(Continued from previous blog) ...
Baba Bir Singh’s influence grew so immense that a volunteer army of 1200 musket men and 3000 horse attended upon him. On April 9th an earthquake struck Amritsar Sahib. Many took this as a
warning that the troubled situation in Panjab would soon be getting
much worse. The next week was Vaisakhi and tens of thousands of Sikhs flocked to Naurangabad. Baba Bir
Singh spoke about the importance of sovereignty and why all Sikhs must
work together to maintain Khalsa Raj. He inspired the Sangat to unite
under the Guru’s Nishan.
Raja Hira Singh was terrified of Baba Bir Singh. Not only was he
harbouring royals and nobles who directly threatened his position, he was also uniting the Siks against him. Mad with arrogance, Hira Singh ordered 20,000 troops to besiege Naurangabad. The regiment that
carried out the attack was commanded by General Court, a European
general with no loyalty to the Khalsa Panth.
"Oh, she is vindictive and ambitious alright, agreed Young, "I
doubt if Jalla and Hira Singh will survive for long. Rani's lover Misr
Lal Singh is on our payroll. Last week he informed us that Rani and her
brother Jawahar Singh are in communication with the Russians. This
treachery gives opportunity for the East India Company to annex Lahore"
Could the history have been different if the life Hira Singh Dogra was spared and he became a Khalsa after taking Amrit?
Raja Hira Singh Dogra
Heera Singh (1816-1844), prime minister of the Sikh Kingdom of
Lahore from 17 September 1843 to 21 December 1844. He was the eldest
son of Raja Dhian Singh Dogra, an influential courtier, who introduced him to his patron
Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The Maharaja took very favourably to the young boy, bestowing
upon him the title of Raja in 1828 and, then, proclaiming him
Farzand-i-Khas, (a favourite son). He granted him numerous jagirs (properties) which in total amounted to nearly five lakhs rupees (Rs500,000) annually. The wiley Maharaja Ranjit Singh was groominmg his grandson Kunwar Naunihal Singh to succeed him as the next Maharaja of Lahore and his Prime Minister Raja Dhian Singh Dogra was grooming his son Hira Singh to be the prime minister.
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| Maharaja Ranjit Singh with Hira Singh Dogra |
Rise as Prime Minister
After the assassination of Maharaja Sher Singh and Raja Dhian Singh at the hands of Sandhawala Sardars, Raja Hira Singh made a passionate appeal to the Khalsa Army, encouraging them to avenge the killing of Maharaja Sher Singh and Wazir Dhian Singh Dogra. The five-member Khalsa Army "Panchayat" ordered the killing of Sandhawala brothers Attar Singh and Lehna Singh.
Maharaja Ranjit Singh's five year old son was proclaimed as Maharaja Duleep Singh with Hira Singh as his prime minister on on 17 September 1843. He confiscated the properties of Sandhawalia sardars who were responsible
for the murders of Maharaja Sher Singh, Kunwvar Partap Singh and Raja
Dhian Singh. He also exiled his own uncle, Suchet Singh Dogra, from
Lahore, whom he considered as
rival to his new position.
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| Raja Hira Singh Dogra, Wazir of Lahore |
Pundit Jalla, the Wise Man
Soon after assuming the ofice of "Wazir-e-azam", Raja Hira Singh realized that the empire was in financial trouble as revenue was not collected since the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He relied on the advice of his tutor Pundit Jalla, a cunning Kashmiri Pundit based in Amritsar. Hira singh deputed Pundit Jalla to collect revenue from the Sikh Sardars, Jagirdars, Nawabs, and Rajas within the Lahore juridiction.
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| Pundit Jalla |
The agressive tax collection by Pundit Jalla became unpopular and resentment grew against Pundit Jalla and Raja Hira Singh. The Sikh aristocracy rallied behind Kunwar Pashaura Singh and Kunwar Kashmira Singh, the two remaining sons of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
Baba Bir Singh of Naurangabad
Baba Bir Singh was the head a Sikh Dera at Naurangabad, a small village near Taran Taran in Gurdaspur. This respected Dera was started by Baba Kaladhari, a Bedi descendent of Guru Nanak. During the anarchy at the Sikh court after the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Sikh soldiers and leadership began to turn to him for guidance. Many courtiers who opposed Hira Singh Dogra, the prime minister of the Sikh court, including Atar Singh Sandhawalia, Kunwar Kashmira Singh and Kunwar Peshaura Singh, Jawahar Singh Nalwa, son of the celebrated Hari Singh Nalwa, and Diwan Baisakha Singh also joined Bir Singh’s dera.
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| Bhai Maharaj Singh with Bhai Bir singh |
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| Naurangabad Dera of Baba Bir singh |
Baba Bir Singh, who, however, forbade his Sikhs to fight back saying, "How can we attack our own brethren?" Kunwar Kashmira Singh, Attar Singh Sandhawalia and hundreds of Bir Singh’s followers lost their lives in the heavy cannonade on May 7, 1844. A piece of mortar fired by Dogra army fell on Baba Bir Singh as he was sitting in service to Guru Granth Sahib. The damage to the sacred scripture annoyed the Sikhs and Hira Singh Dogra was labelled as "Guru-Maar". For this act Hira Singh Dogra had to pay for with his own life soon on December 21, 1844.
Rumors on Rani Jindan's Infidelity
The arrogant Pundit Jalla also annoyed Maharani Jindan by spreading false rumors about her infidility. He accused Maharani Jindan
of illicit relations with Misr Lal Singh. This
created a furore all over kingdom as she was mother of Maharaja Dilip Singh. The attack upon Baba Bir Singh and a rumored attempt to poison Maharani Jind Kaur aroused the ire of
the Sikh army. She challenged the Khalsa to rise up against the Dogra domination in Lahore.
The British were watching the development
from a distance. The following conversation between British officers Wilson and Young sums up the situation correctly:
"It was certainly unwise of him, said Wilson, "Rani
Jindan may be as randy as a ferret but she is a powerful wench with a
cruel streak in her, and a finely developed sense of retribution."
The Wrath of the Khalsa
The signs were omnious for the Dogra prince and his cunning tutor,
Pundit Jalla. His uncle Raja Suchet Singh rose against him and reached
Lahore to take over as the Prime Minister on invitation by Rani Jindan. Negotiations failed when Suchet Singh Dogra asked for
the removal of Pundit Jalla. Hira singh ordered attack on his uncle Suchet Singh camped at mausoleum of Mian Wadda, outside city. Hira Singh Dogra publically broke down on sight of
his uncle's bullet ridden body.
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| Khalsa Army chasing Hira Singh Dogra |
Sensing trouble, Hira Singh turned to his uncle Raja Gulab Singh Dogra of Jammu for help. Gulab Singh sent 1000 horsemen with his son Miyan Jawahar Singh to assist. Hira Singh abandoned Lahore, escaping with with 4,000 of his trusted
Dogra troops and several cartloads of gold, silver and jewels removed from Lahore Toshakhana, the
treasury. He crossed river Ravi from Shahdra and
were on their way to Jammu with the treasury. Khalsa army
pursued them and caught them about 14 miles away from city.
End of Hira Singh Dogra
The Sikh forces led by Maharani's brother Jawahar Singh and Sham Singh
Attarivala overtook Hira Singh on the way and captured him along with
Pundit Jalla, and his cousin Miyan Jawahar Singh, the son of Raja Gulab
Singh Dogra. Hira Singh Dogra understood the grave danger he was in and apologized for the
murders of princes and Bhai Bir Singh to the Khalsa. He even offered to take Amrit and become a Khalsa to prove his faithfulness to the Sikhs. The Sikhs for so enraged that all his pleas fell on deaf ears. Hira Singh Dogra was killed mercilessly along with his adviser,
Pundit Jalla and cousin Miyan Jawahar Singh, on 21 December 1844.
All 4,000 dogras were massacred. Pundit Jalla, Hira Singh Dogra were beheaded and their heads were carried on spears at the city streets of Lahore. Maharani's brother Jawahar Singh did not escape punishment for his role in the killing of Kunwar Kashmira Singh and Pishaura Singh. He was speared in front of his sister on the order of Khalsa Panchayat. Diwan Deena
Nath, aristocrat of Lahore took charge of the situation and appointed
Misr Lal Singh as prime minister of Punjab, and Maharani Jindan as the Regent for the young Maharaja Duleep Singh.
My Observations
Intrigues of Dogra brothers for their own selfish means and inability of any Sikh aristocracy to unite was the main reason for demise of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's Sarkar Khalsa. Hira Singh was an able administrator who knew revenue collection was critcal to maintain the Sikh army. His first mistake was to rely on the advice of Pundit Jalla whose arrogance alienated the Sikh aristocracy. His second mistake was to attack the Dera of Baba Bir Singh. The damaged to Sri Guru Granth Sahib during the attack, marked him as "Guru-Maar" and sealed his desitny.Could the history have been different if the life Hira Singh Dogra was spared and he became a Khalsa after taking Amrit?
What i have found odd about all this scheming and killing at the court of Lahore is that no Sikh general took it upon himself to wipe the whole Dogra component out through assassination or a mass attack. In the first Anglo Sikh war as well. Why didn't one soldier go and kill Lal or Tej Singh? They knew they were traitors but did not kill them. One last bit, Rani Jindan was a snake. Were the Khalsa blind to her character and all the others? Her brother had one of Ranjit Singh's sons assassinated, why the army killed him, in retribution of his murder. But she swore revenge on them. The mind of venom.
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