Page 206 - Lohgarh

206 w Lohgarh : The World’s Largest Fort

carts. Finally, it was decided to despatch them to Delhi via Sarhind under
heavy army guards. The news of these arrests had reached the Emperor
th
on the 12 of December 1715.
The number of the Sikhs arrested from Gurdas Nangal was less than
300; several Sikhs arrested from other places were also added to this
group. Similarly, the Mughal army had killed only a couple of hundred
of Sikhs during capture of Gurdas Nangal, and, their heads had been
severed. During this period hundreds of more Sikhs had been killed
elsewhere; the severed heads of all these Sikhs were also added to the
total of the heads being despatched to Delhi. By the time the arrested
Sikhs and severed heads of the Sikhs killed reached Delhi, their number
had risen from 300 arrested from Gurdas Nangal to more than 700; and
the number of the severed heads, which was about 200 at Gurdas
Nangal, 700 at Lahore, now had risen to more than 2000 when it reached
Delhi; all this was done to show the Emperor and the people of Delhi
that Abdus Samad Khan had made great achievements. 22
From Gurdas Nangal, the Mughal forces had captured 1000 swords,
278 shields, 173 bows and a small number of arrows, 180 guns, 114
daggers, 217 swords with gaatra (the Sikh sword-belt), a few ornaments
of gold, 23 mohars and about 600 rupees only, and, all this was, later,
deposited in the royal treasury at Delhi. It is amazing that the Sikhs had
fought against a heavily armoured mammoth Mughal army, with just
such a small number of weapons, for about eight months.

Farukhsiyar Celebrated the Arrest of Banda Singh

When Farukhsiyar received the news of the arrest of Banda Singh and
his companions on the 12 th of December 1715, he made prayers
(namaaz) twice. He announced the news of the Banda Singh’s arrest in
Delhi at the beat of the drum; he sent four sacks filled with coins (money)
to be showered from elephants, so that the public should pick up the
money and celebrate the victory of the Mughal army over the Sikhs. 23
Zakaria Khan (son of Abdus Samad Khan, the Governor of Lahore,
and son-in-law of Mohammed Amin Khan) himself led the procession
bringing Banda Singh, his wife Sushil Kaur and 4’1/2 years old son Ajay