1 MAHARAJA RANJIT SINGH. 358
2 ‘The ‘following year, 1801, Ranjit Singh formally assumed the title of _ Assumes the title of
3 Mahardjé, or Rdjé of Rajés, and, in a public darbér held on the occasion, ™!*™4!4 181
4 declared that, in all public correspondence, he should be styled “ Sarkar,”
5 signifying power and state. The darbdr was attended by all the chiefs, sardars,
6 choudhris, lamberdars, and other dignitaries who owed their submission
7 or allegiance to Ranjit: Singh. When all had assembled, the family Purohat,
8 or priest, applied the tilak to the Mahardjéh’s forehead, as.a token of his
9 investiture with the sovereignty, and ‘henceforward Ranjit Singh, from being
10 the chief of a tribe of roving plundcerers, assumed the power and ‘functions of
11 the sovereign of anation and the title of Maharaja. The Ulemas, the learned
12 men of the town, and poets, recited poems in honour of the occasion ; and the
13 whole of the festivities in connection with this great historical event were
14 celebrated with the greatest pomp and splendour. An order was issued for
15 the establishment of a mint at Lahore, and a coin was struck in the name __ Strikes coin in his
16 of the Mahardjd, bearing the following inscription :— Pe
17 tio sity 9 yf CU 5] ew SL — Bow wad 5 eto ES a Ko
18 meaning, “hospitality, the sword, victory and conquest unfailing to Guru
19 Govind Singh from Nanak.” :
20 On the reverse was inScribed the era and place of coining. The cere-
21 monies connected with the opening of the mint were gone through the same
22 day, and the new rupees which were struck and presented, on the following
23 day, for the Maharaja’s inspection, were given away in alms to the poor.
24 Following the example of the Mahomedan emperors, the offices of the
25 hereditary kazis and mufties in the town of Lahore were recognized. Appoints sazis and
26 Thus, Kazi Nizdm-ud-din was presented with a khilat, and permitted to Pe eas
27 decide disputes relating to marriage and divorce among the Mahomedans, Mebomedan law.
28 and Mufties Mahomed Shahpur and Sadulla Chishti, having been similarly
29 honored with khilats, were permitted to draw up title deeds relating to
30 transfers of immoveable property, as they had been accustomed to do
31 during the period of the Mahomedan rule. The old mohalladari system _ Re-establishes the old
32 was re-established, and-each mohalla, or quarter, of a town, was put under “dade syste.
33 the charge of one of its members possessing more influence than the rest.
34 The office of kotwal, or chief police officer, was conferred on Imam Baksh, | Thechiet superinten-
35 whose nick-name was Kharsawar, or the donkey-rider. New guards were {anor ?"
36 placed at the gates of the citadel, and the military regulations were revised
37 and new ones instituted. The office of hakim, or physician in ordinary
38 to the Mahardjé, was conferred on Nur-ud-din, the younger brother of | The brothers Nur-
39 Aziz-ud-din. For the better protection of the city, one lakh of rupees were ;
40 given to Moti Ram, afterwards dewdn, to build fresh walls and a moat
41 round it About this time Sahib Singh, Bhangi, of Gujrdt, made an attack
42 on Gujrdnwdld. Ranjit Singh, accompanied by his mother-in-law, pro-
43 ceeded against the Bhangi chief. Through the intercession, however, a rupturewith the
44 of Sahib Singh, Bedi, the descendant of Bdbd Ndnak, who was held in Bbaveis avoided.
45 great veneration by the Sikhs, on account of his high family descent, a
46 reconciliation was effected, and the Mahardjé returned to Léhore. An
47 electuary medicine (mdjuin) the confection of a fish known in the Arabic
48 language as Sakan kur, supposed to possess wonderful virile qualities,
49 was prepared by the Hakim, Baghdddi, for the Maharaja, who, much pleased — an unsuceesstul at-
50 with its effect, conferred on him a jagir of Rs. 20,000 per annum. The ‘™pton Kasi.
51 Maharaja next proceeded against Nizdm-ud-din Khan of Kasur, who had
52 entered into an alliance with Sahib Singh, Bhangi, but his attempts to
53 reduce the Pathan chief to subjection were unsuccessful. and he returned to
54 Lahore, though not before he had burnt and pillaged the suburbs.
55 Sri Satguru J agjit Singh Ji eLibrary NamdhariElibrary@ gmail.com
56 e city walls re-
57 uilt.