Ajab Khan Afridi | |
---|---|
عجب خان اپریدی | |
Born | c. 1866 |
Died | 8 January 1961 (aged 94–95) |
Resting place | Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan |
Known for | Indian independence movement against the British Raj |
Ajab Khan Afridi (Pashto: عجب خان اپریدی) was a Pashtun guerrilla fighter from Darra Adam Khel in the Frontier Tribal Areas of Northern Pakistan belonging to the Afridi tribe of Pashtuns. Following a raid on his house by a British Indian Army (BIA) detachment in 1923, Afridi declared it a personal affront to his honor and was ordered by his mother to take revenge on the BIA officers who had led the raid.[2]
Afridi, along with four other villagers, attacked Kohat Cantonment. The wife of a British officer, Major Ellis, was stabbed and killed during the attack and they kidnapped Ellis' daughter, Molly.[3][4][5][6]
Ajab Khan and his men also fought numerous skirmishes with British soldiers.[7]
On 8 January 1961, Ajab Khan Afridi died at the age of 95 in Mazar-i-Sharif in the Balkh Province of the Kingdom of Afghanistan.[1]
Ajab Khan Afridi is hailed as a hero in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region, with 3 films made on him.[7]
'Ajab Khan', was a 1961 Urdu language film based on the life of Ajab Khan Afridi and his battles against the British.[7]
A statue of Ajab Khan Afridi was erected in 2018 at Abbas Chowk in his hometown, Darra Adam Khel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistani.[8][9][10]