Rhino Charge Guest Post | History of the Indian Population in Kenya

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Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Rhino Charge (A Kenya Kanga Mystery) by Victoria Tait. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!

A treacherous race to stop an extinction. A mysterious death linked to the past. Can a silver-haired sleuth track down the clues in time to save a life?

Rhino Charge (A Kenya Kanga Mystery)

by Victoria Tait

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Rhino Charge (A Kenya Kanga Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Publisher: Kanga Press (February 5, 2021)
Number of Pages: ~290

‘Mama Rose’ Hardie has always fought to conserve Kenya’s precious wildlife. Officiating at an off-road fundraising race in the iconic Maasai Mara, she’s shocked when a vehicle crash claims the life of a friend. And worse still, this was no accident…

When another friend is accused of plotting a deadly sabotage, the clever amateur sleuth vows to clear his name. But with motives between teams reaching deep into an unfortunate past, the determined woman must work fast to track down the wily killer. .

Can Rose catch the culprit before more lives are endangered?

Rhino Charge is the thrilling third tale in the Kenya Kanga cozy mystery series. If you like sharp heroines, suspenseful reveals, and iconic African settings, then you’ll love Victoria Tait’s breathtaking story.

Buy Rhino Charge to set a trap for a callous murderer today!

Character Guest Post From Marina Thakker: History of the Indian Population in Kenya

Hi, I’m Marina. I first met ‘Mama Rose’ at the Laikipia Conservation Conference at the Mount Kenya Resort and Spa in April.

I’m a Hindu and my ancestors came to Kenya with the colonial British at the end of the nineteenth century. Indian merchants had long established trading routes along the East African coast, but in 1887 the British East African Association was formed in Bombay. The following year it moved to Mombasa, on Kenya’s east coast.

In 1895 the British created the East Africa Protectorate. Its currency was the rupee, and its legal system was an extension of Indian law. Many Indians, mostly from the Gujarat region, came to Kenya to fill administrative roles, such as clerks and accounting, while men from the Punjab region took positions in the army and police force.

The main influx of Indians were labours, persuaded to sail to Kenya in boats and dhows, to build the Kenya to Uganda Railway. It is often referred to as the ‘Lunatic Line’. As if the long hours in the oppressive African heat, hostile locals and disease-ridden swamps weren’t enough, the labours also had to contend with a pair of man-eating lions in Tsavo.

Of the 32,000 Indian labourers recruited to work on the railway, 2,500 died, mostly from disease. After the construction of the railway many labourers settled and some brought their families from India, and following the route of the railway, they settled in areas with new economic possibilities.

The Indians were excluded from occupying the most favourable land in the White Highlands, which was reserved for British settlers. Instead, they moved to towns such as Kisumu, and Kenya’s new capital Nairobi, and set themselves up as merchants, businessmen and professionals.

The commercial skills of the Indians were a huge factor contributing to the economic development and prosperity of Kenya in the first half of the twentieth century. By 1962 the Indian community owned seventy-five percent of Kenya’s non-agricultural assets and dominated the business districts of many of the towns and cities, including Nairobi’s Biashara Street.

From the 1920’s the Indian community was represented on the legislative council in the British colony and in the 1950s many were at the forefront for increased rights from the British, including lawyers who represented those accused of having Mau Mau links.

However, when Kenya gained Independence in 1963 the Indian community soon found itself targeted with many losing their jobs in favour of black Africans. In 1967 they were required to apply for work permits and their geographical areas of trade were limited. The Indian population dropped from 179,000 to 78,000 by 1979, with most returning to India or settling in the UK with the British passports they had refused to give up.

Of the Indians in Kenya, the writer V.S. Naipaul commented, “the Indian in East Africa brought India with him and kept it inviolate.” The close knit community is inward, self-reliant, and has strong Indian ties and traditions.

I am excited to be amongst the new generation of Indians growing up in Kenya. We have been accused of not learning Kiswahili and not being part of the community, but this is not true. The Rhino Charge event is an example of how the Indian community can interact with the African and European communities in Kenya.

I am looking forward to July when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Mobi is visiting Nairobi. He is the first Prime Minister to visit since Indira Gandhi in 1982, and we hope it will boost the ties between India and East Africa.

(On the 22nd July 2017 President Uhuru Kenyatta officially recognised the Indian community as the 44th tribe in Kenya.)

Famous Indians In Kenya

Pio Gama Pinto – He was a journalist, politician, and freedom fighter who devoted his life to liberating Kenyan people from post-colonial dictatorship. Pio Gama Pinto was killed due to his outspoken way of living and became independent Kenya’s first martyr in 1965.
Makhan Singh – This Punjabi was the pioneer of trade unionism in Kenya. In 1927, he moved with his family to Nairobi from Punjab at a tender age of 13. Later in 1935, he formed the first trade union in Kenya and was quite active in the Ghadr/Kirti Party that struggled for Kenyan independence.
A R Kapila – Born in 1926, Aachhroo Ram Kapila was a prominent criminal lawyer of Kenyan Asian background. He is remembered in Kenya for his role in fighting for the rights and compensations of the Mau Mau Freedom Fighters during their independence struggle.
Fitz de Souza – He was a Kenyan Indian lawyer, who became a member of Parliament, and later deputy speaker of the Kenyan parliament.
Sunjeev ‘Sonia’ Kaur Birdi – She is a nominated member of the Kenyan Parliament and was the first Kenyan Asian woman to serve in the national legislature.

About Victoria Tait

Victoria Tait is the author of the enchanting Kenya Kanga Mystery series. She’s drawn on her 8 years of experience living in rural Kenya, with her family, to write vivid and evocative descriptions. Her readers feel the heat, taste the dryness, and smell the dust of Africa. Her elderly amateur sleuth, “Mama Rose” Hardie is Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple reincarnated and living in Kenya.

Like all good military wives, Victoria follows the beat of the drum and has recently moved to war-scarred Sarajevo in Bosnia. She has two fast growing teenage boys. She enjoys horse riding and mountain biking but is apprehensive about learning to ski. Victoria is looking forward to the sun, sand, and seafood of neighbouring Croatia when the world returns to normal.

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