CSS Forums - Is Arabs invasion of Sindh merely an episode in the history?

[CENTER][B][U]Is Arabs' invasion of Sindh merely an episode in the history?[/U][/B]

[B][U]Lecture delivered by Professor Irfan Waheed Usmani[/U][/B][/CENTER]

There is a controversy surrounding the Arabs’ invasion, which constitutes an important chapter in the history of the subcontinent. It is regarded as an insignificant event by certain historians e.g. [B]Wolsely Haig[/B] opines that [U][I]it only affected a small portion on the fringe of that territory.[/I][/U] He gave more importance to the religious factor.[LIST=1][*] [B]Professor Habib Ullah[/B] is of the view:
[I][U]Politically Sindh affair led to a dead end. It touched only a fringe of Indian continent and faint strings it produced were soon forgotten.[/U][/I][*] [B]Havell[/B] says:
[I][U]From political point of view, Arab conquest is insignificant.[/U][/I][*] [B]Tod[/B] deliberates:
[I][U]Muhammad Bin Qasim never penetrated to Chitor in the heartland of Rajputana.[/U][/I][*] [B]Lane Poole[/B] says:
[I][U]Arabs had conquered Sindh but the conquest was an episode in the history of Islam, a triumph without results.[/U][/I][/LIST]But, it is wrong to maintain that the Arabs conquest of the Sindh had no impact on India. There may be [B]4 -5 themes[/B] which can justify our claims and prove the importance of Arabs invasion in the annals of the Indian history.
[LIST=1][*]It [B][U]sowed the seeds of Islam in India[/U][/B], and hence the [B][U]Sindh was called Bab-ul-Islam[/U][/B].[*]The Arabs [B][U]influenced political, social, sociological life of people[/U][/B] of the Sindh.[*]The Arabs [B][U]were not actual conquers but they were the pathfinders[/U][/B] and it opened the gateway for future conquests.[*]The [B][U]conquest of Sindh was a great give and take (great cultural synthesis)[/U][/B]. Its marks are clearly visible on language, dress, customs and each and every aspect of people of Sindh.[*]It imparted political, cultural, religious, economic and intellectual impacts.[*]The modern day Sindh writing style [B][U](Rasm-ul-Khat)[/U][/B] resembles with that of Arabic.[/LIST][B]Conclusion[/B]
[LEFT]It was wrongly assumed that the Arabs’ conquest was an episode in history but the effects cannot be denied. Though the conquest couldn’t proceed farther from Multan but, it left indelible impacts on Indian subcontinent. The Sindh did not hold key to conquer India but it left significant impacts.[/LEFT]