Gurugram: Haryana has completed modalities for acquiring land for construction of the Shaurya Memorial at Panipat’s historic Kala Amb site, a project to be built in collaboration with Maharashtra to bridge the two states’ centuries of shared history.
The project, spanning 23 acres and adjacent to the existing Kala Amb War Memorial, aims to immortalise the valour of Maratha warriors who fought in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761.
Makarand Pandurang, Director General of Haryana’s Information and Public Relations Department, the nodal department for the project, confirmed when contacted by ThePrint that the government has acquired 16 acres of land at the Kala Amb site in Panipat, while the rest of the land (housing a museum) is already with the government.
“The process for hiring a consultant to conceptualise and prepare a detailed project report (DPR) is in process. The plan is to lay the foundation on 10 January, 2026. The chief ministers of both states, Haryana and Maharashtra, will be the chief guests. The Government of Maharashtra wants to give it a Maratha touch because in the third battle of Panipat, Marathas played a significant role,” he said.
Ranbir Sangwan, an additional director of the Information and Public Relations Department, told The Print that Maharashtra Chief Minister’s Additional Chief Secretary Vikas Kharge had visited the proposed site in June this year for a review meeting with Haryana officers for the project.
He said that senior officers from Haryana government will coordinate with officials from Maharashtra to form a joint committee, which will appoint consultants for the design and planning process. Experienced consultants will be engaged to create a world-class tourist destination.
He further mentioned that assistance will be sought from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and discussions will be held with Maharashtra government regarding the concept design. Renowned historians will be consulted to present historical facts accurately and in a modern format. Suggestions made during the meeting included installing a large statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, setting up shops to promote local handicrafts, and establishing facilities, such as a cafeteria, museum, interpretation centre, and light-and-sound show.
Sangwan said that Kharge emphasised during the review meeting that the project would reflect mutual respect and cultural exchange between the two states. “He said that, similar to the Prime Ministers’ Museum in Delhi, several modern features would be incorporated. Maharashtra, he assured, would extend all necessary assistance to Haryana for the project’s completion,” he added.
Background of the Shaurya Memorial
The Third Battle of Panipat, which took place on 14 January 1761, is one of the most crushing battles inflicted on the Indian subcontinent. It pitted the vast Maratha Confederacy—led by Sadashivrao Bhau and representing a vision of Hindu resurgence—against the invading forces of Afghan ruler Ahmad Shah Durrani (Abdali).
The Marathas, at the peak of their power, had marched north to consolidate their control over Delhi and counter Afghan incursions. Their army, numbering around 75,000–1,00,000 troops, boosted by artillery and Rajput allies, aimed to establish a Maratha empire in the north. Logistical strains, shortage of supplies, and internal divisions plagued the campaign. Abdali’s forces, estimated at 60,000 cavalry with superior mobility, exploited these weaknesses.
Eyewitness accounts recorded spoke of rivers running red, while a local grove of mango trees, irrigated by the bloodshed, came to be known as ‘Kala Amb’ or Black Mango, as trees supposedly turned dark from the blood. This place, now a sombre park under the Archaeological Survey of India, had long symbolised sacrifice and resilience.
The Kala Amb site gained prominence in 2017 when Maharashtra’s Tourism Department, under Minister Jaykumar Rawal, proposed developing a “Shaurya Museum” there. Though preliminary plans were in the works, it wasn’t until after the 2024 Maharashtra elections that momentum really picked up.
In January 2025, Fadnavis announced at the ‘Shaurya Divas’ event in Panipat that Maharashtra would fully support the renovations, and the construction of a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on the battlefield. He offered the idea of joint events in Haryana with CM Nayab Singh Saini to strengthen cultural ties.
What historians and political analysts say
Suraj Bhan Bhardwaj, a noted Indian historian who retired as principal of a Delhi University college in 2020, told ThePrint that the main objective of the project seems to be to woo Marathas in Maharashtra. However, there are several contradictions in the narrative being developed by the BJP governments in Haryana and Maharashtra.
“The first contradiction is that the Marathas who came to fight Ahmad Shah Abdali’s army in Panipat in 1761 were not the Marathas from Maharashtra whom the BJP wants to please by building a Shourya Memorial at Panipat now. The Marathas who came here were Scindias from Gwalior. The Marathas are categorised in five different dynasties. These were the Scindias of Gwalior, Holkars of Indore, Gaekwads of Baroda, Bhonsles of Satara, and Peshwas of Pune. The BJP’s objective is to please Peshwas and Bhonsles, but as a matter of fact, they didn’t even fight in the Third Battle of Panipat,” said Bhardwaj.
He said it was a historical fact that the Mughal emperor Shah Alam, and before him Alamgir -II (1757-1759), wrote to the Scindias that the Mughals were not militarily strong enough to fight Abdali and sought their help to defeat the Afghan invader.
“The Marathas, particularly the Scindias and Holkars, were the pre-eminent military power in India at that time, and not the Peshwas or Bhonsles. They had already entered into agreements with the Mughal Empire to defend it in exchange for the right to collect taxes (Chauth and Sardeshmukhi). This is the reason that Scindias’ army came all the way from Gwalior to fight against Abdali’s army. When the Scindias came, Shah Alam transferred the symbolic authority of his empire to them. Scindias didn’t have any direct fight against Ahmad Shah Abdali and they fought this battle, were defeated badly and lost thousands of their men to help the Mughal emperor, Shah Alam,” the noted historian explained.
Bhardwaj said that the Haryana Government joining hands with Maharashtra to set up the Shourya Memorial is another contradiction, because Maharaja Suraj Mal of Bharatpur, whose empire encompassed parts of modern-day Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, had advised Scindias against this battle and had not even participated in the battle.
“Maharaja Suraj Mal is often criticised in popular narrative, specially by those focussed on the Maratha side, for withdrawing his support and not fighting alongside Marathas in the Battle of Panipat in 1761. However, the historical facts present a more nuanced picture showing that Maharaja Suraj Mal had strategic differences with the Maratha commander Sadashivrao Bhau and his sound advice was ignored by the Marathas,” he said.
Bhardwaj said that it was also a historical fact that Maharaja Suraj Mal was not too happy with the Scindias because of the Sardeshmukhi (tax) and their demands which were increasing by the day. Even the Rajput Maharajas were not happy with the Marathas and that was the reason they decided to “sit in the lap” of the British.
“However, this doesn’t mean that Maharaja Suraj Mal didn’t play any role in the battle. After the Marathas lost the battle and were returning to Gwalior, Maharaja Suraj Mal and his wife Maharani Kishori went to the Scindias’ tent and provided shelter, clothes, food, and medical aid to the soldiers and non-combatants who fled Panipat,” Bhardwaj added.
Mahabir Jaglan, a political analyst, said that the construction of the Shaurya Memorial in Panipat by the Haryana and Maharashtra governments is an astute political ploy.
“The BJP government in Haryana which tries every trick in its possession to divide peasantry in the state would use it to wean away the influential Rors community which forms a dominant peasant caste in pockets along GT road. The caste based organisations of this community in the recent past have been claiming that Rors are descendants of Marathas,” said Jaglan when contacted by ThePrint.
He said that the farmers’ agitation in 2020 and 2021 and their continued protests thereafter on the issues of MSP and procurement of crop, crop failure compensation, flood damages, etc., regularly put the BJP government “in a tight spot”.
He said that the government always looked for an opportunity to divide the peasantry on caste and region, and singled out Jat and Jat Sikh peasant communities as trouble makers.
“The Maratha community for some time is at odds with Maharashtra government on account of its demands for reservation and farmers’ protests in the Marathwada region. The proposed Shaurya Memorial in Panipat in the memory of Maratha warriors in the Third Battle of Panipat would be used by the BJP to placate the Marathas. Furthermore, this project fits into the Hindutava agenda of BJP that leaves no opportunity to brand medieval Muslim rulers demons for Hindus,” Jaglan added.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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