The RAJPUT-SIKH Relations
During the Eighteenth Century
Rajputana,
the land of Rajputs lies towards the south-west of Punjab – the home of Sikhs.
Though, there were so many thikanas of Rajputs, sprinkled all over
Rajputana, yet the ruling houses of Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Jaisalmer,
Udaipur, Kota and Bundi were the prominent ones which mattered in the politics
of medieval India. Except the Ranas of Udaipur, almost all the ruling houses of
Rajputs had joined the mansabdari system to serve the Mughal state.
Since the times of Emperor Akbar, Lakhi Jungle, the south-western tract of
Punjab had often been held by the Bikaner house as a part of their jagir
that they had got in lieu of their services rendered to the Mughals. No doubt
the Rajputs were the immediate neighbours of the Sikhs or vice-versa and they
often came into contact with one and another but very little is known about the
relations between these two great people. Interestingly, almost all the
historical works written so far are totally silent over this issue. The present
study is a preliminary attempt which looks into the nature of relations between
the Rajputs and the Sikhs, especially during the eighteenth century. It also
makes use of the contemporary Rajasthani source material which has remained
unnoticed so far.
Early Contacts
In
the Janamsakhi tradition there are scores of references that during one of his
sojourns in India, Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism visited the land of
Bikaner or the country of Rajputs and had a dialogue with the Vaishnavites
there. However, all the places visited by Guru Nanak and the persons who came
into contact with him are still shrouded in mystery. There exists a Sikh
religious center commemorating Guru Nanak’s visit to Kolayat, an ancient town
in the south-west of Bikaner.
It is equally note-worthy that sacred hymns of Guru Nanak had traveled to
Rajputana quite at an early stage, chiefly through the musicians who used to
perform kirtan at religious festivals. There are scores of Rajasthani
manuscripts dating back to the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century in
which the hymns of Guru Nanak are found recorded in Devnagari script. It
suggests that Guru Nanak’s Bani and its message were not altogether unknown to
e people of Rajputana.
On
close examination of the Sikh literature one can discern that the two prominent
personalities of Bhakti tradition namely, Dhanna (Jat) and Pipa (Rajput)
belonging to Rajasthan have been highly appreciated for their spiritual
perfection. Their writings had found their way into the early Sikh scriptural
tradition. In 1604, these writings found acceptance with Guru Arjan when he was
preparing the canonical text of the Sikh Scripture. Therefore the writings of
these two figures of Rajasthan have found permanent abode in the Sikh Scripture
for the benefit of humanity at large. It exhibits the all-embracing nature of
the message of Sikh Scripture which was an open invitation to all the races
including the people of Rajputana that they are welcome to fathom the wisdom of
Sikh Gurus and their Bhaktas.
It
is an established fact that after the war of succession in 1658, emperor
Aurangzeb took keen interest in the religious affairs of the Sikhs. In fact he
desired to place a person of his choice on the Guruship of Sikh Panth. Firstly,
he kept Ram Rai, son of Guru Har Rai as a hostage in the Mughal court. Later on
when Guru Har Rai expelled Ram Rai from the Sikh Panth for altering the Bani of
Guru Nanak, Aurangzeb guaranteed a jagir to Ram Rai in the Dehra Dun
hills. Obviously to rehabilitate him and to use him to check mates the growing
influence of Sikhism. In pursuance of his policy to interfere in the religious
affairs of the Sikh community, Aurangzeb summoned Guru Harkrishan to the Mughal
court though he was a child and had committed no offence. The Sikh sources
describe that during his visit to Delhi,
Guru Harkrishan stayed in the mansion
of Mirza Raja Jai Singh
of Jaipur. These sources eulogize the Rani of Jaipur for looking after the Guru
and providing all the hospitality. In November 1665, Aurangzeb got arrested
Guru Tegh Bahadur and brought him to Delhi.
It is said; Raja Ram Singh of Jaipur intervened on behalf of the Guru and got
him released from the Mughal custody on the condition that instead of going
back to Punjab he would preach his mission in the north-east. Subsequently,
Guru Tegh Bahadur left for his sojourn in the north-east and his missionary
work in the provinces of Bihar, Bengal and Assam which is well known to the
students of history. Our sources confirm that during his tour in the
north-east, he remained for a short while in the company of Raja Ram Singh of
Jaipur who happened to be there to lead a military expedition against the
Ahoms. It is believed; Guru Tegh Bahadur played a major role to boost the
morale of Rajput soldiers to face the occult powers of the Ahoms. It is said
Guru Tegh Bahadur was instrumental to bring around the Ahoms for negotiation
which resulted in the cease-fire.
After
the creation of Khalsa in 1699 Guru Gobind Singh came into clash with the hill
chiefs whom turned into a battle between Guru Gobind Singh and the Mughal subedars
of Punjab. Subsequently, on the promise of safe passage, in December 1705 tenth
Guru vacated Anandpur Sahib. However, it turned out to be a breach of faith on
the part of Mughals which resulted in the martyrdom of Sahibzadas besides
hundreds of devout Sikhs. In order to apprise Aurangzeb, the injustice done to
him by his subedars, Guru wrote a letter of victory (Zafarnama)
which was delivered to the Emperor who at that time was in the Deccan.
Guru Gobind Singh’s Sojourn in Rajputana
On the invitation of
Aurangzeb, in October 1707 Guru Gobind Singh left for Deccan with the soul
objective to have a dialogue on the issue of injustice done to him. Though, the
Emperor had directed the Mughal officials of Punjab to facilitate Guru Gobind
Singh for his onward journey to Deccan, yet instead of getting any help from
the Mughals, Guru Gobind Singh followed unconventional path which passed
through Rajputana. Obviously, journey through Rajputana was a bit hazardous but
in Guru’s mind his safety and well-being of his Sikhs were the top most
priorities. For that he depended on the people of Rajputana instead of
believing the Mughals. We are told by the Sikh sources that during his journey
towards Deccan, Guru Gobind Singh stayed at
Nohar (district Hanumangarh) and Sahawa (district Churu) where Gurudwaras have
come up at the places sanctified by the tenth Guru. Even the footprints of the
Guru’s party and beast of burden are still preserved in gypsum on the banks of
a pond in Sahawa.
We are informed that Guru
Gobind Singh halted at Dudu, which was a prominent center of the Dadupanthis.
Here Dadupanthi saint Jait Ram played host to the Guru and his party and had a
dialogue over the issue of use of force.
Guru Gobind Singh explained to Jait Ram that to remain always non-violent
is not in the interest of mankind. Instead of submission evil forces must be
resisted. Perhaps this dialogue between Guru Gobind Singh and Jait Ram proved
to be a turning point in the history of Dadupanth. Ever since its origin, the
Dadupanth has been a pacifist movement observing the norms of Ahimsa but in the
eighteenth century we observe Dadupanthi disciples who had taken arms to
organize themselves into armed bands. Significantly, it was during his
discourse with Jait Ram, Guru Gobind Singh came to know about the presence of
Madho Das in Nanded who later on joined the ranks of Khalsa to serve the Panth
in the name of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur. During his sojourn in Rajputana, Guru
Gobind Singh also visited Pushkar, an ancient pilgrimage center. A Gurdwara
commemorating the visit of Guru has come up on the banks of Pushkar Lake.
Another Gurdwara in the memory of Guru’s journey towards Deccan has also come
up at Baghaur. Except the above mentioned places nothing is known about the
places associated with Guru Gobind Singh’s sojourn in Rajputana. According to
the Sikh sources, Guru Gobind Singh was at Baghaur when he heard the news of
Aurangzeb’s death at Aurangabad on Feb 20, 1707. As Aurangzeb had divided his
empire among his sons therefore war of succession was very much imminent.
Consequently, the political situation at the Mughal court was quite fluid
therefore for the Guru to continue his onward journey to Deccan
was of no avail. In these circumstances Guru Gobind Singh suspended his journey
to Deccan and set off for Delhi.
Shahzada Muhammad Muazzam
(later on Bahadur Shah) was at Jamrud in N.W.F.P. when he got the news of his
father, emperor Aurangzeb’s death. He immediately rushed back to Agra and en
route reached Delhi on June 1, 1707. In the meantime Guru Gobind Singh had also
arrived at Delhi.
According to the Sikh sources Bahadur Shah sought help from the Guru to ascend
the Mughal throne of Agra.
It is said Guru Gobind Singh dispatched a party of his armed Sikhs to support
Bahadur Shah in his war of succession. On June 8, 1707 Bahadur Shah defeated his brother
Azam Shah in the battle of Jajau and captured the Mughal throne of Agra. The Mughal as well
as the Sikh chronicles inform that Guru Gobind Singh had a meeting with Bahadur
Shah at Agra.
The meeting was held in a very cordial atmosphere and some gifts were also
exchanged. It looks quite plausible that during his meeting with Bahadur Shah,
Guru Gobind Singh demanded punishment to the Mughal officials responsible for
the injustice done to him, his family and the Sikhs.
Though, Bahadur Shah had
occupied the throne, yet he was not fully secure on it. He was obliged to Wazir
Khan, the subedar of Sarhind and the chief culprit of Guru, for raising
a huge amount to finance the war of succession. Therefore to take action
against Wazir Khan and his associates for committing atrocities on the Guru and
his family was most unlikely. At the same time Bahadur Shah didn’t want to give
impression to Guru Gobind Singh that he is totally unconvinced and unconcerned
of his demand of justice. Instead of taking any instant decision, the Emperor
thought of to engage the Guru in a prolonged dialogue, obviously to make a bid
for time. In the meantime political scenario in Rajputana had changed a lot.
Rana Amar Singh of Udaipur
had not bothered to come personally and congratulate the new Emperor. Mirza
Raja Swai Jai Singh of Jaipur had espoused the cause of Azam Shah before the
battle of Jajau. A dispute between him and his younger brother, Kanwar Bijai
Singh had arisen over the issue of succession. It prompted Bahadur Shah to
annex the state of Jaipur to the Mughal Empire. Obviously Mirza Raja Jai Singh
was looking for an opportunity to regain it. Significantly, the Rajputs of
Jodhpur under the lead of Raja Ajit Singh had ejected the Mughal officials from
Jodhpur. All these factors suggest that Rajputana was simmering with
discontent. It compelled Bahadur Shah to nip the Rajput revolt in the bud.
Accordingly he set off from Agra
(November, 1707) to arrive at Amber on January 20, 1708. While he was on his way to Ajmer, Bahadur Shah got
report from the Deccan that Muhammad Kam
Bakhsh had declared himself independent. “From this time he resolved as soon as
he had dealt with the Jodhpur to march into the Deccan to suppress Kam Bakhsh.”
As the matter of Muhammad Kam
Bakhsh who had claimed himself emperor in the Deccan, was more serious and
demanded urgent attention therefore instead of getting bogged down in the
desert of Rajputana, Bahadur Shah adopted conciliatory approach to strike peace
with the Rajputs. On April 2,
1708 Bahadur Shah left Ajmer
for his onward journey to the Deccan. Before
leaving Ajmer, he made sure that Raja Sawai Jai Singh of Jaipur and Raja Ajit
Singh of Jodhpur should not be left behind to awake the crises again. Therefore
he took along with him both the Rajas. According to William Irvine, “there
acquiescence in the semi-captivity was apparently nothing but a mask for
further plans.” Very truly, when the royal entourage was in the vicinity of pargana
Mandeshwar of central Malwa that on April 30, 1708, Rajas were successful to
make good their escape to surface a month afterwards (May 30, 1708) at Udaipur.
Here the three Rajput chiefs- Rana Amar Singh of Udaipur, Raja Sawai Jai Singh
of Jaipur and Raja Ajit Singh of Jodhpur entered into an agreement for joint
resistance to the Mughals. Now we must leave Bahadur Shah’s march into the
Deccan to resume our subject of enquiry to see what Guru Gobind Singh had been
doing after his meeting with Bahadur Shah at Agra in July 1707.
A news in the Akhbar-i-Darbar-i-Mualla
of July 24, 1707 informs that “in response to the Emperor’s instructions
[Guru] Gobind [Singh], [the 9th] successor of Guru Nanak, came duly
armed and joined his company. The Guru made a nazar of one thousand gold
mohars to the Emperor and received in return a khillat, robe of
honour and a medal studded with precious jewels as a present and got his
leave.” The above meeting finds mention in the hukamnamas of Guru Gobind
Singh written on October 2, 1707 to the sangats of Dhaul and Khara wherein
he refers to some “other things which were progressing satisfactorily.” On the
basis of above two documents we can safely infer that Guru Gobind Singh was
pleased with the interview, friendly negotiations were in progress and on the
termination of it he desired to see the whole of Khalsa assembled again in
Kehloor. Khafi Khan, a contemporary historian reports that during Bahadur
Shah’s march to Deccan, Guru Gobind Singh with two or three hundred spearmen,
came to the Emperor and accompanied him. According to the author of Tarikh-i-Bahadurshahi,
“Guru Gobind Singh one of the descendants of [Guru] Nanak had come into these
districts to travel and accompanied the royal camp. He was in the habit of
constantly addressing assemblies of worldly persons, religious fanatics and all
sorts of people.” On the basis of above evidence we can say that Guru Gobind
Singh accompanied Bahadur Shah to Rajputana. It means for about six months
(November 1707 to April 1708) Guru Gobind Singh remained in Rajputana. As told
by Khafi Khan Guru Gobind Singh occasionally separated himself form the royal
camp to preach his mission. It is most probably that the Guru came into contact
with Dadupanthi saint Jait Ram and taught him that instead of submission evil
must be resisted. As described earlier henceforth Dadupanthi disciples took to
arms and organized themselves into armed bands. It can largely be attributed to
the influence of Guru Gobind Singh. Khafi Khan also informs that Guru Gobind
Singh used to address assemblies of worldly persons and all sort of people. It
suggests that many of the Rajputs, a warrior class had got fascinated to Guru
Gobind Singh’s spirit of defiance. It is also believed that the confederacy of
the Rajput chiefs that they had formed at Udaipur to fight the Mughals jointly,
was also the outcome of Guru Gobind Singh’s influence to which they might have
been exposed while coming into contact with him.
Attempts to Form Sikh–Rajput
Alliance
Since October 1707 Guru Gobind
Singh had been in the company of Bahadur Shah. He traveled with the Emperor to
Rajputana and then to Deccan solely for his
own purpose. At last he realized that the Emperor would not redress the wrongs
done to him by the Mughal officials of Punjab.
Therefore in the beginning of September, 1708 Guru Gobind Singh separated
himself from the Emperor to encamp at Nander. Here he met Madho Das, a bairagi
and converted him into the order of Khalsa and renamed him Banda Singh. Before
his demise on October 7,
1708 at Nander, Guru Gobind Singh sent Banda Singh to the Punjab to carry on the struggle against the Mughals. On
the other hand when Bahadur Shah was busy in the Deccan,
Raja Ajit Singh had expelled the Mughal faujdar from Jodhpur to reoccupy it. Similarly, in August
1708 Raja Jai Singh had taken possession of Amber after driving away the Mughal
forces stationed there. The Mughal faujdars of Mewat, Narnaul and Ajmer
were unable to control the Rajput insurrection. It compelled Bahadur Shah to
make haste to Rajputana. Accordingly, he crossed Narbada
on December 25, 1709
to reach in the vicinity of Ajmer
on May 15, 1710.
On the intercession of Shahzada Azim-ush-Shan, Bahadur Shah again resorted to
conciliatory approach to settle the issue with the Rajputs. When the
negotiations with the Rajputs were going on, the Sikhs under the leadership of
Banda Singh Bahadur had taken possession of Sarhind on May 22, 1710. Bahadur Shah thought of
to resolve the Rajput crisis at the earliest as uprising of the Sikhs was more
serious and of more far reaching consequences.
The first news of the Sikh
outbreak was brought to Bahadur Shah on May 30, 1710 when he was approaching
Ajmer on his return march from the Deccan. On June 21, 1710 having patched up with the
Rajputs, Bahadur Shah devoted his full attention to the new trouble in Punjab. Our sources confirm that the Sikhs had routed the
army of Wazir Khan, the faujdar of Sarhind and were successful to
liberate a considerable area falling under the chakla of Sarhind.
Towards the end of 1710 the Sikhs had become virtually the master of a large
tract extending from Panipat to Pathankot. The Mughal commanders who were
assigned the military campaign to subdue the Sikhs, had very little or limited
success. It brought the Emperor to the battle scene in the Punjab
to personally supervise the campaign against Banda Singh Bahadur. The alacrity
with which Banda Singh Bahadur moved from one place to another coupled with his
power to strike the Mughal centers of power was a serious challenge to the
Mughal authority. Bahadur Shah was compelled to mobilize all the military power
including that of the Rajputs in order to subdue the Sikhs.
Banda Singh Bahadur was not
only a military commander but a statesman also. To overthrow the Mughal empire
which had vast resources of men and material, was not an easy task. He knew his
ability and limitations as well. Exhibiting the qualities of a true statesman,
Banda Singh Bahadur worked out a strategy to get together all the forces that
were reeling under the atrocitious and unjust rule of the Mughals. In the
immediate neighborhood of Punjab, Banda Singh
Bahadur entered into tacit understanding with the hill chiefs who were somewhat
dissatisfied with the Mughals. “It was with his tactfulness and statesmanship
and the demonstration of use of force that Banda Singh Bahadur made the hill
chiefs his allies. It provided him easy excess to the hills.” In this manner he
has no cause to worry from the hill chiefs who ruled from Sirmour in the east
to Jammu in the
north-west of Punjab. We observe when the
exigency demanded Banda Singh Bahadur often went into the hills to avoid open
and protracted battles with the Mughals. We have already seen how the
dissatisfied Rajput chiefs had formed triple alliance to fight against the
Mughals. Though, Bahadur Shah had patched up with the Rajputs yet Banda Singh
Bahadur knew the fragility of peace in Rajputana. In this situation Banda Singh
Bahadur took initiative to form the Sikh Rajput alliance, which was of great
significance, and advantageous to both the parties. Infact Banda Singh Bahadur aspired to
capitalize upon the discontent of Raja Jai Singh and Raja Ajit Singh over their
fortunes under Bahadur Shah. Our sources confirm that as early as May 1710 i.e.
before the takeover of Sarhind Banda Singh Bahadur had opened his communication
channels with the Rajput chiefs of Jaipur and Jodhpur. According to a news that
appeared in the Darbar-i-Akhbar-i-Mualla of May 28, 1710 "it was
brought to the notice of the Emperor that Raja Jai Singh and Raja Ajit Singh
had got the letters of Guru [Banda Singh Bahadur] and their replies had been
dispatched to him". Though the contents of these letters are not known yet
we can foresee that Banda Singh Bahadur was very anxious to from a Sikh–Rajput
alliance to overthrow the unjust Mughal rule.
In order to restore Mughal
rule in Punjab as well as to subdue the Sikhs towards the end of December 1710,
Bahadur Shah had encamped at Sadhaura. However Banda Singh Bahadur escaped into
the Sirmour hills to appear in the Bari Doab. Even Lahore, the provincial
capital city was not safe from the Sikhs. In these circumstances the Emperor
haste into Lahore
to remain there till his death in February 1712. From the very beginning
Bahadur Shah desired that Raja Jai Singh and Raja Ajit Singh must join the Mughal
expedition against the Sikhs. From December 26, 1710 onward we come across
numerous express orders of the Emperor asking the Rajas to present themselves
at the Mughal court. Instead of adhering to the Royal edicts, the Rajas
followed the wait and watch policy. There may be more than one reason for it.
As Banda Singh Bahadur had invited the Rajas to join him in his struggle
against the Mughals, the Rajas had not yet made up their mind either to join
the proposed Sikh–Rajput alliance or to support the Mughals against the Sikhs.
Secondly, they wanted to extract maximum benefit in the form of jagir
from the Mughals. We observe that their Vakils present at the Mughal
court were working overtime to extract as much as they can. Therefore the Rajas
deliberately kept on dilly-delaying their arrival at the Mugal court. On June
4, 1711 Mahabat Khan, the third Bakshi, summoned the Vakil of Raja Jai
Singh and told him that due to the delay of the Rajas his position at the royal
court has become precarious and his rivals are leveling various types of
charges. In an another report of June 4, 1711 the Jaipur Vakil describes
that at the Mughal courts the Rajas are labeled as liars and impression is that
they would never turn up and who knows for what purpose they have got together.
An arzdasht of June 9, 1711 from Jaipur Vakil to his master
unfolds that by the grace of God he is quite hopeful that for a few more days
Guru [Banda Singh Bahadur] would not be captured so that the Emperor may remain
entangled in the Punjab. A letter of June 13, 1711 from his Vakil counsels
Raja Jai Singh that the negligence shown to the letter of Guru [Banda Singh
Bahadur] was not good on our part as it has aggravated the situation very badly
and in future we need to be very careful. It suggests that a letter from Banda
Singh Bahadur meant for Jaipur chief had fallen into the hands of Mughals. In
the Mughal court there was apprehension that Banda Singh Bahadur may go to
Ajmer via Lakhi Jungle, obviously to join the Rajputs. A vakil report
submitted on September 16, 1711 unfolds that there were strong apprehensions in
the Mughal court that the Rajas were in league with Banda Singh Bahadur. When
Bahadur Shah was encamped at Lahore
a report came that Banda Singh Bahadur has appeared near Ropar and may again go
to Sadhaura. Therefore the Emperor devised a military strategy according to
which the Rajas were asked to station their forces at Ropar and whenever the
situation demands they were to support Muhammad Amin Khan to subdue the Sikhs.
All these reports provide
significant insights into the proposed Sikh–Rajput alliance which was a cause
of serious concern for the Mughals. However, the alliance failed to take off,
chiefly because of the indecisiveness as well as selfish interest on the part
of Rajput chiefs. Instead of throwing away the Mughal yoke forever they were
satisfied if they are left in quite possession of their hereditary country
coupled with an increase in their jagir or mansab at the Mughal
court. At the same time the Mughal nobles especially Shahzada Azim-ush-Sham and
Muhabat Khan were constantly in touch with the Rajas. They promised the Rajas
to protect their interests and finally succeeded to persuade them to join the
Mughal expedition against the Sikhs. Our sources indicate that the Rajas
instead of entering into an alliance with the Sikhs decided to help the
Mughals. According to a report of September 21, 1711 Raja Jai Singh and Raja
Ajit Singh had reached in the vicinity of Delhi for their onward march to
Sadhaura. Another dispatch of October
9, 1711 describes that Bhup Parkash Raja of Nahan who was
imprisoned in Salimgarh sent his men with a request to the Rajput chiefs to
intervene to get him free from the prison. The Rajas wrote back, they were the
servants of the Mughal Emperor and are going to Sadhaura. They advised the
chief of Nahan that he should write to his men at Nahan that wherever the Sikhs
were found they must be made captive. Though the Rajas along with their forces
had encircled Sadhaura, yet Banda Singh Bahadur again offered to them to form
an alliance with him. The Akhbar-i-Darbar-i-Mualla of November 30, 1711 informs
that “the rebel Guru [Banda Singh Bahadur] wrote to Raja Ajit Singh and Raja
Jai Singh that they should come to his territory. They [the Sikhs] should be
considered to have reached their territory. The Rajas killed the spies of the
rebels and told that they were the servants of the Emperor. The rebels would be
captured or killed soon.” It further adds, "Muhammed Amin Khan wrote to
Raja Ajit Singh and Raja Ajit Singh if they jointly marched against the rebel
leader they could capture or kill him soon. The Rajas wrote in reply that the
matter be reported to the Emperor. In case the Mughals were attacked by the
rebels they [Rajas] would immediately reach there".
It seems as soon as Raja Jai
Singh and Raja Ajit Singh got new appointments as subedars of Ahmedabad
and Saurath respectively and other benefits of jagirs, they left the
battle front of Sadhaura. A news of January 12, 1711 of Akhbar-i- Darbar-i-Mualla states
that on December 25, 1711
the rebel Guru [Banda Singh Bahadur] came to know that Raja Jai Singh and Raja
Ajit Singh had departed for their country. He [Banda Singh Bahadur] collected
his men and raided on the thana where the said Rajas were stationed. The
Jaipur records confirm that before their return march to Rajputana, the Rajas
visited Haridwar to perform the piligrimage. Anyway, the main objective i.e.
the subjugation of Banda Singh Bahadur, for which the Rajas had been called to
Sadhaura was far from accomplished. The Mughals who entertained apprehensions
that the Rajput Rajas were in league with the Sikhs, had very tactfully
prevented the Rajas to enter into any understanding with the Sikhs. To
recapitulate, we can say that when the Sikhs under the leadership of Banda
Singh Bahadur were fighting the Mughals to establish their own rule, the Rajput
chiefs were sitting on the fringe totally unconcerned. They were satisfied to
administer their hereditary possessions under the suzerainty of the Mughals.
Unfortunately, they spurned Banda Singh Bahadur's proposal of Sikh–Rajput
alliance which would have been a formidable challenge to the Mughal Empire at
that time. Who knows if the proposed alliance had become a reality then the
downfall of the Mughal empire might have been hastened and the geo-political
scenario of the Indian sub-continent would have been totally different.
Sikhs in Rajputana
During the governorship of
Zakariya Khan (1726-1745) and Mir Mannu (1748-1753), the Mughal government had
adopted strong measures to root out the Sikhs from Punjab. They were hunted
like wild animals, prices were fixed on their heads, tortured and beheaded in
the most barbaric manner at public places in Lahore. In the face of persecution and
extreme hardships, the Sikhs were compelled to seek shelter in the forests,
hills and deserts. According to the traditional Sikh sources, to avoid
persecution at the hands of Mughals and their allies in Punjab, some Sikh
warriors along with their families moved to Rajputana and even some of them
joined the services of Jaipur state. So far no independent source was available
to corroborate the above tradition. The Sikh presence in Rajputana in early
eighteenth century has been a matter of conjecture only. However, recently the
author of this write up has come across a number of Rajasthani documents which
prove that Jaipur state had taken the services of some Sikh leaders chiefly
from military point of view. The Jaipur records confirm that as early as 1739,
S. Gurbakhsh Singh, a leader of the Sikhs had come into contact with the Jaipur
state. In 1740, the same S. Gurbakhsh Singh was entrusted to employ 500 Sikh
horsemen and 500 riflemen on behalf of the Jaipur state. The expenditure
incurred by the Jaipur state on the hospitality of S. Gurbakhsh Singh is duly
recorded in the Jaipur records. Similarly, another Sikh leader S. Mir Singh, a jamiatdar
along with his armed band was in Jaipur and was honored with a siropao
costing Rs.48.75 at that time. It was the time when Marathas had made inroads
into northern India and had started levying tribute on the Rajput states. It
seems Jaipur state in order to supplement its armed forces has no inhibition to
enroll the armed Sikhs into its army. On the other hand, the Sikhs who had come
under the onslaughts of Mughal governors of Punjab,
not only got safe refuse in Rajputana but also livelihood to survive there. It
was mutually beneficial to both the parties. Thus it was the beginning of a new
chapter in the relations between the Sikhs and the Jaipur state.
The defeat of Marathas by
Ahmed Shah Abdali in the battle of Panipat in April 1761 was a severe blow to
the Maratha expansion in northern India. On the other hand the Sikhs who had
suffered heavily in the running battle (Wada Ghallughara of 1762) at the
hands of Ahmed Shah Abdali, threw out all the Afghan faujdars from Punjab. In January 1764 they had reoccupied Sarhind and
in March 1765 had taken possession of Lahore.
The Sikhs had struck a coin at Lahore
to declare themselves sovereign rulers of the country from Indus
to Jamuna. Having liberated the Punjab, the
Sikh misls fanned across the Jamuna into former Delhi Mughal province to
establish rakhi system. A close look at the Rajasthani sources confirm
that the Sikh incursions were not confined only to Jamuna-Gangetic Doab but
some parts of Rajputana had also come under their rakhi system.
In the Jaipur records,
especially Tozi Sikhs, Siyah Hazoor and Dastoor Kaumvar,
we come across numerous entries from 1765 onward which relate to the Sikh
leaders namely Kesar Singh, Khushhal Singh, Tara Singh, Jassa Singh Ahluwalia,
Kahn Singh, Bakht Singh, Sham Singh, Jassa Singh Ramgharia, Dulcha Singh,
Baghel Singh, Dharam Singh, Kalyan Singh, Param Singh, Sardar Singh, Sahib
Singh etc. who were in Jaipur. Besides the Sikh leaders their vakils
such as Munshi Mitha Lal, Munshi Ram Kishan, Jai Kishan, Harjas Rai, Nar Singh
Das, Gujar Mal, Amolak Ram, Balak Ram, Munshi Mansab Rai, Diwan Desa Ram, Ram
Dayal, Roora Mal, Abhai Ram, Mahesh Das, Basant Rai etc. who visited Jaipur on
behalf of the Sikh leaders to discuss important matters also find mention in
these records. The expenditure incurred on the hospitality of the Sikh leaders
and the gifts presented to them and their vakils are dully recorded in
the above mentioned sources. The Sikh leaders and their vakils visited
Jaipur year after year. What exactly was the purpose of their visit and what
transpired between the Jaipur ruler and the Sikhs? For all these questions
thorough investigation of Jaipur records is required.The Sikh–Rajput Alliance
In November 1764, Jawahar
Singh, the Jat raja of Bharatpur in order to take revenge on the Ruhela chief
Najib Khan for the death of his father, Suraj Mal, had led an expedition on
Delhi. At that time he sought the help of Sikhs who were in the vicinity of Delhi. In January 1765,
about 12000-15000 Sikhs supported the Jat Raja and saved him from the rout of
this misadventure. In 1766, taking advantage of the dissentions in Bharatpur
house, Maratha Supremo, Malhar Rao marched on Bharatpur to take possession of
Dholpur. Jawahar Singh again requested the Sikhs and agreed to pay Rs.7 Lakh in
order to deal with the Maratha menace. Accordingly, in March 1766 about
20000-25000 Sikhs went to Jawahar Singh’s succor and chased away the Marathas
to expel them beyond the river Chambal. There was a boundary the dispute
between the Jaipur and Bharatpur state. In order to browbeat the Jaipur army,
Jawahar Singh engaged a corps of 20000-25000 Sikhs who had come at that time to
his country perhaps to collect the rakhi amount. 
In Rajasthani there are a
number of kharitas (letters) which describe the Sikh incursions into
Bharatpur and Jaipur territories. A kharita written on February 21, 1768 by a
Jaipur official informs that the Sikh army has crossed over Jamuna and the Jat
detachment holding its thana
there, has fled away after setting fire to two villages of the pargana.
The Jaipur army having vacated Narnaul, has encamped at Hindon. The author
advises the officials in Jaipur to make efforts to strengthen the fort of Swai
Jaipur. Another kharita written by Sampati Ram Bankawat informs that the
fort of Kama and the area around it has come under the attack of joint army of
the Sikhs and the Jats. Similarly, another letter written on March 24, 1768 by Nathu Ram
to Sanghi Jiv Raj of Jaipur describes that the Jat army of 15000 swars
under Rattan Singh and Samru Firangi has reached Khohri and fought a severe
battle with the army of Jaipur. It further adds that the Sikh army has departed
against the Deccanis (Marathas). All these documents provide significant
insights into the Jat–Sikh alliance which was a matter of serious concern for
the Jaipur ruler. With the help of Sikh army, Jawahar Singh had not only
prevented the Maratha onslaughts on the Jat dominions but was also making
inroads into the Jaipur territory. As discussed above in December 1767, Jawahar
Singh with his immense force and artillery forced his way into the Jaipur
territory to make pilgrimage to Pushkar. While he was on his return journey, he
was attacked by the Jaipur forces and was compelled to retreat in haste. The
Jaipur forces followed him upto Kama where in February 1768, a fresh Sikh corps
came into his rescue and Jaipur forces had to withdraw. In the meantime, Jaipur
ruler Swai Madho Singh had died on March 5, 1768 and the throne passed on to his elder son,
Prithvi Singh, a boy of five. The regency was led by the widowed queen with the
help of her father Jaswant Singh Chundawat supported by three
ministers–Khushali Ram Bohra, Raj Singh Kachwaha and Firuz Khan. The regency at
Jaipur realized that to prevent the Jat juggernaut and Maratha menace, it
requires the support of a formidable ally. The Mughal emperor’s authority was
on the wane. Naturally, they looked towards the Sikhs with whom they had some
contacts since 1739. Significantly, in the Jaipur records there is a Rajasthani
document which describes the parleys that led to the Sikh–Rajput alliance. The
document in question written by Ram Narayan, a Jaipur official on March 12, 1768 Saturday,
states that “the report regarding the arrival of Sikh army has already been
submitted. Raj Singh has also received a dispatch signed by all the Sikh
leaders. In it they have expressed grief and deep sorrow at the demise of
Maharaja [Swai Madho Singh] who was foremost among the rulers of Hindustan. The Sikhs have assured to abide by the terms
already agreed upon. The Jaipur officials namely Gokal Chand Katara, Nand Ram
and Azmat Khan had advised Raj Singh to form an alliance with the Sikhs that
they would jointly invade the Jat territory to levy tribute and the terms of
agreement already enforce would be acceptable to the Jaipur state.” The author
further adds that “the Sikh leaders will meet tonight to take decision on the
above proposal.” Though, in the above document the names of Sikh leaders
holding the parleys are missing, yet another document informs that on March 13, 1768 the Sikh
leaders namely S. Sham Singh and S. Bakhat Singh were present at the
investiture ceremony of new ruler (Prithvi Singh) of Jaipur.
A kharita written by
Gangadhar on April 25, 1768 makes clear that Jaipur state had won over the
Sikhs and had agreed to pay Rs.2 Lakh as rakhi. However, there was a
dispute over the distribution of amount and the Sikhs were divided into two
groups. Khushhal Singh, Jai Singh Kanhayia, Jassa Singh Ramgarhia and Tara
Singh led one group whereas Baghel Singh, Sham Singh and Jassa Singh Ahluwalia
led the second group. A kharita written on April 26, 1768 states that the Jaipur had
deputed its vakils to see off the Sikh leaders who were on their return
journey. It states that both the groups along with their forces have reached
Badarpur via Tilpat Ghat. An undated kharita reports that Bhatt Ji and
Rawat Ji have informed that the Pathan had returned and died. Now the power of
Sikhs is on the rise in the month of Vaisakh, they will hold a grand assembly
to decide about the future action. The Sikhs intended to come (to Rajputana).
The payment of Rs.1 Lakh has to be made to them. It suggests maintaining good
relations as it is in the interest of Jaipur state.
A perusal of Jaipur records
confirms that the Rajput–Sikh alliance formed in March 1768 remained in force
for quite a long time. An entry in Siyah Hazoor and Tozi Sikhs as
well is very note-worthy in this respect. It states that on March 3, 1788 Monday, S.
Baghel Singh came and had a meeting with Shri Hazoor (Swai Partap Singh) who
was camping in village Ladhuwas of pargana Riwari. They shook hands and
thereafter sat very closely on the same carpet. For one hour they held
discussions on important matters. After that the Maharaja sends him off and
presented to him four bundles containing costly gifts. Interestingly, the gifts
included a sarpech and a kalghi (plume) as well. It suggests that
S. Baghel Singh was no more a marauder or mercenary but a respectable leader of
the Sikh Panth holding equal status to any ruler of Hindustan.
To close this discussion we would like to quote another very important document
which holds great merit to look into the Rajput–Sikh alliance. The document in
the form of a treaty signed on January
25, 1787 is as under:
(Mark of sword in saffron colour)
Ahadnama between
Sarbat Khalsa Ji and Maharaja Swai
Partap Singh
That there exists acknowledged
friendship between Sarbat Khalsa Ji and Maharaja Dhiraj, Partap Singh Bahadur.
It has been agreed upon by both the parties that the friends and foes of one
party will be treated as friends and foes of the other. Sarbat Khalsa Ji
will act according to the wishes of the Maharaja and the Maharaja will act
according to the Sarbat Khalsa Ji. That any newly conquered territory in
the zila of Bagar will be divided between both the parties after
deducting the expenses of army. And the rakhi in the new territories
shall be of Sarbat Khalsa Ji. There is no discord whatsoever between
Khalsa Ji and Maharaja. And if the enemies of the Maharaja create disturbances,
Sarbat Khalsa Ji shall join him. The holy Guru is a witness to this agreement
and might sword is in between. Written on 5th Rabi-ul-Sani, 28th
regnal year of Shah Alam.
The above treaty bears the
seals of eight Sikh Sardars–Baghel Singh, Dulcha Singh, Rai Singh, Raja Diwan
Bahadur Singh, Nihal Singh, Gurdit Singh, Karam Singh Bahadur and Sada Singh.
On July 31, 1788 the Sikh leaders had proposed similar treaty to Maharaja Bijay
Singh of Jodhpur also. Another undated document dispatched by S. Baghel Singh
reminds the Jaipur ruler to abide by the treaty. According to it “the friendly
relations of the Khalsa with the family of Maharaja Swai Partap Singh will
continue as before. The Khalsa agrees to devastate the opponents of the
Maharaja. The Maharaja should not act against this agreement and pay off the
army expenses as already settled.”
Conclusion
To sum up the foregoing
discussion we can safely state that the holy writings of Guru Nanak had
traveled to Rajasthan quite at an early stage. The musicians, who used to sing
devotional songs at religious festivals, were largely responsible for
transmitting the bani of Guru Nanak to the people of Rajputana.
Similarly, the devotional writings of Dhanna and Pipa, who belonged to
Rajputana, had found their way in to the Sikh scriptural tradition. All these
factors suggest that Sikh Scripture and its tenets were not unknown to the
people of Rajputana. The analysis of Sikh sources, confirm that Sikh Gurus
enjoyed cordial relations with the Rajput chiefs, especially of the Jaipur house.
Guru Tegh Bahadur and Raja Ram Singh of Jaipur had come into personal contact
and lend helping hand to one another to solve the crisis they faced. During his
sojourns in Rajputana, Guru Gobind Singh came into contact with the religious
as well as ruling classes of Rajputana. It seems, lot of Rajputs felt attracted
to Guru Gobind Singh, chiefly because of his spirit of defiance and struggle
against the unjust rule of the Mughals. The triple league that the chiefs of
Udaipur, Jaipur and Jodhpur had formed in 1708 to fight jointly against the
Mughals can largely be attributed to the influence of Guru Gobind Singh.
Similarly, Dadupanth's decision to arm their disciples was the direct outcome
of a discourse of Guru Gobind Singh that he had given to Mahant Jait Ram over
the issue of use of force.
Baba Banda Singh Bahadur had
opened his communication channels with the Rajput chiefs quite at an early
stage of his struggle. In May 1710 he had proposed a Sikh-Rajput alliance to
Raja Jai Singh and Raja Ajit Singh in order to wage a joint struggle against
the Mughal Empire. The proposal of such an alliance was of far reaching
consequences and would had been a formidable challenge to the Mughals, however
due to selfish interest the Rajas spurned the offer which was a big reprieve to
the declining authority of the Mughal emperors.
During the period of persecution at the hands of Mughal subedars of Punjab, the Sikhs took refuge in Rajputana and even some of them joined the Jaipur army as well. We also observed that during the last half of the eighteenth century to guide the course of Sikh-Rajput relations, the Jats and Marathas have been the major factors. Raja Jawahar Singh of Bharatpur enjoyed very good relations with the Sikh leaders. With the Sikh support he was successful to ward off the Maratha inroads in to his dominions and was aspiring to occupy the fort of Kama which was a bone of contention between the Bharatpur and Jaipur states. At the same time the Marathas were expanding their hold on Rajputana and had levied chauth (one fourth) on almost all the Rajput states. After the demise of Swai Madho Singh in 1768, the regency at Jaipur was in dire need to wriggle out of the crisis created by outside forces. The Sikhs at that time had become the sovereign rulers of Punjab and they had successfully established their rakhi system in Jamuna-Gangetic Doab including the Jat state of Bharatpur. Naturally, the Jaipur looked towards the Sikhs, entered into the Sikh-Rajput alliance and agreed to pay the rakhi. In this context Jaipur preferred the Sikhs over the Marathas as the incidence of Sikh rakhi was much less than the Maratha chauth. Consequently, the Rajput-Sikh relations had come to a full circle. The Rajputs who were reluctant to join the alliance proposed by Banda Singh Bahadur, were now very eager to sign the treaty with the Sikhs. The treaty of January 25, 1787 signed between the Sikh leaders and Swai Partap Singh bears testimony to the above fact. However, it requires in depth analysis to look into the impact it had on the contemporary Indian politics. Anyway, the study of Sikh-Rajput relations is a very fascinating subject which is awaiting the attention of scholars for quite a long time. It is totally an unexplored area. However, analysis of contemporary Rajasthani sources is full of promise and can lead to tangible results which in turn can throw a flood of light on the lesser known but significant facets of Sikh history.
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