Murarbaji Deshpande

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Murarbaji Deshpande was the Maratha Fort Commandant at Purandar. To break the morale of the Maratha troops, Dilerkhan launched a vicious attack on the fort and laid waste the surrounding countryside. The Mughals succeeded in forcing their way into the outer defenses of Purandar.

But the Marathas were not easily intimidated, they withdrew to the inner fort (bali-killa) and kept up their attack on the besieging Mughals. Murarbaji Deshpande decided to rain hell on the enemy and the Marathas stormed out of the fort and fell upon the Mughals who were occupying the outer fort. In face of the Maratha attack, the Mughals broke ranks and fled to their main camp in the plains below, where Dilerkhan was camping.

Seeing the ferocity of the Maratha attack, Dilerkhan decided to tempt Murarbaji Deshpande with an offer of making him a general in the Mughal army if he betrayed Shivaji. When news of this offer reached Murarbaji Deshpande, in the midst of the battle, his rage knew no bounds, and in a rash act he pushed into the ranks of the Mughal troops, hacking right, left and center towards Dilerkhan and shouted at him that he would reply to Diler's offer by cutting off his head and taking it to Shivaji Maharaj.

Murarbaji Deshpande had left his own troops behind and was now surrounded by Mughal troops on all sides, but he could only see Diler, whose head he wanted. This act was brave but rash and cost Murarbaji Deshpande his life. Their leader dead, the Marathas withdrew into the fort. The news of this battle and the passing away of Murarbaji Deshpande and the long drawn siege along with the destruction of the countryside forced Shivaji to reach out for a compromise with Jai Singh in the interests of the sufferring population of Maharashtra.

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