Page 63 - Lohgarh

Banda Singh Bahadur’s Journey from Nanded to Lohgarh w 63

mercenary soldiers ran away, leaving the treasure behind. After fleeing
from Bahun, those Mughal soldiers went to the chief of Kaithal and
reported him about the incident. The chief of Kaithal was a Hindu but
was very much loyal to the Mughals. Having got the information about
the Sikhs, he led his forces to attack them. The Sikhs got intelligence
about his march; and they prepared themselves to give him a good
fight. The Sikhs hid themselves among the trees and when the Mughal
soldiers came near them, they made a surprise attack on them. Several
of the royal soldiers were killed in this sudden but swift attack. The
chief of Kaithal himself was captured by the Sikhs. When he was
presented before Banda Singh, he begged for his life. Banda Singh
forgave him, but relieved him of all his horses, arms and ammunition.
Banda Singh also appointed him as the Sikh chief of Kaithal. After this,
Banda Singh distributed the horses and the arms among his fighting
force and did not keep anything for himself. This increased his respect
among his companions.
A few days after this incident, several young Sikh men belonging to
the families of Bhai Rupa, Bhai Bahilo and other families of the present
Malwa zone, reached Banda Singh’s camp. Within a few weeks the
number of the Sikh soldiers grew more than four thousand. They wanted
to punish Wazir Khan, the Governor of Sarhind immediately. Banda Singh
advised the spirited youth to restrain them for the moment as Sirhind
had a big army. Moreover, the chiefs of the surrounding towns Samana,
Malerkotla, Sanaur, Ghuram, Shahbad, Mustafabad and Kunjpura etc.
too could come to his help. So, in order to attack Sirhind, the Sikhs
needed a big force fully equipped with arms, ammunition and horses.
To get the necessary arms, the Sikhs did not have money; so, Banda
Singh attacked Narnaul, Bhiwani and Hissar Firoza etc. and captured
enough arms and horses. During these attacks the Sikh army plundered
state treasuries too.
The First Sikh Victory: Samana Captured

Banda Singh was a wise general. In order to make Sarhind weak, he
decided to capture the Forts around it. The first to be attacked was