Mehtab Singh Bhangu

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Mehtab Singh Bhangu
Sukha Singh and Mehtab Singh return with severed head of Massa Ranghar.jpg
Mehtab Singh and Sukha Singh return with severed head of Massa Ranghar
Died1745
Cause of deathExecution by being crushed to death on the spikes of a charkhari wheel

Mehtab Singh (d. 1745) was a Sikh warrior and martyr. [1] He is remembered by Sikhs for being one of the two assassins of Massa Ranghar, alongside Sukha Singh and as one of the notable Sikh martyrs of the 18th century. [2]

Contents

Background

Mehtab Singh was a Jat Sikh of the Bhangu clan hailing from Mirankot. [3]

Revenge at Harmandir Sahib

On 11 August 1740 A.D. they dressed up as landlords from Patti and entered the city of Amritsar. They reached Harmandir Sahib and then tied their horses to the berry tree and went inside Harmandir Sahib carrying the bags. Massa Ranghar [4] was smoking shisha and watching dancing girls. The Sikhs threw the bags under Massa's bed and said that they had come to pay the revenue. Massa bent downwards to have a look at the bags. Mehtab Singh immediately took his sword and slashed it at Massa's neck and instantly severed his head. Sukha Singh finished off the guards of Massa Ranghar. They put Massa's head in a bag and rode their horses back to Talwandi Sabo the same evening. The next day they reached Bikaner and presented Massa Ranghar's head on a spear to the congregation (Dal) of Sikhs. [4]

Death

19th century drawing depicting the martyrdom of Taru Singh and Mehtab Singh Bhangu. Taru Singh is being scalped in the foreground whilst Mehtab Singh is being killed by a 'charkhari' (death wheel) in the background on the right-side. Taru Singh and Mehtab Singh Bhangu martyrdom.jpg
19th century drawing depicting the martyrdom of Taru Singh and Mehtab Singh Bhangu. Taru Singh is being scalped in the foreground whilst Mehtab Singh is being killed by a 'charkhari' (death wheel) in the background on the right-side.

In 1745, Mehtab Singh was captured by the Mughals after being pursued by them for five years after being given intel on his whereabouts by a spy named Harbhagat Niranjania. [5] Bhangu was crushed to death on the spikes of wheel (charkhari) at Lahore in 1745 on the orders of Zakaria Khan. [5] He was martyred alongside Taru Singh, who was scalped alive. [4]

Legacy

Rattan Singh Bhangu, author of the Sikh historiographical text 'Prachin Panth Parkash', was his grandson. [6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Matab Singh". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
  2. ↑ Oberoi, Harjot Singh (15 December 1994). The Construction of Religious Boundaries: Culture, Identity, and Diversity in the Sikh Tradition. University of Chicago Press. p. 330. ISBN   9780226615929.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
  3. ↑ Jhutti, Sundeep S. (2003). The Getes. Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, University of Pennsylvania. p. 21. Mehtab Singh of Mirankot rushed to Amritsar ... Mehtab Singh, a Jat Sikh of the Bhangu clan
  4. 1 2 3 Singha, Dr H. S. (2005). Sikh Studies. Hemkunt Press. ISBN   9788170102588.
  5. 1 2 Kaur, Madanjit (1983). The Golden Temple: Past and Present. Department of Guru Nanak Studies, Guru Nanak Dev University Press. p. 41. ISBN   9780836413250.
  6. ↑ Singh, Harbans (1995). The Encyclopaedia of Sikhism. Punjabi University of Patiala. ISBN   9788173801006.
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