1 An attempt on his
2 life
3 Fails.
4 The intended assassin
5 put to death.
6 The Chattas subdued.
7 The Ramgarhias en-
8 croach on the posses-
9 sions of the Kanhias,
10 Ranj{t Singh inter-
11 feres.
12 His designs on
13 Lahore,
14 Favourable ciroum-
15 stances,
16 The triumvirate
17 government of Lahore,
18 Mian Ashak Maho-
19 med and Mian
20 Mohkam Din.
21 Mian Badr-nd-din,
22 His quarrel with the
23 Chhatris of the town of
24 hore,
25 Sri Satguru J agjit Singh Ji eLibrary
26 348 HISTORY OF THE PANJAB.
27 nant among the Sikhs, and his rising fortune made him an object of envy
28 to his contemporary sardars. One Hashmat Khan, chief of the Chatta
29 tribe, whose possessions lay on the banks of the Chinab, undertook
30 the hazardous task of taking the young chief's life, and thus removing him
31 from the scene. One day, as Ranjit was returning from a hunting excursion
32 on horseback, his followers having been left behind, Nashmat, who lay
33 concealed in ambush on the way, suddenly sprang up and. attacked the
34 youthful sportsman. The blow missed him, and struck the bridle, which it
35 severed in two. Ranjit Singh, coming upon his guard, fell violently on his
36 intended assassin, and with one blow of the, sword severed his head from
37 his body. On the death of their chief, the Chuttas submitted to Ranjit
38 Singh, who annexed a great portion of the estates of the deceased to
39 his own.
40 The Ramgarhias having begun to. encroach on the possessions of Sadd
41 Kour, widow of Jay Singh, Kanhia, Ranjit Singh, on her application, march-
42 ed to Batdla at the head of a body of cavalry. The town of Midni, the
43 capital of the dominions of Jassa Singh, Ramgarhia, was besieged. The
44 siege lasted for six months, and various skirmishes took place, without any
45 decisive result. At length the rainy season set in, and, the town being
46 surrounded with water, the siege was raised and the troops were withdrawn.
47 Ranjit Singh now began to entertain ideas of making himself master of
48 Lahore, and he was encouraged in his views by Sadé Kour, a woman as
49 ambitious and enterprising as her son-in-law. He thought the time most
50 opportune for the undertaking, as he nad no fear of the Durrdni’s inter-
51 ference, his late services to Shah Zaman, in recovering the lost guns from the
52 bed of the Jhelum river, and forwarding them to Kabul in safety, having, as
53 already narrated, obtained for him a formal grant of it.
54 His old enemy, Jassa Singh, Ramgarhia, was advanced in years, and too
55 infirm to take any active part in conducting the affairs of his msl.
56 Golab Singh, Bhangi, was incapacitated by a fall from his horse, and most
57 of the other Sikh sardars were too weak to enter the lists against the re-
58 doubtable Ranjit.
59 Lahore was, about this time, governed by the three rulers, Lahné Singh,
60 Gujar Singh, and Sobha Singh. They were unscrupulous, drunken, profligate
61 and tyrannical. How these men rose to power and obtained possession of
62 Léhore, has been fully described in the sketch of the history of the Bhangi misl.
63 The chiefs were now dead, but their sons were alive. Lahna Singh had a son,
64 Chet Singh ; Gujar Singh, a son, Sahib Singh, and two other sons, Sukha Singh,
65 and Fatteh Singh ; and Sobha Singh a son, Mohar Singh, The Mahomedans
66 who exercised the greatest influence in the town about this time, were
67 Mian Ashak Mohamed and Mian Mohkam Din. Their opinion was taken on
68 all important matters connected with the city and its neighbourhood, and
69 they were known as the Choudhris of the city. Mian Ashak Mohamed’s
70 daughter was married to another equally opulent and influential Choudhri
71 of the city, named Mian Badr-ud-din, who happened to have a quarrel with
72 some of the Chhatris, in the town. These Chhatris, wishing to avenge them-
73 selves on Badr-ud-din, went to sardar Chet Singh, one of the haékims of
74 Lahore, who at that time resided in the Summan Bury, or Palace of Mirrors,
75 in the fort of Ld&hore, and complained to him of what they represented to be
76 the revolting conduct of Badr-ud-din whom they charged with holding clan-
77 destine correspondence with Shah Zaman, the ruler of Kdbul. Certain
78 forged papers were adduced in support of the story told by them, and so
79 many persons corroborated the charge that the sardar was convinced of
80 Badr-ud-din’s gilt. Without giving him an opportunity of offering an ex-
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