Kapurthala State

Template:Short description Template:Use British English Kapurthala State, was a kingdom and later princely state of the Punjab Province of British India. Ruled by Ahluwalia Sikh rulers, spread across . According to the 1901 census the state had a population of 314,341 and contained two towns and 167 villages. In 1930, Kapurthala became part of the Punjab States Agency and acceded to the Union of India in 1947.

In colonial India, Kapurthala State was known for its communal harmony, with its Sikh ruler Jagatjit Singh building the Moorish Mosque for his Muslim subjects. At the time of the Indian independence movement, the ruler of the Kapurthala State opposed the partition of India and advocated for a united, secular country.

History

Origin

According to mythology, Krishna's descendant Gaj built the fort of Gajni, and lost his life in a battle against a joint Roman-Khorasani army. His son Salibahan established the city of Sialkot, and started the Shak era after defeating the Shaks in 78 CE.

After the Muslim conquest of Punjab, his descendants migrated to the Jaisalmer area, where they came to be known as Kalal Rajput tribe. After Alauddin Khalji's conquest of Jaisalmer, some of the former ruling Kalchuri Kalal tribe people migrated to Tarn Taran district. In the 17th century, they joined Guru Hargobind's army. Ganda Singh of this family raided Lahore, whose governor Dilawar Khan persuaded him to join the Lahore army, and assigned him the fief of Ahlu and some other villages. Ganda Singh Kalal's son Sadhu (or Sadho) Singh Kalal lived in Ahlu, because of which the family came to be known as Ahluwalia. The descendants of Sadhu Singh Kalal through his son Gopal Singh Kalal (who was the grandfather of Jassa Singh Kalal) established the royal family of Kapurthala. The British administrator Lepel Griffin (1873) dismissed this account as spurious. The Sikh author Gian Singh, in his Twarikh Raj Khalsa (1894), wrote that the Ahluwalia family adopted the Kalal caste identity much before Sadhu Singh.

The ruling dynasty of Kapurthala originated in the Ahluwalia misl. The Ahluwalia misl rose to prominence under Jassa Singh Ahluwalia, who was the first person to use the name "Ahluwalia". Originally known as Jassa Singh Kalal, he styled himself as Ahluwalia after his ancestral village of Ahlu and belonged to the Kalal community. He is regarded as the founder of the Kapurthala State.

Establishment

In 1774, Jassa Singh Kalal conquered Kapurthala from Rai Ibrahim Bhatti.

File:Map of Jalandhar district (including Kapurthala State) of Punjab Province, British India, published in 'The Panjab, North-West Frontier Province and Kashmir' (1916).jpg

Map of Jalandhar district (including Kapurthala State) of Punjab Province, British India, published in 'The Panjab, North-West Frontier Province and Kashmir' (1916)

Even after other misls lost their territories to Ranjit Singh's Sikh Empire, the emperor permitted the descendants of Jassa Singh to retain their estates. After the British took over the Sikh territories in 1846, Jassa Singh's descendants became the ruling family of the Kapurthala State.

Demographics

Religious groups in Kapurthala State (British Punjab province era)

Religious group	1881		1891		1901		1911		1921		1931		1941
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	142,974		170,557		178,326		152,117		160,457		179,251		213,754
Hinduism File:Om.svgTemplate:Efn	82,900		89,463		93,652		61,426		58,412		64,319		61,546
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	26,493		39,493		42,101		54,275		64,074		72,177		88,350
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	214		169		226		205		228		27		380
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	35		8		39		107		1,100		983		1,667
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	1		0		3		0		0		0		0
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	0		0		4		3		4		0		6
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	—	—	0		0		0		0		0		0
Others	0		0		0		0		0		0		12,677
Total population	252,617		299,690		314,351		268,133		284,275		316,757		378,380
Note: British Punjab province era district borders are not an exact match in the present-day due to various bifurcations to district borders — which since created new districts — throughout the historic Punjab Province region during the post-independence era that have taken into account population increases.

Royal dynasty

List of rulers

No.	Name (Birth–Death)	Portrait	Reign	Ref.
Sardars
1	Jassa Singh Ahluwalia (1718–1783)	File:Equestrian painting of Jassa Singh Ahluwalia on horseback in-front of his haveli with a fly-whisk attendant, circa late 18th century.jpg	1777 – 20 October 1783
2	Bhag Singh Ahluwalia (1747–1801)	File:Bhag Singh Ahluwalia.jpg	20 October 1783 – 10 July 1801
Rajas
3	Fateh Singh Ahluwalia (1784–1837)	File:Raja Fateh Singh Ahluwalia of Kapurthala.jpg	10 July 1801 – 20 October 1837
4	Nihal Singh (1817–1852)	File:Sin foto.svg	20 October 1837 – 13 September 1852
5	Randhir Singh (1831–1870)	File:Photograph of Randhir Singh of Kapurthala State.jpg	13 September 1852 – 12 March 1861
Raja-i Rajgan
–	Randhir Singh (1831–1870)	File:Photograph of Randhir Singh of Kapurthala State.jpg	12 March 1861 – 2 April 1870
6	Kharak Singh (1850–1877)	File:Photograph of Kharak Singh of Kapurthala State.jpg	2 April 1870 – 3 September 1877
7	Jagatjit Singh (1872–1949)	File:Jagatjit Singh by Panjab Digital Library.jpg	3 September 1877 – 12 December 1911
Maharajas
–	Jagatjit Singh (1872–1949)	File:Jagatjit Singh by Panjab Digital Library.jpg	12 December 1911 – 15 August 1947
Titular
–	Jagatjit Singh (1872–1949)	File:Jagatjit Singh by Panjab Digital Library.jpg	15 August 1947 – 19 June 1949
8	Paramjit Singh
9	Sukhjit Singh	File:Brig. Sukhjit Singh.jpg

Crown Princes

• Tikka Raja Shatrujit Singh

Dewan / Ministers of Kapurthala State

• Dewan Banna Mal Gautam (Manager Of Oudh Estates of Maharaja Kapurthala)
• Dewan Mathra Dass (Private Secretary)
• Dewan Ramjas Dhir
• Dewan Acchru Mal Gautam (Revenue Minister) s/o Dewan Banna Mal
• Dewan Durga Dass Gautam
• Dewan Ambika Parshad Gautam (Accountant General)
• Dewan Mohabbat Rai
• Dewan Abdul Hamid (Prime Minister)
• Dewan Shiv Narayan Randev (Chief Secretary Of Kapurthala State)
• Sirdar Bhagat Ram Randev (Chief Judge)
• Sirdar Dwarka Dass Randev, Bar At Law S/O Dewan Shiv Narayan Randev (Assistant Manager Oudh and Last Chief Justice Of Kapurthala State)
• Dewan Hari Chand Chopra (Finance Minister)
• Dewan Saudagar Mal
• Dewan Badrinath
• Dewan Surendranath
• G.T Fisher (Chief Minister)
• Dewan Sureshwar Dass (Home Minister)
• Dewan Ajudhia Dass (Revenue Minister)
• Sirdar Suchet Singh
• Sirdar Kishan Singh
• Dewan Raj Kumar Chopra (Chief Justice )
• Dewan Jermany Dass
• Dewan Kuljass Rai

Orders of chivalry

The Royal House of Kapurthala awards three orders of chivalry; these knighthoods include:

• Nishan-i-Shahi, awarded in three classes (founded by Maharaja Jagatjit Singh Bahadur in 1898)
• Nishan-i-Iftikhar, awarded in three classes (founded by Maharaja Jagatjit Singh Bahadur in 1914)
• Nishan-i-Askari, awarded in three classes (founded by Maharaja Jagatjit Singh Bahadur in 1927)

The decoration of the Nishan-i-Iftikhar includes the coat of arms of Kapurthala State.

Gallery

• Qila Jallow Khana, Kapurthala State
  Qila Jallow Khana, Kapurthala State
• Old Baradari at Shalimar Garden, Kapurthala State
  Old Baradari at Shalimar Garden, Kapurthala State
• Photograph of the State Gurdwara of Kapurthala State during a thanksgiving service
  Photograph of the State Gurdwara of Kapurthala State during a thanksgiving service
• Old court complex, Kapurthala State
  Old court complex, Kapurthala State
• Photograph of Buggy Khana, Kapurthala State
  Photograph of Buggy Khana, Kapurthala State

See also

• Anita Delgado
• Political integration of India

External links

• Template:Sister-inline
• Kapurthala www.sikh-heritage.co.uk