A social media post has gone viral, claiming that on this day March 11, 1872, the great freedom fighter Sher Ali Afridi was hanged. The post further states that unlike Savarkar he never apologized. As a result, many social media users are referring to Sher Ali Afridi as a freedom fighter.
Chandani wrote, ‘On this day, 11 March 1872, the great freedom fighter “Sher Ali Afridi” was hanged. And yes, unlike Savarkar, he did not apologize…’Tributes of faith’’
Tanvir claimed, ‘On this day, 11 March 1872, the great freedom Fighter Sher Ali Afridi was hanged for the murder of a high ranking British officer, Viceroy Lord Mayo. And yes listen if these people had not waged jihad against the British then even today you black Britishers would have been cleaning the excreta of white people.’
Team Rising Falcons stated, ‘’Tributes of faith’ On this day, 11 March 1872, the great freedom fighter “Sher Ali Afridi” was hanged for the murder of India’s greatest British officer “Viceroy Lord Mayo”. Like Savarkar, he was also imprisoned in Andaman’s Cellular Jail but he never apologized.’
Mudasir Aimim also shared a similar claim.
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Our fact-checking process began with a thorough Google search on the topic. During our search, we found an article published by Amar Ujala on September 27, 2020. The article detailed the assassination of Lord Mayo, India’s fourth Viceroy, and the background of his killer, Sher Ali Afridi.
Sher Ali Afridi was a soldier in the British Indian Army and belonged to the Afridi tribe of the North-West Frontier Province (now in Pakistan). He had previously served in Punjab’s mounted police but was convicted of murdering his cousin, Haider, in Peshawar. Initially sentenced to death, his punishment was later reduced to life imprisonment in the Andamans. Before his execution, he stated that he did not consider avenging his family enemy a crime. Since receiving his sentence in 1869, he had vowed to take revenge by assassinating a high-ranking British official.
For three years, Sher Ali waited for the right opportunity. On February 8, 1872, upon hearing of Lord Mayo’s arrival, he spent the entire day sharpening his knife. Following Mayo’s assassination, Sher Ali was taken aboard the same ship carrying Mayo’s body. When British officers asked why he had committed the murder, he replied, “God commanded me.” When asked whether anyone had assisted him, he said, “No man was involved—only God.”
Professor Helen James of the Australian National University, in her research paper The Assassination of Lord Mayo: The First Jihad?, noted that Sher Ali had meticulously planned the attack. Before Mayo’s visit, he had bid farewell to his fellow inmates and spent all his money preparing meals for them—yet no one suspected what he was about to do.
Prior to his imprisonment, Sher Ali had served as a cavalry soldier under Major Hugh James and Reynell Taylor in Peshawar. Taylor had been so impressed by his service towards British army that he rewarded Sher Ali with a horse, a pistol, and a certificate of commendation. Sher Ali’s death sentence was reviewed by the Calcutta High Court and upheld on February 20, 1872. On March 11, 1872, he was executed by hanging on Viper Island.
Here are some points to keep in mind before drawing any conclusions:
1. Not a Freedom Fighter by Intent:
Sher Ali Afridi never stated that he killed Lord Mayo for India’s freedom. During his interrogation after the assassination, he said:
‘It was by God’s order that I killed him. I was only His instrument.’
This makes it clear that religious conviction, not patriotism, was his self-proclaimed reason.
2. Convicted Murderer Before Killing Mayo:
Before arriving at the Andaman Islands, Sher Ali was already serving a life sentence for murdering a fellow tribesman named Hyder. His sentence had nothing to do with political activism or resistance to British rule.
3. No Connection to Any Freedom Movement:
Sher Ali was not associated with any revolutionary or nationalist group.Not involved in the 1857 revolt or in later Indian nationalist movements. Acting entirely alone, without ideology or organizational support. There is zero evidence that his act was part of a broader anti-colonial struggle.
4. The Glorification is Revisionism:
Some modern writers and fringe websites label him a “freedom fighter” to inject communal or religious symbolism into the historical narrative. This distorts the documented motives. Disrespects actual revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh or Mangal Pandey who consciously fought for India’s freedom.
5. What the British Said:
Even the British, after investigating the killing, did not link Sher Ali to any conspiracy or revolutionary activity. His execution (by hanging) followed quickly, with no political outcry or rebellion in response—another sign he was not part of a larger movement.
Conclusion: Sher Ali assassination of Lord Mayo was not part of any organized struggle for India’s independence. Rather, Sher Ali was a staunch Islamist who blurred the lines between personal vengeance, law, and religious conviction. He was a convicted murderer who sought revenge against British authorities—not a revolutionary fighting for India’s freedom.
| Claim | Sher Ali Afridi was a freedom fighter |
| Claimed by | Social media user |
| Fact Check | Sher Ali Afridi was not a freedom fighter, but an assassin driven by personal vengeance, not a revolutionary against British rule. |
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