Muhammad bin Indera (c. 1920 – 30 January 1953), nicknamedAhmad and widely known asMat Indera, was a Malay communist leader during theMalayan Emergency, and was a member ofMalayan Communist Party. He was aMuslim religious teacher ('ulama') before theOccupation of Japan inMalaya. He was renowned for leading 180 communists to launch a guerrilla assault on a police station during theBukit Kepong Incident, causing deaths of almost all police officers in the station. Following the guerilla attack, the ruling British authorities placed aM$ 75,000 bounty on his head – a large sum of money at the time, equivalent to approximately RM500,000 in 2020 ringgit.
He was said to be one of the descendants of Datuk Bentara Husin Lela, a hero ofSiak Sri Inderapura who was once Sultan Sharif's senior commander inSiak.[1]
On the night of 14 October 1952, Mat Indera was invited to a "meeting" by some acquaintances in Kampung Seri Medan, at which he was servedtempeh and coffee laced withDatura. After being incapacitated, he was handed over to the British, who charged him with crimes related to the Bukit Kepong incident. Mat Indera was subsequently found guilty and hanged at 11 pm on 30 January 1953 inTaiping Prison.[2][3]
On 21 August 2011,Mohamad Sabu, Deputy President ofPAS, made a controversial statement saying that Mat Indera, the leader of the communists during the Bukit Kepong Incident, was a national hero for fighting againstBritish rule.[4][5]
