Minhas Rajputs

Minhas Rajputs

Minhas Rajput

•  India (Punjab, Jammu, Himachal)
•  Pakistan (Punjab, Azad Kashmir)
Languages
• Pahari • Dogri • Punjabi • Hindi • English
Religion
•  Hinduism •  Islam •  Sikhism
Related ethnic groups
• Indo-Aryan people • Rajputs • Muslim Rajputs • Sikh Rajputs • Punjabi Rajputs • Pahari Rajput is a Suryavanshi Rajput clan from the Punjab region and Jammu & Kashmir in India and Pakistan. It is an off-shoot of Jamwal-Dogra Rajputs, the founders of the city and state of Jammu and its rulers from ancient times to 1948 CE. In antiquity of rule, which is generally considered a benchmark of royalty, they are second to none.Paying tribute to the antiquity of their royal lineage.
Minhas Rajputs are spread throughout Punjab Region and Jammu & Kashmir in India and Pakistan. Hindu Minhas Rajputs reside in the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Indian Punjab, Sikh Minhas Rajputs, mainly inhabit Punjab (India) and Muslim Minhas Rajputs reside in Pakistani Punjab and Pakistan controlled Kashmir.


Wheel of Konark Sun Temple. Konark in Orissa, India is famous for its Sun Temple.The idol worshipped inside the temple represents Konaditya, literally Kon+Aditya (the Sun in a particular direction).
Minhas Rajputs are Suryavanshis and claim descent from Rama a legendary king of Ayodhya. In Rajputana, their closest cousins are the Kachwaha and Raghav (Raghuvanshi) Rajputs of Jaipur.
They trace their ancestry to the Suryavansha dynasty of Northern India (The same clan in which Lord Rama was born. He, therefore is the 'kuldevta' (family deity) of the Hindu Minhas Rajputs). Specifically, they claim descent from Kusha younger of the twin sons of Ram who belongs to Raghav (Raghuvanshi) clan of Suryavansha, hero of the Ramayana.
A Raghuvanshi descendant of Raja Kusha, 'Agnigarba' who was living as a recluse, came to Nagarkote (Kangra, Himachal Pradesh), in the Shivalik hills. When the Raja of Kangra came to know about this person's ancestry, he offered him the hand of his daughter and a part of kingdom. The river Ravi was then the boundary of Nagarkote. Agnigarba crossed it and captured some villages in the Kathua area and declared himself as sovereign king. After his death, his son Bayusharva (500-530 BCE) married the princess of Parole (Kathua). The princess was known as Erwan and she died young.
The Raja founded a city after her which is still found near Parole, though now a small village and at the 'Samadhi' of the queen, a `Mela' (fair) is held at every `Baisakhi' (13th or 14 April) every year. Bayusharva extended the boundaries up to the river Ujh. Bayusharva's great grandson, Bahulochan was enthroned after his death. He migrated from Erwan and built his fort on the banks of river Tawi.
Raja Bahulochan died in a bloody battle with Chadaras, Raja of Sialkot (Shayalkot) and his younger brother Jambulochan (290-320 BCE) ascended the throne. In those days the area beyond Tawi (the present city of Jammu) was used for hunting. Tradition has it that one day Jambulochan came to this area and while he was sitting behind a bush to ambush some bird or animal, he saw a lion ( a tiger in some accounts ) and a goat drinking water from the same pond. This peaceful coexistence encouraged him to found the city of Jammu, which some say is named after him.
One of his descendants, Raja Shaktikaran (177-200 BCE) introduced the Dogri Script for the first time. Another of his descendants, Jasdev founded the city of Jasrota on the bank of river Ujh, and another Raja, Karan Dev built a fort on the banks of the river Basantar. In the early centuries of the first millennium the area came under the sway of the Indo-Greeks, with their capital at Sakala (Sialkot).
His later descendants, the Dogras ruled over the state for hundreds of years till 1948 CE, when the state of Jammu and Kashmir officially acceded to India. Maharaja Hari Singh Dogra was the last in the long list of the Dogra rulers of Jammu. The Dogras also ruled over the Kashmir Valley for three brief terms, twice for short periods around 1000 CE and one last time when Maharaja Gulab Singh Dogra became the Maharaja of Kashmir after the fall of the Sikh Kingdom of Punjab following the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849 CE.

Minhas History

Asia in 800 CE, showing Hindu Shahi lands.
The Minhas and Bhatti Rajput clans were extremely powerful during the time of the Hindu Shahi dynasty of Kabul and ruled over many small kingdoms extending from eastern Afghanistan through the Jammu/Sialkot areas of West Punjab and up to the Jalandhar/Kangra area of eastern Punjab. According to Farishta, during the second battle of Tarain between Prithviraj Chauhan and Mohammad Ghori in 1192, Chauhan's left flank consisted of Hindu Pathan cavalry. It is said that this Hindu Pathan cavalry was led by a minhas raja from the northwest.
A famous Manhas/Minhas in history was Baba Chamliyal also called Duleep Singh Minhas, a warrior saint, whose Samadhi (place of cremation) is still visited by hundreds and thousands of Pakistanis and Indians each year in the month of June. The Mela (fair) which is held in honour of Baba Chamliyal, was celebrated for the 317th time on Thursday, June 22, 2006 as the man-made boundary between India and Pakistan lost its importance momentarily and people from both sides participated in the mela with vigour.
Banda Bahadur, the famous disciple of Guru Gobind Singh who was the tenth Sikh Guru and the founder of the Khalsa Brotherhood, was born into a Minhas Rajput family in Rajouri in the Jammu region. Banda Bahadur was an accomplished warrior-general, who almost destroyed Mughal presence in eastern Punjab and arguably created the first Sikh State.
Etymology

Manhas and Jamwal Rajputs

All the descendants of Raja Jambu Lochan were called Jamwal Rajputs, until according to tradition, Raja Malan Hans Dev(while on a hunting trip)was tricked by his brother to help a poor old farmer working under hot sun with ploughing. In those days the stigma of touching a plough was so great for Rajputs, that Raja Malan had to immediately give up the kingship and take up agriculture as a profession and his throne passed to his cunning younger brother, Raja Suraj Hans Dev. Rajputs in general and those in the Punjab hills in particular have had a strong prejudice against taking up agriculture as a profession and therefore Raja Malan Hans and his descendants were styled Minhas.
Malan Hans ===> Manhans===> Manhas
Since that time anyone in the Jamwal clan who took up agriculture or converted to Islam was called Minhas whereas the name Jamwal has been confined to the royal branch including the Maharajas of Jammu and Kashmir.
Royal Titles used by the Minhas Rajputs

Maharaja: This title was adopted by Raja Gulab Singh of Jammu after he annexed Kashmir and Ladakh and became the ruler of the state of Jammu & Kashmir. He was also accepted as the chief by all the Jamwal and Minhas Rajputs.
Raja: Most members of the Minhas tribe including Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs use the title 'Raja' as this title was used by most of the Rajput rulers from ancient times.
Rana: Rana is a princely title of Royalty. Muslim Minhas Rajputs in Pakistan mainly in Lahore, Sheikhupura, Gujranwala and Sialkot use the title of Rana.

Thakur: Hindu Minhas Rajputs in eastern Punjab hills used this Rajput title also. A joint assembly of all the hill Rajputs also approved a resolution in 1936 and decided to use the title Thakur instead of Mian.
Kunwar: This title is used by the younger Hindu Minhas Rajputs to signify that their father Thakur the senior head of the household is still alive.
Chaudhry: This title was conferred upon the Muslim Minhas Rajputs by the Mughal King, Zaheerudin Babur. However, during Maharaja Ranjeet Singh's era, the title lost its exclusivity as the Maharaja gave this title to all the village-heads around Punjab.
Sardar: This title is manily used by the Sikh Minhas Rajputs. However, lately some Muslim Minhas Rajput clans in Azad Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab Sialkot & Chakwal have also started using this title due to various reasons.
Rai: There is also a considerable population of Minhas families in Sialkot in the districts of Rangpura and Heerawalapura. They are descendants of Rai Luckoo Minhas.
Singh: The title Singh used by the Hindu and Sikh Minhas Rajputs while Muslim Minhas Rajputs use Khan.
Pakhral  : This is not used as a title but The People of Minhas Tribe living in Pothohar Plateau are termed as Pakhral Rajput
Malik  : This title is used mostly by the Muslim Minhas living in district Kotli and Mirpur of Azad Kashmir. Shahid Malik, the first Muslim Briton minister and Tahir Mahmood Malik is a Councillor in uk.
Muslim Minhas Rajputs

Daily Mirror Khudadad Khan was awarded Victoria Cross, the first native South Asian to receive this honour
Muslim Minhas Rajputs mainly reside in Pakistani Punjab and Pakistan Administered Kashmir. Prior to partition, the districts of Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and Gurdaspur were home to a large number of Muslim Minhas. In what became Pakistani territory, they were and are found in numbers in Jhelum, Gujrat, Sialkot and Rawalpindi districts, which all bordered Jammu and Kashmir. The Mair Minhas, are found in Chakwal District, Raja Minhas mainly found in Jhelum district and Azad Kashmir, Nagyal are found in Daultala, Gujar Khan and the Manes and Lodhra branches were found in south Punjab. In Sialkot and East Punjab Minhas used Mian as a title, and so do the Manes and Lodhra in South Punjab while many Minhas in Lahore, Sialkot and Shekhupura use Rana as a title. The Mair Minhas use Chaudhary and Khan as a title, while the Gujrat and Potohar Minhas use Raja as a title. Minhas Rajput clans in Pakistan Administered Kashmir use Sardar as a title.
Muslim Minhas Rajputs are recognised in history as the warrior aristocracy. They were designated by the British as a Martial Race and recruited into the Imperial Army. Muslim Minhas are naturally engaged in the Pakistani military in strong numbers. They have been referred to as the most Valiant Warriors of Punjab. Their warlike nature and dominant rule of their territories against other tribes earned them a powerful reputation in upper Punjab and the Valley of Kashmir. The city of Chakwal is named after a Minhas chief, Chaudhry Chaku Khan and his decedents remained the Taluqdars of Dhanni(present day Tehsil Chakwal) till Punjab was annexed by the British after the Second Anglo Sikh War in 1849.
[edit]Mair-Minhas of Chakwal
In Chakwal, the Minhas Rajputs are called "Mair" or "Mair-Minhas"  (also spelt Maair) after their ancestor, Raja Mair, a Jamwal prince who converted to Islam in 1190 CE. According to the legend, Raja Mair (whose name before conversion was Raja Bhagir Dev) was son of the Raja of Jammu and had come to the Dhanni area (present day Chakwal) for hunting. He fell in love with a local Muslim woman of Gujjar tribe, converted to Islam and married her. According to the Glossary of Punjab Castes, the Taluqdars belonging to Mair-Minhas ribes of the Dhanni (present-day Chakwal District) were among the first few to receive the honorific title of "Chowdhury" from the Mughal Emperor Zaheer uddin Babur. Later during the Sikh rule in Punjab, when the title of "Chowdhury" became common and quite a few village headmen or "Numberdars" were given the same title by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the Chowdhurys of Chakwal styled themselves as "Chowdhurial" to distinguish from the newly appointed men.



Martial Traditions and Top Military Awards


The prestigious Victoria Cross, awarded for exceptional valour "in the face of the enemy".

Minhas Rajputs in Sikh History

A depiction of Bhai Bachitter Singh Minhas Ji killing the drunk elephant set by Mughal forces on the Sikh forces in the battlefield with Nagni Barcha (snake spear) given by Guru Gobind Singh Ji. This photo was taken by outside the Sikh History museum on way from Mohali to Sirhind
The first Doaba Rajput to join the army of Guru Gobind Singh was Sangat Singh Minhas of Padhiana in the Jalandhar district, who joined the Guru’s forces with his two brothers and many other Rajput chiefs. A few months later, the Subedar(Governor) of Lahore sent a small group of armed men to collect tax dues from the Rajput Hill Chiefs in whose territory, Anandpur was located under the command of Alaf Khan. The chiefs asked Guru Gobind for help.Guru Gobind Singh agreed to send a small band under the command of Sangat Singh Minhas. Sangat Singh defeated Alaf Khan’s army. After this, the Lahore governor, sent his own son with a force to solve the matter once and for all. First of all, he defeated Raja Bhim Singh of Kahlur and collected the taxes. After that, he attacked Raja Vikram Singh Walia of the Guler State. Raja Vikram Singh turned to Guru Gobind Singh for help.Again, Guru Gobind sent another jatha under the command of Sangat Singh Minhas to help Vikram Singh. Vikram Singh and Sangat Singh fought together against the Mughal forces and defeated them again but Sangat Singh got fatally wounded and died.
This war happened in Vikrami Samvat, 1748. After this, there was peace for the next eight years. During this period, Guru Gobind Singh kept on training his army to ward off any attack by the Mughals. Meanwhile, Bhai Bachittar Singh Minhas of Padhiana in the Jalandhar district joined the army along with a large group of Doaba Rajputs.
Anandpur and the state of Kahlur were neighbouring states. Raja Bhim Chand of Kahlur got fearful because of the growing power of Guru Gobind Singh and his forces. He called upon all Hill Rajput chiefs to wage a war against the Guru. As a result of this meeting, the chiefs walked to Anandpur and gave a notice to Guru Gobind Singh to leave the town because they are feeling insecure due to his presence in the area. They told him that if he would leave Anandpur Sahib, they would help him. Guru Gobind refused to leave Anandpur Sahib at any cost.
The Hill Chiefs had army of almost 20,000 men and on top of this, Mughal forces from Lahore and Sirhind joined them. Guru Gobind Singh had only 2000 men under the command of Bhai Bachittar Singh Minhas. The battle between the Guru's forces and those of the hill chiefs started and soon, the stocks of food in Anandpur ran out.
The chiefs attacked the fort of Anandgarh and tried to break its main gate. Bhai Bachittar Singh managed to prevent them from entering the fort. Guru Gobind's army was nearly decimated. Due to this great loss, the Guru was commanded by the "Panj Piyaras" (the Five Beloved) to leave Anandpur Sahib, so as to carry forward the larger cause of fight against the oppressive Mughal regime. From here, the Guru went towards the Nabha and Jind states during Vikrami Samvat 1763, Bhai Bachittar Singh and another Doaba Rajput, Kharak Singh Minhas assisted Guru Gobind Singh in many of his future campaigns. After Guru Gobind Singh’s death, Banda Bahadur took over the torch of the Khalsa to fight against Mughal oppression. Banda reorganised the Khalsa Army and declared a war against the Mughal administration. From the Doaba region, he got help from Sikh Rajputs , Banda won almost half of the province and he offered Jagirs to his army commanders including the Rajputs, whose heirs are still holding their forts in the villages Chukhiara, Bhungarni, Dihana and Bohan.