Dressed in dark, lightweight attire designed for silence and speed, Major Qasim's men blended into the shadows as they moved through the rugged terrain surrounding the Sikandarabad cantonment. Armed with silenced Luger P08 pistols, daggers, explosives, and ropes for climbing walls, they were prepared for any challenge. Their mission was twofold: destroy the telegraph lines connecting the cantonment to British reinforcements stationed at nearby garrisons and disable the British ammunition depots within the cantonment.
At exactly 9:45 PM, Major Qasim signaled his men to begin the operation. Using the cover of night, they split into smaller groups, each assigned to a specific target. Moving swiftly and silently, they avoided the main roads and took to narrow trails and back alleys leading to the outskirts of the cantonment.
Qasim's group, consisting of 100 of his best men, was tasked with disabling the telegraph station. This small, unassuming building was the lifeline for British commanders to send messages to their reinforcements. Qasim knew that if they could destroy it before the British realized what was happening, they would be unable to call for help during the initial stages of the battle.
They reached the telegraph station undetected. Two guards stood outside, their backs turned to the approaching guerrillas. Without a sound, Qasim motioned to his men. Two of them moved forward swiftly, slitting the throats of the guards before they could raise the alarm. Within minutes, the station was overrun, and Qasim's men set to work, placing explosives on the telegraph lines and machinery, ensuring that once detonated, the entire system would be rendered useless.
With a final nod, Qasim triggered the explosives, and a low rumble echoed through the night as the telegraph station erupted into flames. The British commanders, now completely cut off from reinforcements, were left blind and isolated.
Meanwhile, another group of Qasim's men infiltrated the British ammunition depot located near the center of the cantonment. This depot was heavily guarded, but the chaos of the artillery barrage had distracted many sentries. The guerrilla fighters moved with precision, silently dispatching the few remaining guards with knives and silenced pistols.
Once inside, the guerrillas placed explosives throughout the building, targeting powder kegs and ammunition crates stored within. Timing was critical—detonating the explosives too soon could alert the British forces to their presence, but delaying too long might cost them the opportunity to cripple the enemy.
At precisely 10:30 PM, as the infantry assault began, the explosives in the depot were triggered. A deafening explosion rocked the cantonment, sending shockwaves through the British ranks. Ammunition ignited, causing secondary explosions that illuminated the night sky. British soldiers stationed near the depot were killed instantly, and the rest were thrown into panic.
Qasim's final objective was to ensure that no British reinforcements could arrive to support the besieged cantonment. Knowing that nearby British garrisons would attempt to send reinforcements as soon as they realized an attack was underway, Qasim stationed groups of his men along the key roads leading to Sikandarabad. Their mission was to ambush any British columns attempting to reach the cantonment and destroy the bridges and roads connecting the garrisons to the city.
The guerrillas set traps along the roads—placing explosives under key bridges and positioning snipers in the hills overlooking the main routes. By 11:00 PM, the first British reinforcements, alerted by distant gunfire and explosions, began moving towards Sikandarabad. Unaware that they were walking into a trap, the British soldiers marched confidently, believing they could reinforce the cantonment.
As the British column approached the first bridge, Qasim's men detonated the explosives, collapsing the structure and sending several soldiers plummeting into the river below. The rest of the column, now in disarray, came under heavy fire from guerrilla snipers positioned in the hills. Panic set in as the British soldiers realized they were surrounded and outgunned. Unable to advance or retreat, many were cut down as they tried to escape the ambush.
By midnight, the roads to Sikandarabad were littered with the bodies of fallen British soldiers, and the reinforcements had been completely cut off.
Major Qasim's mission had been an overwhelming success. With British communications severed, their ammunition depots destroyed, and reinforcements unable to reach them, the British forces inside the cantonment were left isolated and vulnerable. The guerrilla fighters had struck with precision and efficiency, ensuring that the British could not regroup or mount a coordinated defense.
As the sounds of artillery and infantry assaults filled the night, Qasim and his men retreated back to their hidden positions, satisfied that their mission had played a crucial role in ensuring the success of Mahbub Ali's larger strategy.
Inside the cantonment, British commanders were thrown into chaos. With communications severed and their ammunition depot destroyed, they had no way of coordinating a defense or calling for reinforcements. General Robert Graves, who had taken command after Captain Whitaker's death, tried to rally his men.
"We need to hold our ground! Reinforcements will come!" he shouted, though he had no way of knowing that Qasim's men had already ensured that no help was on the way.
As the British soldiers scrambled to form defensive positions, many were losing hope. The suddenness of the attack, combined with the ferocity of the guerrilla sabotage, shattered their morale. Many soldiers abandoned their posts, fleeing into the night in hopes of escaping the inevitable slaughter.
On the other side, as the artillery bombardment weakened British defenses and guerrilla fighters cut off the telegraph line, Colonel Rajan Iyer prepared his infantry for the ground assault. His men, roughly 20,000 strong, were organized into disciplined units armed with modern Enfield Pattern 1871 rifles, bayonets, and grenades. They had been raised and trained for this exact moment, their entire lives dedicated to serving Mahbub Ali's vision. Rajan, a seasoned tactician, understood the importance of precision in night operations. The success of the assault depended on coordination and timing, especially with the element of surprise on their side.
Under the cover of darkness, the infantry moved out from their positions at around 10:30 PM. The moon was hidden behind clouds, casting an eerie gloom over the battlefield. Rajan's men advanced in loose formations, carefully navigating the rocky terrain that led up to the breached walls of the British cantonment. They had drilled this maneuver for weeks, and now, as the moment approached, their training took over.
"Keep quiet. No unnecessary noise," Rajan whispered to his officers, signaling for them to relay the command down the ranks. The troops were instructed to move in small groups, making it harder for the British to pick them off with rifle fire. Every soldier was alert, hands gripping their rifles tightly, eyes focused on the distant silhouette of the cantonment.