- "Our true king has been silenced. The one you recognize is a traitor and a Separatist minion."
- ―Saw Gerrera
Sanjay Rash, self-stylized as His Royal Majesty King Sanjay Rash, was a tyrannical Human male who was King of Onderon during the Clone Wars and had ties with the Separatist Alliance.
Biography[]
Rebellion[]
Sanjay Rash was a Human male and Onderon native who was affiliated with the Confederacy of Independent Systems during the Clone Wars. The legitimate king, Ramsis Dendup, was dethroned by Rash who then took power as a puppet ruler, so that the Separatists would have control of Onderon by proxy.
Around 20 BBY, some citizens of Onderon decided to rebel against Rash's droid occupation, forming the Onderon rebels. After they infiltrated Iziz, and started hit-and-run attacks on the droid army, Rash brought Dendup from his prison, accusing him of orchestrating the rebellion, which he denounced as terrorism, and demanded that he call them off. Dendup denied these accusations, pointing out that he has been in solitary confinement, allowed no contact with anyone, and insists that the people themselves are rising against Rash's rule. He suggested that Rash, as acting king, could end their rebellion by ending the droid occupation.
As night fell, the rebels destroyed the city power generator, enabling them to ambush the droids under cover of night while winning the people's support. As Rash's Bivall aide Okalin informed him that his royal carriage was ambushed, Rash decided to make the chaos work in his favor and contacted Count Dooku, requesting more troops to defeat the growing rebellion, who pledged his support and promised to send a force led by Kalani, who would be a replacement general leading the army.
As the rebels began to step up their attacks, General Tandin identified Steela Gerrera, her brother Saw and Lux Bonteri as key members of the rebellion. Tandin suggested that the Onderon militia be allowed to handle the rebels, to which Kalani denied, stating that the rebels may have sympathizers amongst the Onderonian military ranks. Rash then summoned Dendup, once again demanding he call the rebellion off, to which the deposed king repeated he had no hand in starting.
Downfall[]
The next day, Rash planned on publicly executing Dendup, along with Saw, who was captured attempting to rescue the deposed king. It was Rash's intention to demoralize the rebellion, as well as capture the rebels who attempt to rescue him. As soon as the rebels made their move, they were surrounded by droids and forced to surrender. But before Rash could proceed with the execution, Tandin and the military chose to rescue the rebels, having been convinced by Saw that Rash was not acting in Onderon's best interest. Tandin held Rash hostage, allowing Dendup, the rebels and his men to flee, even as Rash reminds the general that he'll be killed once he releases him. However, Jedi Ahsoka Tano emerged from the crowd and used the Force to knock down the droids, enabling Tandin and herself to escape. Rash's droids attempted pursuit, but the populace chose to impede them, openly declaring their support to the rebellion.
The rebels soon prepared for their final battle to take back the planet. Rash and Kalani sent a large force of battle droids and Heavy Missile Platform droid gunships to combat them. While the rebels were outnumbered, they seemed to have the upper hand, managing to destroy the gunships with rocket launchers.
At some point after this final skirmish, Dooku contacted Rash and Kalani. Rash quickly explained what had happened and that they would need even more help to defeat the rebels. Dooku coldly refused, not wanting another war to deal with. He commanded Kalani to call back all of the droid forces from the planet. As Rash angrily protested, Kalani shot the deluded king, killing him. Okalin quickly raised his hands, not wanting to suffer the same fate.
The droids did retreat from the planet, freeing Onderon and having Ramsis Dendup reclaim his rightful place as the king.
Personality and traits[]
Sanjay Rash was a selfish and cruel leader, having made citizens riot and protest against his Separatist occupation in the planet. Rash was also arrogant, considering himself to be the true king of Onderon when he was really a puppet of the Confederacy. Regardless, he was so paranoid and afraid of losing his power that he believed Dendup was orchestrating the Onderon rebels despite being imprisoned and having no ability to communicate outside his confinement, ignoring Dendup's words that he was innocent and that the attacks were the will of the people, not his own, even as Rash demanded Dendup order the rebels to stand down.
Behind the scenes[]
King Sanjay Rash is voiced in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series by Kirk Thornton.
Appearances[]
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "A War on Two Fronts" (First appearance) (In flashback(s))
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Front Runners"
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "The Soft War"
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Tipping Points"
Sources[]
- "Front Runners" – The Clone Wars Episode Guide on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- "A War on Two Fronts" - The Clone Wars Episode Guide on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link) (First mentioned) (Indirect mention only)
- "The Soft War" – The Clone Wars Episode Guide on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- "Tipping Points" – The Clone Wars Episode Guide on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars Comic 6.46
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars Magazine 22
- dalgo in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link) (Indirect mention only)
- King Ramsis Dendup in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link)
- King Sanjay Rash in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Mina Bonteri in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Okalin in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Onderon in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Onderon rebels in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link) (Indirect mention only)
- ruping in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Saw Gerrera in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link) (First identified as Sanjay Rash)
- Steela Gerrera in the Encyclopedia (content now obsolete; backup link) (Misspelled as "Sanjay Rush")
Notes and references[]
External links[]
- The Clone Wars (@TheCloneWars) on Twitter: "The King of Onderon has spoken. What is your take on the Onderon Rebels: Patriots or Traitors? #CloneWars" (backup link)