Draft:Battle of Thane and Bharuch

The first incursion by Arabs in India occurred around 636/7 AD, during the Rashidun Caliphate, long before any Arab army reached the frontier of India by land. Uthman ibn Abi al-As al-Thaqafi, the governor of Bahrain and Oman, had dispatched the naval expeditions against the ports and positions of the Sasanian Empire, and further east to the borders of India, as confirmed by the contemporary Armenian historian Sebeos who confirms Arab naval raids against the Sasanian littoral. .Rashidun Caliphate was defeated twice by The Chalukyas.

Context
Uthman, on his own initiative, according to the history of al-Baladhuri, had also launched the first two fleets of Arab naval raids against the ports of the Indian subcontinent, the first of these raids targeted Thane (a small town near Mumbai) and Bharuch (a city in Gujarat). The second raid targeted Debal (a town near Karachi).

The assault on Thane, the first Arab raid on India, was commanded by Uthman's brother al-Hakam, who also led the raid on Bharuch. The first set of raids were a failure, and forced the Arabs to retreat. The following raid on Debal was commanded by another brother, al-Mughira. The raids were probably launched in c. 636 according to al-Baladhuri. These expeditions were not sanctioned by Caliph Umar and Uthman escaped punishment only because there weren't many casualties.

The motivation for these expeditions may have been to seek plunder or to attack pirates to safeguard Arabian trade in the Arabian Sea, not to start the conquest of India. However scholars have also expressed the opinion all three raids were successfully repulsed. Arabs led by Suhail b. Abdi and Hakam al Taghilbi later defeated a Sindhi army in the Battle of Rasil in 644 beside the Indian Ocean sea coast, then reached the Indus River. Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab denied them permission to cross the river or operate in Makran and the Arabs returned home.

Battle
While situated in Oman, Usman orchestrated a naval campaign to capture Thana along the western coast of India. However, the Imperial Chalukyan Navy, led by Pulakeshin II, successfully thwarted the Arab-Islamic naval expedition. The first-ever Arab-Islamic raid on India met with resounding defeat as they were repulsed, compelling their retreat back to Oman. There is an alternate account that states the victory of Arabs at Tanah.

Background
The backdrop of the Battle of Thane is rooted in the early Arab raids targeting the coastal regions of India. Originating from their secure base in Oman, the Arabs launched expeditions, with one directed towards Tanah (Thana), located near Bombay, around 15 A.H. (A.D. 637). Simultaneously, similar campaigns were undertaken against Barwas (Broach) and the Gulf of Ad-Daibul, specifically at Debal. Historical records, such as those by Al-Baladhuri, highlight a Muslim victory at Debal, but remain silent on the outcomes of the other two raids. Contrarily, the Chach-nama recounts a different narrative, stating that the Muslims suffered defeat, and their leader was killed by the governor of Chach in the Battle of Debal. This period of early Arab incursions and their varying degrees of success laid the groundwork for the subsequent military actions, including the Battle of Thane, and influenced the evolving dynamics of Arab interactions with the Indian subcontinent.