Page 149 - Lohgarh

Banda Singh After Leaving Lohgarh w 149

Sikh soldiers swelled to twenty-five thousands.
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On the 7 of April 1711, when Bahadur Shah reached near Banur,
he was told that ‘the Sikhs have taken shelter near Beas river, about 40-
45 km from Lahore, and they have built a new Fort too. The Sikhs have
established their police posts in a belt of about 25 km long and 10 km
wide area around river Beas and the landowners are fully co-operating
with them.’ 6
th
On the 15 of April, Bahadur Shah was told that the Bilaspur ruler
had become a friend of the Sikhs and he had assured the Sikhs that if
the Mughal forces chased the Sikhs, he would grant them safe heaven
and would stop the Mughals from entering his territory. 7

Sikhs Army again Captures Batala and Kalanaur
In March 1711, after the killings of the army chiefs of Jammu and
Sultanpur, the Sikhs marched towards Kalanaur and Batala. Batala was
a major trade centre and Kalanaur too was a town of the rich and the
affluent. When the elite Muslims heard about the Banda Singh’s march
towards Batala, they took away their valuables and fled to Lahore along
with their families.
During those days, two prominent Muslim personalities, Sayyad
Mohammed Fazal Qadri and Sheikh Ahmed (also known as Sheikh-Ul-
Hind), had their residence in Batala. Sayyad Mohammed Fazal Qadri,
who had established a big Muslim religious institute in the town, was
not in favour of fighting against the Sikh army because it would have
harmed the activities of his institute; but, on the other hand Sheikh
Ahmed wanted to give a fight to Banda Singh.
Banda Singh reached the village Achal, about 6 km, from Batala, on
one evening and rested there for a few hours. The next morning, before
it was dawn, the Sikh soldiers reached Hathi gate, the main entrance of
the city of Batala. Sheikh Ahmed, along with a big force of soldiers as
well as some ordinary young Muslims, in the name of holy war, was
already present outside the walls of the city. A fierce battle was fought
between both armies, but within a couple of hours Sheikh Ahmed was
killed and all his followers fled from the field. After this, the Sikhs broke