The fort of Rohtas was historically known to have been won over by Sher Shah Suri from a Hindu king by means of some deceit, and the gain of this fort had made him very strong. It was only after winning Rohtas that he could gradually conquer the seat of Delhi, and thus being much impressed by the magnificence of this Fort, he constructed a simlar fort with the same name on the banks of the Jhelum in present Pakistan. The Pakistani Rohtas Fort is included in the UNESCO list of world heritage sites.

This Fort quite prominent in historical times was still deeply associated with the several tribes residing on the hills. While the Oraons believed it to have been the place of their origin and also worshipped it and celebrated festivals in it, the Kharwars had retained memories of their rule from the fort which also bore inscriptions of the medieval age attesting Kharwar suzerainty as custodians of the present area of Shahabad and adjoining districts of Palamu and Garhwa.

Oraon folk songs mention and remember the rule of Oraons from the fort. Rohtas had also been for some time in the past as the capital of the area which now included the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa and W. Bengal and Bangladesh. During Akbar’s reign, Raja Mansingh used the fort as the administrative capital to govern this whole territory. 

To be continued.....