Minhas
Encyclopedia
Minhas or Manhas or Minhas-Dogra (Punjabi
: मिन्हास (Devanagari
), ਮਿਨਹਾਸ (Gurmukhi), (Urdu
)) is a Suryavanshi Rajput
clan from the Punjab region
and Jammu
& Kashmir
in India
and Pakistan
. It is an off-shoot of Jamwal
-Dogra
Rajput
s, the founders of the city and state of Jammu and its rulers from ancient times to 1948 CE. Paying tribute to the antiquity of their royal lineage, Sir Lepel Griffin says, “These royal dynasties may have been already ancient when Moses was leading the Israelites out of Egypt, and the Greeks were steering their swift ships to Troy.”
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.
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 Dogra
s 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.
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 Samādhi
(place of cremation) is still visited by hundreds and thousands of Pakistan
is and India
ns 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.
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 Taluqdar
s of Dhanni(present day Tehsil Chakwal) till Punjab was annexed by the British after the Second Anglo Sikh War in 1849.
, the Minhas Rajputs are called "Mair" مائر or "Mair-Minhas" مائر- منهاس (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 مائر- منهاس tribes 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.
According to the census of 1931, their male population was 7800. The 'Chaudhrials' or the Talukdars reside in Kot Sarfraz Khan
and Kot Choudrian while rest of the Chaudhrys live in Behkri, Bhoun
,Mohra Kudlathi, Murid, Punjain Shariff, Sarkal-Mair, Udhwal, Chakral, Oudherwal,Dab, Mohra Sheikhan, Mohra Korechisham, Kotha Abdal, Chatal, Sutwal, Karhan, Chak Malook
, Chak Norang, Bhagwal
,and Lehri panjgrain and many others villages around the tehsil. Some Mair families of the same tribe/origin are also settled in Ahla
, Mangat
and Bhindar Kalan villages of Mandi Bahauddin District
.
The city of Chakwal is named after their Chief, Chaku Khan whose father, Raja Sidhar ruled the area at the time of Mughal
King Babar
's invasion. The Mughal emperor Zaheerudin Babur conferred upon Raja Sidhar, the title of Chaudhry and made him the Taluqdar
(area administrator) over 84 villages of the Dhani country, which since then has been known as Dhan 84. The Mair-Minhas tribe rose to further prominence during the short rule of Sher Shah Suri who handed them the control over the adjoining territories, as far as Swan River in Potohar and Kahoon in the South.
However, after the Mughal King Humayun
returned to India with the help of the Persians, he handed over the entire Potohar including Dhani to the Gakhars
, who had helped him escape from India during Sher Shah's revolt.
As written in the History of the Gakhars
, "Kaigor Nama", the Mair-Minhas tribe proved to be notorious subjects for the Gakhars
and almost never paid their revenue, killed the Ghakkar 'kardars' repeatedly and escaped in the mountains whenever military operations were launched against them. Sir Denzil Ibbetson in his Punjab census report of 1881 describes them as " ever masterful and always retaining their independence in a singular degree."
The Mair-Minhas tribe again rose to power after King Aurangzeb
's death. They had supported his son Moazzam in his quest for power and in return he re-appointed their chief Gadabeg Khan as the Taluqdar
and Chaudhry of 'Dhan Chaurasi'. Their rule over Dhani continued during the Sikh era as one of their chiefs Chaudhry Ghulam Mehdi had invited Sardar Maha Singh to this side of river Jhellum. Also, their Dogra cousins Raja Gulab Singh and Dhian Singh were very powerful in the Lahore Durbar, so the influence of Chakwal Chaudhrials during the Sikh era was considerable and they were considered one of the biggest Muslim land holders of the era.
It was during that era that the Dhani breed of horses became very popular and even Maharaja Ranjeet Singh's personal horses were kept in the stables of the 'Chakwal Chaudhials'.
In the Second Anglo-Sikh War
at Chaillianwala in 1849, the Chakwal Chaudhrials were among the very few Muslim feudal families who supported the Sikhs. Consequently, after the defeat of the Sikhs all Jagirs and titles of the 'Chakwal Chaudhrials' were confiscated. As a result they lost proprietary rights over 170000 acres (688 km²) of cultivated land which they had colonised and owned for many centuries.
Due to their general good conduct in the mutiny of 1857, some of their rights were restored and small Jagirs were granted to their chiefs in Chakwal. Chief of the tribe Jehan Khan and later his son Aurangzeb Khan were conferred an 'inam' of Rs.312/- per annum and the title of "Raja Sahib" as a mark of hereditary distinction. The Chaudhrials of Kot Chaudhrian were able to get more concessions with the aid of Maharaja Gulab Singh and almost half of their original lands were re-granted.
and Nagyal
.
The Mair Minhas tribe has a long martial tradition which has continued into modern times. Muslim Minhas Rajputs, being recognised in history as the warrior aristocracy, prior to this they were designated by the British Empire as a Martial Race and recruited into the Imperial Army.
Some of the most respected officers of the Pakistan Army
including its first General, PA 1, Muhammed Akbar Khan
(Order of the British Empire
), PA 2 General Muhammad Iftikhar Khan
(designated to become the first C-in-C, but died in an aircrash), PA 12 Brig. General Muhammed Zafar (first Indian to become Commander of Cavalry) and PA 48 General Muhammad Anwar Khan (Pakistan's first E-in-C) all hail from this clan. General Anwar is considered the father of Pakistan's Corps of Engineers, and also served as Chairman OGDC.
Members of Muslim Minhas tribe have the honour of receiving top military awards both in British India and in Pakistan. Subaidar Khudadad Khan
was awarded Victoria Cross
, the first native Indian to receive this honour and Rashid Minhas
was awarded Pakistan's top military honour, the Nishan-E-Haider
. He was also the youngest man and the only member of the Pakistan Air Force to win this coveted award. The Pakistan Air Force base at Kamra has been renamed in his honour.
Rashid Minhas
was posthumously awarded Pakistan's top military honour, the Nishan-E-Haider
, and became the youngest man and the only member of the Pakistan Air Force to win the award. He also became a national hero. The Pakistan Air Force base at Kamra
has been renamed in his honour. In Karachi
he was honored by naming main street, Rashid Minhas Road
of Chakwal was a famous Mair-Minhas Rajput during the British era. In 1892 CE he was given the title of Khan Bahadur
for his services in establishing the town of Lyallpur (now Faisalabad). He was also conferred upon the title of 'Raja Sahib' as a mark of hereditary distinction by Qaiser-e-Hind, His Majesty, King George V. His son, Raja Muhammed Sarfraz Khan
(MLA 1929-58) played an important role in the local politics during Pakistan Movement
. He was also instrumental in the educational progress of the region, and gave generous donations to set up schools and the Government College, Chakwal in 1949.
Raja Hukamdad Khan (1950s Vice Chairman, District Board Rawalpindi) from village Sagri was a prominent figure of pothoharregion. Who gave generous donations to built schools and for the welfare of a common man.
Another notable and one of the most prominent families in Rawalpindi, having very strong political, bureaucratic and military background is from Gujar Khan District Rawalpindi. This family has seen many shining names like Khan Sahab Bahadur Subaidar Raja Muhammad Nazar Khan (Viceroy Commissioned Officer and a strong landlord), Col. Raja Muhammad Ashraf Khan (Chairman District Board Rawalpindi, Member National Assembly & Member Provincial Assembly), Major General Retd. Raja Muhammad Aslam (Late) and Raja Pervez Ashraf (Member National Assembly and General Secretary Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarian - Present). Raja Pervaiz Ashraf is currently the federal Minister for Water and Power.
In the education field, we cannot forget the well known educationist Raja Abdul Rauf Minhas (26.10.1933 – 30.04.1998) who retired as a Deputy Director of Federal Government Educational Institutions (Cantt-Garrison) in 1993. He belonged to the Village Taraiya of the Pakhral
Minhas Rajput family of Rawalpindi. One of the only two asians in the institution, Raja Abdul Rauf Minhas obtained "Roll of Honour" from The University of Southampton, United Kingdom along with being a Gold-Medalist and top position holder in the University of Punjab, Pakistan. He had the distinction of being the first learned person of his village and among the very few well educated person of Minhas family in his era. Raja Abdul Rauf Minhas served as a Principal in F.G. Schools in Murree, Okara, Attock, Rawalpindi, Kharian etc. In the sixties, He also served as a Professor of Mathematics in the renowned Lawrence College Ghora Gali, Murree, where he was a teacher to known personalities like Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, Aftab Sherpao, Sardar Sadiq, CGCSC General Shamim Alam Khan
etc to name a few. During his tenure as a Principal of various intitutions, He was awarded the "BEST PRINCIPAL" award twice by Prime Ministers of Pakistan. He had a younger brother, Raja Abdul Latif Minhas (Deceased 18.10.2011), who retired as a senior Doctor of Fauji Foundation Hospital, Rawalpindi. It is also pertinent to mention that the renowned "Sohan" Village (Islamabad Highway) and "Misrial Road" of Rawalpindi (Now Capt. Jonaid Shaheed Road) was actually named after one of the elders of his family.[Malik waqas Kashmiri a Young software engineer and scholar ]
emperor, Babar
established the Minhas clan villages of Daroli Kalan
, Droli Khurd, Damunda, Padhiana
& Paldi in East Punjab around the year 1530. Almost all these villages are located approximately seven kilometres from the town of Adampur
except the village of Paldi and Dughe, which is in the Garhshankar Teshil in the Hoshiarpur District
. The villages of Manko and Rajowal adjacent to Droli Kalan are inhabited by the Dhillon, Nijjar
and Sandhu
Jat clans. The villages of Dughe and areas of the Hoshiarpur District
were settled by the Minhas-Dogras(see family tree : http://www.dogra.net ) that trace their ancestry to Kaliash in the late 16th century.
The village of Haripur
which is just 2.5 kilometres from Adampur
, also initially belonged to Haria Singh Minhas of the village of Damunda. This village was however surrendered, because of the criminal charges brought up against Haria Singh of molesting labourer women, on the direction of Lehna Singh Majithia, the in charge of Droli Kalan during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh
. Today, although the owners of lands in these villages are mostly Jats because of the enforcement of new Land Laws by the British
in the year 1920, the land revenue record even today stands in the name of the Minhas Rajputs of Droli, Padhiana & Damunda.
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 Jagir
s to his army commanders including the Rajputs, whose heirs are still holding their forts in the villages Chukhiara, Bhungarni, Dihana and Bohan.
, Pakhral
, Lodhra
,and Mahe are also sub-branches of the Minhas.
Before 1932, in all census, most Virk
s mention themselves as Virk
Minhas. The headquarter of the Virks appears to be Gujranwala and Lahore districts, especially, the former in which they own 132 villages. They claim origin from a Minhas Rajput called Virk, who left Jammu and settled at Ghuchli in Amritsar, and then in Gujranwala. Nearly a third of them have returned themselves as Rajputs, but they freely inter marry with the neighboring Jatt clans. They say that their ancestor, Virk was a descendant of Raja Malan Hans Dev, the founder of the Manhas or Minhas clan and was connected with the Rajas of Jammu. Leaving Paragowal(Raja Parago Minhas is the founder of paragowal) in Jammu, he settled in Amritsar and married a Gill Jat girl. His descendants, shortly afterwards, moved westward into Gujranwala. There are three main sections of the tribe, the Jopur, Vachra, and Jan. Virks rose to some political importance about the end of the 18th century, ruling a considerable tract in Gujranwala and Lahore, till subdued by Ranjit Singh. Another branch of Minhas Rajputs is known as Pakhral,who are mostly found in the areas around Rawalpindi and also in Kashmir.
Minhas Jatts also reside in the villages of Mair, Chotala, Nagayal and suburbs of Jhelum. There are many other villages of Minhas Jatts in the Pothohar region. They are proud to be known as Jatis. Pakhrals are also setteled in Suiyan Sharif Sehnsa Kotli (Azad) Kashmir. Mair Minhas, Ratiyal, Lodhra, Dolchial, etc. are also sub-clans of Pakhral.
Punjabi language
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...
: मिन्हास (Devanagari
Devanagari
Devanagari |deva]]" and "nāgarī" ), also called Nagari , is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal...
), ਮਿਨਹਾਸ (Gurmukhi), (Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
)) is a Suryavanshi Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
clan from the Punjab region
Punjab region
The Punjab , also spelled Panjab |water]]s"), is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
and Jammu
Jammu
Jammu , also known as Duggar, is one of the three administrative divisions within Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state in India.Jammu city is the largest city in Jammu and the winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir...
& Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. It is an off-shoot of Jamwal
Jamwal
Jamwal is a suryavanshi Rajput clan of Chattari lineage in Jammu and Kashmir that claims solar origin by direct descent from Sri Rama Chandra of Raghav Rajput clan. Jamwal traditions state that their ancestor, Raja Agnigarba, came from Ayodhya and founded a small state on the banks of River Tawi...
-Dogra
Dogra
The Dogras are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group in South Asia. Being a diversified group, the Dogras include both Savarnas such as Brahmins, Rajputs and Non-savarnas. The Dogras also incluide merchant castes such as Mahajans...
Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
s, the founders of the city and state of Jammu and its rulers from ancient times to 1948 CE. Paying tribute to the antiquity of their royal lineage, Sir Lepel Griffin says, “These royal dynasties may have been already ancient when Moses was leading the Israelites out of Egypt, and the Greeks were steering their swift ships to Troy.”
Minhas Rajputs are spread throughout Punjab Region
Punjab region
The Punjab , also spelled Panjab |water]]s"), is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
and Jammu
Jammu
Jammu , also known as Duggar, is one of the three administrative divisions within Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state in India.Jammu city is the largest city in Jammu and the winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir...
& Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
in India and Pakistan. Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
Minhas Rajputs reside in the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
, Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...
and Indian Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
, Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
Minhas Rajputs, mainly inhabit Punjab (India)
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
and Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
Minhas Rajputs reside in Pakistani Punjab
Punjab (Pakistan)
Punjab is the most populous province of Pakistan, with approximately 45% of the country's total population. Forming most of the Punjab region, the province is bordered by Kashmir to the north-east, the Indian states of Punjab and Rajasthan to the east, the Pakistani province of Sindh to the...
and Pakistan controlled Kashmir.
Origins
Rama
Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...
a legendary king of Ayodhya. In Rajputana
Rajputana
Rājputāna was the pre-1949 name of the present-day Indian state of Rājasthān, the largest state of the Republic of India in terms of area. George Thomas was the first in 1800 A.D., to term this region as Rajputana...
, their closest cousins are the Kachwaha
Kachwaha
Kachwaha are a Suryavanshi Kshatriya clan who ruled a number of kingdoms and princely states in India such as Alwar, Maihar, Talcher, while the largest kingdom was Jaipur which was founded by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II in 1727...
and Raghav (Raghuvanshi)
Raghav (Raghuvanshi)
Badgujars rajputs, Jayas rajputs clans claim descent from Suryavanshi king Raghu and his grandson Lord Rama and his son Lava and write Raghav as their surname. They ruled some kingdoms and princely states.-Etymology:...
Rajputs of Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
.
They trace their ancestry to the Suryavansha
Suryavansha
The Sooryavamsham or Suryavansh or Suryavamsa or Sun Dynasty or Solar Dynasty was one of the most prominent dynasties in the mythical history of India, along with the "Chandra-vaṃśa" or Lunar Dynasty.-Introduction:...
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
Rama
Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...
who belongs to Raghav (Raghuvanshi)
Raghav (Raghuvanshi)
Badgujars rajputs, Jayas rajputs clans claim descent from Suryavanshi king Raghu and his grandson Lord Rama and his son Lava and write Raghav as their surname. They ruled some kingdoms and princely states.-Etymology:...
clan of Suryavansha
Suryavansha
The Sooryavamsham or Suryavansh or Suryavamsa or Sun Dynasty or Solar Dynasty was one of the most prominent dynasties in the mythical history of India, along with the "Chandra-vaṃśa" or Lunar Dynasty.-Introduction:...
, 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 Dogra
Dogra
The Dogras are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group in South Asia. Being a diversified group, the Dogras include both Savarnas such as Brahmins, Rajputs and Non-savarnas. The Dogras also incluide merchant castes such as Mahajans...
s 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
Hari Singh
Maharaja Hari Singh was the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir in India.He was married four times...
was the last in the long list of the Dogra rulers of Jammu. The Dogras also ruled over the Kashmir Valley
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
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
Second Anglo-Sikh War
The Second Anglo-Sikh War took place in 1848 and 1849, between the Sikh Empire and the British East India Company. It resulted in the subjugation of the Sikh Empire, and the annexation of the Punjab and what subsequently became the North-West Frontier Province by the East India Company.-Background...
in 1849 CE.
Minhas history
Bhati
Bhati is one of the largest tribes of the Gujjars& Rajput. They claim descent from Krishna as an avatar of Vishnu, and thus identify themselves as a Chandravanshi Kshatriya clan. The Bhati trace their history to the desert principality of Jaisalmer in Rajasthan, in the border villages of Bikaner...
Rajput clans were extremely powerful during the time of the Hindu Shahi dynasty of Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
and ruled over many small kingdoms extending from eastern Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
through the Jammu/Sialkot
Sialkot
Sialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
areas of West Punjab
West Punjab
West Punjab was a province of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955. The province covered an area of 160,622 km², including much of the current Punjab province and the Islamabad Capital Territory, but excluding the former princely state of Bahawalpur. The capital was the city of Lahore and the province...
and up to the Jalandhar
Jalandhar
Jalandhar is a city in Jalandhar District in the state of Punjab, India. It is located 144 km northwest of the state capital, Chandigarh...
/Kangra area of eastern Punjab. According to Farishta, during the second battle of Tarain between Prithviraj Chauhan and Mohammad Ghori in 1192, Chauhan
Chauhan
Chauhan, Chouhan or Chohan , , - is a clan who ruled parts of northern India in the Middle Ages. The clan is most famous for Rajput King Maharaja Prithviraj Chauhan...
's left flank consisted of Hindu Pathan
Pashtun people
Pashtuns or Pathans , also known as ethnic Afghans , are an Eastern Iranic ethnic group with populations primarily between the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan and the Indus River in Pakistan...
cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
. 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 Samādhi
Samadhi
Samadhi in Hinduism, Buddhism,Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools is a higher level of concentrated meditation, or dhyāna. In the yoga tradition, it is the eighth and final limb identified in the Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali....
(place of cremation) is still visited by hundreds and thousands of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
is and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
ns each year in the month of June. The Mela
Mela
Mela is a Sanskrit word meaning 'gathering' or 'to meet' or a Fair. It is used in the Indian subcontinent for all sizes of gathering and can be religious, commercial, cultural or sports. In rural traditions melas or village fairs were of great importance...
(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
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
lost its importance momentarily and people from both sides participated in the mela with vigour.
Banda Bahadur
Banda Bahadur
Banda Singh Bahadur was a Sikh warrior and martyr. He became part of struggle against the Mughal Empire in the early 18th century, after meeting Guru Gobind Singh. Guru Gobind Singh gave him the new name of Banda Singh Bahadur...
, the famous disciple of Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh is the tenth and last Sikh guru in a sacred lineage of ten Sikh gurus. Born in Patna, Bihar in India, he was also a warrior, poet and philosopher. He succeeded his father Guru Tegh Bahadur as the leader of Sikhs at a young age of nine...
who was the tenth Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
Guru and the founder of the Khalsa
Khalsa
+YouWebImagesVideosMapsNewsMailMoreTranslateFrom: ArabicTo: EnglishEnglishHindiEnglishAllow phonetic typingHindiEnglishArabicAssumptionGoogle Translate for Business:Translator ToolkitWebsite TranslatorGlobal Market Finder...
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
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
presence in eastern Punjab and arguably created the first Sikh State.
Royal Titles used by the Minhas Rajputs
- MaharajaMaharajaMahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
: This title was adopted by Raja Gulab Singh of Jammu after he annexed KashmirKashmirKashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
and Ladakh and became the ruler of the state of Jammu & Kashmir. He was also accepted as the chief by all the JamwalJamwalJamwal is a suryavanshi Rajput clan of Chattari lineage in Jammu and Kashmir that claims solar origin by direct descent from Sri Rama Chandra of Raghav Rajput clan. Jamwal traditions state that their ancestor, Raja Agnigarba, came from Ayodhya and founded a small state on the banks of River Tawi...
and Minhas Rajputs.
- RajaRajaRaja is an Indian term for a monarch, or princely ruler of the Kshatriya varna...
: Most members of the Minhas tribe including Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs use the title 'Raja' as this title was used by most of the RajputRajputA Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
rulers from ancient times.
- RanaRana (title)Rana is a Princely title of Royalty in Sanskrit. Rana is used by the Jats and Rajput of South Asia. The name is usually interpreted to mean "Prince".Compound titles Rana Sahib, Rana Bahadur, and Maharana.-Royal title in India:...
: Rana is a princely title of Royalty. Muslim Minhas Rajputs in PakistanPakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
mainly in LahoreLahoreLahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
, SheikhupuraSheikhupuraSheikhupura or Shekhupur , formerly Kot Dayal Das or Singhpuria or Virkgarh , is an industrial city in the province of Punjab slightly northwest to Lahore in Pakistan. It is known for its historical places, and is commonly known locally as Qila Shaikhupura, because of the fort in the city,...
, GujranwalaGujranwalaGujranwala is a industrial city in the north-east of the Punjab province. It is the sixth largest city in Pakistan with a population of approximately 2,661,360 as on 24 June 2011...
and SialkotSialkotSialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
use the title of Rana.
- KhanKhan (title)Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
: MuslimMuslimA Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
Mair Minhas RajputRajputA Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
use the title of KhanKhan (title)Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
. Raja Bhagir Dev was named Muhammed Mair after conversion to Islam and his descendants as Mair-Minhas Rajputs. Most of Muslim Mair Minhas use the title of KhanKhan (title)Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
.
- MianMianMian is family name and a title of nobility used by Muslims in the Punjab region of South Asia.-Mian Khan Pashtuns:The Pathans of Bihar , have a large community of Pashtuns in the state of Bihar in India, who are said to have settled in the region from the 13th Century onwards...
: This title was conferred upon the 'Punjab Hill Chiefs' by the Mughal King, Jhangir and was used by most of the Rajput tribes in the Punjab Hills for many centuries. The elder brother was called Raja, whereas his younger brothers were called Mian. Lately, the Rajputs have decided to use 'Thakur' instead of this MughalMughal (tribe)The term Mughal is simply a Turkic word and many groups in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh use the term Mughal to describe themselves...
title.
- ThakurThakur (Indian title)Thakur is an Indian feudal title in several Indian languages, literally meaning "lord". A Thikana is the state or estate of a Thakur. A Thakurani is the wife of a 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 MianMianMian is family name and a title of nobility used by Muslims in the Punjab region of South Asia.-Mian Khan Pashtuns:The Pathans of Bihar , have a large community of Pashtuns in the state of Bihar in India, who are said to have settled in the region from the 13th Century onwards...
.
- Kunwar: This title is used by the younger Hindu Minhas Rajputs to signify that their father ThakurThakur (Indian title)Thakur is an Indian feudal title in several Indian languages, literally meaning "lord". A Thikana is the state or estate of a Thakur. A Thakurani is the wife of a 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 MaharajaMaharajaMahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
gave this title to all the village-heads around Punjab.
- SardarSardarSardar is a title of Indo-Aryan origin that was originally used to denote feudal princes, noblemen, and other aristocrats. It was later applied to indicate a Head of State, a Commander-in-chief, and an Army military rank...
: This title is manily used by the Sikh Minhas Rajputs & Muslim Rajputs mainly in indian Punjab, POK and J&K.
- RaiRai (Indian)Rai is a title of honour in India and is also used as a surname mainly by Rajput, Jat of North India and Bunts of coastal Karnataka and Kerala in south India.It is also used as a surname by Bhumihar of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.It is derived from Raja and the Marathi/Telugu variant is Rao, while...
: There is also a considerable population of Minhas families in SialkotSialkotSialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
in the districts of Rangpura and Heerawalapura. They are descendants of RaiRai (Indian)Rai is a title of honour in India and is also used as a surname mainly by Rajput, Jat of North India and Bunts of coastal Karnataka and Kerala in south India.It is also used as a surname by Bhumihar of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.It is derived from Raja and the Marathi/Telugu variant is Rao, while...
Luckoo Minhas.
- SinghSinghAlso see SinhaSingh is a common title, middle name, or surname in Northern India and South India used by sikhs warriors and kings. eg. Man Singh I, Maharana Pratap Singh. It is derived from the Sanskrit word Siṃha meaning "lion and used by Ahir kings of Nepal". It is also used in Sri Lanka by...
: The title Singh used by the HinduHinduHindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
and SikhSikhA Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
Minhas Rajputs while MuslimMuslimA Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
Minhas Rajputs use KhanKhan (title)Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
.
- PakhralPakhralPakhral Rajput is a sub clan of Minhas Rajput. Pakhral Rajputs are the Most Dynamic Rulers in the History of the Indian sub-continent and they deservedly hold the dinstinction of being the hero of sub-continent. The founders of the city and state of Jammu and its rulers from ancient times to 1948....
: This is not used as a title but The People of Minhas Tribe living in Pothohar Plateau are termed as Pakhral Rajput
- MalikMalikMalik is an Arabic word meaning "king, chieftain".It has been adopted in various other, mainly Islamized or Arabized, Asian languages for their ruling princes and to render kings elsewhere. It is also sometimes used in derived meanings...
: 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
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
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
Jhelum
Jhelum or Jehlum may refer to:* Jhelum, a city in Pakistan on the banks of the Jhelum River* Jhelum District, an administrative division in Punjab, Pakistan surrounding the city of Jhelum...
, Gujrat
Gujrat
Gujrat is a city in Pakistan. It is the capital of Gujrat District and the Gujrat Tehsil subdivision in the Punjab Province. People living in Gujrat refer to themselves as Gujratis, which sometimes leads to confusion with people from the Indian state of Gujarat which adjoins Pakistan...
, Sialkot
Sialkot
Sialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
and Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi , locally known as Pindi, is a city in the Pothohar region of Pakistan near Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, in the province of Punjab. Rawalpindi is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad...
districts, which all bordered Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
. The Mair Minhas, are found in Chakwal
Chakwal
Chakwal is the capital of Chakwal District, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located 90 km south-east of the federal capital, Islamabad and is named after Chaudhry Chaku Khan, chief of the Mair Minhas tribe from Jammu, who founded it in 1525 CE during the era of the Mughal Emperor, Zaheerudun Babur...
District, Raja Minhas mainly found in Jhelum
Jhelum
Jhelum or Jehlum may refer to:* Jhelum, a city in Pakistan on the banks of the Jhelum River* Jhelum District, an administrative division in Punjab, Pakistan surrounding the city of Jhelum...
district and Azad Kashmir
Azad Kashmir
Azad Jammu and Kashmir or Azad Kashmir for short, is the southernmost political entity within the Pakistani-administered part of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir...
, Nagyal
Nagyal
Nagyal, sometimes pronounced as Nangyal and also written as Nagial are a Rajput-Jat tribe found mainly in Rawalpindi District, Gujar Khan, Daultala, Jhelum and Gujrat Districts of Punjab, Mirpur District of Azad Jammu and Kashmir...
are found in Daultala, Gujar Khan and the Manes
Manes
In ancient Roman religion, the Manes or Di Manes are chthonic deities sometimes thought to represent the souls of deceased loved ones. They were associated with the Lares, Genii, and Di Penates as deities that pertained to domestic, local, and personal cult...
and Lodhra
Lodhra
The Lodhra are a tribe of Muslim Rajputs, found mainly in Lodhran District of Punjab, Pakistan.The tribe claims descent from Lodhra, a son of Sukhram Dev, a ManhasRajput. Lodhra is said to have come to the district in the 17th Century, and founded the town of Lodhran. The tribe converted to Islam...
branches were found in south Punjab
South Punjab
South Punjab is the southernmost region of Pakistan's Punjab province. The districts of Bahawalpur, Multan, Rahim Yar Khan and D. G. Khan are geographically regarded as components of the region...
. In Sialkot and East Punjab Minhas used Mian
Mian
Mian is family name and a title of nobility used by Muslims in the Punjab region of South Asia.-Mian Khan Pashtuns:The Pathans of Bihar , have a large community of Pashtuns in the state of Bihar in India, who are said to have settled in the region from the 13th Century onwards...
as a title, and so do the Manes and Lodhra in South Punjab while many Minhas in Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
, Sialkot
Sialkot
Sialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
and Shekhupura use Rana
Rana (title)
Rana is a Princely title of Royalty in Sanskrit. Rana is used by the Jats and Rajput of South Asia. The name is usually interpreted to mean "Prince".Compound titles Rana Sahib, Rana Bahadur, and Maharana.-Royal title in India:...
as a title. The Mair Minhas use Chaudhary
Chaudhary
Choudhury is a term in Indo-Aryan languages, literally meaning "holder of four". Traditionally, the term is used as a title indicating the ownership of ancestral land, but in contemporary usage it is often taken as a surname or title....
and Khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
as a title, while the Gujrat and Potohar Minhas use Raja as a title. Minhas Rajput clans in Pakistan Administered Kashmir use Sardar
Sardar
Sardar is a title of Indo-Aryan origin that was originally used to denote feudal princes, noblemen, and other aristocrats. It was later applied to indicate a Head of State, a Commander-in-chief, and an Army military rank...
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
Chakwal
Chakwal is the capital of Chakwal District, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located 90 km south-east of the federal capital, Islamabad and is named after Chaudhry Chaku Khan, chief of the Mair Minhas tribe from Jammu, who founded it in 1525 CE during the era of the Mughal Emperor, Zaheerudun Babur...
is named after a Minhas chief, Chaudhry Chaku Khan and his decedents remained the Taluqdar
Taluqdar
A taluqdar or talukdar , is a term used for Indian land holders in Mughal and British times, responsible for collecting taxes from a district...
s of Dhanni(present day Tehsil Chakwal) till Punjab was annexed by the British after the Second Anglo Sikh War in 1849.
Mair-Minhas of Chakwal
In ChakwalChakwal
Chakwal is the capital of Chakwal District, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located 90 km south-east of the federal capital, Islamabad and is named after Chaudhry Chaku Khan, chief of the Mair Minhas tribe from Jammu, who founded it in 1525 CE during the era of the Mughal Emperor, Zaheerudun Babur...
, the Minhas Rajputs are called "Mair" مائر or "Mair-Minhas" مائر- منهاس (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
Gujjar
The Gurjar are an ethnic group in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Alternative spellings include Gurjara, Gujar, Gurjjara and Gūrjara. The spelling Gurjara or Gurjar is preferable to the rest....
tribe, converted to Islam and married her. According to the Glossary of Punjab Castes, the Taluqdars
Taluqdar
A taluqdar or talukdar , is a term used for Indian land holders in Mughal and British times, responsible for collecting taxes from a district...
belonging to Mair-Minhas مائر- منهاس tribes of the Dhanni (present-day Chakwal
Chakwal
Chakwal is the capital of Chakwal District, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located 90 km south-east of the federal capital, Islamabad and is named after Chaudhry Chaku Khan, chief of the Mair Minhas tribe from Jammu, who founded it in 1525 CE during the era of the Mughal Emperor, Zaheerudun Babur...
District) were among the first few to receive the honorific title of "Chowdhury
Chaudhary
Choudhury is a term in Indo-Aryan languages, literally meaning "holder of four". Traditionally, the term is used as a title indicating the ownership of ancestral land, but in contemporary usage it is often taken as a surname or title....
" from the Mughal Emperor Zaheer uddin Babur
Babur
Babur was a Muslim conqueror from Central Asia who, following a series of setbacks, finally succeeded in laying the basis for the Mughal dynasty of South Asia. He was a direct descendant of Timur through his father, and a descendant also of Genghis Khan through his mother...
. Later during the Sikh rule in Punjab, when the title of "Chowdhury
Chaudhary
Choudhury is a term in Indo-Aryan languages, literally meaning "holder of four". Traditionally, the term is used as a title indicating the ownership of ancestral land, but in contemporary usage it is often taken as a surname or title....
" 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.
Kot Sarfraz Khan
Kot Sarfraz Khan is one the oldest living settlements in Chakwal, Punjab, Pakistan.Kot Sarfraz Khan was founded in 1751 C.E by the Talukdar of Dhanni,Chaudhry Subhan Quli Khan and named after his son Chaudhry Torabaz Khan...
and Kot Choudrian while rest of the Chaudhrys live in Behkri, Bhoun
Bhoun
Bhoun Bhoun (mostly spelled Bhaun) Bhoun (mostly spelled Bhaun) (is a village and union council, an administrative subdivision, of Chakwal District in the Punjab Province of Pakistan. It is part of Chakwal Tehsil....
,Mohra Kudlathi, Murid, Punjain Shariff, Sarkal-Mair, Udhwal, Chakral, Oudherwal,Dab, Mohra Sheikhan, Mohra Korechisham, Kotha Abdal, Chatal, Sutwal, Karhan, Chak Malook
Chak Malook
Chak Malook is a village and union council, an administrative subdivision, of Chakwal District in the Punjab Province of Pakistan, it is part of Chakwal Tehsil and is located at 32°58'0N 72°57'0E.-References:...
, Chak Norang, Bhagwal
Bhagwal
Bhagwal is a village located in Gujrat District in the Punjab Province of Pakistan. It is located at 33°4'32N 72°35'45E-References:...
,and Lehri panjgrain and many others villages around the tehsil. Some Mair families of the same tribe/origin are also settled in Ahla
Ahla
Ahla is a village and Union Council of Mandi Bahauddin District in the Punjab province of Pakistan.- Overview :Ahla is situated on the southern bank of Lower Jhelum canal, about 9 km from Mandi Bahauddin city. It is headquarters of union council Ahla...
, Mangat
Mangat
For the Article on Jat clan, see Mangat Mangat is a town and Union Council of Mandi Bahauddin District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is located at 32°31'0N 73°30'0E and has an altitude of 223 metres . Literacy rate is not high in this locality. Farming is main occupation....
and Bhindar Kalan villages of Mandi Bahauddin District
Mandi Bahauddin District
Mandi Bahauddin is a district of the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is located at 32°34'60N 73°30'0E and is bounded on the northwest by the Jhelum River, on the South-East by the Chenab River which separates it from Gujranwala District and Gujrat District and on the southwest by Sargodha District...
.
The city of Chakwal is named after their Chief, Chaku Khan whose father, Raja Sidhar ruled the area at the time of Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
King Babar
Babur
Babur was a Muslim conqueror from Central Asia who, following a series of setbacks, finally succeeded in laying the basis for the Mughal dynasty of South Asia. He was a direct descendant of Timur through his father, and a descendant also of Genghis Khan through his mother...
's invasion. The Mughal emperor Zaheerudin Babur conferred upon Raja Sidhar, the title of Chaudhry and made him the Taluqdar
Taluqdar
A taluqdar or talukdar , is a term used for Indian land holders in Mughal and British times, responsible for collecting taxes from a district...
(area administrator) over 84 villages of the Dhani country, which since then has been known as Dhan 84. The Mair-Minhas tribe rose to further prominence during the short rule of Sher Shah Suri who handed them the control over the adjoining territories, as far as Swan River in Potohar and Kahoon in the South.
However, after the Mughal King Humayun
Humayun
Nasir ud-din Muhammad Humayun was the second Mughal Emperor who ruled present day Afghanistan, Pakistan, and parts of northern India from 1530–1540 and again from 1555–1556. Like his father, Babur, he lost his kingdom early, but with Persian aid, he eventually regained an even larger one...
returned to India with the help of the Persians, he handed over the entire Potohar including Dhani to the Gakhars
Gakhars
The Gakhars are an ancient warrior clan who have predominantly resided in what is present day northern Punjab and South-Western Kashmir, Pakistan. In particular in the cities of Rawalpindi, Jhelum and regions of Gilgit, Baltistan, Chitral, Khanpur and Mirpur, Pakistan...
, who had helped him escape from India during Sher Shah's revolt.
As written in the History of the Gakhars
Gakhars
The Gakhars are an ancient warrior clan who have predominantly resided in what is present day northern Punjab and South-Western Kashmir, Pakistan. In particular in the cities of Rawalpindi, Jhelum and regions of Gilgit, Baltistan, Chitral, Khanpur and Mirpur, Pakistan...
, "Kaigor Nama", the Mair-Minhas tribe proved to be notorious subjects for the Gakhars
Gakhars
The Gakhars are an ancient warrior clan who have predominantly resided in what is present day northern Punjab and South-Western Kashmir, Pakistan. In particular in the cities of Rawalpindi, Jhelum and regions of Gilgit, Baltistan, Chitral, Khanpur and Mirpur, Pakistan...
and almost never paid their revenue, killed the Ghakkar 'kardars' repeatedly and escaped in the mountains whenever military operations were launched against them. Sir Denzil Ibbetson in his Punjab census report of 1881 describes them as " ever masterful and always retaining their independence in a singular degree."
The Mair-Minhas tribe again rose to power after King Aurangzeb
Aurangzeb
Abul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir , more commonly known as Aurangzeb or by his chosen imperial title Alamgir , was the sixth Mughal Emperor of India, whose reign lasted from 1658 until his death in 1707.Badshah Aurangzeb, having ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for nearly...
's death. They had supported his son Moazzam in his quest for power and in return he re-appointed their chief Gadabeg Khan as the Taluqdar
Taluqdar
A taluqdar or talukdar , is a term used for Indian land holders in Mughal and British times, responsible for collecting taxes from a district...
and Chaudhry of 'Dhan Chaurasi'. Their rule over Dhani continued during the Sikh era as one of their chiefs Chaudhry Ghulam Mehdi had invited Sardar Maha Singh to this side of river Jhellum. Also, their Dogra cousins Raja Gulab Singh and Dhian Singh were very powerful in the Lahore Durbar, so the influence of Chakwal Chaudhrials during the Sikh era was considerable and they were considered one of the biggest Muslim land holders of the era.
It was during that era that the Dhani breed of horses became very popular and even Maharaja Ranjeet Singh's personal horses were kept in the stables of the 'Chakwal Chaudhials'.
In the Second Anglo-Sikh War
Second Anglo-Sikh War
The Second Anglo-Sikh War took place in 1848 and 1849, between the Sikh Empire and the British East India Company. It resulted in the subjugation of the Sikh Empire, and the annexation of the Punjab and what subsequently became the North-West Frontier Province by the East India Company.-Background...
at Chaillianwala in 1849, the Chakwal Chaudhrials were among the very few Muslim feudal families who supported the Sikhs. Consequently, after the defeat of the Sikhs all Jagirs and titles of the 'Chakwal Chaudhrials' were confiscated. As a result they lost proprietary rights over 170000 acres (688 km²) of cultivated land which they had colonised and owned for many centuries.
Due to their general good conduct in the mutiny of 1857, some of their rights were restored and small Jagirs were granted to their chiefs in Chakwal. Chief of the tribe Jehan Khan and later his son Aurangzeb Khan were conferred an 'inam' of Rs.312/- per annum and the title of "Raja Sahib" as a mark of hereditary distinction. The Chaudhrials of Kot Chaudhrian were able to get more concessions with the aid of Maharaja Gulab Singh and almost half of their original lands were re-granted.
Other Minhas Clans
The Mair-Minhas tribe is almost entirely confined to the Chakwal District. However, besides Chakwal, there are a quite a few other Minhas (other than Mair-Minhas) villages scattered all over the province including the famous villages of Sagri, chapper, Shohwa (known in area as Karkan Shohwa) near Rawalpindi, Sihala in Islamabad, Gujar Khan, Kahuta, Sargodha and Faisalabad. Among the other Minhas clans include the Kanyal, GhikGhik
Ghik is a clan of Rajputs found mainly in the Gujar Khan Tehsil of Rawalpindi District in Pakistan. According to the traditions of the tribe, they are a clan of Minhas Rajputs, and descend from four brothers that came to settle in this region during the rule of the Mughal Emperor Akbar...
and Nagyal
Nagyal
Nagyal, sometimes pronounced as Nangyal and also written as Nagial are a Rajput-Jat tribe found mainly in Rawalpindi District, Gujar Khan, Daultala, Jhelum and Gujrat Districts of Punjab, Mirpur District of Azad Jammu and Kashmir...
.
Martial Traditions and Top Military Awards
Some of the most respected officers of the Pakistan Army
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
including its first General, PA 1, Muhammed Akbar Khan
Muhammed Akbar Khan
General Muhammed Akbar Khan , OBE served as a British Indian recruit in the First World War and an officer in Second World War. Muhammed Akbar Khan was the first Muslim from the South Asia to become a General in British Army. At the time of independence of Pakistan, he was the most senior Muslim...
(Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
), PA 2 General Muhammad Iftikhar Khan
Iftikhar Khan
Major General Muhammed Iftikhar Khan was an officer inherited by the Pakistan Army from British India. He had been nominated to become the first local Commander in Chief of the Pakistan Army after General Douglas David Gracey's retirement...
(designated to become the first C-in-C, but died in an aircrash), PA 12 Brig. General Muhammed Zafar (first Indian to become Commander of Cavalry) and PA 48 General Muhammad Anwar Khan (Pakistan's first E-in-C) all hail from this clan. General Anwar is considered the father of Pakistan's Corps of Engineers, and also served as Chairman OGDC.
Members of Muslim Minhas tribe have the honour of receiving top military awards both in British India and in Pakistan. Subaidar Khudadad Khan
Khudadad Khan
Khudadad Khan, VC , was the first South Asian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest military award for gallantry in the face of the enemy given to British and Commonwealth forces...
was awarded Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
, the first native Indian to receive this honour and Rashid Minhas
Rashid Minhas
Pilot Officer Rashid Minhas or Rashid Minhas Shaheed, NH, was a Pilot Officer in the Pakistan Air Force during the 1971 Pakistan-India War. Rashid Minhas, a newly commissioned officer at that time, is the only PAF officer who received the highest valor for his actions...
was awarded Pakistan's top military honour, the Nishan-E-Haider
Nishan-e-Haider
Nishan-e-Haider or Nishan-e-Hyder is the highest military decoration given by Pakistan . It was established in 1957 after Pakistan became a Republic, however, it was instituted retrospectively from Independence in 1947...
. He was also the youngest man and the only member of the Pakistan Air Force to win this coveted award. The Pakistan Air Force base at Kamra has been renamed in his honour.
Rashid Minhas
Rashid Minhas
Pilot Officer Rashid Minhas or Rashid Minhas Shaheed, NH, was a Pilot Officer in the Pakistan Air Force during the 1971 Pakistan-India War. Rashid Minhas, a newly commissioned officer at that time, is the only PAF officer who received the highest valor for his actions...
was posthumously awarded Pakistan's top military honour, the Nishan-E-Haider
Nishan-e-Haider
Nishan-e-Haider or Nishan-e-Hyder is the highest military decoration given by Pakistan . It was established in 1957 after Pakistan became a Republic, however, it was instituted retrospectively from Independence in 1947...
, and became the youngest man and the only member of the Pakistan Air Force to win the award. He also became a national hero. The Pakistan Air Force base at Kamra
Kamra
Kamra is located in Attock District in the mountainous north of the Punjab, Pakistan. The Pakistan Aeronautical Complex and PAF's Minhas Airbase are located in Kamra. It is the biggest air force base in whole of Pakistan...
has been renamed in his honour. In Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
he was honored by naming main street, Rashid Minhas Road
Politics and Civil-Public Services
Khan Bahadur Raja Sahib, Chaudhry Aurangzeb KhanChaudhry Aurangzeb Khan
Khan Bahadur Raja Saheb Chaudhry Aurangzeb Khan Saheb of Chakwal was a famous Minhas Rajput during the British era. In 1892 C.E he was given the title of Khan Bahadur for his services in establishing the town of Lyallpur . He was also conferred upon the title of 'Raja sahib' as a mark of hereditary...
of Chakwal was a famous Mair-Minhas Rajput during the British era. In 1892 CE he was given the title of Khan Bahadur
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
for his services in establishing the town of Lyallpur (now Faisalabad). He was also conferred upon the title of 'Raja Sahib' as a mark of hereditary distinction by Qaiser-e-Hind, His Majesty, King George V. His son, Raja Muhammed Sarfraz Khan
Raja Muhammed Sarfraz Khan
Raja Mohammed Sarfraz was a famous philanthropist, politician and a member of Pakistan Movement.-Political career:Raja Mohammad Sarfraz remained member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly for 29 consecutive years from 1929 to 1958. Raja Sarfraz Khan was a member of Allama Mashriqi's Khaksar Tehrik...
(MLA 1929-58) played an important role in the local politics during Pakistan Movement
Pakistan Movement
The Pakistan Movement or Tehrik-e-Pakistan refers to the historical movement to have an independent Muslim state named Pakistan created from the separation of the north-western region of the Indian subcontinent, partitioned within or outside the British Indian Empire. It had its origins in the...
. He was also instrumental in the educational progress of the region, and gave generous donations to set up schools and the Government College, Chakwal in 1949.
Raja Hukamdad Khan (1950s Vice Chairman, District Board Rawalpindi) from village Sagri was a prominent figure of pothoharregion. Who gave generous donations to built schools and for the welfare of a common man.
Another notable and one of the most prominent families in Rawalpindi, having very strong political, bureaucratic and military background is from Gujar Khan District Rawalpindi. This family has seen many shining names like Khan Sahab Bahadur Subaidar Raja Muhammad Nazar Khan (Viceroy Commissioned Officer and a strong landlord), Col. Raja Muhammad Ashraf Khan (Chairman District Board Rawalpindi, Member National Assembly & Member Provincial Assembly), Major General Retd. Raja Muhammad Aslam (Late) and Raja Pervez Ashraf (Member National Assembly and General Secretary Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarian - Present). Raja Pervaiz Ashraf is currently the federal Minister for Water and Power.
In the education field, we cannot forget the well known educationist Raja Abdul Rauf Minhas (26.10.1933 – 30.04.1998) who retired as a Deputy Director of Federal Government Educational Institutions (Cantt-Garrison) in 1993. He belonged to the Village Taraiya of the Pakhral
Pakhral
Pakhral Rajput is a sub clan of Minhas Rajput. Pakhral Rajputs are the Most Dynamic Rulers in the History of the Indian sub-continent and they deservedly hold the dinstinction of being the hero of sub-continent. The founders of the city and state of Jammu and its rulers from ancient times to 1948....
Minhas Rajput family of Rawalpindi. One of the only two asians in the institution, Raja Abdul Rauf Minhas obtained "Roll of Honour" from The University of Southampton, United Kingdom along with being a Gold-Medalist and top position holder in the University of Punjab, Pakistan. He had the distinction of being the first learned person of his village and among the very few well educated person of Minhas family in his era. Raja Abdul Rauf Minhas served as a Principal in F.G. Schools in Murree, Okara, Attock, Rawalpindi, Kharian etc. In the sixties, He also served as a Professor of Mathematics in the renowned Lawrence College Ghora Gali, Murree, where he was a teacher to known personalities like Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, Aftab Sherpao, Sardar Sadiq, CGCSC General Shamim Alam Khan
Shamim Alam Khan
General Shamim Alam Khan, NI, SJ, SBt, is a retired four-star rank general in the Pakistan Army was the Supreme Commandant of the Pakistan Defense Forces as Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1991 to 1994...
etc to name a few. During his tenure as a Principal of various intitutions, He was awarded the "BEST PRINCIPAL" award twice by Prime Ministers of Pakistan. He had a younger brother, Raja Abdul Latif Minhas (Deceased 18.10.2011), who retired as a senior Doctor of Fauji Foundation Hospital, Rawalpindi. It is also pertinent to mention that the renowned "Sohan" Village (Islamabad Highway) and "Misrial Road" of Rawalpindi (Now Capt. Jonaid Shaheed Road) was actually named after one of the elders of his family.[Malik waqas Kashmiri a Young software engineer and scholar ]
Minhas Villages in Punjab (India)
Anshupal & Baba Mati Dev, both grandsons of Biram Dev Minhas, a commander with first MughalMughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
emperor, Babar
Babur
Babur was a Muslim conqueror from Central Asia who, following a series of setbacks, finally succeeded in laying the basis for the Mughal dynasty of South Asia. He was a direct descendant of Timur through his father, and a descendant also of Genghis Khan through his mother...
established the Minhas clan villages of Daroli Kalan
Daroli Kalan
Daroli Kalan is a village near Adampur in the Jalandhar district of the state of Punjab in India. It has 1212 hectares of land. The village population was 3532 in 1991 census.- Geography :Daroli Kalan is located in the fertile plains of Doaba, Punjab...
, Droli Khurd, Damunda, Padhiana
Padhiana
Padhiana is a village in the tehsil and district of Jalandhar, Punjab, India. It falls in Adampur block of the district.The village has 794 hectares of land. The population of Padhiana was 2885 at the 1991 census.-Geography:...
& Paldi in East Punjab around the year 1530. Almost all these villages are located approximately seven kilometres from the town of Adampur
Adampur
Adampur is a city and a municipal council in Jalandhar district in the Indian state of Punjab.-Geography:Adampur Doaba is located at . It has an average elevation of 233 metres . The nearest hill station is Dharamshala which is the headquarters of the Dalai Lama...
except the village of Paldi and Dughe, which is in the Garhshankar Teshil in the Hoshiarpur District
Hoshiarpur District
Hoshiarpur District , is a district of Punjab state in northern India.In 2011, Hoshiarpur had population of 1,582,793 of which male and female were 806,921 and 775,872 respectively. There was change of 6.85 percent in the population compared to population as per 2001...
. The villages of Manko and Rajowal adjacent to Droli Kalan are inhabited by the Dhillon, Nijjar
Nijjar
Nijjar is a surname found commonly among people of the Jatt clan from the Northern Indian state of Punjab. Most of the members of this clan are Sikhs by religion although there are many Sikh/Hindu/Muslim/Christian/Roman Catholic Nijjar's belonging to the Khatri/Rajput/Gujjar caste...
and Sandhu
Sandhu
Sandhu or Sindhu is a Jatt of Jat ethnicity found in Iraq, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir in India and also in Pakistan...
Jat clans. The villages of Dughe and areas of the Hoshiarpur District
Hoshiarpur District
Hoshiarpur District , is a district of Punjab state in northern India.In 2011, Hoshiarpur had population of 1,582,793 of which male and female were 806,921 and 775,872 respectively. There was change of 6.85 percent in the population compared to population as per 2001...
were settled by the Minhas-Dogras(see family tree : http://www.dogra.net ) that trace their ancestry to Kaliash in the late 16th century.
The village of Haripur
Haripur Khalsa
Haripur Khalsa is a village in the Jalandhar district of Punjab state of India*Main Road : Phillaur-Nur Mahal 14 km*Railway Station : Partabpura 2 km*Development Bock: Phillaur...
which is just 2.5 kilometres from Adampur
Adampur
Adampur is a city and a municipal council in Jalandhar district in the Indian state of Punjab.-Geography:Adampur Doaba is located at . It has an average elevation of 233 metres . The nearest hill station is Dharamshala which is the headquarters of the Dalai Lama...
, also initially belonged to Haria Singh Minhas of the village of Damunda. This village was however surrendered, because of the criminal charges brought up against Haria Singh of molesting labourer women, on the direction of Lehna Singh Majithia, the in charge of Droli Kalan during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh
Ranjit Singh
Maharaja Ranjit Singh Ji was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.-Early life:...
. Today, although the owners of lands in these villages are mostly Jats because of the enforcement of new Land Laws by the British
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
in the year 1920, the land revenue record even today stands in the name of the Minhas Rajputs of Droli, Padhiana & Damunda.
Minhas Rajputs in Sikh history
Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh is the tenth and last Sikh guru in a sacred lineage of ten Sikh gurus. Born in Patna, Bihar in India, he was also a warrior, poet and philosopher. He succeeded his father Guru Tegh Bahadur as the leader of Sikhs at a young age of nine...
was Sangat Singh Minhas
Sangat Singh Minhas
Sangat Singh Minhas was the first Doaba Sikh Rajput to join the army of Guru Gobind Singh. He came from the village of Padhiana in the Jalandhar district, and joined the Guru’s forces with his two brothers and many other Rajput chiefs...
of Padhiana
Padhiana
Padhiana is a village in the tehsil and district of Jalandhar, Punjab, India. It falls in Adampur block of the district.The village has 794 hectares of land. The population of Padhiana was 2885 at the 1991 census.-Geography:...
in the Jalandhar
Jalandhar District
Jalandhar district , Jalandhar Zilā) is one of the 22 districts in the state of Punjab in North-West Republic of India. The capital is Jalandhar City...
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
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
sent a small group of armed men to collect tax dues from the Rajput Hill Chiefs in whose territory, Anandpur
Anandpur Sahib
Anandpur Sahib is a city in Rupnagar district in the state of Punjab, India. Known as "the holy City of Bliss," it is a holy city of the Sikhs and is one of their most important sacred places, closely linked with their religious traditions and history...
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 Minhas
Sangat Singh Minhas was the first Doaba Sikh Rajput to join the army of Guru Gobind Singh. He came from the village of Padhiana in the Jalandhar district, and joined the Guru’s forces with his two brothers and many other Rajput chiefs...
. 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
Kahlur
Kahlur , covering an area of 1173 km², and currently a part of Himachal Pradesh state, was one of the Princely states of India during the period of the British Raj. The state was founded in/around 697 by Kahal Chand. Kahal Chand had built a fort, which was named after him, and was called...
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
Sangat Singh Minhas
Sangat Singh Minhas was the first Doaba Sikh Rajput to join the army of Guru Gobind Singh. He came from the village of Padhiana in the Jalandhar district, and joined the Guru’s forces with his two brothers and many other Rajput chiefs...
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
Bhai Bachittar Singh
Bhai Bachittar Singh , often known with the honorific "Shaheed" , was a Minhas Sikh Rajput hero, a warrior under Guru Gobind Singh.-Early Life:...
Minhas of Padhiana
Padhiana
Padhiana is a village in the tehsil and district of Jalandhar, Punjab, India. It falls in Adampur block of the district.The village has 794 hectares of land. The population of Padhiana was 2885 at the 1991 census.-Geography:...
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
Sirhind -Fategarh
Sirhind-Fatehgarh सरहिंद سرحىند is a city and a municipal council in Fatehgarh Sahib district in the Indian state of Punjab. It is often simply called Sirhind...
joined them. Guru Gobind Singh had only 2000 men under the command of Bhai Bachittar Singh
Bhai Bachittar Singh
Bhai Bachittar Singh , often known with the honorific "Shaheed" , was a Minhas Sikh Rajput hero, a warrior under Guru Gobind Singh.-Early Life:...
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
Bhai Bachittar Singh
Bhai Bachittar Singh , often known with the honorific "Shaheed" , was a Minhas Sikh Rajput hero, a warrior under Guru Gobind Singh.-Early Life:...
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
Nabha
Nabha is a city and municipal council in the Patiala district to the south-west of the Indian state of Punjab. In 1998, the annual income of Nabha state was Rs 1,50,000/-.- Princely State of Nabha :...
and Jind
Jind
Jind is a town in Jind District, Harayana state, India.It is one of the oldest districts of Harayana. It is one of the first Sikh Kingdoms. It lies in central Haryana and is the fourth district of the Jat belt .The city is beautiful...
states during Vikrami Samvat 1763, Bhai Bachittar Singh
Bhai Bachittar Singh
Bhai Bachittar Singh , often known with the honorific "Shaheed" , was a Minhas Sikh Rajput hero, a warrior under Guru Gobind Singh.-Early Life:...
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
Banda Bahadur
Banda Singh Bahadur was a Sikh warrior and martyr. He became part of struggle against the Mughal Empire in the early 18th century, after meeting Guru Gobind Singh. Guru Gobind Singh gave him the new name of Banda Singh Bahadur...
took over the torch of the Khalsa to fight against Mughal oppression. Banda reorganised the Khalsa
Khalsa
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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 Jagir
Jagir
In historic India, a jagir was a small territory granted by the ruler to an army chieftain in fairly short terms usually of three years but not extending beyond his lifetime, in recognition of his military service...
s to his army commanders including the Rajputs, whose heirs are still holding their forts in the villages Chukhiara, Bhungarni, Dihana and Bohan.
Minhas Jatts
VirkVirk
Virk Wirk Birk Vrik Varika is a gotra of the Jat clan found in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. Typically, Virks are tall, thin and fair-skinned. In western Punjab, Virks are supposed to belong to the Mahe dynasty and Manhas or Minhas are considered to be brethren of the Virks. Birk...
, Pakhral
Pakhral
Pakhral Rajput is a sub clan of Minhas Rajput. Pakhral Rajputs are the Most Dynamic Rulers in the History of the Indian sub-continent and they deservedly hold the dinstinction of being the hero of sub-continent. The founders of the city and state of Jammu and its rulers from ancient times to 1948....
, Lodhra
Lodhra
The Lodhra are a tribe of Muslim Rajputs, found mainly in Lodhran District of Punjab, Pakistan.The tribe claims descent from Lodhra, a son of Sukhram Dev, a ManhasRajput. Lodhra is said to have come to the district in the 17th Century, and founded the town of Lodhran. The tribe converted to Islam...
,and Mahe are also sub-branches of the Minhas.
Before 1932, in all census, most Virk
Virk
Virk Wirk Birk Vrik Varika is a gotra of the Jat clan found in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. Typically, Virks are tall, thin and fair-skinned. In western Punjab, Virks are supposed to belong to the Mahe dynasty and Manhas or Minhas are considered to be brethren of the Virks. Birk...
s mention themselves as Virk
Virk
Virk Wirk Birk Vrik Varika is a gotra of the Jat clan found in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. Typically, Virks are tall, thin and fair-skinned. In western Punjab, Virks are supposed to belong to the Mahe dynasty and Manhas or Minhas are considered to be brethren of the Virks. Birk...
Minhas. The headquarter of the Virks appears to be Gujranwala and Lahore districts, especially, the former in which they own 132 villages. They claim origin from a Minhas Rajput called Virk, who left Jammu and settled at Ghuchli in Amritsar, and then in Gujranwala. Nearly a third of them have returned themselves as Rajputs, but they freely inter marry with the neighboring Jatt clans. They say that their ancestor, Virk was a descendant of Raja Malan Hans Dev, the founder of the Manhas or Minhas clan and was connected with the Rajas of Jammu. Leaving Paragowal(Raja Parago Minhas is the founder of paragowal) in Jammu, he settled in Amritsar and married a Gill Jat girl. His descendants, shortly afterwards, moved westward into Gujranwala. There are three main sections of the tribe, the Jopur, Vachra, and Jan. Virks rose to some political importance about the end of the 18th century, ruling a considerable tract in Gujranwala and Lahore, till subdued by Ranjit Singh. Another branch of Minhas Rajputs is known as Pakhral,who are mostly found in the areas around Rawalpindi and also in Kashmir.
Minhas Jatts also reside in the villages of Mair, Chotala, Nagayal and suburbs of Jhelum. There are many other villages of Minhas Jatts in the Pothohar region. They are proud to be known as Jatis. Pakhrals are also setteled in Suiyan Sharif Sehnsa Kotli (Azad) Kashmir. Mair Minhas, Ratiyal, Lodhra, Dolchial, etc. are also sub-clans of Pakhral.
Notable people
- Rashid MinhasRashid MinhasPilot Officer Rashid Minhas or Rashid Minhas Shaheed, NH, was a Pilot Officer in the Pakistan Air Force during the 1971 Pakistan-India War. Rashid Minhas, a newly commissioned officer at that time, is the only PAF officer who received the highest valor for his actions...
- Awarded Pakistan's top military honour, the Nishan-E-HaiderNishan-e-HaiderNishan-e-Haider or Nishan-e-Hyder is the highest military decoration given by Pakistan . It was established in 1957 after Pakistan became a Republic, however, it was instituted retrospectively from Independence in 1947...
, and became the youngest man and the only member of the Pakistan Air ForcePakistan Air ForceThe Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
to win this award. - General Muhammed Akbar KhanMuhammed Akbar KhanGeneral Muhammed Akbar Khan , OBE served as a British Indian recruit in the First World War and an officer in Second World War. Muhammed Akbar Khan was the first Muslim from the South Asia to become a General in British Army. At the time of independence of Pakistan, he was the most senior Muslim...
- He was the first Muslim from the South Asia to become a General in British Indian Army and at the time of independence of Pakistan, he was the most senior Muslim General and he was allotted the number one by the Pakistan ArmyPakistan ArmyThe Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
. He also served as the first ADC of the Quaid-e-Azam, Muhammed Ali Jinnah.