesses this bit of understanding and intelligence. After that he goes out to welcome the villagers who according to Kuranganayani kuwori, have come to thank and bless him. But actually those villagers were there to kill him.
Slipped in Kuranganayani Kuwori’s tricks, Ragho Borbaruah fall prey to the Ahom officials and got killed. Even not only Kuranganayani, his hundred wives too were ready to attack him with daggers and other weapons in their hands. Ragho was even holding a weapon too while going out to meet the villagers. But Kuranganayani Kuwori said him that doing so will mean showing disrespect to them and then convinced him to go out empty handed. When Ragho Borbaruah bowed down to the villagers all jumped on him with weapons and killed him. So, this was the end of Ragho Borbaruah and the Ahom executives, after all these, succeeded in brining Lakhmi Singha back to the throne.
After being the king again, Lakhmi Singha even admitted that it was his sister-in-law, Kuranganayani Kuwori’s help and efforts that made him to gain his rights back. He addressed her to be his mother too and expressed his pride for her as she did not devoted herself as Ragho’s wife in real sense. He thanked and gifted her all those things that were used in Ragho’s palace.
In this way, the princess of Manipur Kuranganayani led the battle for freedom from the Ahom’s side and snatched away the much expected and well-deserved victory. This way she paid back all those love, respect and care that she gained from the Ahom Kingdom, officials and subjects. It was not only she, but all other Magalus (Manipuri people) also fought for the Ahoms against the Morans in the Muwamoria war. For her valor and patriotism, Assam still remembers Kuranganayani and she is being remembered as the ‘Mogolu-Kuwori’. In Manipur too she is well-known and is said to be ‘Tekhau-Leima’ or ‘Axom-Kuwori’.
As a sign of thanks to Kuranganaani, or you can say it the love and respect of Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha for Kuranganayani, that he established a place named Magalu Khat about four miles west from the Jorhat town. Here he set up the Manipuris who came along with the princess Kuranganayani.
