The Bandit of Zhobe

When a British outpost in the Northwest sector of India is overrun by a band of renegades, Major Crowley, the commander of British troops at Fort Murdoch, suspects that chieftain Kasim Khan may be responsible for the attack. Accompanied by a small regiment, Crowley rides to Kasim's village where he announces that the leader is under arrest for questioning. After saying goodbye to his wife and infant son, Kasim escapes with the British soldiers in pursuit. Soon after, Azhad Khan, a rival leader and religious zealot, orders his men to dress as British soldiers and ravage Khan's village. When Kasim learns that his wife and children were killed in the attack, he vows vengeance on the British, unaware that his true enemy is Azhad. In reprisal, Kasim and his men initiate a series of raids on British caravans and patrols. As a result, a 50,000 rupee reward is put on Kasim's head, and Crowley assigns Lt. Tom Wylie to find him. Before leaving on his mission, Wylie proposes marriage to Crowley's daughter Zena, who then expresses her distaste for killing and ambivalence about marrying a soldier. Soon after entering enemy territory, Wylie is captured by Kasim's men and Kasim rides to Fort Murdoch to demand 50,000 rupees for Wylie's safe return. After receiving the money from Crowley, Kasim rides back to camp and orders Hussu, one of his men, to escort Wylie back to Fort Murdoch. Unknown to Kasim, Hussu is secretly working for Azhad, and on the way to the fort, stabs Wylie and frames Kasim for the murder. When news comes of Wylie's death, Kasim realizes that Hussu is a traitor and shoots him. On the night after Wylie is buried, Zena strolls outside the gates of her house in Peshawar and encounters Kasim, who denies killing Wylie and accuses her "father's people" of murdering his wife and son. After Kasim returns the 50,000 rupees and flees, Zena reports Kasim's words to her father and voices her belief that Kasim is innocent. Feeling responsible for Wylie's death, Crowley plans to ambush Kasim by disguising his troops as members of a caravan. When Kasim charges out of the hills, the British uncover their rifles and begin firing. Kasim gallops off on horseback, and when Crowley pursues him, he shoots the major's horse. Zena, disgusted by her father's tactics, denounces him when he returns to the fort and, on a hunch, suggests that Azhad is the real traitor. When Crowley replies that Azhad has signed a pact with the British and is therefore beyond reproach, Zena chastises her father for failing to offer Kasim a chance for peace. Later that night, Zena arranges for Stokes, the corporal assigned by her father to be her escort, to accompany her on a journey to locate Kasim. By morning, Azhad's men have found them and take Zena prisoner, leaving Stokes behind. When Kasim learns of Zena's peril, he rides to Azhad's camp and demands that she be released. Instead, Azhad takes Kasim prisoner and locks him in a cage. Azhad's men then arrive with the captured Zena, and Azhad orders her burned at the stake. Meanwhile, Stokes, after donning Arab robes, infiltrates the camp and frees Kasim. After Stokes stampedes the horses to create a diversion for their escape, Kasim cuts Zena down from the stake and takes her and Stokes to his camp. There he informs her that he plans to attack Peshawar. That night, Stokes escapes from Kasim's camp and is found by Capt. Saunders, one of the officers from Fort Murdoch, who takes him back to the fort. After Kasim's men attack Peshawar, Crowley returns to his house and finds his servants murdered and a note from Kasim saying that he will spare Zena's life in exchange for Crowley. Crowley asks Stokes to lead him back to Kasim's camp, and as they head out, Saunders disobeys orders and decides to follow them with a regiment. Meanwhile, Zena begs Kasim to spare her father's life, and when she asserts that Azhad is the murderer he is seeking, Kasim realizes that she is right. When Crowley is captured by Kasim's men, he orders Stokes to wait at the camp's edge. Kasim sends Zena to Stokes, and as they escape, Saunders arrives with his troops. After Kasim releases Crowley and announces that Azhad is their true enemy, his men think that he has succumbed to Zena's charms and rebel. In the ensuing battle, Saunders' troops overpower Kasim's men. When Kasim asks Crowley to release him just long enough to kill Azhad, Crowley states that Kasim must pay for his crimes and reluctantly arrests him. Following Crowley's return to the fort, word comes of an impending attack by Azhad. As Crowley sends for reinforcements, Kasim breaks free, leaps onto a horse and gallops out of the fort to confront Azhad. While Saunders engages Azhad's men just outside the fort, Kasim charges into the melee and begins dueling with Azhad. When Hatti, one of Azhad's men, stabs Kasim in the back, the wounded Kasim pulls Azhad off his horse and strangles him to death. Crowley, who has joined the battle, shoots Hatti as he attempts to stab Kasim again, after which Kasim smiles at Crowley and dies. Some time later, Zena, accompanied by Stokes, visits her wounded father at the hospital and gives him a bouquet of flowers. After asking Zena to place the flowers on Kasim's grave, Crowley turns to Stokes and informs him that he has been promoted to sergeant.